Honestly this is such a real take. I find that a lot of my posts don't do well numbers-wise because I just don't think people come to Substack to read the niche I write, but I've grown to be okay with that. It's such a good platform to engage and consume good quality work and the couple of recognitions I do get feel more personal in a way. And because of the demographic on this site, I also think most of us are the kind of people to appreciate quality posts once a month over a quantity of quick takes once a day. Anyway, that's just my two cents. Keep up the great work and don't feel pressured to put on the clown nose and perform! Your content is great no matter what medium you create it with, because it's coming from you :)
hey Angelina thank you so much for your comment! i think substack has its own niche of what becomes popular and what doesn’t and that’s quite sad because some authors truly have talent outside of that and all talent should be celebrated equally. it’s still a new platform in a way unlike reddit and i’m sure more people within your niche will find their way here soon enough. i think you’re right about the demographic aspect of this: people like long term posts more than rapid fire hot takes but it can happen. i’ve seen some of notes ready hundreds of like and my posts don’t receive the same attention hence why i’m worried
Thank you! Yeah of course, I’ve also noticed that notes get much more engagement than longer posts, and it’s gotten me a bit worried too. I think anytime a platform gets more popular it starts becoming dilluted.
I think the 'staying relevant' part of the equation on Substack is a lot lighter than other social media platforms. Maybe it's trending heavier, but IMO, it's still light. Mainly because the things one publishes on Substack appears in email inboxes, and most people I know aren't actually browsing from Substack.
I think the truth is that for 80% of subscribers, once they subscribe, they're not actually waiting for the next email in their inbox. When it comes, it comes. When it doesn't, they're not like, "huh, this person didn't publish for a while now. I'm going to unsubscribe."
That said, I get the urge to write more and publish more. I recently changed strategies and decided to publish daily quietly (on my blog) and send a newsletter collating the good ones -- the ones actually worth sharing -- via Substack. With this I've changed the dynamic for my self-publishing: create something daily, publish via Substack weekly containing some of those creations. I feel happier, FWIW!
hey nick! thank you so much for reading. i agree that substack's urge to stay relevant is lighter than other social media (so far, we'll see how things progress now that we have notes) and i love your new publishing strategy, that's defo interesting, much to think about <3
I think you just need to write authentically to you and not give a shit about the numbers. I know that’s hard. Just my two cents! Cheers to the shared journey!
Totally! Write because you love it or have something to share! Don’t worry about the numbers but hey this isn’t my day job nor do I rely on paid subscriptions. I realize for those people it might be different. Looking forward to checking out your work.
I'm quite "new" here, again. I remember I opened this back on 2022 hoping to get much more space to create/write, and perhaps as -all of us- get someone that connects with the writing. I feel what you describe. I felt so dumb when I saw the "notes" section and felt how it turned something like threads/X now. Can we get it back? Just in my personal opinion, as it created a fast-pace environment. The urge to post. And then I just get a lot of "subscribe for subscribe", are we turning again another platform a haunted house for the sake of capitalism? Is it that we have already so engraved capitalism in our blood that we have to make it big numbers and big impact and the next influencer? I came here because I was tired of getting just "likes" , expressing in emojis, in seconds... I came here because I was expecting to write more and read more at my own peace without feeling i'm left behind or that i need to fit in a schedule or algorithm, interact more, meet new people and most importantly to remember that we are not alone in this boat of feelings and thoughts...and i hope that we can all get that, here for the sake of stability. Thank you for expressing this.
Hey Artemis! thank you so much for reading and for commenting. i completely agree with you that notes are transforming the app. just yesterday there was a big argument that turned into bullying on notes and it felt like we were on twitter and i don’t like it. personally i like to use notes to share memes and personal thoughts but when i see new creators being like “ i’m new here, if you follow me i’ll follow you back” it sends the wrong message about your reason for being here. it should be about sharing your thoughts and creating a genuine community, not about getting nameless subscribers…
Totally, it's what I've been pondering in recent days. I guess—at least that's what I've concluded and chosen—that this space will be whatever we decide to protect and continue nourishing 🌱 and the other...just skip, skip & skip.
so so real, even down to posting notes with pictures and stuff. I see my fav writers do that regularly and I usually have no urge to do so, i’m just not used to it. then there’s this voice in the back of my head that says “you’re not doing enough, you’re never going to get anywhere like this”. then I have to remind myself to slow down and enjoy the process, but it’s just cyclical lol
we each have our own rhythms and things we are willing to do and not to do. there is no right path to success, and writing is not an easily successful endeavor to begin with so it's difficult to measure the definition of success. But yeah notes can be annoying, I post on them but I'm almost never on there unless if it's to find new people to read from. I love it when people share other people's writing and I love reading it.
