Substack Leaves Me Flabbergasted: Here Are Reasons Why You Should Try This Writing Platform

September Blogs

6 min readSep 28, 2024

I recently created my free Substack account and have published a few essays over the past two months. At first, it wasn’t my intention to write as frequently there as I do on Medium. I’ve been writing on Medium since 2021, and there’s nothing that compares to the convenience it gives me in terms of accessibility, especially when juxtaposed with Tumblr and Blogspot. It’s a no-brainer that I prefer Medium. But as I spent more time on Substack, looking for articles to read and new topics to write about, I began to see it differently.

Substack leaves me flabbergasted!

Introduction to Substack

Substack was designed to allow creatives — especially writers — to freely share their work online and be paid to do so. Substack creators build a subscriber list by publishing quality content and demonstrating that their ideas are worth paying to read or listen to. In turn, subscribers pay a monthly fee for access to the newsletters that arrive in their inboxes periodically. Writers can choose on a case-by-case basis which pieces are free and which ones are paid content.

For readers, Substack allows them to follow and support the individual voices they’re interested in hearing. Instead of paying a monthly subscription for Forbes or The Food Network to receive access to their content, you can receive newsletters from particular writers. Not only does this provide access to the content you really want to read, but it also supports people rather than corporations.

New creators generally start with free content, build a subscriber list, and transition to offering paid content. Well-known figures — people like historian Heather Cox Richardson and author Sarah Bessey — are often able to launch their profile and begin publishing paid content immediately. For writers, the platform makes it easy to publish digital newsletters and monetize them by putting some content behind a paywall.

REVIEWS

Here are some reliable reviews I’ve gleaned:

Publishing your content on someone else’s site can be dicey, but Substack aims to provide true independence; you own all of your content and your subscriber list. Anytime you want to leave the platform for a different one, you’re free to go and take your emails and list with you.
Writers have strong creative freedom. Working with any client or publication comes with limits and expectations. These aren’t inherently a bad thing, but they do mean that you’re working within someone else’s confines. On Substack, you aren’t beholden to anyone but your readers.
There are almost unlimited income possibilities. Monthly subscription fees can range from $5 to $50, though most creators stick to the lower end. In January 2021, Substack had about 250,000 paying subscribers on the platform; by November 2021 that number had multiplied to more than a million paying subscribers. This kind of growth is promising for creators.

— Davey & Krista

What Makes Substack Different?

1. There are options for Note and Longform Posts

The moment you’d want to write a new post, you’ll encounter an option that asks what kind of new post it will be: a short-form (merely note) or a longform one? Further, a note enables you to advertise your longform post, it could be an article or essay which contains more serious matters than just a written casual post on the note. Hence, I find both features significant.

2. The default settings features are practical.

When I say practical, I mean it provides users with more ways to work efficiently within the same writing space. Thus, Substack’s default settings include inbox and chat features that allow writers to not only write but also converse with fellow writers and users they want to connect with.

3. Image Editing Options are Upgraded.

When I add photos to the essays I write, I recently discovered that I can actually edit them afterwards. Not many writing platforms allow users to do such thing — particularly having these basic yet important editing commands firsthand.

4. Its dashboard settings can be customized.

The dashboard settings for Substack typically include the following options:

Posts: Manage and create new posts, view published drafts, and schedule future posts.
Subscribers: Access subscriber lists, manage subscriptions, and view engagement metrics.
Design: Customize your newsletter’s appearance, including colors, fonts, and layout.
Settings: Adjust account settings such as your email preferences, payment options, and domain settings.
Analytics: View performance metrics like open rates, click-through rates, and subscriber growth.
Import/Export: Options to import content from other platforms or export your newsletter data.

What I personally love about their dashboard is the ability for users to customize subscriber engagement, manage followings, and control the mechanisms for importing or exporting posts. To understand how to customize your dashboard, check out the information posted in their Help Center.

5. Your reading interests are accurately curated.

Substack curates reading interests by utilizing personalized recommendations based on users’ reading history and subscriptions, which helps readers discover content that aligns with their preferences. As users subscribe to specific writers or topics, Substack tailors their feeds to highlight similar newsletters, enhancing the relevance of the content they encounter.

The platform also analyzes engagement metrics, such as opens and clicks, to refine its suggestions and showcase newsletters that resonate with users. Additionally, the ability to share content within the community influences what others discover, further customizing the reading experience. Writers categorize their content with tags, making it easier for readers to find newsletters in their preferred areas of interest. Together, these features create a dynamic and personalized reading experience that evolves alongside users’ interests.

6. Shareable Assets

Lastly, Substack has a feature that I find truly beautiful and rare compared to all other blogging sites — shareable assets.

The shareable asset feature on Substack allows writers to create content that can be easily shared with their audience and beyond. This feature typically includes tools for generating links, embed codes, or downloadable files that subscribers can use to share articles or newsletters on social media, via email, or through other platforms.

When a writer publishes a piece, they can enable sharing options, allowing readers to effortlessly distribute the content to their own networks. This not only increases the reach of the writer’s work but also helps attract new subscribers by leveraging the existing audience’s influence. Additionally, writers can create exclusive shareable assets, such as PDFs or multimedia content, that subscribers can use to engage their own followers, further enhancing community interaction and expanding the writer’s visibility.

Overall, the shareable asset feature promotes organic growth and engagement by making it easy for readers to share valuable content with others.

Whether you want to start or expand your writing journey on Substack, today is the perfect time for you to venture onto the platform! Make sure to sign in now, and let’s connect as mutuals! As mentioned earlier, I have published a few essays on the same site focusing on topics about philosophies and literature. You may want to check them out:

Thank you for reading this far, and stay tuned for new essays coming soon!