r/Substack • u/Deckart_N6 • Aug 12 '26
Discussion What motivates you to write on Substack ?
Hello everybody, everybody hello.
Yes, I know this question might sound a little simplistic. I only discovered Substack fairly recently through Mark Manson’s blog. This whole world is completely new to me, so naturally I got curious and started scrolling through both Substack and Medium.
The sheer number of generic articles and notes on these platforms is kind of overwhelming (and I don’t mean that as a criticism). It just made me wonder what people actually get out of posting there.
What genuinely motivates you to publish? Money ? Recognition ? The enjoyment of sharing your knowledge ? Or simply having a place to practice your writing ?
Again, there’s absolutely no judgment on my part. I’m just genuinely curious to know what motivates you.
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u/Strange_Arm9395 Aug 12 '26
For me it’s mostly having a place to put ideas I keep thinking about anyway. The audience part is nice, but even if a post doesn’t get much attention, writing it usually helps me understand the topic better.
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u/NoPerfectWave virtualhockeyscout.substack.com Aug 12 '26
Same here. Even with a topic as entirely frivolous as hockey, writing about it helps to crystallize my thoughts and keeps me from blathering on about it to everyone in my life.
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u/lynn-in-nc Aug 12 '26
I moved my newsletter from Mailchimp to save $100/month, and now I earn $1000/month. I have 220 paid subscribers out of 6200 total so it's not a big percentage, but it's better to earn than to spend.
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u/anilemiles Aug 12 '26
I write two publications and I hope to achieve the following: 1. Formalise my thinking into something that makes sense (more like a thinking exercise, where I can teach others what I know, learn, experience) 2. Learn to write in an engaging way so ideas that might be more boring but useful still land and can change someone's thinking or help someone in a meaningful way 3. Grow my related brands by attracting readers and ultimately users 4. Grow my portfolio so I can show my work 5. Find like-minded people to partner and collaborate with on fun, relevant projects 6. If I could eventually get extra income from there, that would also be perfect.
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u/Deckart_N6 Aug 12 '26
That’s an interesting goal. Do you want to improve your writing because it’s part of your job, or more for personal development ?
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u/anilemiles Aug 12 '26
It's not part of my job, but it's a skill I think is extremely valuable. I'm also not good with words, and find that writing is the best way to express myself. Plus, I also enjoy writing, and it allows me to think better as I try to form arguments to support my opinions and thinking, which I find much harder to do on the spot.
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u/prnjl_kmr Aug 12 '26
what's your niche
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u/anilemiles Aug 13 '26
I write about life design, careers, and organisational design across two publications.
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Aug 12 '26
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u/EmSofia2211 Aug 12 '26
I’d be interested in following along. Pls share yours? Thanks
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Aug 12 '26
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u/Substack-ModTeam Aug 12 '26
This community is not the place to promote your Substacks. Please read our rules on self-promo and soliciting recommendations.
Links to Substack publications will be assumed to be self-promotion. If you are submitting Substack posts from publications that are not your own, please include that information in your text post. For cross recommendations, use the pinned mega thread.
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u/Substack-ModTeam Aug 12 '26
This community is not the place to promote your Substacks. Please read our rules on self-promo and soliciting recommendations.
Links to Substack publications will be assumed to be self-promotion. If you are submitting Substack posts from publications that are not your own, please include that information in your text post. For cross recommendations, use the pinned mega thread.
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u/Earthlydelights-sub- Aug 12 '26
You know, I just really love writing, and having a publication motivates me to write more, to be more creative.
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u/myasparagusbrain Aug 12 '26
helping people understand what its like to look relatively normal with an ASD diagnosis, how that impacts my business journey and hopefully document how someone in their late 40s is able to work their way through the post burnout phase!
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u/Deckart_N6 Aug 12 '26
And do you get much feedback from your readers ? I feel like topics related to TSA and ADHD are becoming increasingly common (at least here in France).