This is so real. I had to realize this past week I don't really have anything "new" to say or anything worthy of shock value. I don't want to feel like I have to reinvent the wheel or make some shocking new discovery every week, sometimes I want to write something just for the heck of it or just for fun. I don't think we need to be so crazy deep or analytical 24/7 here
I feel this so much. I am a slow writer and I struggle here sometimes, feels like everyone is writing The Next Great Essay every week! This has been putting me off lately and I haven't been the platform as much, so I appreciate your take on this! 🧡
Needed this more than you could’ve imagined. Thank you for the blessing of this piece. The internal pressure of needed to be validated, related to and even admired for words online is lethal😭 after only 2 posts there’s that voice of “why tf is nobody interacting with me” begins screaming and I feel a sense of embarrassment. The aim of popularity is a killer and a comparison of ‘why does she get likes and I don’t’ is a trap I’m beginning to realise i won’t fall for. It’s literally equivalent to a jigsaw trap to compare creativity and the popularity of it. So thank you for this again, a beautiful reminder that the world will continue to spin if your post only gets 1 like💅
I really don't want substack to turn into all other social media... where people strive to be popular and relevant for some amount of followers. substack is such a safe and wholesome space for me and I hope it stays that way <3
i missed following cute blogs after the blogger and tumblr era, so when substack came i was so happy! we’re just all writing and spilling our guts and supporting each other. wanna keep it this way <3
It's all about a balance, which can be so hard to find but so important to keeping your love for writing. Oh! and not forgetting why you started in the first place.
I can definitely relate to this. I want people to read my content and grow my platform, but I don’t feel like I can write these super in-depth long form articles that seem to get a lot of traction on here every single week. Plus, the fact that it’s a balance between coming up with unique content in your niche and simply writing what you want to write without thinking about numbers is a challenge.
Oh, Luciana, this was such an important post to write.
Super relatable.
We all feel like this.
Ngl, I always want to post more in a week but a non fiction opinionated post is only of my posts. I can’t come up with more opinions in one week. 😅
Instead, I post my already written poems in that week to feel relevant and also keep giving something to my readers frequently.
There’s always an urge to keep going and keep writing. That’s human nature. But sometimes, taking a break is equally important. As you said, this app is run by us, we can take our own decisions without any hesitation.
THIS…but I will say that writings will come to me organically, I’ll never open this app and think hmm, how can I stay relevant, or what can I write today that will go viral, or that everyone will “like” Do I like “likes” we all do as you mentioned — but I’ll never write for the sake of staying relevant, the sake of likes, wokeness/not wokeness or whatever other reason. Some people (actually many) are naturally great at writing and could write short essays & epic poetry everyday, I’m not that person, but every now and again (ok, maybe more than that) 😝 a thought will come to mind & I’ll run with it… words coming faster than I can put down. That might take a month… it might take 6 months. I’m new here and my notes haven’t gotten much attn at all, but my 1st big “essay” if you will — Dear, God it’s me, Annie got some. I didn’t come here to stress about Substack attn ( I so want it to be different than IG) and I hope it is… my hope is also that some of you resonate with what I say, to inspire the most uncomfortable writers (me) and others, to come here in this space and feel good, good about what they’re writing & hopefully not to worry about engagement, likes & restacks. Loving it here so far with all of you amazing writers ✍🏻🤍 let’s do try though to support each other 🤩
hey Annie, thank you so much for commenting. i'm so happy you've found a space to share your writing where you don't have to care about engagement and everything and i hope this app stays that way for you! much love <3
so so real!! particularly related to "when I see writers post 4/5 times a week I feel a tingle of jealousy. How do you do it? How do you have so much to write about? So many opinions?" literally feel this most times i scroll my notes page and people keep cropping up having posted numerous in depth heartfelt pieces a week! i have massive respect for it and wish i could do that, but i have to take like three/four weeks off after posting one piece and it takes me about two/three weeks to write a decent piece and feel comfortable and ready enough to post it haha! <3
Honestly this is such a real take. I find that a lot of my posts don't do well numbers-wise because I just don't think people come to Substack to read the niche I write, but I've grown to be okay with that. It's such a good platform to engage and consume good quality work and the couple of recognitions I do get feel more personal in a way. And because of the demographic on this site, I also think most of us are the kind of people to appreciate quality posts once a month over a quantity of quick takes once a day. Anyway, that's just my two cents. Keep up the great work and don't feel pressured to put on the clown nose and perform! Your content is great no matter what medium you create it with, because it's coming from you :)
hey Angelina thank you so much for your comment! i think substack has its own niche of what becomes popular and what doesn’t and that’s quite sad because some authors truly have talent outside of that and all talent should be celebrated equally. it’s still a new platform in a way unlike reddit and i’m sure more people within your niche will find their way here soon enough. i think you’re right about the demographic aspect of this: people like long term posts more than rapid fire hot takes but it can happen. i’ve seen some of notes ready hundreds of like and my posts don’t receive the same attention hence why i’m worried
Thank you! Yeah of course, I’ve also noticed that notes get much more engagement than longer posts, and it’s gotten me a bit worried too. I think anytime a platform gets more popular it starts becoming dilluted.
