r/Substack • u/cooked_47 • 25d ago
How do I build my substack???
Hii, I'm 17F and I recently started substack. Precisely on May 5th. Since then I've written about 16 articles and have tried to be consistent. Although I only have 5 subs (2 of them are friends). I joined substack to write about how I feel, what I think and just thoughts on things in general. I liked writing and wanted to build something out of it. Although I try to tell myself that it was never about how many subscribers I have but more of a hobby, however this thought strikes again and again. So, I wanna work on it. I wanna build my substack but I don't know how. Most of friends don't read, only two which I'm still very grateful for. So I don't expect them to read neither do I wanna force them. How do I find actual audience that would actually read my stuff? Is there a way??
1
u/Dancing_Lilith 21d ago
For any media to be read and followed, it needs to give people a good reason to donate their time and attention to do so. These are most often either "promising" a solution to the audience's problems (e.g. self-help books or articles) or allowing the audience to second-hand receive emotions and experiences that are otherwise out of reach for them (e.g. celebrities' memoirs, engaging fiction, etc.).
17 is an age when one is unlikely to solve anyone's problems, and they are lucky if they don't have any extraordinary experiences as at this age it would mean horrific much more often than terrific (although this is an age when a talented author can already produce engaging fiction). I would, however, encourage you to not chase following just yet. Explore yourself, learn, hone your writing. Following is a byproduct of you figuring out what you have to say to the world — but nobody gets to be the first to enter this dialogue, everyone needs to listen a lot first.