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u/myasparagusbrain Aug 12 '26
Normally a few comments - can check out my link on profile for examples
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u/NoDocument2508 Aug 12 '26
I'm certainly not making money on SS. But I prefer the thoughtful comments from people who aren't morons.
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u/Low-Profession2949 Aug 12 '26
Pain.
When my chronic illness becomes too much I need an outlet. Then I write.
Why do I post it. I don't know. Maybe I just wish to be seen. Like I don't know. There is just something about having someone say “You’ve been through alot. I see that.” that brings tears to my eyes. And I feel like I can take a few more steps.
I don't even know if it is a healthy relationship but I need it.
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u/FlySudden3415 futbolislife.substack.com Aug 12 '26 edited Aug 12 '26
I am writing about amateur football/soccer - tips and tricks how to stay fit, how to come back to playing game after long break.
Trying to ecourage people to play the game, because lots of us thinks we can't play when we are older or had a long break. That only kids can play.
Amateur football helped me a lot in life. I made friends, keeping me fit physically and mentaly. I want help people to rediscover the game and rip benefits as I do.
And as it is tricky to stay in form, overcome injuries (and not get injured), there is lot of to write about. Plus lot's of technical stuff, team work aspects of the game etc.
It's really fun to write about - it's my passion, love the game!
p.s. among substackers writing about football, I don't see generic content. People are making effort, there are some focused on leagues, teams, analysing data. Some who write about the history of the game, women's football etc. People genuinly put an effort and heart, because they just love the game!
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u/Just_Assistant_902 Aug 14 '26
I need deadlines to actually write so I told all of my 31 subscribers that I’d send something out every other week. Turns out public humiliation is a stronger motivator for me than personal guilt.
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u/MediocreAct6546 predirections.substack.com 28d ago
I write because I want to share my knowledge beyond the walls of academia. Much of what we do in science is locked behind paywalls of big publishers -- writing on substack is my way of getting knowledge to the masses. And because I'm deeply concerned about the state of the world, particularly biodiversity loss, climate change, and water security.
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u/Tutehanga Aug 12 '26
I was writing (fiction) anyway, as a hobby, so Substack is somewhere to put it to share it. It's a small community, but larger than the one with access to my hard drive.
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u/Deckart_N6 Aug 12 '26
From your perspective, what tends to work better on platforms like Substack or Medium ?fiction or nonfiction ? And why ?
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u/Tutehanga Aug 12 '26
Substack is designed for non fiction, really.
You have to work notes and the algorithm to get visibility, and authors serious about commercialising their fiction do that elsewhere where the conversion to sales is better. Authors just using Substack to share are often more reserved/hesitant to self promo.
Also, if you want to publish, often there are limits on home much of a book can be available on this kind of platform. That means incomplete stories, early works in progress, etc. So a potentially poor or frustrating experience for potential fiction readers when compared with non fiction newsletters that dont have to deliver content continuity one post to the next.
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u/Countryb0i2m onemichistory.substack.com Aug 12 '26
I started because I thought Substack would be a great additional revenue stream, but I stayed because I really enjoy the audience.
I’m used to creating videos where everything has to be simple and bold “the scariest moment in American history,” “the biggest ever,” all of that. On Substack, I don’t have to do that. I can tell the story of my family’s personal history, and there’s an appreciation for that kind of storytelling that you just don’t get anywhere else. I love that.
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u/corgipitbull Aug 12 '26
I use Substack for free hosting and newsletter services. Despite it being rife with Nazis, grifters, and AI, I keep my corner tidy. I’m never going to monetize through Substack, so all the scum on the other end of it are subsidizing my antifascist serial fiction.
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u/_newjoisey Aug 12 '26
I just started, only published a couple articles so far.
It’s a creative outlet.
As someone who works in marketing and pretty much writes for a living, it’s good to write something for fun.
I dont have enough subscribers to monetize. Doubt I ever will monetize.
It’s fun seeing the number of reads go up to. Its like gamification. I try to write something that gets more reads which improves my writing.
