Mastodon is decentralized, we should ALL be discussing what this means and working on making future platforms decentralized, cutting out the Zuckerbergs and Musks from profiting AND changing rules on fascists’ whims.
LOL. The real fascists are Democrat politicians. Musk is CLEARLY the opposite of a fascist, so maybe you need to look up the definition. He favors individual freedom, liberty, limited government, and free speech. His opposition to government waste, unnecessary regulations, and censorship is widely known to everyone but you apparently. Such traits are certainly NOT that of a fascist. I find it strange that you consider Elon a fascist when he was the one that undeniably has made X less centralized through firing of 75% of Twitter's activist employees, and instead added democratic community notes so everyone can help determine the accuracy of posts in question. Also, Musk made the X algorithms open source, ensuring that all parties can see and report any bias. And finally, he exposed the Twitter files, thus proving that Twitter was in fact colluding with the Biden admin to censor people and the truth for political reasons.
Just admit it...you have ZERO problem with someone falsely calling Musk a fascist, but you don't like it when truthfully point out who the true fascists are, lol. Maybe you should try being honest and focus on the real issues, like the fact that Democrats held a silent coup and overthrew the elected candidate for the 2024 election, Biden, and replaced him with Harris who didn't win one delegate. Talk about a threat to Democracy! If you don't see a problem with that, then you are part of the problem. Here are some more FACTS:
My only comment was about the name calling. You know nothing about me nor my political affiliations to make assumptions about me. Are you this arrogant and assuming with everyone?
Yeah, right. So tell us, did you vote for Harris this year, or Biden in 2020?
If your post to me was only about name calling, why didn't you complain about name calling when the OP called Musk a fascist, lol? I think we both know that it's because you were fine with that because of your politics. And my name calling? You mean the word clown? Oh, the horror! But I bet you are fine with Democrats falsely calling Trump a racist right? Let's see how you answer...
Fred, are you still holding your breath waiting for my answer? I'm sorry if I made you big sad and you think I was singling you out about the fascist comment. I actually saw your comment first and that's why I directed it at you. I'll try to go back and find the other person's fascist comment so I can spank them too. You don't need to tell us who you voted for - we already know.
Do you imagine Elon actually goes around managing accounts on X all day? There are systems and algorithms in all social media platforms and they all constantly have to compromise and evolve
The number of people being banned on X has VASTLY decreased under Elon, clown. The platform is far more fair today, so stop the ridiculous lies and Democrat talking points. "Under Musk's leadership, the company has taken steps to address this issue and promote a more open and inclusive platform for all voices. Content moderation is now being applied more equitably; political affiliation no longer determines whose ideas are allowed to flourish. This shift has given users representing a diversity o perspectives a fair chance to share their thoughts without fear of censorship or suppression." Also, hate speech has declined as well. And, Elon revealed the truth that the Biden Admin was colluding with corporations to censor people. "Another notable achievement under Musk's leadership was the release of the Twitter Files, which exposed rampant government corruption and highlighted the platform's former leadership's collusion with federal agencies to target and suppress certain accounts. This shed light on the troubling practice of censoring accounts expressing viewpoints on COVID-19, vaccines, and elections that didn't align with the state-approved narratives on these matters. Additionally, the files revealed instances of content being censored on behalf of the Ukrainian government, raising questions about government intervention in social media content."
I understand where you're coming from. It can be tough when sources don’t align with your perspective. I think it’s important to approach these conversations with an open mind and be willing to consider different viewpoints, even if we don’t agree. Sometimes, understanding why others disagree can help us refine our own beliefs, even if it’s challenging.
Musk is out for Musk - just like the rest of them. If you are not in the mega wealthy arena, you are serfs and the caste system is being put in place here - notice very little middle class? Also, please be kinder with your responses - your CLEARLY is clear to you, not necessarily others.
"Musk is out for Musk"??? Deborah, sorry that life has been unfair to you, as it sounds like your life philosophy is built on envy and hate. I say this because there is absolutely ZERO reason for you to feel this way about Musk unless there are other reasons behind it, as he has probably done more to help humanity and the environment than anyone in the last century. He is the single greatest force for transitioning to alternative energy on the planet. He is making driving safer and more affordable. Through neural link, he is helping people live more enriching lives. Through Starlink, he is helping provide broadband communication throughout the world, which is especially important in the 3rd world and in places like Ukraine. He has created tens of thousands of good jobs, and enriched every community he operates in. Though his solar and energy storage business, he is making solar viable and affordable. Through Space X he is making humanity a multi-planet species, which could one day help prevent our extinction. And perhaps most importantly, he has become a champion of free speech and freedom, and even exposed the Federal government for colluding with big business to censor truth information in order to hide it from the public.
So, tell us what this Musk hate really about? Do you just hate rich people? If so, what is the cut off? Billionaires? Millionaires? Or do you hate anyone who has more than you? Also, please be kinder with your responses...hating Musk without justification isn't very nice, is it?
That is my opinion and my take - you have yours - no disrespect. THERE IS NO MENTION OF HATE in my post so get over yourself. I read your response - stay on point and don't put attitudes or twist other posts with you i
Oh, so the false claim that "Musk is out for Musk" and the claim that we are all serfs and part of a caste system wasn't hate, lol? Try being honest with yourself. Like others, your attitude can only be driven by petty jealousy and hate because any rational, honest person would admire the guy.
If it's not hate, explain why you feel this way about him? Musk is rich because he's provided products and services that people really want or need. He's also paid more taxes than any human being in history.
There’s arguments that the system of advanced algorithmic management of information in a democracy is inherently fascist, no matter who’s wielding it but the interesting thing about the new team surrounding Trump is that they all are highly aware of this problem and seem to intend to do something about it.
Sort of like when the early American founders had first hand experience with tyranny so they knew how to structure a guard against it.
Even the most well meaning do this- it’s a function of the system through the inevitable law of “power corrupts”
I was contemplating the fact the other day that the founders of our country were so wise about tyranny because they had just lived through it and likewise Elon, RFK and the whole TrumpTeam are similarly united after experiencing the deep state oppression under the Biden /Obama reign.
Do you think the clean water act is an outdated or unnecessary regulation? If you do you could be drinking gasoline in your water. The clean water act legislation
Musk only promotes or allows the free speech of those he approves of or agrees with. That is one reason so many refugees of X have ended up here. You can report slander and abuse all you want on his site but if you are a member of one of the groups he dislikes his platform won't respond to your request to remove other's hate speech about you. You've really swallowed the kool-aid.
And yet you still haven't proved any error that I posted...like a child, your sole counter argument is "you are brainwashed". Are you slow? Serious question.
Nancy, thanks for your encouragement. I agree that we should be discussing federation like Mastodon. My understanding is that federation is a complex socio-technical problem. I'd even call it a "wicked problem." Decentralization / federation is also a significant departure from Substack's current centralized approach that may affect their business model ability to attract high earners. Also, while the federated learning and architecture can help improve discovery of niche writers and provide writers with more control, it introduces new and ongoing challenges such as content moderation, fair representation of less popular writers, a fragmented experience for readers, etc. Will decentralization / federation solve the long tail and platform degradation ("enshittification")? I don't know. Does anybody else?
I appreciate you provoking us to think this through. In the meantime, I want to remain supportive of Substack's ongoing vision while continuing to explore solutions that benefit all of us — authors, readers, and the teams at Substack. To that end, I’ve taken a couple of steps: creating a directory of Library Voices on Substack to help showcase niche writers and responding to a discussion where Hamish offered to have our CTO clarify how Notes works, I’ve raised some questions: https://substack.com/@anitacoleman/note/c-81119962
Thanks, again, and here’s to us solving this wicked problem so all of us can flourish — writers, readers, and Substack.
