I totally agree! Social media has been so disappointing as a place to gain readers. I looked at my statistics recently and less than 10% of my IG followers even see my posts! Hardly any have converted to email subscribers. I'm left wondering, "Why bother?" I joined Substack about a month ago and I'm excited to see what this different type of platform has in store.
Oh boy I did the thing of working my fingers to the bone and trying to be influential and sexy and controversial and everything everything everything to make a name for my writing. But I found myself being hollowed out. Thank you for these words and the permission to simply write. So far, I've been very grateful for Substack and its alignment with building sustainable writing communities.
I think the current question I can't stop thinking about is what it looks like to not be an isolated island seeking readers but be a generative space that pushes my readers to other writers and thinkers. What does community look like as a creator?
This is a lovely post and so helpful as I navigate similar thoughts and conversations about what social media means for all of us. "Nothing reaches or retains readers like writing itself."
I'm building my Substack with zero social media support. I haven't shared on any other platform besides occasionally on Medium. And one month in, I'm very satisfied with my results so far. I'm here to write and I'm purposely NOT on social media because 🤮🤮
You’ve articulated this so beautifully. Thank you. I’ve been experimenting with blogging and various social media platforms for the past fifteen years. My greatest “success” was building a fan base on Facebook (remember when they called them fan pages?) of 30,000 followers in just short of three years. Keeping up with those posts was like a second job. It ended overnight when Facebook changed its algorithm. I never monetized that page. Like you, I embrace change, but I will never work that hard again on building something I don’t fully own. Thus far I’m liking Substack so much better than the gram which feels, to me, more like scrolling territory than a place to read and that’s how it was designed so I can understand the appeal. Instagram, for me, is eye candy. Substack feels more like a place to savor words and to respond thoughtfully when inspired. Kind of like the good old days of blogging only with the added advantage of “reach.”
I appreciate your words so deeply Lore! I found your blog through instagram quite a number of years ago, it is your writing which has kept me. As a reader I really appreciate that you value your writing highly and are willing to accept the risk of potentially not being seen, knowing that good writing is always worth it.
I’ve been feeling the pull to move away from social media recently and my soul already feels a little bit more relaxed. I’m glad to still sit and read your writing though! I love the connectedness of the world in this way, that I get to read what you have written even though we live on opposite ends of the world!
Thank you for faithfully sharing your writing, it’s a good thing! :)
I heard the same advice from Ally Fallon last year at a writers’ conference and it was the most freeing bit of wisdom she could have shared. I have words to say and the thought of fighting the algorithms was draining me. Permission to walk away was a gift.
this was a very good article. You made so many good points. Thank you for sharing your wisdom! You made me feel much better for despising social media and hating the time I have to spend on it to appease the writing gods! :)
Less than a year ago I began to make choices to simplify my life. From cleaning up my house, to cleaning up social media, to cleaning up how I spend my time. Only positive benefits.
Thank you, thank you for continuing to talk about this. My own Insta has been dormant for months and as I’m currently working on my first book proposal and querying agents my husband would confirm that I have a mini existential crisis about “platform” every 3-5 days. 🙄😂 And as a marketing professional in the Christian publishing industry I *know* social media doesn’t sell books, but it takes effort and heart to ignore the siren song of bigger platform. For now I would prefer never to be traditionally published than to sell my soul to do so. Your forays into this topic are one of the things that keep me steady. ♥️✍🏼
Yes yes yes. As a blogger who joined Instagram to try and gain a greater audience, literally none of my traffic comes from IG. It's mostly my followers and then a few who stumble onto it due to tags. Instagram is fun, but definitely not the space where I do my hard core writing. Thank you so much for writing this! I follow you BECAUSE of your words and everything else is a bonus. I follow other writers because of their words, not the hoops we try to go through for the sake of more readers.
I’m so thankful to have read this. I can completely relate. I opened an Instagram account to share what I’ve been doing here on Substack and it’s been like 👅👎🏻 - NOT a good time investment. Yet I still feel the obligation to do it because of that promise of big growth .... thanks for calling it like you see it. It’s making me reconsider my strategy.
“Lost followers but gained readers.” Love it! I’ve been following you since the mid 2000s when I started blogging myself. Ty for the encouragement that I’m on the right track! And that I’m not alone in my love of storytelling via pics on the gram ❤️
I love this. Thank you. I’ve only just started writing online this year on Substack. I got off all social media six years ago for my own sanity, but it really bothered me that perhaps I should be back there to try and get readers. But I’m so encouraged that the thing I love to do is actually the work. Thanks for the permission slip 💛
I totally agree! Social media has been so disappointing as a place to gain readers. I looked at my statistics recently and less than 10% of my IG followers even see my posts! Hardly any have converted to email subscribers. I'm left wondering, "Why bother?" I joined Substack about a month ago and I'm excited to see what this different type of platform has in store.
