Congrats on the growth Robin! I’m one of those folks who hopped on at the queer category note, and it it home as I had just set up my Substack a month earlier and could not believe there wasn’t a queer category either. Thanks for helping some of the queer community come together on here.
We're such a vibrant, awesome community. And even without a category, we're still gathering and finding ourselves. I'm glad you're part of it, Veronica.
My trajectory has resembled yours, but my kids are now grown, so I have a little more time back in my life. I recently had my first paid subscriber (who wasn't a friend or family member), and I remember that feeling of awe--that Sally Field moment of "You like me! You really like me!" I've been writing my entire life, and I still have just a few small accolades to show for it. But I'll never, ever stop writing because I have this innate need to see, to be seen, and to help others in our community be seen as well. Kudos to your perseverance and your steady, organic growth! XO
Thanks, Katrina. I think it's important to celebrate the small milestones, especially the ones we weren't expecting. And that sort of thing really does lift our community up.
I started Substack a few months ago. I am feeling my way in the dark for sure. I appreciate your post especially right now. I’m discovering what seems like thousands of writers talking about writing and teaching courses. I write and teach, but who can compete with some of the legends out there for readers? (And I hate the fact that sometimes it does feel like a competition). Today I thought, “This sea is too damn big to swim in and how can I possibly catch up? OVERWHELM. But hell…if I just focus on the writing that is gift enough, and work enough.
Hello Julie! I certainly know that "feeling in the dark" thing. That's a tidy way to describe my start as well.
I wonder if your gift - in writing, teaching, or connecting - might look slightly different than some of the others out there. So don't worry about catching up or competing. Be who you are, and do it loud enough that the right folks can find you. And if you ever need a confidence boost, stop by and tell me. I'm in your corner.
And this - “But have you ever gotten a direct email from a subscriber telling you that your words helped them feel seen as a human being?” - YES and it’s amazing.
Oh my gosh, I loved this! This is the post I did know I needed and I’m so glad I found it. I was feeling utterly DEPRESSED with all the “in 3 months, I have 10K subs and a $1mill dollars” posts. I’m 9 months, nearly 100 subs and THRILLED with myself. Thank you — you ARE the trans friend we all need 🫶🏻
Isabel, 100 subscribers in 9 months is really incredible growth! That’s worth celebrating. And I’m so glad you found me. Life is way better with friends!
This is a breath of fresh air to read. Between your writing on this here and also seeing you start smallstack, I appreciate the calling out of this whole “how I got ____ in one year!” Culture that I see. And many times you have to subscribe or pay to see particular content. It’s just feels very much like another form or a ponzi scheme.
Anyways thank you for being on here and awesome to hear about your journey on this platform and thank you for calling out both substack for non having a queer LGBT+ section AND also for calling out the cis-heteronormativity and privilege of these substack writing inflation
I love this. I've had so many blogs over the years, on so many platforms, and my audience is...the same group of friends and family who always support my writing. Because I don't want to run a media company and because I've never won the "Featured Blog Lottery!"
In fact, this post reminded me of a guy on Blogger who self published a PDF titled: How to build your audience on Blogger. He had a lot of followers and the PDF only cost $5, so I bought it. And you know how this guy ended up with an audience of thousands? One morning he logged on to see a post of his had been read a LOT and he was like, "What is up with this?" And then he found out he'd been featured on the Blogger homepage.
I paid $5 for someone to tell me the way to get thousands of readers was for luck to happen.
I am of two minds about the whole damn thing. One, I think it's very cool to stay small, to give the middle finger to those systems of promotion that always leave the smaller writers/creators behind, and to intentionally build communities that are more about content and connection than they are about numbers. But then Two, I really think a lot of those smaller writers/creators need help building their audience and deserve to be seen (just thinking of all marginalized folx), so there should be some kind of Big Sibling system that helps promote and give voice and visibility to them.
And now I am struck by the utterly wild notion that I am that Big Sibling. Hmm.
I agree! I want there to be more collaborative community connections in online spaces. Instead everything just becomes the mall with loud advertising and someone making a lot of money but never the people producing all the content.... :P
I feel this way every time I get a new subscriber too Robin. I also feel like I’m pulling in brand new people who have never heard of Substack to explore this place by way of me as their first subscription. Drawing interest from other places instead of from the inside, because the Topics and the Explore and the Notes all feel way too clunky to navigate to reach…who? Thankful to be in the neighborhood with you. 🤙🏼
It’s a strange thing to want people to hear what we have to say and to simultaneously feel petrified of the response. Im right here with you. Thank you for sharing your growth story~ I started here with actually zero subscribers 2 months ago…let’s see what happens. gratitude to you❤️
We all start somewhere, and zero is more relatable to the vast majority of writers on any platform. I don't think it's cool of these bigger platform writers to talk down to us when our approach and means are wholistically different.
And I'm also super happy you found me here. Welcome!