Thank you Nancy, for your thoughtful attention to the question of sustainable frameworks for the nourishment and betterment of writers who wish to develop connections with potential readers.
And a welcome breath of fresh air! There had developed a noisome buzz of narcissistic blather on this thread. Good to be back to what we're here for–constructive engagement amongst writers who are seriously pursuing their passions.
Is Mastodon a platform for creatives?
Anita, your reflection on centralized vs. federation based social structures is thought provoking.
I lean towards structures that mimic the bio-form of mycelia, among the largest of organisms extant on our planet. A great nourisher of the web of life, and all things rooted in soil. It also employs a node-based system where all vital information is replicated in every node throughout the entire body's network. This provides a solution against demise or debilitating maiming due to possible external threats, such as forest fires. If any part of the organism is thoroughly consumed by fire or other toxic inputs, there still remains the hope for complete regeneration stemming from the areas that are outside of the danger zone. This, due to the existence of the nodes, which possess all of the building blocks for a continuance of the organism's vibrant vitality.
This brilliant soil-dwelling organism provides a model, in my estimation, for the organization of human social structures of many stripes. Rather than being heirarchical in it's assignments, all parts have equal access to the nourishment and purpose driven existence enjoyed by such an entity, with fruiting bodies of myriad colorful arrangements, sometimes even seemingly magical, and often beautiful, in a rare way that distinguishes it from any other living being of the natural world.
The instances of varieties populate every land-form on our planet. And each one performs its vital work in astonishing ways. Imagine if this model could be applied to the development of a marvelous and enduring platform for writers, for instance!
Thank you, I fully support that vision here, and agree to try to make this a more positive space for all who are contributing with all good intentions to progress our human race forward, taking note of all those who are of good service in our society. The helpers and the kind folks.
You’re an amazing writer, again I thank you for your thoughts, well delivered.
I think it’s wonderful that Substack creators can control their own content more here. But I’d like to see more categories available. Like cooking, baking, crocheting, knitting, sewing. Those ends of the craft spectrum need more attention.
Right now, my substack feed is overwhelmingly filled with politics, tech, business and book reviews, which are good, but I’d like more focused life-style selections.
I realize that, but I actually mean where your page and posts are categorized. I mean, if you were looking for a crochet community, where would you look and how would you find them. Or if you wanted specifically to find quick and easy recipes, how would you find it within the food category? And where would you go to get organization tips.
Broad categories are fine, but it’s hard to find the niche interests within them.
Arguably one of the most successful features of TikTok was the tuning of their algorithm unveiling hyper-niche communities you almost didn't even realize you were apart of, and giving social momentum behind them. Interesting lesson to be learned from other platforms.
I did a quick search for “woodworking” and did get maybe a dozen to two dozen people and pages. Maybe the issue is that the number of writers is so small that there isn’t a category yet? Not sure how that logic would pan out for other kinds of crafting or creative projects.
It’s interesting you said this. I do woodworking and while I’m not ready to make it a full fledged business yet (I’ve made exactly four sales to three people), I’d like to eventually. I’m on Etsy and Facebook and Instagram, but those are all platforms with the same problems. I know other woodworkers have blogs and personal business websites and mailing lists, but none of the ones I follow also have a Substack. I should look into that.
Yeah I’m hoping to do a show this summer. It hasn’t quite crossed from hobby to business as I still have to work my full time job and build my skills and toolset. And my shop is effectively three season and not conducive to large items. Or lots of storage, for either wood or inventory. So I’m taking it slow. I’m planning on moving states in a few years anyway to hopefully a property with proper workshop space. Lots of learning in the meantime.
I agree, Pat. Substack is a great platform for writing about art and culture- except for the categories. I know there are lots of "thinky" artists who would like my content, but it is difficult to find me using tags or searching categories.
If you are referring to your Notes feed, it is easy to mute or hide notes you don't want to see. Who you follow will also determine what shows in your feeds so I always check out what they share for Notes before I follow and if they start going a direction I don't care for, I unfollow. You will slowly see your Notes feed adjust.
I'll bet all of that content will show up once TikTok is done, I'm guessing. And people realize X doesn't mark the spot. Of course we will have to deal with the troll 🧌 bots.
When Elon actually starts a company instead of just buying it then he can talk. He hasn't created anything so far and now he is set to destroy? No thanks.
Similar issue for weedom. And probably I need to do the SEO dance better. But it’s hard enough to edit down the massive info into digestible segments. Waaah!
You do realise you can request in settings what you want your feed to comprise of and what categories and genres ?? There are categories for all you have mentioned above??
I agree. You should check out my new Substack. I'm writing about investing as a lifestyle, emphasizing emotional intelligence over technical knowledge."
As a Boomer, my impression of TikTok is that its existence has led to the even worse dumbing down of America if that was even possible. There are some very clever ideas on TikTok, but overall look at the nonsensical stuff that our young people are watching and creating. My generation might have been just as guilty, but these media avenues were not available to us growing up and I'm glad. Test scores in school are worse than ever, young people can't find jobs because they have no job skills/education, but they sure can create a TikTok video in minutes. The worst is when people get their news from TikTok. I'm glad I was taught how to write a letter in cursive, look up facts (not opinions or false information) in an encyclopedia, write a term paper without cheating with AI, spell without spellcheck, add without a calculator. I feel I had the best of both worlds. I was taught basic life skills growing up and now I can get on social media (which is mostly mindless) and spend my time that way. I know I am a dying breed. I enjoy Substack because so far the articles I've seen are from educated people who know how to write. May not agree with everyone's opinion, but that's ok.
I understand why you would feel like this, sincerely, since social media basically engages and works better when it feeds from a source of conflict instead of compassion, which breeds separation and hate between political and social groups, classes and well, even generations, needless to mention the misogyny and red pill content. While I do admit TikTok is paved with things you deem nonsensical (brainrot would be a fantastic illustration for your point), it does fill some vacant holes left by the American education system. For example, many people of my generation have started showing interest for literature because of its popularity on Tiktok. Many people use it to help others understand concepts that have been over complicated for the simple benefit of only being accessible by privileged people. (We call this « vulgarisation » in my language but I don’t know if there’s an English equivalent)
As for the news, I’m afraid no one is truly transparent, it’s difficult to find reliable sources (not just talking about TikTok if this wasn’t obvious), but even in this case, the problem would be a decline in media literacy, which is something that should be taught in school, which I assume is becoming complicated with all of the book bans going on.
About the facts you think should be looked up in encyclopedias, they aren’t accessible to everyone and since we are constantly evolving and discovering new things about the world, it seems a little bit counterproductive to check facts in a source that cannot be updated. (This doesn’t involve everything though. I agree with you to some extent for this point because I think people should read more.)
Lastly I wanted to say that Tiktok has been the safe space of many people, including creatives suffering in a world of corporate greed, who have the opportunity to have an audience on TikTok and vulnerable teenagers going through a rough time: bullying, family issues, global warming, to be honest I can’t think of any teenager that wouldn’t be anxious in this day and age.
My response was way longer than I intended and english isn’t my native language so I might have made some language mistakes, but I hope my response gave you a bit of nuance and a different point of view for this whole situation. I could talk about it for hours since it truly is complicated, given all of the different variables involved. If that’s the case I’m really glad! If not, that’s alright,
J Ellul wrote a highly illuminating book called The Humiliation of the Word and made a strong case for a phenomenological distinction between words and images and the effects on human cultural development.
