So, a couple of things. In terms of what the worth is for Substack—Substack is a place to publish writing, and anyone can do it. Like blogs of the 2000s, some are good, some are bad, some are meh. Some are popular, and some have very few readers at all. All blogs and newsletter start out with no readers, unless you're importing …
So, a couple of things. In terms of what the worth is for Substack—Substack is a place to publish writing, and anyone can do it. Like blogs of the 2000s, some are good, some are bad, some are meh. Some are popular, and some have very few readers at all. All blogs and newsletter start out with no readers, unless you're importing an existing mailing list, and even that list had to start from nothing at some point. Newsletters are fun for the same reason that blogs and social media was fun at first—you could speak, and strangers might hear you. All of the people I know who make a living on Substack, or even a part of a living, were professional writers already before they started their newsletter, and I am no exception. These people were journalists or beat reporters or features writers or freelancers or bestselling novelists or acclaimed poets. They were editors for popular blogs run by other, more famous people. Or, if they were not professional writers, they were business people or musicians or fine artists or activists with a lot of social media followers. Some people however are finding more of an audience on Substack than they had otherwise. It has been particularly kind to culture writers, op-ed columnists, and essayists.
In terms of Substack's essence/function, it's just like a blog or newspaper column that comes to your inbox. And like those things, sometimes you have to pay if you want to read it. So that is the function: a place to publish writing, and a platform where people can read it and pay for it if they want. Putting work up on Substack is helpful for me, because it encourages me to do a certain kind of work that interests me, but it may not be helpful for everyone. It all depends. Will it help you get a book published? I don't know. It's possible that a literary agent might see your Substack and get in touch with you. It used to happen with blogs, which could turn into book deals. It happens on social media all the time, where a literary agent will approach a writer they meet there. So from that angle, it might be helpful for a writer who is looking to be published. It's another way that their writing might reach the eyes of someone who wants to publish them or help get them published. Or, it can serve as the publication. You can publish your novel in installments, just like Jules Verne did back in the day.
As for writing workshops, I think there are different approaches and pedagogies that work best for different people. Some people learn best when they're simply given a space to work and the encouragement to keep working. Aggressive critique will not always improve someone's writing.
Hi Ernie,
So, a couple of things. In terms of what the worth is for Substack—Substack is a place to publish writing, and anyone can do it. Like blogs of the 2000s, some are good, some are bad, some are meh. Some are popular, and some have very few readers at all. All blogs and newsletter start out with no readers, unless you're importing an existing mailing list, and even that list had to start from nothing at some point. Newsletters are fun for the same reason that blogs and social media was fun at first—you could speak, and strangers might hear you. All of the people I know who make a living on Substack, or even a part of a living, were professional writers already before they started their newsletter, and I am no exception. These people were journalists or beat reporters or features writers or freelancers or bestselling novelists or acclaimed poets. They were editors for popular blogs run by other, more famous people. Or, if they were not professional writers, they were business people or musicians or fine artists or activists with a lot of social media followers. Some people however are finding more of an audience on Substack than they had otherwise. It has been particularly kind to culture writers, op-ed columnists, and essayists.
In terms of Substack's essence/function, it's just like a blog or newspaper column that comes to your inbox. And like those things, sometimes you have to pay if you want to read it. So that is the function: a place to publish writing, and a platform where people can read it and pay for it if they want. Putting work up on Substack is helpful for me, because it encourages me to do a certain kind of work that interests me, but it may not be helpful for everyone. It all depends. Will it help you get a book published? I don't know. It's possible that a literary agent might see your Substack and get in touch with you. It used to happen with blogs, which could turn into book deals. It happens on social media all the time, where a literary agent will approach a writer they meet there. So from that angle, it might be helpful for a writer who is looking to be published. It's another way that their writing might reach the eyes of someone who wants to publish them or help get them published. Or, it can serve as the publication. You can publish your novel in installments, just like Jules Verne did back in the day.
As for writing workshops, I think there are different approaches and pedagogies that work best for different people. Some people learn best when they're simply given a space to work and the encouragement to keep working. Aggressive critique will not always improve someone's writing.
Thanks for reading!
Summer