Love you post...great observation. I've been writing on substack for about six months now. For me the move from thinking about doing it to doing it was a huge leap. And for that I'm pleased and that feeling of conquering a particular personal fear barrier is motivation to continue. I write because I truly love the craft...I feel confident in saying that every other motive is secondary...even tertiary for that matter. At least that's what I think consciously. I wonder how long that will last. PS A non sequitur: I find navigating substack difficult...counterintuitive. I have no idea how certain functionality translates to end-user experience. Anyone else?
I was never one of the popular kids. Some of these ideas came from a discussion with my siblings. We noticed the rising generation (gen z) has a lot more pressure to succeed on a global scale. They suffer from more anxiety. Plus, all the other thoughts mixed in there. And sorry to say, both my parents have passed away. They were looking forward to see some of my writing.
This gives voice to a lot of my thoughts about substack. I'm giving it a try and writing for audience because that seems like a worthwhile learning experience, but I'm not quite a fan of the feed or the behaviors it shapes. Looking for genuine exchanges amid the muck 🙂
It's hard not to get caught up in the competition. I could see the appeal of having twenty subscribers, and subscribing to a handful of newsletters, and just enjoying this entirely as a source of entertainment.
But then I think about the last rejection I got, and I imagine spending one to three years writing another novel, only to be told once again that I don't have enough of a platform to justify taking a risk on me.
Maybe it'll be different with the novel I'm writing now (it's more conventional), and they won't care as much about social media presence. Because you're right, if you have two thousand subscribers, there's no way you're returning the favor to everyone. So what are you, then? Just one of the popular kids, I guess? And who wants to help someone else become a popular kid at their own expense?
Love you post...great observation. I've been writing on substack for about six months now. For me the move from thinking about doing it to doing it was a huge leap. And for that I'm pleased and that feeling of conquering a particular personal fear barrier is motivation to continue. I write because I truly love the craft...I feel confident in saying that every other motive is secondary...even tertiary for that matter. At least that's what I think consciously. I wonder how long that will last. PS A non sequitur: I find navigating substack difficult...counterintuitive. I have no idea how certain functionality translates to end-user experience. Anyone else?
I was never one of the popular kids. Some of these ideas came from a discussion with my siblings. We noticed the rising generation (gen z) has a lot more pressure to succeed on a global scale. They suffer from more anxiety. Plus, all the other thoughts mixed in there. And sorry to say, both my parents have passed away. They were looking forward to see some of my writing.
This gives voice to a lot of my thoughts about substack. I'm giving it a try and writing for audience because that seems like a worthwhile learning experience, but I'm not quite a fan of the feed or the behaviors it shapes. Looking for genuine exchanges amid the muck 🙂
It's hard not to get caught up in the competition. I could see the appeal of having twenty subscribers, and subscribing to a handful of newsletters, and just enjoying this entirely as a source of entertainment.
But then I think about the last rejection I got, and I imagine spending one to three years writing another novel, only to be told once again that I don't have enough of a platform to justify taking a risk on me.
Maybe it'll be different with the novel I'm writing now (it's more conventional), and they won't care as much about social media presence. Because you're right, if you have two thousand subscribers, there's no way you're returning the favor to everyone. So what are you, then? Just one of the popular kids, I guess? And who wants to help someone else become a popular kid at their own expense?