We don’t even realize the extent to which images have taken over and don’t comprehend our basically vain and idolatrous society.
And I’m not speaking religiously but philosophically: nominalism is rampant.
I'm also a Boomer, but I have to wonder: If TikTok had been around back then, would I have been posting videos to it? I suspect the answer is yes, which makes me grateful we didn't have it. I feel I was better off, what with having a whole library full of books just six blocks away, but I do have to wonder whether TikTok is the cause, or the effect.
I agree with you on this we have have let this country dumb down so much, for me spell check has been a god send with dyslexia I have a hard time. When we lowered the school standards that was the beginning of the end. As a boomer I consider myself lucky that my teachers caught my problem at an early age ,then and now class sizes are ridiculous and kids slip through the cracks and the teachers must feel overwhelmed at times.
I don’t even know if there were specialty classes when I grew up. You had reading or writing difficulties, they flunked you. ADHD just became on the horizon in the late 60/early 70’s. I remember reading about it in my abnormal psych class in 1971 and it was a recent discovery. Sad to think the kids that struggled like you did, were smart, but just had a learning disability and needed special help. I think now though, that we label every behavior problem, especially with boys, as ADHD, when many times it’s a parental discipline problem.
I can grumble with the best of them, but no question that Substack is a great platform that has helped this historian reach 8,500 readers with stories from academic and public history that help make us all aware of the dangers of confirmation bias. Thank you.
I'm confused 😕. TikTok is a video platform and Substack is mostly written content. How are these content creators making that switch when it's a totally different medium?
my thought exactly. TikTok content is mostly utter mindless pointless dreck. Unless you spend hours finding and following the few interesting / not pointless folks, it's a complete time waste to me. Do I want to see Substack overrun with that kind of pointlessness? no. I do not.
Substack already supports video and they've been hinting at expanding those tools. It's one thing to add a video podcast or to offer video readings to put a face to the author and create audience connection. It's quite another to turn the library into a building full of 30 second circus acts, which is how I see the the majority of TikTok (and for that matter Instagram) content compared to Substack content. That would not only be disappointing, but feel like a bit of a betrayal to the entire spirit of the platform, not to mention to the writers.
I know the focus of this piece is TikTok creators but too many of us with subscribers in the hundreds are at the mercy of your algorithm. Notes is a lottery, in my daily experience. I'm not seeing a concerted effort from Substack to draw attention to emerging writers.
The recommendations feature is a useful way to give someone a leg up – I'm dubious about offering multiple recs in a subscriber sign-up flow – but I don't know if writers at all levels are benefitting.
SmallStack is doing good work to plug the gap and build a community outside the big leagues.
I was reading a piece by beehiiv's Tyler Denk earlier, who offered this illustration –
"So, let's break publishers into two categories:
The breadwinners: The top 1% who generate most of the revenue for the company.
Everyone else: The long tail of users who feed the breadwinners and make the system go.
Said differently: if you’re not a breadwinner on Substack, you’re the yeast. The yeast is responsible for driving app downloads, granting access to their social graph, and funneling their readers towards the platform’s top earners.
These publishers attract their own followers (with their own dollars) and leverage their own social networks to introduce new readers to the platform. Substack then uses algorithmic recommendations and “community” features to direct these audiences to their most lucrative writers, ensuring that the long tail of creators supports and enriches the top earners."
Amar, thank you for your thought provoking analysis of the long tail. I'm looking forward to reading your rec. This is a wicked problem and I want to appreciate Substack for their vision and work so far for all of us to flourish, authors, readers, and Substack, fairly and sustainably. ICYMI, Hamish in response to similar concerns (on Notes not here on longform) has offered to have our CTO answer some of the concerns and my questions for CTO are restacked here: https://substack.com/@anitacoleman/note/c-81119962
Some really good questions on that other comment of yours, Anita. In my opinion, discoverability and nurturing emerging writers across all subject areas should be key priorities on this platform. Substack has given agency and encouragement to lots of hopeful writers and facilitated the community many of us feel part of. But they can go further.
FYI I've been on here for a year, publishing fortnightly at length on arts and culture, posting Notes daily in different forms and spending at least 30 minutes a day commenting on posts and discussions. I have 102 subscribers. Hamish has written that, "The Substack feed is designed to maximize engagement with deeper content, by driving people to posts and episodes." I'm not seeing that.
Occasionally, articles with hundreds of likes pop up and they are illuminating. But these writers are of a certain popularity, with more than 1,000 followers. I've had to go hunting via comments for talented writers with far smaller followings who can't be found.
Of course, I'll restack, comment or recommend. These are useful features to help us support one another. However, back to Notes, too often I see faux self-deprecation memes at how few subscribers x has or calls for reciprocal subscribing, or I'm new to Substack…
Amar, I completely agree—discoverability and supporting emerging writers should be central priorities for Substack which seeks to be a driving force in the creators' economy and global culture; they seem to be offering a space for independent and diverse voices to thrive, much like the ancient Tamil Sanghams of southern India in the Common Era or the literary salons of the European Renaissance — though far more accessible and democratized for the world. It’s clear that the platform has given many writers a sense of agency and community, but there’s definitely room for improvement in terms of visibility for smaller voices.
Thank you for sharing the challenges you’re facing with finding and being discovered by new audiences.Your efforts to engage with others through comments, restacks, and recommendations are really helping to build a supportive community, I’m sure, and are a great example besides! That said, it’s clear that Substack could do more to ease the discovery process, so writers don’t have to work so hard to reach new readers.
I’m tracking all this feedback and plan to write more about it soon. Thanks again for sharing your perspective—I really appreciate your honest input.
I'd like to believe that this platform can help develop writers' careers at all levels. Discoverability could be better. A few tweaks on the tech front are needed. Reconfiguring the Notes algorithm to give more weight to long form and emerging writers over memes and power publishers would be a good start. Rewarding restacks with comments… that type of thing.
Amar, This is wonderful! I’m planning to add this to my curated list of features that writers have requested to enhance their experience here on Substack—including your suggestions. More to come soon. Thanks.
It is not happening. The enshittification of this platform has begun in the form of Notes filled with click/ragebait headlines mostly hawking articles that land somewhere on the "culture wars" spectrum. True growth and the promised returns can only happen IRL in the analog world.
Thank you so much for the kind words and taking the time and effort to engage. Just to clarify, Amar and I aren’t colleagues, but rather two writers who, like many of us, have noticed the implications of Substack’s business model (long tail) and its architecture (centralization), care about the future of long-tail authors (and readers) here, many of whom have voiced similar concerns about Substack's direction, and want sustainable flourishing for all of us.
ICYMI. The fundamental long tail dilemma means there’s no direct financial incentive for Substack to solve issues like decentralization or the limitations of its tech architecture. We both appear to understand the signals around Substack's current trajectory—particularly as it enters its 7th year, grappling with monetization efforts, the potential for new ownership, and features that don’t always benefit the writers who came here for engagement and meaningful discourse.
I love your lecture hall and classroom analogies. It captures the kind of open exchange we all hope to find and this kind of thoughtful dialogue is still happening on some writers' Substacks (I mean through the long-form posts). However, the way Substack’s Notes algorithm works, with its emphasis on social media-style engagement, isn’t serving smaller, new writers as we hoped. It’s a burden, and worse, a distraction. All this just reinforces the tension between what Substack aims to do and the realities of its current model. (I'm working on a longer essay, have posted comments, and Notes -e.g. 'Substack Games: How Fair is a 'Sovereign Creator' Model?' where paid writers end up subsidizing free writers and readers. https://substack.com/@anitacoleman/note/c-80871620?)
