Thanks to Kate for writing and reading this! In just 3 minutes 36 seconds you described precisely why Internet writing and reading can be dull and dulling. But you also share the antidote: Writing with care and intelligence for a subset of readers who are not bots and who want to connect with fellow thinking humans.
Thank you for this. I very recently decided to stop sharing my writing on Instagram/social media and move to Substack instead. It feels extremely freeing and affirming knowing that my writing is now reaching people that, by nature of subscribing, actually want to read what I’m saying. It’s daunting but so much more rewarding.
This is such a good post. I've been really sad to see on the Substack Facebook group that many of the writers' raison d'etre is 'clicks' and 'pay subscribes', as if their very existence on Substack depends on it. TBH, my favourite newsletters are those who write quietly, with beautiful language, from their heart and soul and don't necessarily charge for it. Sure they have extra packages for those who wish to pay, but their approach is egalitarian. They're the ones I feel whose content is most often 'share'-able.
It would be nice to generate an income from my Substack but I am a novelist anyway, so for me it's immaterial. What I really enjoy is writing for kindred spirits - that connection is gold.
Nice read! I recently started my own newsletter The Hustle on work & career lately and I feel that I can offer something more personal with it that mainstream outlets don't do with their newsletters. It is nice to feel the support from people on the way and hearing the personal aspect it what is attractive about it.
Insightful! Thank you. I particularly liked what you said about clarifying a moment with reason. And I’m with you, why are people who hit a paywall surprised?
Beautiful and helpful and important! You are part of the solution! TY and I really needed to see this because I’ve discovered that one of my favorite content providers did a bait and switch… Starting under the guise of being a great person offering a benevolent service… Only to announce a new book, and a new store, and and and. Deeply disappointing deeply troubling and that’s the end of that. At least for me. So, TY. I’ll go is search of resonate writers. They are out there. I’m sure
This is an important point. Many readers are hypersensitive to bait and switch tricks or Agent Provocateurs. Leaders pull in followers with an appeal to reality and truth, and then suddenly converge to the Establishment, or turn out to be selling bitcoin. I've stopped a couple of subscriptions, perhaps prematurely, when I detected the signs of a Gotcha.
Writers who intend to stay on the path of truth should check their prose carefully to see if it sounds like a betrayal. Writers who are selling a product should declare their product initially and consistently.
I agree with you. This is why sometimes, I take a break from posting what I have written down and I am glad because my readers understand I want the best for them. I also update them on events when my posting days doesn't happen as planned.
Nothing beats pieces that work to clarify a moment with reason. A significant moment is upon us. The way readers manage their consumption of writing is evolving before our very screens. Dear Writer: Advice on creating trust with your readers lends clarity to what a best collective writers field response would look like. In that same moment, writers liberate from an advertisement industry that impurely influences the craft, quality replaces quantity of what's being put out there, and readers' self-curated experiences mode arises as the key resolve for media saturation brought about by the Information Age. Realizing where the cutting edge of innovation is in Writing is all the reason I need to focus on this space. Glad the key to harnessing it is in better reader engagement.
I appreciate your opinion. it is important. but in a digital realm of information where people can pay for thousands of likes (including positive comments), that seems like some sort of 'click model' which masquerades as an advertising model.
other than that, I basically resonate with your podcast on creating trust, so thank you.
a fellow writer about creativity, motivation, and the writing life? Submit your question for consideration for a future advice column by leaving it in the comments below,
Thanks to Kate for writing and reading this! In just 3 minutes 36 seconds you described precisely why Internet writing and reading can be dull and dulling. But you also share the antidote: Writing with care and intelligence for a subset of readers who are not bots and who want to connect with fellow thinking humans.
Thank you for this. I very recently decided to stop sharing my writing on Instagram/social media and move to Substack instead. It feels extremely freeing and affirming knowing that my writing is now reaching people that, by nature of subscribing, actually want to read what I’m saying. It’s daunting but so much more rewarding.
Welcome!
Thank you!
Wonderful advice Kate. My biggest takeaway is this one sentence :
"Our best-performing pieces for Embedded are often the ones that seek to make the reader feel understood. "
Thanks for sharing this article.
That line struck me as well. It’s very special when the reader connects with the work and feels seen.
This is such a good post. I've been really sad to see on the Substack Facebook group that many of the writers' raison d'etre is 'clicks' and 'pay subscribes', as if their very existence on Substack depends on it. TBH, my favourite newsletters are those who write quietly, with beautiful language, from their heart and soul and don't necessarily charge for it. Sure they have extra packages for those who wish to pay, but their approach is egalitarian. They're the ones I feel whose content is most often 'share'-able.
It would be nice to generate an income from my Substack but I am a novelist anyway, so for me it's immaterial. What I really enjoy is writing for kindred spirits - that connection is gold.
Nice read! I recently started my own newsletter The Hustle on work & career lately and I feel that I can offer something more personal with it that mainstream outlets don't do with their newsletters. It is nice to feel the support from people on the way and hearing the personal aspect it what is attractive about it.
Great advice!! Thank you.
Specially your comment about treating our readers well. V
Insightful! Thank you. I particularly liked what you said about clarifying a moment with reason. And I’m with you, why are people who hit a paywall surprised?
Beautiful and helpful and important! You are part of the solution! TY and I really needed to see this because I’ve discovered that one of my favorite content providers did a bait and switch… Starting under the guise of being a great person offering a benevolent service… Only to announce a new book, and a new store, and and and. Deeply disappointing deeply troubling and that’s the end of that. At least for me. So, TY. I’ll go is search of resonate writers. They are out there. I’m sure
This is an important point. Many readers are hypersensitive to bait and switch tricks or Agent Provocateurs. Leaders pull in followers with an appeal to reality and truth, and then suddenly converge to the Establishment, or turn out to be selling bitcoin. I've stopped a couple of subscriptions, perhaps prematurely, when I detected the signs of a Gotcha.
Writers who intend to stay on the path of truth should check their prose carefully to see if it sounds like a betrayal. Writers who are selling a product should declare their product initially and consistently.
can a substack writer put anything out there based on personal experience
I do that with my personal essays.
They're the ones I prefer to read...
thank you for sharing this!
love "Trust recommendations from humans" and "treat your clicks like currency"
happy to have invested in these clickings right here!
I agree with you. This is why sometimes, I take a break from posting what I have written down and I am glad because my readers understand I want the best for them. I also update them on events when my posting days doesn't happen as planned.
Nothing beats pieces that work to clarify a moment with reason. A significant moment is upon us. The way readers manage their consumption of writing is evolving before our very screens. Dear Writer: Advice on creating trust with your readers lends clarity to what a best collective writers field response would look like. In that same moment, writers liberate from an advertisement industry that impurely influences the craft, quality replaces quantity of what's being put out there, and readers' self-curated experiences mode arises as the key resolve for media saturation brought about by the Information Age. Realizing where the cutting edge of innovation is in Writing is all the reason I need to focus on this space. Glad the key to harnessing it is in better reader engagement.
I appreciate your opinion. it is important. but in a digital realm of information where people can pay for thousands of likes (including positive comments), that seems like some sort of 'click model' which masquerades as an advertising model.
other than that, I basically resonate with your podcast on creating trust, so thank you.
nice. good listen
a fellow writer about creativity, motivation, and the writing life? Submit your question for consideration for a future advice column by leaving it in the comments below,
https://www.clickercounter.org/