how to get Substack famous

a formula that (maybe) only works for me

this year, in 2024 I finally started doing things I’ve always been too afraid to do in terms of expressing myself in the public eye.

I’ve always considered myself a creative, and even a performer to a degree. at the tender age of 10, inspired by iCarly, my best friend at the time and I started our own talk show. we would “vlog” together, make music videos, comedy skits and even short horror movies and post all of those to a dedicated group on the Russian equivalent of Facebook. we had about 40 followers at the time, [other 10-year-olds whose internet access wasn’t monitored either I assume] and that was enough. the act of self-expression, of scripting the videos together, filming each other, editing it, then posting it online was enough. we didn’t know people could make money doing that, nor did we care for fame.

when I got my first iPhone in 2013, at 12 I created my first instagram account and called it “skylover” posting pictures of the sky (and only the sky) with captions of stolen tumblr quotes. I wanted to be aesthetic, and that’s what aesthetic was to me at the time.

I’ve had so many instagram accounts since then, most of them functioning like a blog about my life for the people I knew with captions detailing my experiences, mental breakdowns, thoughts, feelings, crushes, etc . I’ve had a tumblr account for book reviews and a Wordpress fashion blog before too.

I think none of those survived because I never got any engagement with the audience, any responses or reactions that confirmed that people were watching and reading, that people cared. so, after speaking into the void for some time I’d end up abandoning every creative online project I’d started.

this brings us back to my creative endeavors this year - I created a YouTube channel this February (right after my birthday) that’s sitting at 16,000 subscribers as of today. The first 3-4 months were amazing, I was making 1-2 videos a week, I had so many ideas, inspiration, so much time (I was taking a gap semester), and most of all - the feedback. 99% of the comments were kind, thanking me for the video, encouraging me to make more, saying I was refreshing, or that my voice was calming. I loved it! yes, my channel hasn’t been updated since i went back to school in june (I never stopped working), and I did delete a lot of the videos that I had made on it, but don’t think for a second that I’m abandoning it. as soon as I am done with college this winter, I’ll be back on it. making videos is a lot of work and time and I simply do not have the resources to do that right now, but I do enjoy connecting with people through the medium of video a whole lot.

through YouTube, I found out about a platform I’d never heard of before - Substack. I downloaded the app, and subscribed to a couple of my favorite YouTube girlies publications right away. before long I knew I had to start my own publication, the one you’re reading right now.

this platform is everything I’d ever wanted - a combination of blogging and social media, without the texting that would reduce it to a place to stay in touch with people (instagram, I’m looking at you). you can post pictures, videos, podcasts, and blogposts on this, as well as quick notes (like twitter). it’s perfect! [I am of course not saying Substack is not without its problems as well, just that it is a refreshing social media platform to me right now. I might discuss its problems in a future publication, everything is nuanced!] as of right now I have about 240+ subscribers here, about 1/3 of whom came over from YouTube and the rest found me here via the Substack algorithm.

so, if you’re thinking that I’ve no qualifications to talk about how to be Substack famous considering I am FAR from being that, you’re right and I agree.

still, I wanted to look at my analytics and see which of my posts got the most engagement, to figure out what is it people like about my writing, and what to do more of, so i could find my own audience on this corner of the internet.

here are posts that have gotten the most engagement, and positive feedback on my blog so far:

the common thing between all of those is that they are very self-indulgent, stream of consciousness, diary entry-esque pieces that I without fail each time thought nobody would care about. they’re no listicles of books to read, movies to watch, things to buy, or articles to read that seem to work so well for some other writers on this platform, and that I myself so enjoy consuming. they’re not “useful” content. instead, they’re usually my darkest intrusive thoughts, insecurities, anxieties or recollections of things that happened in my life and my reflections on them, or random aspirations, and recounting events that are happening in my life in real time.

ironically, any time I’d tried to make “useful” content - about fashion, movies, books, or tutorials or any kind it always flops. perhaps my voice just doesn’t do good with the kind of content I myself enjoy, and I’ve decided firmly that I’m not going to fight it or feel bad about it. instead, I’ll just focus on and lean into what I’m good at - being a thought daughter, a girl fighting the void inside of her on the daily, a girl who’s far too familiar with all her demons to the point she has no problem writing about them in great detail. and I hope you guys will continue reading, giving me constructive feedback, letting me know how much you can relate, because that truly is what keeps me going, what keeps me so addicted to Substack.

(still from the movie nana, the namesake of this publication)

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writing this also reminded me of Elle’s post about plagiarism I read recently,

seriously, what are you even doing here?

and my own note about how I’d rather have no audience but be original, than get accolades for stolen content.

I am a living example to myself of how authenticity always garners more positive attention and appreciation than plagiarism ever will. yes, it might take you longer to find your people, but you’ll never have to look over your shoulder, fearing that people will sooner or later find out that you are not the one behind the work. of course, people who achieve things purely on their own effort experience impostor syndrome too, but at least they can tell themselves “I’ve worked for this” and believe it because it’s true. if you steal, copy, paraphrase, or repackage other people’s work, then you’re not experiencing imposter syndrome, you are the imposter.

so, if you ask me the secret to being Substack famous is to be authentic. to write what you want to write about, in a voice that’s uniquely yours and to understand that though it may take a while, but you will naturally improve your [unique!] writing style with time, and find the audience that resonates with your TRUE character. and that will always be better than a fragile house of cards built on lies and stolen content, ready to fall apart with every small gust of wind that passes by.

thank you for reading all the way to the end

- sab.