Still, I remain supportive of Substack and hopeful that their spaces like this can preserve what’s most valuable—real engagement and meaningful discourse for building a global knowledge culture, and inspiring a curiosity culture for human well-being. I appreciate your belief in those of us trying to bring thoughtful writing and dialogue to the forefront. Thank you again for your support—your words mean a lot. All the best!
PS. I look forward to continuing the conversation!
If Substack is the future, and we the subscribers are the ones are left determine its success there is a problem. Substack will have to adjust its subscription pricing and or use advertising to support the sheer volume of creators around the globe. The idea of subscriptions for everything is unsustainable in the long run. The vast majority of us do not have deep enough pockets to support hundreds,even thousands of creators we love let alone what we spend on podcasts, subscription TV etc. YouTube’s choice to charge a ludicrously high monthly subscription or watch lengthy ads cutting in randomly offers Substack a great opportunity.
Yes! Exactly. I enjoy Substack, but paid subscriptions are not feasible for me. Back when magazine subscriptions were more popular, I'd subscribe to one or two. Not 20. There's a Substack I follow that offers to comp a subscription, no questions asked, if you email her. I love her for that.
I agree, I know these folks deserve to get paid, but how many subscriptions are we supposed to pay for? I would rather be subjected to ads than have to pay for every single author on this platform.
Perhaps, but I long ago tired of trying to be my own webmaster, etc. updates alone (not counting upgrades) took up hours of my time each week. So let’s be clear here. Substack provides much more than just a mailing list, and the entirety of the content remains owned and managed by the creator.
Substack is the greatest invention since the printing press. And in much the same way as far as ownership, and the ability to share our ideas and stories go. We are fortunate 🙏🏼
I agree! It’s almost too good to be true for very long. How do we/they make sure it’s not swallowed up by the monopolies? The big companies eat any threat to them for breakfast. If they won’t sell the business to them, they make sure it goes out of business. How can we be sure that Substack doesn’t become another one of those stories?
Yes plus things will get much much worse for several years. And the oligarchs will swallow every business they can. And everything that’s now a government service will either be privatized or starved of oxygen.
Love to see the growth in Substack. I’ve seen some changes here and there — which comes with expansion I can imagine — but as long as the vision stays pure and the policies reflect that decision (ie; we can say whatever we want as long as not promoting harm one anyone), I’m so for it!
Hate to be the contrarian, but I see too much "follow me, follow you" posts. I also get many more views on my posts/articles on X fortunately or unfortunately. I love Substack, but I just don't fine the reach. I'll keep working it. It seems much easier for people in media who jump over to Substack.
I used to put the Substack link and images up from Substack. But X and Substack had a fight; therefore, the article doesn't get as much reach.
When I wrote the article on X, it got many more views. To write articles, you may need the Premium + on X, which I have, but the views are 4-5x greater. Not sure you can write articles on X without the P+. I forget, sorry. Long story short, yes, write the articles as original, not links, on X.
You can but no one will see it (relatively). Twitter actively suppresses Tweets with SS links. I can see it with my own eyes showing dramatically fewer views on those with SS links vs those without. Facebook is almost certainly the same and IG doesn’t allow hyperlinks at all.
The problem with Substack is I’m willing to pay only 1-2 subscription fees, not unlimited. So, I don’t see how creators can survive on Substack either.
Exactly this. I feel like I am being nickeled and dimed at every turn. I understand content creators need to make a living and I would love to get my blog/social media to a point where it brings in a bit of cash but, my god. Between Patreon, Substack, podcast network channels, and every other thing that wants anywhere from $1-$5 from me it’s a bit exhausting and untenable.I follow a lot of creators whose content I like and find valuable but I cannot afford to subscribe to them all and, honestly, I don’t know that I would get that much more value out of a little additional content.
Your chances of making anything are slim if you're not from Big Media. Just the reach on my articles compared to X is striking. I get so many more views on X, but I'm not actually sure anyone's reading them. It could be like TikTok, where people just scroll, and they scroll by my article, and that's a view.
I replied to the larger group, but I also think writers could come together and write under one umbrella, kind of like what The Free Press did. Who's in?
Mastodon is decentralized, we should ALL be discussing what this means and working on making future platforms decentralized, cutting out the Zuckerbergs and Musks from profiting AND changing rules on fascists’ whims.
LOL. The real fascists are Democrat politicians. Musk is CLEARLY the opposite of a fascist, so maybe you need to look up the definition. He favors individual freedom, liberty, limited government, and free speech. His opposition to government waste, unnecessary regulations, and censorship is widely known to everyone but you apparently. Such traits are certainly NOT that of a fascist. I find it strange that you consider Elon a fascist when he was the one that undeniably has made X less centralized through firing of 75% of Twitter's activist employees, and instead added democratic community notes so everyone can help determine the accuracy of posts in question. Also, Musk made the X algorithms open source, ensuring that all parties can see and report any bias. And finally, he exposed the Twitter files, thus proving that Twitter was in fact colluding with the Biden admin to censor people and the truth for political reasons.
Can we do without your nastiness and name calling? If I want to read that, I'll go look at my X account or Facebook. It's become exhausting.
Just admit it...you have ZERO problem with someone falsely calling Musk a fascist, but you don't like it when truthfully point out who the true fascists are, lol. Maybe you should try being honest and focus on the real issues, like the fact that Democrats held a silent coup and overthrew the elected candidate for the 2024 election, Biden, and replaced him with Harris who didn't win one delegate. Talk about a threat to Democracy! If you don't see a problem with that, then you are part of the problem. Here are some more FACTS:
Over 40% of left leaning Democrats report mental health issues:https://www.eutimes.net/2020/02/liberalism-is-a-mental-disorder-akin-to-schizophrenia-according-to-new-study/
Mental illness prevalent in the left: https://www.researchgate.net/publication/339541044_Mental_illness_and_the_left
Democrats have more mental disorders: https://thinkamericana.com/scientific-evidence-study-proves-liberals-have-more-mental-disorders-than-others/
Most criminals identify as Democrats by a ratio of 5 to 1: https://www.mic.com/articles/78013/most-convicts-vote-democrat-study-shows
My only comment was about the name calling. You know nothing about me nor my political affiliations to make assumptions about me. Are you this arrogant and assuming with everyone?
Yeah, right. So tell us, did you vote for Harris this year, or Biden in 2020?
If your post to me was only about name calling, why didn't you complain about name calling when the OP called Musk a fascist, lol? I think we both know that it's because you were fine with that because of your politics. And my name calling? You mean the word clown? Oh, the horror! But I bet you are fine with Democrats falsely calling Trump a racist right? Let's see how you answer...
Fred, are you still holding your breath waiting for my answer? I'm sorry if I made you big sad and you think I was singling you out about the fascist comment. I actually saw your comment first and that's why I directed it at you. I'll try to go back and find the other person's fascist comment so I can spank them too. You don't need to tell us who you voted for - we already know.
No, I don't David. Now try making an actual argument instead of just sounding stupid.
