Stop the Writing World, I Need to Catch Up!

When I first jumped into the writing world, I approached it like a good student: researching, studying, learning, applying. And though everything was a bit overwhelming--with a lot of homework—I finally felt like I was on top of things. For about twenty minutes.

I mean, when you consider that it took hundreds of years for writers to go from penning words to typing words, the profession crawled along. And then technology arrived and zoom! It’s impossible to catch up with the constant innovation. The next new thing comes around just about daily. It's enough to make your head spin.

So when I see something new in the writing world, it might take a minute to make an impression. That’s what happened this week, when, after months of seeing Substack mentioned here and there, I finally studied up on the new platform. 

Well, I say “new” but Substack has been around since 2017—and it seems to be growing by leaps and bounds. Or maybe I should say dollars and cents because Substack is all about subscriptions. And though it’s possible to have a free Substack, I’m sure that once an audience explodes, the switch is made to the paid option. Which works out well for everybody. 

But you might be like me, wondering what the heck is Substack, anyway? And why should you, as a writer, care? So first, here’s the way the company describes itself: the subscription network for independent writers and creators. It’s mostly a platform for a blog (and you can export your already-developed blog from another platform), or a newsletter, or even a podcast, and it can set up the content for free or payment. (Substack makes a percentage of the subscription fee since they do all the tech work that you don’t want to do.) 

I’m sure there are writers/creators who are making a chunk of money; I’m not so sure they’re producing fiction (or essays or poetry). But that’s not saying an author couldn’t use Substack in a creative way. For example, a comic writer providing funny podcasts, or the novelist who might serialize their work. 

Substack reminds me a little of magazines. But instead of paying twenty dollars for a year’s worth of articles, maybe even a monthly short story and “lighter side” essays, the Substack reader picks very specific content and it’s digital only. 

The business model probably has much to do with the audience. My target audience, for example, is the more mature reader. They might read an ebook but they prefer paperbacks. They’ll look for favorite authors on Amazon or at bookstores; they like to attend book-signings. They have a TBR stack next to the bed. Yep, these are my people. 

Then there’s the readers who grew up connected to the Internet. They prefer getting their news or entertainment on their phones; they like their content in quick bites of three hundred words, and they may already be paying for their favorite podcasts. This is, I suspect, the Substack crowd. 

Ultimately, it’s like any business. If the value’s there, if there’s a market, readers will show up. Until the next new thing in the writing world comes along. And then off we’ll all go, sprinting to catch up!

Substack doesn’t feel like a good fit for me now but what about you? Have you explored this platform and/or use it?

Cathy C. Hall who finally wrote a new blog post!

Photo by Daryl Wilkerson Jr: