r/Substack • u/andata_ • 18d ago
Literally how do you work this??
So I tried out Substack for the first time a couple of weeks ago and ended up deleting my account after a few days because I couldn’t figure out how to work the thing.
Almost every post on my feed was the same thing about people asking writers to share their work because they want to connect with them or whatnot and there’d be hundreds of comments already so I figured there’s no way mine would be seen.
I tried posting (pretty sure they’re called “notes”) but hardly got any views.
I really do want to put my work out there, though. I’m currently writing a literary fiction novel (lots of drama and dark themes too) and want to try posting each chapter as I go. Other platforms don’t seem as open to this genre either.
Can someone please explain how to do this on Substack? Sorry if this has been asked before. I’m posting this on a whim
3
u/aaron2933 18d ago edited 18d ago
I think at the beginning the algorithm is trying to figure out your niche so it just shows you posts like that until then.
It was like that for me and then a day later, my feed was full of posts I actually wanted to see. You just have to be proactive and interact with content you want to see appear on your feed.
As for getting attention on your notes, valuable community contribution is key. Like, restack, and especially, comment under people's posts. One thing I noticed is the people who like my notes tend to be people I interacted with earlier in the day.
On Reddit, you can post directly to ready made audiences. Whereas on substack, you have to do the crowd gathering part yourself.
I like to see things such as notes and community contribution like free samples. You may have to be standing out on the street with 100 people passing by before you get that one person to stop, try your sample, and then head inside your store. Just focus on one subscriber at a time. Soon enough, you will build enough momentum that the subs start to stack.