Democrats have mental health issues: https://news.gallup.com/poll/102943/republicans-report-much-better-mental-health-than-others.aspx
Science says liberals, not conservatives, are psychotic
https://nypost.com/2016/06/09/science-says-liberal-beliefs-are-linked-to-pyschotic-traits/
Liberals more likely to have a mental health condition
https://www.washingtontimes.com/news/2021/apr/22/white-liberals-more-likely-have-mental-health-cond/
Over 40% of left leaning Democrats report mental health issues:https://www.eutimes.net/2020/02/liberalism-is-a-mental-disorder-akin-to-schizophrenia-according-to-new-study/
Mental illness prevalent in the left: https://www.researchgate.net/publication/339541044_Mental_illness_and_the_left
Democrats have more mental disorders: https://thinkamericana.com/scientific-evidence-study-proves-liberals-have-more-mental-disorders-than-others/
Most criminals identify as Democrats by a ratio of 5 to 1: https://www.mic.com/articles/78013/most-convicts-vote-democrat-study-shows
Science proves liberals have far more mental illness issues: https://freedomheadlines.com/freedom-wire/scientific-proof-study-finds-more-liberals-have-more-mental-disorders/
Conservatives have healthier mental traits like personal responsibility and conscientiousness than liberals. https://www.psychologytoday.com/us/blog/unique-everybody-else/201902/are-conservatives-healthier-liberals
Democrat fascists are so insane that they want to take children from parents if not vaccinated: https://www.dailysignal.com/2022/01/18/nearly-a-third-of-democrats-support-unvaccinated-losing-custody-of-kids/
It was so nice to block and leave Mr 4 followwrs screaming up his own void. Ahhhh!
Is that why he's banned accounts, and publicly threatened to ban more the other week?
Nothing fascist about that , right Phil? Musk is the poster boy of fascism
Do you imagine Elon actually goes around managing accounts on X all day? There are systems and algorithms in all social media platforms and they all constantly have to compromise and evolve
The number of people being banned on X has VASTLY decreased under Elon, clown. The platform is far more fair today, so stop the ridiculous lies and Democrat talking points. "Under Musk's leadership, the company has taken steps to address this issue and promote a more open and inclusive platform for all voices. Content moderation is now being applied more equitably; political affiliation no longer determines whose ideas are allowed to flourish. This shift has given users representing a diversity o perspectives a fair chance to share their thoughts without fear of censorship or suppression." Also, hate speech has declined as well. And, Elon revealed the truth that the Biden Admin was colluding with corporations to censor people. "Another notable achievement under Musk's leadership was the release of the Twitter Files, which exposed rampant government corruption and highlighted the platform's former leadership's collusion with federal agencies to target and suppress certain accounts. This shed light on the troubling practice of censoring accounts expressing viewpoints on COVID-19, vaccines, and elections that didn't align with the state-approved narratives on these matters. Additionally, the files revealed instances of content being censored on behalf of the Ukrainian government, raising questions about government intervention in social media content."
https://www.newsweek.com/twitter-has-undeniably-gotten-better-under-elon-musk-opinion-1814882
2020 article here. Citing Newsweek does nothing to convince me. You say nothing to convince me of anything other than I should believe the people who disagree with you. https://newrepublic.com/article/158968/newsweek-rise-zombie-magazine
Suggestion... Don't argue with someone who reads Newsweek. Move your attention to something productive. You will be happier. 😁
I understand where you're coming from. It can be tough when sources don’t align with your perspective. I think it’s important to approach these conversations with an open mind and be willing to consider different viewpoints, even if we don’t agree. Sometimes, understanding why others disagree can help us refine our own beliefs, even if it’s challenging.
What's wrong with you!
I suspect that needs to be addressed by a professional... 💁🏼♀️
The question is what is wrong with you?
Democrats have mental health issues: https://news.gallup.com/poll/102943/republicans-report-much-better-mental-health-than-others.aspx
Science says liberals, not conservatives, are psychotic
https://nypost.com/2016/06/09/science-says-liberal-beliefs-are-linked-to-pyschotic-traits/
Musk is out for Musk - just like the rest of them. If you are not in the mega wealthy arena, you are serfs and the caste system is being put in place here - notice very little middle class? Also, please be kinder with your responses - your CLEARLY is clear to you, not necessarily others.
"Musk is out for Musk"??? Deborah, sorry that life has been unfair to you, as it sounds like your life philosophy is built on envy and hate. I say this because there is absolutely ZERO reason for you to feel this way about Musk unless there are other reasons behind it, as he has probably done more to help humanity and the environment than anyone in the last century. He is the single greatest force for transitioning to alternative energy on the planet. He is making driving safer and more affordable. Through neural link, he is helping people live more enriching lives. Through Starlink, he is helping provide broadband communication throughout the world, which is especially important in the 3rd world and in places like Ukraine. He has created tens of thousands of good jobs, and enriched every community he operates in. Though his solar and energy storage business, he is making solar viable and affordable. Through Space X he is making humanity a multi-planet species, which could one day help prevent our extinction. And perhaps most importantly, he has become a champion of free speech and freedom, and even exposed the Federal government for colluding with big business to censor truth information in order to hide it from the public.
So, tell us what this Musk hate really about? Do you just hate rich people? If so, what is the cut off? Billionaires? Millionaires? Or do you hate anyone who has more than you? Also, please be kinder with your responses...hating Musk without justification isn't very nice, is it?
That is my opinion and my take - you have yours - no disrespect. THERE IS NO MENTION OF HATE in my post so get over yourself. I read your response - stay on point and don't put attitudes or twist other posts with you i
nterpretation of what I meant.
Oh, so the false claim that "Musk is out for Musk" and the claim that we are all serfs and part of a caste system wasn't hate, lol? Try being honest with yourself. Like others, your attitude can only be driven by petty jealousy and hate because any rational, honest person would admire the guy.
If it's not hate, explain why you feel this way about him? Musk is rich because he's provided products and services that people really want or need. He's also paid more taxes than any human being in history.
Blocked
Are we on Substack here? How disappointing.
Ha ha! I thought you were serious!
There’s arguments that the system of advanced algorithmic management of information in a democracy is inherently fascist, no matter who’s wielding it but the interesting thing about the new team surrounding Trump is that they all are highly aware of this problem and seem to intend to do something about it.
Sort of like when the early American founders had first hand experience with tyranny so they knew how to structure a guard against it.
Even the most well meaning do this- it’s a function of the system through the inevitable law of “power corrupts”
I was contemplating the fact the other day that the founders of our country were so wise about tyranny because they had just lived through it and likewise Elon, RFK and the whole TrumpTeam are similarly united after experiencing the deep state oppression under the Biden /Obama reign.
Mux is an idiot
"Mux is an idiot"
Wow...are you a child?
The real reasons some people hate Elon:
1) They lost money betting against TSLA and have never recovered emotionally or financially.
2) They are angry over Elon taking away their censorship toy.
3) They are deeply envious of Elon, which stems from a lifetime of their own failures.
4) They lean Marxist and hate Elon’s pro-freedom politics.
5) They suffer from a form of mental illness which affects rational thought. https://news.gallup.com/poll/102943/republicans-report-much-better-mental-health-than-others.aspx
Do you think the clean water act is an outdated or unnecessary regulation? If you do you could be drinking gasoline in your water. The clean water act legislation
Musk only promotes or allows the free speech of those he approves of or agrees with. That is one reason so many refugees of X have ended up here. You can report slander and abuse all you want on his site but if you are a member of one of the groups he dislikes his platform won't respond to your request to remove other's hate speech about you. You've really swallowed the kool-aid.
Drop dead, crypto scammer.
And yet you still haven't proved any error that I posted...like a child, your sole counter argument is "you are brainwashed". Are you slow? Serious question.