I think the 'staying relevant' part of the equation on Substack is a lot lighter than other social media platforms. Maybe it's trending heavier, but IMO, it's still light. Mainly because the things one publishes on Substack appears in email inboxes, and most people I know aren't actually browsing from Substack.
I think the truth is that for 80% of subscribers, once they subscribe, they're not actually waiting for the next email in their inbox. When it comes, it comes. When it doesn't, they're not like, "huh, this person didn't publish for a while now. I'm going to unsubscribe."
That said, I get the urge to write more and publish more. I recently changed strategies and decided to publish daily quietly (on my blog) and send a newsletter collating the good ones -- the ones actually worth sharing -- via Substack. With this I've changed the dynamic for my self-publishing: create something daily, publish via Substack weekly containing some of those creations. I feel happier, FWIW!
hey nick! thank you so much for reading. i agree that substack's urge to stay relevant is lighter than other social media (so far, we'll see how things progress now that we have notes) and i love your new publishing strategy, that's defo interesting, much to think about <3
I think you just need to write authentically to you and not give a shit about the numbers. I know that’s hard. Just my two cents! Cheers to the shared journey!
I wrote a piece on this. Write for yourself because the numbers are discouraging and lead to burnout (because when is enough ever enough?)
Totally! Write because you love it or have something to share! Don’t worry about the numbers but hey this isn’t my day job nor do I rely on paid subscriptions. I realize for those people it might be different. Looking forward to checking out your work.
Here is me spending 4–5 hours every week to write a 5-minute long article😭
I'm quite "new" here, again. I remember I opened this back on 2022 hoping to get much more space to create/write, and perhaps as -all of us- get someone that connects with the writing. I feel what you describe. I felt so dumb when I saw the "notes" section and felt how it turned something like threads/X now. Can we get it back? Just in my personal opinion, as it created a fast-pace environment. The urge to post. And then I just get a lot of "subscribe for subscribe", are we turning again another platform a haunted house for the sake of capitalism? Is it that we have already so engraved capitalism in our blood that we have to make it big numbers and big impact and the next influencer? I came here because I was tired of getting just "likes" , expressing in emojis, in seconds... I came here because I was expecting to write more and read more at my own peace without feeling i'm left behind or that i need to fit in a schedule or algorithm, interact more, meet new people and most importantly to remember that we are not alone in this boat of feelings and thoughts...and i hope that we can all get that, here for the sake of stability. Thank you for expressing this.
Hey Artemis! thank you so much for reading and for commenting. i completely agree with you that notes are transforming the app. just yesterday there was a big argument that turned into bullying on notes and it felt like we were on twitter and i don’t like it. personally i like to use notes to share memes and personal thoughts but when i see new creators being like “ i’m new here, if you follow me i’ll follow you back” it sends the wrong message about your reason for being here. it should be about sharing your thoughts and creating a genuine community, not about getting nameless subscribers…
Totally, it's what I've been pondering in recent days. I guess—at least that's what I've concluded and chosen—that this space will be whatever we decide to protect and continue nourishing 🌱 and the other...just skip, skip & skip.
oh this was brilliant omg
AMANDA IM FANGIRLING AND NOT REALLY CALM
so so real, even down to posting notes with pictures and stuff. I see my fav writers do that regularly and I usually have no urge to do so, i’m just not used to it. then there’s this voice in the back of my head that says “you’re not doing enough, you’re never going to get anywhere like this”. then I have to remind myself to slow down and enjoy the process, but it’s just cyclical lol
we each have our own rhythms and things we are willing to do and not to do. there is no right path to success, and writing is not an easily successful endeavor to begin with so it's difficult to measure the definition of success. But yeah notes can be annoying, I post on them but I'm almost never on there unless if it's to find new people to read from. I love it when people share other people's writing and I love reading it.
