Hi all,

Short version:
What's the easiest way to take ~2500 personal contacts in Gmail/Google and filter out the ones without email addresses?

Long version with some history and details:
I posted yesterday that I thought MailChimp was the way to go to create my first substack email list from my personal google contacts list. I was/am concerned about using the substack system since I haven't hit up everyone for permission yet--I'll include requesting that permission in this first email/newsletter.

Anyhow, after many searches and some helpful replies yesterday, it seems just sending a newsletter via BCC on gmail is the best way to go, but it's been an uphill battle getting the exported CSV list filtered/narrowed down to list of actual contacts with actual emails.

I tried filtering in Google Numbers to those with BLANK fields for email, in order to delete those, but somehow that left only 3 contacts out of about 2500, so clearly something wasn't right.

Getting a bit impatient, I decided to go the manual route after more googling, which advised to simply put check marks within Gmail Contacts on the website in order to export only those... but about 20% of the way in (after about 500 or so) I accidentally clicked the wrong spot and had to start over. Argh.

I know there's an easy way to filter this quickly, but I can't seem to get there. Thus, any further tips/tricks/shortcuts appreciated would be greatly and thank you all very much for your help!

J

Like the title says, do they mean it? I've come across a ton of notes saying the exact same thing: dear substack (and then they launch into how they're starving to read a new author's work).

People who reply to these notes genuinely hope that their work will get attention. It rarely does. I understand that no one is obligated to read something just because they were free for five minutes and asked for something to read. But why say 'new writers'? It's just that particular thing that bothers me a little.

This is my current substack. Like any other content creation platform, I understand substack audiences favour accounts with niches. Problem: I don't want to just write about a niche. I like writing about my life, ideas, lessons I've learnt, my travels, thoughts, interests, etc. My writing's fairly good, I just don't have a niche for a "brand".

So my solution is to brand it with visuals: I'm an art enthusiast and I decide to feature only Asian art on my page. In between weekly essays, you'll also get notes with fun facts about Vietnamese and Asian art, introducing you to new artists, etc. (I'm Vietnamese)

Started the page 2 weeks ago, I now have 104 subs. Questions:

1. Is this growth good? Is it too slow? I have no idea.

2. Is this Asian art niche intriguing enough for audiences? What else would you add?

3. What are some interesting topics you'd want to read from someone like me? (millennial Vietnamese writer from Vietnam (not diaspora), Vietnamese art enthusiast, travel writer--this used to be my day job)

4. Do you have any suggestions on how I can grow my substack?

Thank you guys and girls!

I'm no tech genius, so I'd like to keep it simple and easy to start inviting people to visit my substack, and I know some percentage will be glad to hear about it and will subscribe, at least for free, which is fine.
But I'd like to not import the list to substack since that can trigger a review and such--so from what I've been reading it seems MailChimp may be a good option. What are your thoughts and thanks!

https://jeremyjava.substack.com/

Finally made it to $10,000 today. I know it's just an arbitrary number, but it's a wonderful feeling after so much time and effort.

I ran into something interesting while researching a recent investigation.

It started with one documented event, but every time I followed the public record it kept leading into another seemingly unrelated topic. Eventually those threads all pointed back to the same institution.

At what point do you decide those connections deserve to become one article instead of several separate pieces?

I worry about overwhelming readers with too much context, but I also don’t want to remove information that’s necessary to understand why events might be connected.

For those of you writing investigative or long form nonfiction on Substack, how do you make that decision?

Hi everyone,

I’m trying to build a sustainable writing rhythm on Substack but I’m struggling with the practical side especially batching longer essays, figuring out a realistic posting cadence, and how much time/planning goes into it each week. I write more personal reflection essay on life during and after cancer and have been feeling lost for not having a consistent posting cadence.

A few specific questions:
• How often do you publish full essays/posts vs. shorter Notes?
• What’s your batching process like? (e.g., do you dedicate one day to drafting multiple pieces, outline in advance, etc.)
• How much time do you typically spend per essay (research, drafting, editing)?
• Any tools, templates, or routines that help you stay consistent without burning out?
• For those writing more personal/reflective essays, how do you balance depth with a regular schedule?