Nancy, thanks for your encouragement. I agree that we should be discussing federation like Mastodon. My understanding is that federation is a complex socio-technical problem. I'd even call it a "wicked problem." Decentralization / federation is also a significant departure from Substack's current centralized approach that may affect their business model ability to attract high earners. Also, while the federated learning and architecture can help improve discovery of niche writers and provide writers with more control, it introduces new and ongoing challenges such as content moderation, fair representation of less popular writers, a fragmented experience for readers, etc. Will decentralization / federation solve the long tail and platform degradation ("enshittification")? I don't know. Does anybody else?
I appreciate you provoking us to think this through. In the meantime, I want to remain supportive of Substack's ongoing vision while continuing to explore solutions that benefit all of us — authors, readers, and the teams at Substack. To that end, I’ve taken a couple of steps: creating a directory of Library Voices on Substack to help showcase niche writers and responding to a discussion where Hamish offered to have our CTO clarify how Notes works, I’ve raised some questions: https://substack.com/@anitacoleman/note/c-81119962
Thanks, again, and here’s to us solving this wicked problem so all of us can flourish — writers, readers, and Substack.
Thank you Nancy, for your thoughtful attention to the question of sustainable frameworks for the nourishment and betterment of writers who wish to develop connections with potential readers.
And a welcome breath of fresh air! There had developed a noisome buzz of narcissistic blather on this thread. Good to be back to what we're here for–constructive engagement amongst writers who are seriously pursuing their passions.
Is Mastodon a platform for creatives?
Anita, your reflection on centralized vs. federation based social structures is thought provoking.
I lean towards structures that mimic the bio-form of mycelia, among the largest of organisms extant on our planet. A great nourisher of the web of life, and all things rooted in soil. It also employs a node-based system where all vital information is replicated in every node throughout the entire body's network. This provides a solution against demise or debilitating maiming due to possible external threats, such as forest fires. If any part of the organism is thoroughly consumed by fire or other toxic inputs, there still remains the hope for complete regeneration stemming from the areas that are outside of the danger zone. This, due to the existence of the nodes, which possess all of the building blocks for a continuance of the organism's vibrant vitality.
This brilliant soil-dwelling organism provides a model, in my estimation, for the organization of human social structures of many stripes. Rather than being heirarchical in it's assignments, all parts have equal access to the nourishment and purpose driven existence enjoyed by such an entity, with fruiting bodies of myriad colorful arrangements, sometimes even seemingly magical, and often beautiful, in a rare way that distinguishes it from any other living being of the natural world.
The instances of varieties populate every land-form on our planet. And each one performs its vital work in astonishing ways. Imagine if this model could be applied to the development of a marvelous and enduring platform for writers, for instance!
Thank you, I fully support that vision here, and agree to try to make this a more positive space for all who are contributing with all good intentions to progress our human race forward, taking note of all those who are of good service in our society. The helpers and the kind folks.
You’re an amazing writer, again I thank you for your thoughts, well delivered.
Cheers, I’ll see you around the stacks!
Have had 4 accounts banned on EchoSky already. Elon isn’t the Fascist. It’s you.
Stick your crypto scams up your ass.
I think it’s wonderful that Substack creators can control their own content more here. But I’d like to see more categories available. Like cooking, baking, crocheting, knitting, sewing. Those ends of the craft spectrum need more attention.
Right now, my substack feed is overwhelmingly filled with politics, tech, business and book reviews, which are good, but I’d like more focused life-style selections.
I realize that, but I actually mean where your page and posts are categorized. I mean, if you were looking for a crochet community, where would you look and how would you find them. Or if you wanted specifically to find quick and easy recipes, how would you find it within the food category? And where would you go to get organization tips.
Broad categories are fine, but it’s hard to find the niche interests within them.
I agree, Pat. I have a few niche interests which I find hard to find on the current iteration of Substack. I'd like to see Substack work on that.
Arguably one of the most successful features of TikTok was the tuning of their algorithm unveiling hyper-niche communities you almost didn't even realize you were apart of, and giving social momentum behind them. Interesting lesson to be learned from other platforms.
I did a quick search for “woodworking” and did get maybe a dozen to two dozen people and pages. Maybe the issue is that the number of writers is so small that there isn’t a category yet? Not sure how that logic would pan out for other kinds of crafting or creative projects.
That might be. I don't know much about how Substack handles that.
Dear Pat, Thank you for the letter. I am a writer on Substack, and I don't know how to get into my column.
I'm serious. Do you know how Substack categorizes
posts? I am lousy about technical stuff but I want to
write a column for disabled people. Thank you.
It’s interesting you said this. I do woodworking and while I’m not ready to make it a full fledged business yet (I’ve made exactly four sales to three people), I’d like to eventually. I’m on Etsy and Facebook and Instagram, but those are all platforms with the same problems. I know other woodworkers have blogs and personal business websites and mailing lists, but none of the ones I follow also have a Substack. I should look into that.
https://peterfollansbeejoinerswork.substack.com/ and https://petergalbert.substack.com/ may be up your alley :)
Yeah I’m hoping to do a show this summer. It hasn’t quite crossed from hobby to business as I still have to work my full time job and build my skills and toolset. And my shop is effectively three season and not conducive to large items. Or lots of storage, for either wood or inventory. So I’m taking it slow. I’m planning on moving states in a few years anyway to hopefully a property with proper workshop space. Lots of learning in the meantime.
I never bought into the premise of Bitcoin, et.al. It just sounded more like a scam than anything else.
I agree, Pat. Substack is a great platform for writing about art and culture- except for the categories. I know there are lots of "thinky" artists who would like my content, but it is difficult to find me using tags or searching categories.
If you are referring to your Notes feed, it is easy to mute or hide notes you don't want to see. Who you follow will also determine what shows in your feeds so I always check out what they share for Notes before I follow and if they start going a direction I don't care for, I unfollow. You will slowly see your Notes feed adjust.
I'll bet all of that content will show up once TikTok is done, I'm guessing. And people realize X doesn't mark the spot. Of course we will have to deal with the troll 🧌 bots.
When Elon actually starts a company instead of just buying it then he can talk. He hasn't created anything so far and now he is set to destroy? No thanks.
I’m all about lifestyle on my HappiNest Journal. Just started out here on Substack.
What general category do you fall into?
Health and Wellness and Design as there is no Lifestyle or Homes and Gardens
You’d likely benefit from more specific categories, too.
Absolutely
Similar issue for weedom. And probably I need to do the SEO dance better. But it’s hard enough to edit down the massive info into digestible segments. Waaah!
I agree with you on this point. I think it would be cool to have a better way to sort genres on the app.
You do realise you can request in settings what you want your feed to comprise of and what categories and genres ?? There are categories for all you have mentioned above??
I’ve never found them. Guess I need a tutorial on using Substack. Not sure where to place my writing, which is why I haven’t posted any yet.
I agree. You should check out my new Substack. I'm writing about investing as a lifestyle, emphasizing emotional intelligence over technical knowledge."
"never give the keys to your business to a drunk driver" 🥴🤣
As a Boomer, my impression of TikTok is that its existence has led to the even worse dumbing down of America if that was even possible. There are some very clever ideas on TikTok, but overall look at the nonsensical stuff that our young people are watching and creating. My generation might have been just as guilty, but these media avenues were not available to us growing up and I'm glad. Test scores in school are worse than ever, young people can't find jobs because they have no job skills/education, but they sure can create a TikTok video in minutes. The worst is when people get their news from TikTok. I'm glad I was taught how to write a letter in cursive, look up facts (not opinions or false information) in an encyclopedia, write a term paper without cheating with AI, spell without spellcheck, add without a calculator. I feel I had the best of both worlds. I was taught basic life skills growing up and now I can get on social media (which is mostly mindless) and spend my time that way. I know I am a dying breed. I enjoy Substack because so far the articles I've seen are from educated people who know how to write. May not agree with everyone's opinion, but that's ok.