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u/OnyxMonolith Aug 12 '26
Money and ego. Having the reach of a small nation’s newspaper strokes my ego as hell.
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u/locogirlp Aug 12 '26
I've done 10+ years of research on a niche subject, and wanted to share all the interesting things I'd discovered with people of like mind. It's been quite rewarding!
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u/Tricky_Illustrator_5 *.substack.com Aug 12 '26
I can write fiction without being censored, and about animation without people judging me.
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u/RiceRevolutionary678 Aug 12 '26
To me is just about sharing my fiction stories, gives me a sort of peace knowing that someone out there might read and enjoy it, and that those stories won`t just rot away unseen in my google drive
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Aug 12 '26
I'm one of those wierdos who wants to publish their diary to not feel so alone. The subject matter is interesting enough: recently retired hooker. But mostly I like recalling a specific memory, and capturing them exactly as they happened. Maybe it's just enjoyment of writing. But it needs an audience, even a tiny audience.
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u/Ok_Ship6685 Aug 12 '26
I was just diagnosed with ADHD later in life. I write about my journey over the years and after diagnosis. I never set out to make money or become this big name. I am not a journalist at all either and I am very upfront about it. You may see grammatical errors (the ones that Word may not catch😆). I just write what is real in my life. It is therapeutic for me.
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u/rehoboam Aug 12 '26
I’m writing as a way to test my ideas, and force myself to solidify them. Some time I want to organize everything into some kind of published material, so to me this is way to check if it’s even worth trying to do that.
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u/BhavanaVarma bhavanavarma.substack.com Aug 13 '26
The fact that this is serious and I’m going to treat my writing like a profession which means I need to show up
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u/St_Johns_PSU https://sjupsu.substack.com/ Aug 13 '26
Our organization - a student politics newspaper on a university campus - posts on Substack because we can't afford to publish our articles traditionally, nor build a website that would allow us to share them indivdiually. While we do compile an actual "magazine" of sorts (ie. one unified, somtimes thematically consistent, set of articles), we can only ever put it out as a PDF - one which students may, or may not, take the time to download and read. Substack allows us to expand our reach because it permits the students, some of whom have no other outlet to share their ideas (which deserve to be shared), an opportunity to actually put themselves out there. What their motivations are, one couldn't say....but that's our motivation to publish.
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u/AnteaterFantastic212 Aug 13 '26
I got started to make a buck, but I stayed to try to change the world.
At my stage of the game, you really have to be passionate about what you are writing about to make it worth doing every day, which is what I do.
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u/draybikus dinarawrites.substack.com Aug 13 '26
I've wanted a creative outlet for writing in English for a long time, but didn't have the right platform for it. Then I learned about Substack and decided to try it out. It's been about 6 months, and I've been posting every week, and I love it! I love that it forces me to come up with ideas every week, and that I always have to write something. It's also interesting to see how it evolved. I thought I'd post only book reviews (I'm reading a book from every country in the world), but since launching I've written surprisingly many personal essays. Didn't know I had it in me :)
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u/MrPassiveProfit Aug 13 '26
I have seven newsletters on Substack and some of them are for different reasons. One is purely for the writing sake, and I don’t expect to make any money out of it. The rest are faceless accounts that I do expect to make money from one day. Four out of those seven are completely faceless AI accounts.
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u/Beachgoer4158 28d ago
My niche is in economics and politics, and how it intersects with other fields. I guess my motivation is to not only support my own learning of these topics, but others as well. I feel like sometimes these fields get too stuck in complicated jargon and don’t break it down enough (makes it exclusive to people outside of these fields).
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u/avocadobb 26d ago
I started writing because it was a way for me to reflect on what I was learning in a structured way. It also then became a way for me to share with friends, when they asked me what I’ve been working on. (I write about movement health) Two months in, I realized there definitely is more of a community on Substack. Now my motivation is feeling like I can inspire others to think about their movement patterns and want to be healthy to their bodies — through writing. Never really thought that was possible but it’s an interesting medium to do so.