Oh boy I did the thing of working my fingers to the bone and trying to be influential and sexy and controversial and everything everything everything to make a name for my writing. But I found myself being hollowed out. Thank you for these words and the permission to simply write. So far, I've been very grateful for Substack and its alignment with building sustainable writing communities.
I think the current question I can't stop thinking about is what it looks like to not be an isolated island seeking readers but be a generative space that pushes my readers to other writers and thinkers. What does community look like as a creator?
This is a lovely post and so helpful as I navigate similar thoughts and conversations about what social media means for all of us. "Nothing reaches or retains readers like writing itself."
This was dead on. All of it.
I'm building my Substack with zero social media support. I haven't shared on any other platform besides occasionally on Medium. And one month in, I'm very satisfied with my results so far. I'm here to write and I'm purposely NOT on social media because 🤮🤮
Thank you for this. 🤍🤍🤍
You’ve articulated this so beautifully. Thank you. I’ve been experimenting with blogging and various social media platforms for the past fifteen years. My greatest “success” was building a fan base on Facebook (remember when they called them fan pages?) of 30,000 followers in just short of three years. Keeping up with those posts was like a second job. It ended overnight when Facebook changed its algorithm. I never monetized that page. Like you, I embrace change, but I will never work that hard again on building something I don’t fully own. Thus far I’m liking Substack so much better than the gram which feels, to me, more like scrolling territory than a place to read and that’s how it was designed so I can understand the appeal. Instagram, for me, is eye candy. Substack feels more like a place to savor words and to respond thoughtfully when inspired. Kind of like the good old days of blogging only with the added advantage of “reach.”
I appreciate your words so deeply Lore! I found your blog through instagram quite a number of years ago, it is your writing which has kept me. As a reader I really appreciate that you value your writing highly and are willing to accept the risk of potentially not being seen, knowing that good writing is always worth it.
I’ve been feeling the pull to move away from social media recently and my soul already feels a little bit more relaxed. I’m glad to still sit and read your writing though! I love the connectedness of the world in this way, that I get to read what you have written even though we live on opposite ends of the world!
Thank you for faithfully sharing your writing, it’s a good thing! :)
I heard the same advice from Ally Fallon last year at a writers’ conference and it was the most freeing bit of wisdom she could have shared. I have words to say and the thought of fighting the algorithms was draining me. Permission to walk away was a gift.
this was a very good article. You made so many good points. Thank you for sharing your wisdom! You made me feel much better for despising social media and hating the time I have to spend on it to appease the writing gods! :)
Less than a year ago I began to make choices to simplify my life. From cleaning up my house, to cleaning up social media, to cleaning up how I spend my time. Only positive benefits.
Thank you, thank you for continuing to talk about this. My own Insta has been dormant for months and as I’m currently working on my first book proposal and querying agents my husband would confirm that I have a mini existential crisis about “platform” every 3-5 days. 🙄😂 And as a marketing professional in the Christian publishing industry I *know* social media doesn’t sell books, but it takes effort and heart to ignore the siren song of bigger platform. For now I would prefer never to be traditionally published than to sell my soul to do so. Your forays into this topic are one of the things that keep me steady. ♥️✍🏼
Every bit of this. Thank you.
Yes yes yes. As a blogger who joined Instagram to try and gain a greater audience, literally none of my traffic comes from IG. It's mostly my followers and then a few who stumble onto it due to tags. Instagram is fun, but definitely not the space where I do my hard core writing. Thank you so much for writing this! I follow you BECAUSE of your words and everything else is a bonus. I follow other writers because of their words, not the hoops we try to go through for the sake of more readers.
I’m so thankful to have read this. I can completely relate. I opened an Instagram account to share what I’ve been doing here on Substack and it’s been like 👅👎🏻 - NOT a good time investment. Yet I still feel the obligation to do it because of that promise of big growth .... thanks for calling it like you see it. It’s making me reconsider my strategy.
“Lost followers but gained readers.” Love it! I’ve been following you since the mid 2000s when I started blogging myself. Ty for the encouragement that I’m on the right track! And that I’m not alone in my love of storytelling via pics on the gram ❤️
I love this. Thank you. I’ve only just started writing online this year on Substack. I got off all social media six years ago for my own sanity, but it really bothered me that perhaps I should be back there to try and get readers. But I’m so encouraged that the thing I love to do is actually the work. Thanks for the permission slip 💛