I understand why you would feel like this, sincerely, since social media basically engages and works better when it feeds from a source of conflict instead of compassion, which breeds separation and hate between political and social groups, classes and well, even generations, needless to mention the misogyny and red pill content. While I do admit TikTok is paved with things you deem nonsensical (brainrot would be a fantastic illustration for your point), it does fill some vacant holes left by the American education system. For example, many people of my generation have started showing interest for literature because of its popularity on Tiktok. Many people use it to help others understand concepts that have been over complicated for the simple benefit of only being accessible by privileged people. (We call this « vulgarisation » in my language but I don’t know if there’s an English equivalent)
As for the news, I’m afraid no one is truly transparent, it’s difficult to find reliable sources (not just talking about TikTok if this wasn’t obvious), but even in this case, the problem would be a decline in media literacy, which is something that should be taught in school, which I assume is becoming complicated with all of the book bans going on.
About the facts you think should be looked up in encyclopedias, they aren’t accessible to everyone and since we are constantly evolving and discovering new things about the world, it seems a little bit counterproductive to check facts in a source that cannot be updated. (This doesn’t involve everything though. I agree with you to some extent for this point because I think people should read more.)
Lastly I wanted to say that Tiktok has been the safe space of many people, including creatives suffering in a world of corporate greed, who have the opportunity to have an audience on TikTok and vulnerable teenagers going through a rough time: bullying, family issues, global warming, to be honest I can’t think of any teenager that wouldn’t be anxious in this day and age.
My response was way longer than I intended and english isn’t my native language so I might have made some language mistakes, but I hope my response gave you a bit of nuance and a different point of view for this whole situation. I could talk about it for hours since it truly is complicated, given all of the different variables involved. If that’s the case I’m really glad! If not, that’s alright,
sincerely, someone from Gen Z.
J Ellul wrote a highly illuminating book called The Humiliation of the Word and made a strong case for a phenomenological distinction between words and images and the effects on human cultural development.
We don’t even realize the extent to which images have taken over and don’t comprehend our basically vain and idolatrous society.
And I’m not speaking religiously but philosophically: nominalism is rampant.
I'm also a Boomer, but I have to wonder: If TikTok had been around back then, would I have been posting videos to it? I suspect the answer is yes, which makes me grateful we didn't have it. I feel I was better off, what with having a whole library full of books just six blocks away, but I do have to wonder whether TikTok is the cause, or the effect.
I agree with you on this we have have let this country dumb down so much, for me spell check has been a god send with dyslexia I have a hard time. When we lowered the school standards that was the beginning of the end. As a boomer I consider myself lucky that my teachers caught my problem at an early age ,then and now class sizes are ridiculous and kids slip through the cracks and the teachers must feel overwhelmed at times.
I don’t even know if there were specialty classes when I grew up. You had reading or writing difficulties, they flunked you. ADHD just became on the horizon in the late 60/early 70’s. I remember reading about it in my abnormal psych class in 1971 and it was a recent discovery. Sad to think the kids that struggled like you did, were smart, but just had a learning disability and needed special help. I think now though, that we label every behavior problem, especially with boys, as ADHD, when many times it’s a parental discipline problem.
🙄
I can grumble with the best of them, but no question that Substack is a great platform that has helped this historian reach 8,500 readers with stories from academic and public history that help make us all aware of the dangers of confirmation bias. Thank you.
As a Serious Literary Author, I have no idea what Tik-Toc, Buzzfiend or YourTube are.
😂
I'm confused 😕. TikTok is a video platform and Substack is mostly written content. How are these content creators making that switch when it's a totally different medium?
my thought exactly. TikTok content is mostly utter mindless pointless dreck. Unless you spend hours finding and following the few interesting / not pointless folks, it's a complete time waste to me. Do I want to see Substack overrun with that kind of pointlessness? no. I do not.
Substack already supports video and they've been hinting at expanding those tools. It's one thing to add a video podcast or to offer video readings to put a face to the author and create audience connection. It's quite another to turn the library into a building full of 30 second circus acts, which is how I see the the majority of TikTok (and for that matter Instagram) content compared to Substack content. That would not only be disappointing, but feel like a bit of a betrayal to the entire spirit of the platform, not to mention to the writers.
You can add video clips to substack. Looks simple to do but probably isn't I see it with Jay kuo, Robert Reich and others.
The Canadian government has ordered the shutdown of Canadian TikToc operations as well citing "specific national security risks".
I know the focus of this piece is TikTok creators but too many of us with subscribers in the hundreds are at the mercy of your algorithm. Notes is a lottery, in my daily experience. I'm not seeing a concerted effort from Substack to draw attention to emerging writers.
The recommendations feature is a useful way to give someone a leg up – I'm dubious about offering multiple recs in a subscriber sign-up flow – but I don't know if writers at all levels are benefitting.
SmallStack is doing good work to plug the gap and build a community outside the big leagues.
I was reading a piece by beehiiv's Tyler Denk earlier, who offered this illustration –
"So, let's break publishers into two categories:
The breadwinners: The top 1% who generate most of the revenue for the company.
Everyone else: The long tail of users who feed the breadwinners and make the system go.
Said differently: if you’re not a breadwinner on Substack, you’re the yeast. The yeast is responsible for driving app downloads, granting access to their social graph, and funneling their readers towards the platform’s top earners.
These publishers attract their own followers (with their own dollars) and leverage their own social networks to introduce new readers to the platform. Substack then uses algorithmic recommendations and “community” features to direct these audiences to their most lucrative writers, ensuring that the long tail of creators supports and enriches the top earners."
In fact, a response to the whole thing would very useful, please: https://mail.bigdeskenergy.com/p/death-by-thousand-substacks
Amar, thank you for your thought provoking analysis of the long tail. I'm looking forward to reading your rec. This is a wicked problem and I want to appreciate Substack for their vision and work so far for all of us to flourish, authors, readers, and Substack, fairly and sustainably. ICYMI, Hamish in response to similar concerns (on Notes not here on longform) has offered to have our CTO answer some of the concerns and my questions for CTO are restacked here: https://substack.com/@anitacoleman/note/c-81119962
Some really good questions on that other comment of yours, Anita. In my opinion, discoverability and nurturing emerging writers across all subject areas should be key priorities on this platform. Substack has given agency and encouragement to lots of hopeful writers and facilitated the community many of us feel part of. But they can go further.
FYI I've been on here for a year, publishing fortnightly at length on arts and culture, posting Notes daily in different forms and spending at least 30 minutes a day commenting on posts and discussions. I have 102 subscribers. Hamish has written that, "The Substack feed is designed to maximize engagement with deeper content, by driving people to posts and episodes." I'm not seeing that.
Occasionally, articles with hundreds of likes pop up and they are illuminating. But these writers are of a certain popularity, with more than 1,000 followers. I've had to go hunting via comments for talented writers with far smaller followings who can't be found.
Of course, I'll restack, comment or recommend. These are useful features to help us support one another. However, back to Notes, too often I see faux self-deprecation memes at how few subscribers x has or calls for reciprocal subscribing, or I'm new to Substack…
Amar, I completely agree—discoverability and supporting emerging writers should be central priorities for Substack which seeks to be a driving force in the creators' economy and global culture; they seem to be offering a space for independent and diverse voices to thrive, much like the ancient Tamil Sanghams of southern India in the Common Era or the literary salons of the European Renaissance — though far more accessible and democratized for the world. It’s clear that the platform has given many writers a sense of agency and community, but there’s definitely room for improvement in terms of visibility for smaller voices.
