I saw a Notes thread on Substack recently that someone had shared an article, commenting that it was the saddest thing she had read on Substack that day.
It had a lot of comments, so I clicked to read out of clarity and then curiosity. Clarity, because at first I didn’t get what was so sad about the article. Then curiosity, because as soon as I figured it out, I wanted to see what others had said.
Maybe you already guessed that this thread was one long b***h-fest.
The comments were all writers bemoaning that Substack has been infiltrated by what they called "Linked-In self promotion content," complaining that all they want to do is write and not try to figure out how to hack the system for growth.
I have thoughts.
In this episode:
- why selling & self-promotion doesn’t have to be icky
- how to make selling & self-promotion not icky
- why anyone with writing they think can help (or teach, or entertain, or comfort) others should actually want to share it
- why self-promotion isn’t selling out (unless you don’t want to be successful as a writer)
Links mentioned in this episode:
- Under the Gum Tree: underthegumtree.com
- More to the Story coaching & editing for women: moretothestory.co
- Alt Summit in Palm Springs, March 14-17
- follow me on Instagram: @jannamarlies
- follow Under the Gum Tree on Instagram @undergumtree