This is so real. I had to realize this past week I don't really have anything "new" to say or anything worthy of shock value. I don't want to feel like I have to reinvent the wheel or make some shocking new discovery every week, sometimes I want to write something just for the heck of it or just for fun. I don't think we need to be so crazy deep or analytical 24/7 here
exactly this works as an online diary and it should be kept as such we don’t need to have something shocking or revealing to say every time we post
I feel this so much. I am a slow writer and I struggle here sometimes, feels like everyone is writing The Next Great Essay every week! This has been putting me off lately and I haven't been the platform as much, so I appreciate your take on this! 🧡
thank you so much for commenting! i completely agree with you, some of us are slow writers. it takes time to put your ideas clearly and coherently. ritwik wrote an article about writer’s block and caring about the metrics here it is i highly recommend it https://open.substack.com/pub/downintheattic/p/why-am-i-writing-this?r=4bvchz&utm_medium=ios
Needed this more than you could’ve imagined. Thank you for the blessing of this piece. The internal pressure of needed to be validated, related to and even admired for words online is lethal😭 after only 2 posts there’s that voice of “why tf is nobody interacting with me” begins screaming and I feel a sense of embarrassment. The aim of popularity is a killer and a comparison of ‘why does she get likes and I don’t’ is a trap I’m beginning to realise i won’t fall for. It’s literally equivalent to a jigsaw trap to compare creativity and the popularity of it. So thank you for this again, a beautiful reminder that the world will continue to spin if your post only gets 1 like💅
I really don't want substack to turn into all other social media... where people strive to be popular and relevant for some amount of followers. substack is such a safe and wholesome space for me and I hope it stays that way <3
i feel exactly the same Hanna <3
i missed following cute blogs after the blogger and tumblr era, so when substack came i was so happy! we’re just all writing and spilling our guts and supporting each other. wanna keep it this way <3
It's all about a balance, which can be so hard to find but so important to keeping your love for writing. Oh! and not forgetting why you started in the first place.
I can definitely relate to this. I want people to read my content and grow my platform, but I don’t feel like I can write these super in-depth long form articles that seem to get a lot of traction on here every single week. Plus, the fact that it’s a balance between coming up with unique content in your niche and simply writing what you want to write without thinking about numbers is a challenge.
you can write in your own niche at your own pace but yeah not getting that dopamine rush is difficult in the end
Oh, Luciana, this was such an important post to write.
Super relatable.
We all feel like this.
Ngl, I always want to post more in a week but a non fiction opinionated post is only of my posts. I can’t come up with more opinions in one week. 😅
Instead, I post my already written poems in that week to feel relevant and also keep giving something to my readers frequently.
There’s always an urge to keep going and keep writing. That’s human nature. But sometimes, taking a break is equally important. As you said, this app is run by us, we can take our own decisions without any hesitation.
Loved this!!♥️
Thank you so much Ritwik, gonna be honest, sometimes you post so much i can't even keep up but keep up the good work, much love <3
I’ll try posting less. 😅
But you can’t stop yourself from sharing more sometimes. 😭
Thankyou for the brilliant post and this advice. I’ll always keep that in mind. 😊✨
THIS…but I will say that writings will come to me organically, I’ll never open this app and think hmm, how can I stay relevant, or what can I write today that will go viral, or that everyone will “like” Do I like “likes” we all do as you mentioned — but I’ll never write for the sake of staying relevant, the sake of likes, wokeness/not wokeness or whatever other reason. Some people (actually many) are naturally great at writing and could write short essays & epic poetry everyday, I’m not that person, but every now and again (ok, maybe more than that) 😝 a thought will come to mind & I’ll run with it… words coming faster than I can put down. That might take a month… it might take 6 months. I’m new here and my notes haven’t gotten much attn at all, but my 1st big “essay” if you will — Dear, God it’s me, Annie got some. I didn’t come here to stress about Substack attn ( I so want it to be different than IG) and I hope it is… my hope is also that some of you resonate with what I say, to inspire the most uncomfortable writers (me) and others, to come here in this space and feel good, good about what they’re writing & hopefully not to worry about engagement, likes & restacks. Loving it here so far with all of you amazing writers ✍🏻🤍 let’s do try though to support each other 🤩
hey Annie, thank you so much for commenting. i'm so happy you've found a space to share your writing where you don't have to care about engagement and everything and i hope this app stays that way for you! much love <3
so so real!! particularly related to "when I see writers post 4/5 times a week I feel a tingle of jealousy. How do you do it? How do you have so much to write about? So many opinions?" literally feel this most times i scroll my notes page and people keep cropping up having posted numerous in depth heartfelt pieces a week! i have massive respect for it and wish i could do that, but i have to take like three/four weeks off after posting one piece and it takes me about two/three weeks to write a decent piece and feel comfortable and ready enough to post it haha! <3
we all have different rhythms and that’s okay! thank you for commenting <3