Thank you for sharing the challenges you’re facing with finding and being discovered by new audiences.Your efforts to engage with others through comments, restacks, and recommendations are really helping to build a supportive community, I’m sure, and are a great example besides! That said, it’s clear that Substack could do more to ease the discovery process, so writers don’t have to work so hard to reach new readers.
I’m tracking all this feedback and plan to write more about it soon. Thanks again for sharing your perspective—I really appreciate your honest input.
Exactly this. Thank you! I'm definitely not seeing the growth and returns that have bee promised over and over.
I'd like to believe that this platform can help develop writers' careers at all levels. Discoverability could be better. A few tweaks on the tech front are needed. Reconfiguring the Notes algorithm to give more weight to long form and emerging writers over memes and power publishers would be a good start. Rewarding restacks with comments… that type of thing.
Amar, This is wonderful! I’m planning to add this to my curated list of features that writers have requested to enhance their experience here on Substack—including your suggestions. More to come soon. Thanks.
It is not happening. The enshittification of this platform has begun in the form of Notes filled with click/ragebait headlines mostly hawking articles that land somewhere on the "culture wars" spectrum. True growth and the promised returns can only happen IRL in the analog world.
David,
Thank you so much for the kind words and taking the time and effort to engage. Just to clarify, Amar and I aren’t colleagues, but rather two writers who, like many of us, have noticed the implications of Substack’s business model (long tail) and its architecture (centralization), care about the future of long-tail authors (and readers) here, many of whom have voiced similar concerns about Substack's direction, and want sustainable flourishing for all of us.
ICYMI. The fundamental long tail dilemma means there’s no direct financial incentive for Substack to solve issues like decentralization or the limitations of its tech architecture. We both appear to understand the signals around Substack's current trajectory—particularly as it enters its 7th year, grappling with monetization efforts, the potential for new ownership, and features that don’t always benefit the writers who came here for engagement and meaningful discourse.
I love your lecture hall and classroom analogies. It captures the kind of open exchange we all hope to find and this kind of thoughtful dialogue is still happening on some writers' Substacks (I mean through the long-form posts). However, the way Substack’s Notes algorithm works, with its emphasis on social media-style engagement, isn’t serving smaller, new writers as we hoped. It’s a burden, and worse, a distraction. All this just reinforces the tension between what Substack aims to do and the realities of its current model. (I'm working on a longer essay, have posted comments, and Notes -e.g. 'Substack Games: How Fair is a 'Sovereign Creator' Model?' where paid writers end up subsidizing free writers and readers. https://substack.com/@anitacoleman/note/c-80871620?)
Still, I remain supportive of Substack and hopeful that their spaces like this can preserve what’s most valuable—real engagement and meaningful discourse for building a global knowledge culture, and inspiring a curiosity culture for human well-being. I appreciate your belief in those of us trying to bring thoughtful writing and dialogue to the forefront. Thank you again for your support—your words mean a lot. All the best!
PS. I look forward to continuing the conversation!
If Substack is the future, and we the subscribers are the ones are left determine its success there is a problem. Substack will have to adjust its subscription pricing and or use advertising to support the sheer volume of creators around the globe. The idea of subscriptions for everything is unsustainable in the long run. The vast majority of us do not have deep enough pockets to support hundreds,even thousands of creators we love let alone what we spend on podcasts, subscription TV etc. YouTube’s choice to charge a ludicrously high monthly subscription or watch lengthy ads cutting in randomly offers Substack a great opportunity.
Yes! Exactly. I enjoy Substack, but paid subscriptions are not feasible for me. Back when magazine subscriptions were more popular, I'd subscribe to one or two. Not 20. There's a Substack I follow that offers to comp a subscription, no questions asked, if you email her. I love her for that.
I agree, I know these folks deserve to get paid, but how many subscriptions are we supposed to pay for? I would rather be subjected to ads than have to pay for every single author on this platform.
It is good that TikTok, a spy network for the CCP is forced to leave. We should see the forest beyond the trees!
Oops! Too much CNN back to bed
Every smart phone ships with an email app.
Good email marketing existed before social media, and it'll be here long after.
Perhaps, but I long ago tired of trying to be my own webmaster, etc. updates alone (not counting upgrades) took up hours of my time each week. So let’s be clear here. Substack provides much more than just a mailing list, and the entirety of the content remains owned and managed by the creator.
But if Substack goes away tomorrow (or five years from now) all your posts would be gone, wouldn’t they?
Substack is the greatest invention since the printing press. And in much the same way as far as ownership, and the ability to share our ideas and stories go. We are fortunate 🙏🏼
I agree! It’s almost too good to be true for very long. How do we/they make sure it’s not swallowed up by the monopolies? The big companies eat any threat to them for breakfast. If they won’t sell the business to them, they make sure it goes out of business. How can we be sure that Substack doesn’t become another one of those stories?
Don’t know why but that is waaaay down on my list of things to worry about.
Yeah, true and also, it’s all connected.
Yes plus things will get much much worse for several years. And the oligarchs will swallow every business they can. And everything that’s now a government service will either be privatized or starved of oxygen.
Sigh 🥺
Love to see the growth in Substack. I’ve seen some changes here and there — which comes with expansion I can imagine — but as long as the vision stays pure and the policies reflect that decision (ie; we can say whatever we want as long as not promoting harm one anyone), I’m so for it!
Hate to be the contrarian, but I see too much "follow me, follow you" posts. I also get many more views on my posts/articles on X fortunately or unfortunately. I love Substack, but I just don't fine the reach. I'll keep working it. It seems much easier for people in media who jump over to Substack.
Same.
At this point about all I’m getting out of SS is a repository for my work.
Exactly!
Can you link your Substack articles on X to bring that audience here?
I used to put the Substack link and images up from Substack. But X and Substack had a fight; therefore, the article doesn't get as much reach.
When I wrote the article on X, it got many more views. To write articles, you may need the Premium + on X, which I have, but the views are 4-5x greater. Not sure you can write articles on X without the P+. I forget, sorry. Long story short, yes, write the articles as original, not links, on X.
Definitely spot on. I have the same issues.
You can but no one will see it (relatively). Twitter actively suppresses Tweets with SS links. I can see it with my own eyes showing dramatically fewer views on those with SS links vs those without. Facebook is almost certainly the same and IG doesn’t allow hyperlinks at all.
Is there a separate place for articles on Facebook/IG? X has a place to write articles.
Definitely not on IG. FB I couldn’t say for sure but my guess is very unlikely. There is no “premium” edition of FB that I’m aware of.
The problem with Substack is I’m willing to pay only 1-2 subscription fees, not unlimited. So, I don’t see how creators can survive on Substack either.
Exactly this. I feel like I am being nickeled and dimed at every turn. I understand content creators need to make a living and I would love to get my blog/social media to a point where it brings in a bit of cash but, my god. Between Patreon, Substack, podcast network channels, and every other thing that wants anywhere from $1-$5 from me it’s a bit exhausting and untenable.I follow a lot of creators whose content I like and find valuable but I cannot afford to subscribe to them all and, honestly, I don’t know that I would get that much more value out of a little additional content.
Your chances of making anything are slim if you're not from Big Media. Just the reach on my articles compared to X is striking. I get so many more views on X, but I'm not actually sure anyone's reading them. It could be like TikTok, where people just scroll, and they scroll by my article, and that's a view.
I replied to the larger group, but I also think writers could come together and write under one umbrella, kind of like what The Free Press did. Who's in?