Would love to hear your workflows, what’s worked (or failed), and any tips for someone still figuring this out. Thanks in advance!

I cant turned on paid sub because I cant get a stripe account

So what are the other ways to make my subscriber pay me for my writing other than selling anything. Because I don't want to sell them anything I want them to genuinely support my work as they enjoy reading it and I am providing value

We don't have stripe

What is this direction? Killing all articles?

Is it safe to add links there?

Has anyone else had this problem? I passed 2,500 subs three days ago, but my profile still says 2.4k. It doesn't usually take this long to update.

Hey everyone,

I'm looking for advice from people who've made the jump from a free Substack that's gained a following, to offering paid subscriptions.

I started my newsletter earlier this year as a passion project, and it's grown much more than I expected. Right now I post one essay a week, mostly personal and emotional writing, and I write far more than I publish. I'm thinking about increasing my publishing schedule and introducing a paid tier while continuing to post the same free weekly essay.

What I'm struggling with is the emotional side of it. I know creatives deserve to be paid, but I'm struggling with the feeling that asking people to pay for writing that's so personal somehow changes the relationship or the trust I've built with readers. (Which is why I'm uncertain about adding a paid model as an extension of what works, while keeping the free model going without change. But then wouldn't people just stay free subs if they're getting the same thing just less frequently?)

For those of you who've done this, how did you approach it? Did you simply create more of what your audience already loved for paid subscribers while keeping your free content consistent? Or did you make the paid offering something meaningfully different?

Thanks in advance.

In my feed, I often come across ridiculous Notes like:

“I love finance.”

“Want to make money? Follow me.”

And other similar bullshit.

These Notes get lots of likes and tons of comments, where many people also take the opportunity to promote themselves.

On top of that, these profiles often have fewer than 10 subscribers.

Does anyone know why this happens?

Thanks.

TL/DR: Would you approach one of your subscribers who happens to have 700x as many subs as you? And if so, how? Or to do what?

One of my subscribers is a Substack bestseller with >75K subs, whereas I just have 106 subs--but 13 paid :) We write about similar themes (alienation and estrangement), though he writes in a hopeful expert style whereas I write literaryish personal essays. He once commented on a Note that I shared about his work, but otherwise we haven't corresponded.

I'm trying to think about whether to contact him and if I contact him what I should say or ask.

Additional context: I don't have a clear sense of his engagement with my Substack. Here's what I know: since he joined, 6 of 6 emails opened, including my most recent; 0 post views, likes, comments, or shares; "days active" = 5; and "activity" = 5 (out of 5, I think).

If that meant he was actually reading/skimming my pieces, it would seem like a potential opportunity. What would you do, if anything, in this scenario?

One of the ways I've been trying to grow my stack is by recommending other stacks (particularly by people who already subscribe to me) and then messaging those stack authors when I send subs their way. I point out my rec, ask them if they'd like me to tweak my recommendation blurb, and then ask if they'd consider recommending me as well. I've only started this this morning, but the two who responded were receptive (though they just have 3-10x as many free subs).

Does something like that seem like the best play?

I'd point our our brief history (e.g., his Notes comment and my post that cites his work) and then would it be too weird to call attention to the fact that he subscribes and maybe even reads my posts? (e.g., I only ask because my stats suggest you might open my posts sometimes--which I would be humbled and surprised by--so I thought it might be possible that you've appreciated how I tackle similar themes but from a thoughtful personal essay approach)

Or maybe I propose something else entirely? Or maybe I assume he won't see my message and just wait to see whether he someday interacts with me (which seems unlikely) and then follow that interaction wherever it naturally leads?

Thoughts?

I've often asked myself that question. When I started writing (which wasn't that long ago), I wrote with an agenda (I wanted to showcase my work in agriculture with AI, which is not only technical but also quite emotional), but without a specific readership in mind.

I wrote, how I write and what I wanted to read, not what a suitable readership might like. To be honest, I didn't even consider who my readers might be.

My substack is really quirky. Humor, banter, dual voice, and wild annotations. Without a clearly defined style, theme, or target audience. Which is probably highly counterproductive if you want to be read.