You deserve to have paid subscribers, because you express something from your heart, your mind. and the best response to a bully is to keep expressing, keep speaking your truth. I am so glad and grateful that you have kept on writing and posting. You will always find what to say, I am sure of that. One post at a time, build your own presence. Sending you hugs from here.
I’m grateful to you for two things: 1) pointing out that Erin In The Morn is here because I’ve missed her ever since I quit Twitter and 2) writing about yourself. I’m a Trans mom, and I am always grateful for Trans voices wherever I hear them. They’re interesting and honest and they help me to understand my dear daughter, which is vitally important to me. Thank you.
Hi Susannah! I'm really happy you're connected with Erin again. She's so important in keeping our community updated on the impacts of politics in the US. It's also great to see you enjoying the community here. I'm really glad to have you.
If only every writer on Substack had your humility, my eyes wouldn’t ache from rolling so much! I’m so tired of the growth for the sake of growth content.
I don’t have paid subs turned on because I receive disability benefits, but I do have an Amazon wish list. I’ve not only been blown away by the number of gifts I’ve been sent by my readers, but the little notes that come with the gifts are truly the best part - akin to the email you got about changing someone’s life. Nothing beats that feeling, you’re right.
It's funny, I think my parents' generations really worried that us 80s kids would rot our brains on computers and video games, and here we are redefining how we build community through these amazing tools. It turns out people are still people after all, and some people are truly amazing.
I love your writing. I'm glad you're here! This resonates so much for me - especially the part about your family not even knowing you are writing here. My family knows, but have expressed no interest. It's comforting to think about how it's possible to find people who do care, and care enough to feel like supportive community. There's a lot to be said for the slow and steady plodding along.
Robin, so amazing to read you. Grateful I found you on QStack and so appreciative of your work and your honesty, something that makes me crazy with how rare it is. KEEP WRITING!!!
Congrats on the growth Robin! I’m one of those folks who hopped on at the queer category note, and it it home as I had just set up my Substack a month earlier and could not believe there wasn’t a queer category either. Thanks for helping some of the queer community come together on here.
We're such a vibrant, awesome community. And even without a category, we're still gathering and finding ourselves. I'm glad you're part of it, Veronica.
My trajectory has resembled yours, but my kids are now grown, so I have a little more time back in my life. I recently had my first paid subscriber (who wasn't a friend or family member), and I remember that feeling of awe--that Sally Field moment of "You like me! You really like me!" I've been writing my entire life, and I still have just a few small accolades to show for it. But I'll never, ever stop writing because I have this innate need to see, to be seen, and to help others in our community be seen as well. Kudos to your perseverance and your steady, organic growth! XO
Thanks, Katrina. I think it's important to celebrate the small milestones, especially the ones we weren't expecting. And that sort of thing really does lift our community up.
I started Substack a few months ago. I am feeling my way in the dark for sure. I appreciate your post especially right now. I’m discovering what seems like thousands of writers talking about writing and teaching courses. I write and teach, but who can compete with some of the legends out there for readers? (And I hate the fact that sometimes it does feel like a competition). Today I thought, “This sea is too damn big to swim in and how can I possibly catch up? OVERWHELM. But hell…if I just focus on the writing that is gift enough, and work enough.
Hello Julie! I certainly know that "feeling in the dark" thing. That's a tidy way to describe my start as well.
I wonder if your gift - in writing, teaching, or connecting - might look slightly different than some of the others out there. So don't worry about catching up or competing. Be who you are, and do it loud enough that the right folks can find you. And if you ever need a confidence boost, stop by and tell me. I'm in your corner.
Thank you, Robin! Your note has really lifted my spirits. I look forward to continuing to read your work!
I am soooooooo glad you’re here!!!
And this - “But have you ever gotten a direct email from a subscriber telling you that your words helped them feel seen as a human being?” - YES and it’s amazing.
Quality beats quantity every single time. I'm so glad you're here too, Jude! Have I mentioned that you also make me feel seen? Because you do.
Brilliant, honest and real. Your growth here is authentic and there absolutely needs to be a queer category. How can there not be? !
Right?? Thank you, Jan.
Oh my gosh, I loved this! This is the post I did know I needed and I’m so glad I found it. I was feeling utterly DEPRESSED with all the “in 3 months, I have 10K subs and a $1mill dollars” posts. I’m 9 months, nearly 100 subs and THRILLED with myself. Thank you — you ARE the trans friend we all need 🫶🏻
Isabel, 100 subscribers in 9 months is really incredible growth! That’s worth celebrating. And I’m so glad you found me. Life is way better with friends!
This is a breath of fresh air to read. Between your writing on this here and also seeing you start smallstack, I appreciate the calling out of this whole “how I got ____ in one year!” Culture that I see. And many times you have to subscribe or pay to see particular content. It’s just feels very much like another form or a ponzi scheme.
