Very supportive here. I subscribe to quite a few Substacks, but the individual subscription model gets expensive quickly, so I have to be selective about which ones I upgrade to paid.
There are a few I support primarily because I think their work is important and worth backing.
That said, when I take a career break in the next couple of years to pursue a master’s, I’ll likely have to drop a few.
As you point out Substack was initially a reasonable alternative to MSN but now it has grown too big and the model is not doable for an average reader both financially and logistically. Personally, between a few substack writers, free press and standard news I spend 2 to 3 hours reading and then have no time for books.
I have cancelled subscriptions, and I definitely can't afford to pay for any more. I'm very much like you on here. I love writing, I realise that the time I put in probably pays far less than minimum wage, but so be it. I've wondered if SS could adopt a tipping system like Twitch.
I've wondered who decides on pricing for subscriptions, the writer or substack, and who decides when to offer discounts and the amount. Some writers price themselves out of subscriptions and lose subscribers, others offer discounts, some keep pricing reasonable. I've dropped several subscriptions because the writers kept raising their subscription pricing. Or was it substack?
People set their own; I raised mine and won't raise it for another year, and even now I'm on the low side. I have no idea how people think they are worth $21. But if SS would allow a functional tipping system or any of the ideas I suggest, it would bring in more revenue. I can't blame anyone for not going from the unpaid to the paid (though more than half of mine are paywalled); times are tough. But I doubt too many spend $100 a month on Substack subscriptions.
As long as we are ranting about shitty Substack features can we talk about their email policy. Why do I need a separate email for every post from every author? There is a website and an app that I can use to see new posts and read the posts that I want. You can't turn off email notification from individual authors. The only way to do that is to unsubscribe.
Could not ageee more with 1,2 & 5.
Please G-d they fix it soon and I can reward more writters on here.
Very supportive here. I subscribe to quite a few Substacks, but the individual subscription model gets expensive quickly, so I have to be selective about which ones I upgrade to paid.
There are a few I support primarily because I think their work is important and worth backing.
That said, when I take a career break in the next couple of years to pursue a master’s, I’ll likely have to drop a few.
As you point out Substack was initially a reasonable alternative to MSN but now it has grown too big and the model is not doable for an average reader both financially and logistically. Personally, between a few substack writers, free press and standard news I spend 2 to 3 hours reading and then have no time for books.
I have cancelled subscriptions, and I definitely can't afford to pay for any more. I'm very much like you on here. I love writing, I realise that the time I put in probably pays far less than minimum wage, but so be it. I've wondered if SS could adopt a tipping system like Twitch.
I've wondered who decides on pricing for subscriptions, the writer or substack, and who decides when to offer discounts and the amount. Some writers price themselves out of subscriptions and lose subscribers, others offer discounts, some keep pricing reasonable. I've dropped several subscriptions because the writers kept raising their subscription pricing. Or was it substack?
People set their own; I raised mine and won't raise it for another year, and even now I'm on the low side. I have no idea how people think they are worth $21. But if SS would allow a functional tipping system or any of the ideas I suggest, it would bring in more revenue. I can't blame anyone for not going from the unpaid to the paid (though more than half of mine are paywalled); times are tough. But I doubt too many spend $100 a month on Substack subscriptions.
I stole your "investment" wording idea on my essay, it fit in nicely.
I've seen some substacks with a link to "Buy me a Coffee," which offers a tip option short of subscription.
As long as we are ranting about shitty Substack features can we talk about their email policy. Why do I need a separate email for every post from every author? There is a website and an app that I can use to see new posts and read the posts that I want. You can't turn off email notification from individual authors. The only way to do that is to unsubscribe.