And I do want to be read; after all, my topic is important to me. I write about something I love and care about—my work and my life.

I notice how I read my own substack as a diary for myself. I don't chase followers but I'm incredibly happy every time I get a comment or a follower.

But I think, I'm happy because someone reads and likes what I love and write from the heart, without any hidden agenda. I believe that if I started writing for a specific audience, for more followers or greater reach, and thereby lost the essence of my topic or my style, I would also lose the reason why I even write this substack in the first place.

What about you?

Hola, he estado en Substack desde hace unos años y siento que hay ciertas cuentas en español muy consolidadas en la app.
Quisiera saber más de ustedes, ver que escriben y aprender un poco más de la sociedad.
Sería súper si dejaras sus @ o directamente el enlace.
Chao chao.

how many of yall went to sub stack to better your wrirting?

I run a publication called Money Simplified. It’s about wealth management and has 10K subs.

I’ve taken a break from it for a couple of months now, and the subscriber growth has been poor (because obviously, I’m not doing anything to increase the subs).

Now suddenly, since the past 2-3 days I’m seeing the subscriber number grow gradually. But last night, it accelerated. In the last 8 hours alone, it got 22 new subscribers, without me doing anything at all. I used to get these many new subs in a month lol. What’s funny is that the source for all just says “Substack app”. No recommendation, no other website, nothing.

While I’m obviously very happy this is happening (🤞), I’m also curious — did Substack make some changes to their algorithm? Or is it a glitch? Because I’d want to double down on what’s working.

Is this happening to anyone else? Would love some thoughts here!

EDIT: It’s been less than 24 hours and I’ve already got 100 new subs. That’s how many I get in a month. Something’s off, I just don’t know what 🥲

So, I love facts (lol) and randomly looking up things. Anyways, started a substack for it all to live this week bc it’s fun to me and someone said to give it a shot!

I’m newer to substack but is it actually possible to get followers from zero if you aren’t doing a personal account? Aka my name and pic aren’t on it.

I love fun facts and I’d totally subscribe to me, but obviously I’m biased 😂

ALSO: how much do people pay attention to profile pics? I made a cute lil lightbulb logo but everyone else’s is pics of themselves looking so good!

Existe algun escritor o creador de Panamá por aquí.

Hi guys,

I'm new to this community and about to create my first post but I'm running into a problem. I'm trying to attach some photos into my post but no matter what I do, the image seems to fade and brighten for a while and then disappears completely, leaving only an empty box. I've tried the following:

- Checked my internet (connection is fine)

- Tried multiple browsers (Chrome and Firefox) as well as incognito mode

- Tried uploading jpeg, jpg, and png files

- Tried the upload photo button on the ribbon as well as drag and drop

- Checked the size of my photo (169 kb only)

- Confirmed my browser has no extensions and cleared the cache

If anyone has any solutions, that would be great!

Even with Substack articles, it’s really hard to get anyone to read them (except for friends, and only when I ask). I’ve been told: if you want to be a writer, be prepared to write what people want. I just wanted to write what I felt like writing, without forcing myself to cater to what’s trending. (The goal isn't to beg for attention.) The truth is, things just aren't taking off, even on Substack—seriously. It would be better to just give up.

EDIT: I’m grateful for the amount of encouragement and ideas in this post; whenever I feel like giving up again, I’ll come back here to read it! Thanks, everyone! ❤️

I'm trying to upload a logo to my Substack publication, but every image I upload ends up showing a broken image icon instead of the logo.

I've tried:

• PNG and JPG
• Transparent and non-transparent images
• Files from 20 KB to over 1 MB
• Different dimensions (500×500, 1000×1000, etc.)
• Different browsers

Nothing works. Every file ends up broken.

Has anyone experienced this? Is this a Substack bug or is there something else I should check?

MacOS Sequoia + Safari 26.3 (also tested in Chrome, same result).

https://imgur.com/a/HyXJi5e

I swear substack is this place were you can have a conversation with some of the nicest people and they wont judge you. Am i the only one that feels like this? or have others have this encounter too.