Anyways thank you for being on here and awesome to hear about your journey on this platform and thank you for calling out both substack for non having a queer LGBT+ section AND also for calling out the cis-heteronormativity and privilege of these substack writing inflation
Yes! The ponzi scheme! Ugh.
It's just so hard to be an idealist and dreamer in a capitalist patriarchal society. And yet I know I'm not the only one who can't give up hoping.
I love this. I've had so many blogs over the years, on so many platforms, and my audience is...the same group of friends and family who always support my writing. Because I don't want to run a media company and because I've never won the "Featured Blog Lottery!"
In fact, this post reminded me of a guy on Blogger who self published a PDF titled: How to build your audience on Blogger. He had a lot of followers and the PDF only cost $5, so I bought it. And you know how this guy ended up with an audience of thousands? One morning he logged on to see a post of his had been read a LOT and he was like, "What is up with this?" And then he found out he'd been featured on the Blogger homepage.
I paid $5 for someone to tell me the way to get thousands of readers was for luck to happen.
I stopped bothering after that.
Well that sounds infuriating!!
I am of two minds about the whole damn thing. One, I think it's very cool to stay small, to give the middle finger to those systems of promotion that always leave the smaller writers/creators behind, and to intentionally build communities that are more about content and connection than they are about numbers. But then Two, I really think a lot of those smaller writers/creators need help building their audience and deserve to be seen (just thinking of all marginalized folx), so there should be some kind of Big Sibling system that helps promote and give voice and visibility to them.
And now I am struck by the utterly wild notion that I am that Big Sibling. Hmm.
I agree! I want there to be more collaborative community connections in online spaces. Instead everything just becomes the mall with loud advertising and someone making a lot of money but never the people producing all the content.... :P
I feel this way every time I get a new subscriber too Robin. I also feel like I’m pulling in brand new people who have never heard of Substack to explore this place by way of me as their first subscription. Drawing interest from other places instead of from the inside, because the Topics and the Explore and the Notes all feel way too clunky to navigate to reach…who? Thankful to be in the neighborhood with you. 🤙🏼
If you are someone's first substack experience, at least they will feel welcomed by a kind voice. That's not nothing. It's a big deal.
Thanks Robin!
Somehow, even as a "white, affluent, neurotypical, non-disabled, cishetnormative folk," I found this accessible and relatable. Bravo.
Kinda figured it might be. Glad for the confirmation of that. And welcome.
It’s a strange thing to want people to hear what we have to say and to simultaneously feel petrified of the response. Im right here with you. Thank you for sharing your growth story~ I started here with actually zero subscribers 2 months ago…let’s see what happens. gratitude to you❤️
We all start somewhere, and zero is more relatable to the vast majority of writers on any platform. I don't think it's cool of these bigger platform writers to talk down to us when our approach and means are wholistically different.
And I'm also super happy you found me here. Welcome!
You deserve to have paid subscribers, because you express something from your heart, your mind. and the best response to a bully is to keep expressing, keep speaking your truth. I am so glad and grateful that you have kept on writing and posting. You will always find what to say, I am sure of that. One post at a time, build your own presence. Sending you hugs from here.
Thanks for so much kindness, Tali.
I give as good as I get, my friend :)
I’m grateful to you for two things: 1) pointing out that Erin In The Morn is here because I’ve missed her ever since I quit Twitter and 2) writing about yourself. I’m a Trans mom, and I am always grateful for Trans voices wherever I hear them. They’re interesting and honest and they help me to understand my dear daughter, which is vitally important to me. Thank you.
Hi Susannah! I'm really happy you're connected with Erin again. She's so important in keeping our community updated on the impacts of politics in the US. It's also great to see you enjoying the community here. I'm really glad to have you.
If only every writer on Substack had your humility, my eyes wouldn’t ache from rolling so much! I’m so tired of the growth for the sake of growth content.
I don’t have paid subs turned on because I receive disability benefits, but I do have an Amazon wish list. I’ve not only been blown away by the number of gifts I’ve been sent by my readers, but the little notes that come with the gifts are truly the best part - akin to the email you got about changing someone’s life. Nothing beats that feeling, you’re right.
It's funny, I think my parents' generations really worried that us 80s kids would rot our brains on computers and video games, and here we are redefining how we build community through these amazing tools. It turns out people are still people after all, and some people are truly amazing.
Very good point. Technology has not entirely been our ruin after all.
I love your writing. I'm glad you're here! This resonates so much for me - especially the part about your family not even knowing you are writing here. My family knows, but have expressed no interest. It's comforting to think about how it's possible to find people who do care, and care enough to feel like supportive community. There's a lot to be said for the slow and steady plodding along.
LC, I hope you know I absolutely care. Family can mean a lot of things, and sometimes it's up to us to define it in ways that fit.
Robin, so amazing to read you. Grateful I found you on QStack and so appreciative of your work and your honesty, something that makes me crazy with how rare it is. KEEP WRITING!!!
QStack is the best! I'm very happy to have found your work also.