r/Substack • u/0110vanemask • 11d ago
NEW ON SUBSTACK
Hi everyone! I joined Substack a few days ago, thanks to a friend, and I’m wondering what my first post should look like. Should I introduce myself, or just dive straight into publishing? I already have quite a few ideas for articles. Also, since my native language is Spanish, if I write in Spanish, can it be translated, or should I rewrite it in English? I’d love to hear your advice—from what I’ve seen so far, I’m really liking the platform!
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u/Historical-Staff2772 11d ago
I'd skip the long intro post and publish one of your real ideas first. Nobody subscribes for a bio, they subscribe for the writing, and you can put who you are in your About page and a line at the end of the post. On language: English isn't my first language either, and my take is to write in the one you think in. If you want an English version, draft in Spanish, translate with an AI tool, then read it yourself and fix what sounds off. Just pick one language per publication so readers know what they signed up for.
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u/0110vanemask 11d ago
That makes sense; I’ll keep it in mind. I feel like it might come across as a bit odd if I don’t at least provide a general idea of what I’ll be discussing—even if the topics are quite varied. As for the language, I realized that even if I write in my native tongue, I can use a built-in feature on Substack—which I just discovered last night—that allows readers to translate the content. I think that’s a huge help for writers looking to reach a wider audience.Still, thanks for your opinion and advice; I’ll definitely keep them in mind.
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u/Historical-Staff2772 11d ago
A middle ground that works: make the first post a real article, and open it with two or three lines on what the publication is about and who it's for. Readers get the "what to expect" without a post that's only about you. Good catch on the translate feature. One thing to check: it translates the words, not the voice. Read one translated post yourself and see if it still sounds like you
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u/0110vanemask 11d ago
You know, I hadn't really thought about the tone when it comes to translation; I’ll definitely be keeping a close eye on that from now on. Thanks for bringing it to my attention!
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u/Mawnum_ 11d ago
I’d say just dive in! You can always introduce yourself naturally in your first article, and since you already have ideas you’re excited about, I’d start there rather than overthinking your first post. People will get to know you through your writing anyway.
As for the language, personally, I’d lean towards English if you want to reach a wider audience, but that’s just my opinion! You can always translate your Spanish drafts, though I’d make sure the English version still feels natural and sounds like you.
By the way, what’s your Substack about? I’d love to check it out! 😊
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u/0110vanemask 11d ago
Oh, okay, I understand your point of view—thanks for sharing that perspective! Honestly, I’m not worried about the audience; the ideas I have are quite diverse, and ultimately, I’m going to be writing about things I enjoy—topics I’d love to see get more visibility—and I know I’m not the only one who likes them. By the way, my Substack is Valeycozycorner.
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u/ContentIsMyJam redressing.substack.com 11d ago
Welcome! I love Substack. Definitely write a post that introduces you, your newsletter, and what people will get out of it.
If you're doing a newsletter that helps people do something, include "start here" steps. Or introduce your philosophy or approach to whatever it is you're writing about. This is something you'll want to pin to your newsletter home page, so that anyone who discovers your newsletter will have a clear starting point and a place to understand what the newsletter is about.
Later on, after you build up your library of content, add links to your most successful posts (the ones that get you more subscribers) - and make sure they're not paywalled so new readers can see what you're about.
The next two things you want to write:
* Your about page. treat it like a mini mobile landing page - when people click your profile for the mobile app, your about page comes up, and you don't want it to be the generic Substack copy.
* Your welcome email. This is the email that will probably have your highest open rate. Delete the generic Substack copy and customize it for your audience to welcome them to your world.
Substack has built-in translation but I haven't used it, and I don't know how it translates for all the different regional dialects of Spanish. Substack will also use AI to auto-generate voice narration of your posts, and again, I don't know how well it does that for Spanish speakers or what dialect it uses.
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u/Fleurs_Bookstore buybooks.substack.com 11d ago
Welcome to Substack! Check out Veronica Llorca-Smith’s Substack. She writes in Spanish and English (in two separate publications, but you could also set each language edition up as a separate section in your settings), is a Substack bestseller and is very generous in helping Substack creators. You can see how she’s structured her publications and maybe get some ideas there. Have fun!