These days, though, it seems like everyone is starting a Substack newsletter. (Is Substack the new podcast -- or the new blog? I would say there are a lot more similarities between blogs and Substacks than blogs and podcasts...)
Case in point: Margaret Atwood is now on Substack!
I know a few people have specifically mentioned they are starting a Substack newsletter as an alternative to/escape valve from Twitter, as that platform seems to be on the verge of self-destruction. I'm not exactly sure how the two equate (you can post a whole lot more than 280 characters on Substack...!), but I'm all for thoughtful longer-form writing and civilized conversation.
I took a look at my Substack profile and realized I currently subscribe to.... 27 Substack newsletters (5 of which are paid subscriptions). Many Substacks are free altogether, and most offer at least one free post every week, with more content and perqs for paid subscribers.
(And yes, I signed up for Atwood's immediately, as soon as I heard about it. Because... Margaret Atwood, people!)
Erk. No wonder I never get anything done -- especially when you add in blogs, social media, etc...!
Of course, there's also this to consider from the New York Times recently: "Are We Past Peak Newsletter?" (They wrote a similar article about podcasts in 2019, lol.)
Do you subscribe to any Substacks? (Not that I need anything else to read, I suppose...! lol)
You can find more of this week's #MicroblogMondays posts here.
I wish I could see those NYT articles about being past peaks. I keep hearing about Substack by people promoting their Substacks on Twitter (ironically), but I have not yet actually been on the site.
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So I searched a few interests. Look like unlike blogs and podcasts, you can't consume anonymously? You need to give your email address, unless the random sample I picked was not representative. That makes it not attractive to me. But I will revisit my stance on occasion.
Hmmm, I think you do have to provide your email if you're subscribing, whether through email or the Substack app. But you should be able to read one-off public posts (that aren't exclusive to paid subscribers) without having to provide an email.
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