ā This will now be a space in which Iām allowed to play once again. ā Thank you for this reminder to have fun, I really appreciated the openness. I can relate.
It may be small solace, but I've really enjoyed the newsletter! Even so, I congratulate you on reevaluating what works for you and moving forward - can't wait to see what comes next.
On a different note, I've found it fascinating that Substack encourages creators to write 2+ newsletters a week. As a reader, I greatly prefer when writers create one a week - maybe fewer! Otherwise I sometimes feel like I'm buried in content for the sake of content, and get overwhelmed.
I totally agree about liking a more infrequent newsletter. I find twice a week to be a lot as a consumer, so I'm curious if actually changing the cadence will be helpful in the future. I guess we'll see when I'm back!
This is so great! I think that finding curiosity with projects like this is the most important thing. As soon as it becomes about what you think people want, it falls flatter. Excited to see what comes next!
I admire your courage to take a step back to find a new direction for this newsletter that you are passionate about. It is a daily, weekly grind for sure. And the online trolls make it frustrating on certain days. Wish you all the best. Come back when you are ready. Your readers will be here to support you.
Good for you to take the time to re-evaluate. I've enjoyed you work here on Substack and excited to see where you go from here. I know that growing a paid newsletters is really tough.
I'm brand new to newsletter writing, but as an academic writer (English professor) there might be a way to reconsider success... I think this kind of writing can be a good way to test ideas and generate content for larger projects, like articles or books, so maybe if you think about the newsletter as a generative space it can be more useful for you (and still be great for all of us readers!). Thanks for being honest!
I totally hear you and I've been almost working in the reverse because I have three books, a workbook, and write a twice-a-month column for Bloomberg, so this newsletter often riffed off what already existed. But you're right that coming from the exploration space could open up reversing the process!
As a fellow writer here on Substack I greatly appreciate this post. To your point, the open rates are phenomenal, but engagement is king. Without engagement there is no way for the algorithm to show your work or mine to a larger audience. No audience exposure, no growth.
I keep track of my hours and spend ~15 hours per month crafting Substack posts. Half of this time is allocated to my free Friday Update and half of this time is allocated to Audio Notes that I only share with full subscribers.
I do this as a form of documentation and introspection for myself and it's something I'm willing to share with others. I'm not aspiring to be the next Matt Taibbi or Cheryl Strayed. That being said, I have started wondering how much longer I can continue to do this for. $0.00 revenue on 15 hours of work isn't a very good ROI.
If you have a conversation with Substack about this, I'd love to hear what they say. I've followed you for years and do consider you to be an accomplished writer and influencer. If you are struggling to make the math work, that doesn't bode well for the rest of us.
Ohhh you know I relate to and understand this on a deep level! REALLY excited by you drawing up this new boundary and changing your intention and approach. It's supposed to be fun! Let it be so! Can't wait to see what comes next.
Thank you so much for your vulnerability and transparency ā¤ļø āEffortingā is hard and is often portrayed as being guaranteed a payout ~ unfortunately not the case for all endeavors! Iām impressed with your dedication to stepping back and trying something new.
ā This will now be a space in which Iām allowed to play once again. ā Thank you for this reminder to have fun, I really appreciated the openness. I can relate.
It is so easy to forget that a lot of the best creativity comes from a place of play and enjoyment.
It may be small solace, but I've really enjoyed the newsletter! Even so, I congratulate you on reevaluating what works for you and moving forward - can't wait to see what comes next.
On a different note, I've found it fascinating that Substack encourages creators to write 2+ newsletters a week. As a reader, I greatly prefer when writers create one a week - maybe fewer! Otherwise I sometimes feel like I'm buried in content for the sake of content, and get overwhelmed.
I totally agree about liking a more infrequent newsletter. I find twice a week to be a lot as a consumer, so I'm curious if actually changing the cadence will be helpful in the future. I guess we'll see when I'm back!
This is so great! I think that finding curiosity with projects like this is the most important thing. As soon as it becomes about what you think people want, it falls flatter. Excited to see what comes next!
Getting back to the place of curiosity is really the big mantra, so I'm excited too!
Iām a very new subscriber. Curious to see where you take this! Have a wonderful break.
Thank you! There is a huge back catalog to check out, but I'll certainly be back in the future.
Love your newsletter. Its been very helpful. Wishing you the best of luck on your future endeavors !
Thanks, Nate!
Excited for this shift for you!
Me too!
I admire your courage to take a step back to find a new direction for this newsletter that you are passionate about. It is a daily, weekly grind for sure. And the online trolls make it frustrating on certain days. Wish you all the best. Come back when you are ready. Your readers will be here to support you.
Thank you!!
Really appreciate the honesty! The newsletter game is so hard. Excited to see where you're headed next.
It's crazy to see what hits for some folks and not for others. No magic formula for sure!
Good for you to take the time to re-evaluate. I've enjoyed you work here on Substack and excited to see where you go from here. I know that growing a paid newsletters is really tough.
I've really enjoyed yours too! I'm sure I'll be back, but just taking a different journey next time.
Hopeful to see what you make of this Erin, rooting for youšš¾
Thank you!!
I'm brand new to newsletter writing, but as an academic writer (English professor) there might be a way to reconsider success... I think this kind of writing can be a good way to test ideas and generate content for larger projects, like articles or books, so maybe if you think about the newsletter as a generative space it can be more useful for you (and still be great for all of us readers!). Thanks for being honest!
I totally hear you and I've been almost working in the reverse because I have three books, a workbook, and write a twice-a-month column for Bloomberg, so this newsletter often riffed off what already existed. But you're right that coming from the exploration space could open up reversing the process!
It's a really impressive publication record!
As a fellow writer here on Substack I greatly appreciate this post. To your point, the open rates are phenomenal, but engagement is king. Without engagement there is no way for the algorithm to show your work or mine to a larger audience. No audience exposure, no growth.
I keep track of my hours and spend ~15 hours per month crafting Substack posts. Half of this time is allocated to my free Friday Update and half of this time is allocated to Audio Notes that I only share with full subscribers.
I do this as a form of documentation and introspection for myself and it's something I'm willing to share with others. I'm not aspiring to be the next Matt Taibbi or Cheryl Strayed. That being said, I have started wondering how much longer I can continue to do this for. $0.00 revenue on 15 hours of work isn't a very good ROI.
If you have a conversation with Substack about this, I'd love to hear what they say. I've followed you for years and do consider you to be an accomplished writer and influencer. If you are struggling to make the math work, that doesn't bode well for the rest of us.
Ohhh you know I relate to and understand this on a deep level! REALLY excited by you drawing up this new boundary and changing your intention and approach. It's supposed to be fun! Let it be so! Can't wait to see what comes next.
All the best, Erin. I am grateful for the many advices you have put up on this newsletter. I cheer for you. šš½šš½
Thank you so much for your vulnerability and transparency ā¤ļø āEffortingā is hard and is often portrayed as being guaranteed a payout ~ unfortunately not the case for all endeavors! Iām impressed with your dedication to stepping back and trying something new.
You do great work Erin. Look forward to seeing what comes next. Alex.