Should You Launch a Substack?

How much money can you make, have you missed the boat, are there any downsides? All this and more as I reflect on my Substack experience...

Once upon a time my social media inboxes were bursting with DMs from followers asking me how to break into fashion and whether I could help them (or their daughters) get internships on magazines. Today however, outside of the obvious, ‘WHERE CAN I GET THESE SHOES?’ (Or more often just, ‘SHOES?’), the question I’m most asked is how much money I’m making on Substack. I’m also asked a range of other less direct questions about this platform, but the interest is understandably focused on the professional viability.

I’ve read several of these kinds of posts from other writers and I do wonder if it’s all getting a bit snake eating the tail (Substackers writing about Substack on Substack ad infinitum). However, IRL I’ve been sharing a lot of the information below with my peers and in the spirit of transparency and now this platform has become a meaningful part of my professional package, I thought it was a good moment to reflect on my own personal experience. I say personal because there is no one story or trajectory on Substack, just as there isn’t on any other platform or in the job market. Some of the below will apply more broadly, some might literally just be me.

Either way, Substack has just launched a new direct messaging service, so for any paid subscribers who might want to speak to me more discreetly (though I love public comments too!), please do feel free to ask more on any of the below.