What and where

But which tropical paradise should I pick? (Image by Nici Keil)

This is my first post on Substack (cross-posted here and there).

I have often tried to avoid posts that are too much about the experience of blogging, which is actually kind of silly because so many of my readers are bloggers and writers themselves, and we tend to like to hear each other’s experiences. So I’ll indulge the temptation to get a little recursive and blog about blogging (or even, in this moment, to blog about blogging about blogging).

The reason for switching to Substack is really simple. First of all, Intuit bought Mailchimp a couple of years ago, and due to my soul-deep loathing for Intuit, I knew it was just a matter of time before I had to leave.

Why now? Well, I sold a business this month, and handing over my entire Mailchimp account is probably the easiest way to transfer the email marketing assets of that business. Also, my RSS feed broke a few months ago (have I mentioned how much I hate Intuit?) and I’ve had to manually schedule each post. I’ve gotten tired of doing that.

And why Substack? Well, a couple of years ago Neil asked me if I had considered it. (No, not until he asked.) And then Diana asked me the same question over the weekend. So here we are.

I used to get hung up for years on questions like, “Which platform would be best for me?” and “What domain name should I use?” I focused so much on those choices that I never got started.

Now, even though I have higher visibility than I did then, the stakes feel so much lower. The answers to those questions don’t really matter that much because I can always change my mind later. So I go with the first good option, and that’s that. Whatever it takes to keep me showing up and sharing and growing.

I don’t have a very solid plan besides the few clicks I’ve made to get this far. I refuse to overthink it. The next steps will be revealed.

Yes, there are implications of these various choices. In this case, Substack is known for being a platform where you have the option of paid subscribers. You can even put content behind a paywall.

A couple of years ago, I resisted the idea of switching to Substack because of that. I didn’t want people to think that I was trying to get paid.

Now, after having sold or closed two outwardly successful yet mostly unprofitable businesses in the past two years, I’m coming from a different place. I can see my own distinct pattern of turning down money and opportunity, along with playing down my talent and professional expertise. I don’t want to do that anymore. I mean, have kids now. Why would I resist being compensated for the work I do? What’s that noise about? Why would I deliberately close off those channels?

So while none of my work is behind a paywall, you now have the option to support my writing by subscribing. You also have the option to not do that, and I’ll still be grateful that you’re reading my work.

For those of you thinking about trying Substack, I’ll let you know how it works out for me (and if you’ve already tried it, I’d love to hear your perspective).

For those of you still thinking about whether to put your work out there at all — and maybe getting distracted by what you’ll create and where you’ll put it — I encourage you to take action and just pick the first workable option. Your wish for creative actualization probably will not go away, and it is likely strong enough to withstand changing platforms or domain names and other tinkering.

Give it a shot and see if I’m right about that.

And if there’s anything I can do to support you in that endeavor, let me know.