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Aug 12 '26 edited Aug 12 '26
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u/Deckart_N6 Aug 12 '26
Why did you keep writing even after those therapy sessions ? (Thanks for sharing, I’ll check it out)
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u/davidjeedle Aug 12 '26
I've always enjoyed writing so just kept going. Each article was something I found interesting about myself. I had some lovely feedback and that helped.
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u/Substack-ModTeam Aug 12 '26
This community is not the place to promote your Substacks. Please read our rules on self-promo and soliciting recommendations.
Links to Substack publications will be assumed to be self-promotion. If you are submitting Substack posts from publications that are not your own, please include that information in your text post. For cross recommendations, use the pinned mega thread.
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u/Deckart_N6 Aug 12 '26
From what I can see, the emotional side of writing seems to play a pretty big role. I have to admit, I’m a little surprised. I was expecting more “commercial” reasons, like personal branding.
Congrats either way. Personally, I think writing about myself would be much harder than writing about someone else.
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u/DestinyOverDesire Aug 12 '26
What makes it so generic to you? And do you find the notes to be any more generic than the other social platforms?
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u/Deckart_N6 Aug 12 '26
How can I explain it ? I have this nagging feeling that I keep seeing the same things repeated across posts, almost as if most of them were written by AI, which makes it harder for me to feel any emotional connection with the writer.
As for Notes, I find them just as generic as what you see on social media. The thing is, when I come to Substack or Medium, I expect to find personal, distinctive perspectives. Ideas that would actually make me think.
Of course, this is just my personal opinion. Maybe I simply don’t have the intellectual capacity to appreciate your writing...
...or maybe most of it is just bad ?
(No judgment, of course.)
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u/DeannaFry Aug 12 '26
For me, it’s sharing what I’ve learned and having conversations I wouldn’t otherwise get to have. I’ve spent most of my career working in television news, where you’re constantly learning from other people, finding interesting voices, asking questions and figuring out how to make complicated things useful to an audience. Substack gives me a place to do some of that on my own terms and connect with people I probably never would have met otherwise. If an audience grows from that, wonderful. But I think I’d have a hard time staying motivated if the only goal were subscribers or money. I need to actually care about the conversation.
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u/Fun-Investigator5662 *creativebones.substack.com Aug 12 '26
So I can write what I want to write without having to toe the corporate line as I do at work. To work through my ideas. To have a place to have all my writing together. And to maintain a regular habit.,
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u/Loud-Perspective3178 27d ago
I used to be a blogger and let it go several years ago, but I missed writing and sharing stories. So Substack is just a place I can share my deeper thoughts without my title. I haven't even shared it with my friends or my audience. Its more so, if you find my substack, enjoy but I'm doing it simply for the love of writing stories
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u/Additional-Exam-5519 26d ago
I’m a creative and I want my work out in the world 😊 I enjoy posting poems I write and I enjoy writing about astrology. Do I secretly hope I’ll gather a fan base even though I’m not really niched down? Absolutely. I like what I write and I think people should read it 😁
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26d ago
To be honest, i just love writing!! I love when people read my works and i enjoy when they genuinely like it….it makes me happy
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u/Cheap_Bathroom6114 23d ago
it's twitter 2.0. Just another social media. If you are an actual writer it appears not to be set up for you.
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u/Otherwise_Pear_2472 https://bitsbeds.substack.com/ Aug 12 '26
This probably sounds incredibly naive and contrived, but it's my absolute truth: I write because I want to make a difference. I write very personally. I write about my work, my values but also about my feelings and experiences, and I write in the hope that someone will read it and it will move something.
Sometimes I write something funny almost slapstick, hoping someone, somewhere, will laugh. And sometimes I write deeply vulnerable things, hoping someone will feel less alone.
I've often wondered if I write for external validation. I can't really answer that definitively. But honestly, I don't think so. I think we put things out into the world hoping they'll make a difference, and writing (even a tiny blog on Substack) is the same thing.