How to Earn from Substack: Your Substack Writing Guide

Turn Your Words Into An Income Stream

What if the essays you write in your spare time could generate income? What if your thoughts, musings, and perspectives on books, culture, or just life in general could find an audience that actually enjoys and engages with your words? This is the promise of Substack: a writer’s platform that allows you to publish newsletters and build a following that will support you financially.

But there is no magic bullet that will make you rich by simply posting a couple of essays. There is an art to creating a niche, a sustainable method of publishing, learning the audience, and being patient. Whether you are a newcomer, blogger, or an established writer looking to monetize your efforts, here are some pointers about how to get started and make Substack work for you.

What Exactly Is Substack?

It is a combination of a publishing platform that allows you to write articles and newsletters, and a social media network that you can use to build your audience and sell your work. You can post content for free, build your audience and subscriber base, and then introduce paid content later, or do the opposite.

You can write about whatever topic you want literature, lifestyle, technology, or anything else that people are willing to read about. But the emphasis is on you and your voice, not on a giant label in the back. The upside of using Substack is that you can market directly to your audience, instead of relying on the goodwill of social media giants.

Let’s say, for example, you want to write a newsletter about contemporary literature. Your free posts can include reviews of new books, analyses of popular trends in modern literature, lists of TBR books for readers to choose from, and other kinds of content. Your unique perspective on the subject makes you stand out from other similar newsletters. The more your audience reads you, the more they are going to be interested in following you.

You simply give them something they cannot find elsewhere.

1. Pick a Niche that Reflects Your Voice

When thinking about monetizing your writing, focus first on what you want to be known for.

A broad, eclectic mix of topics will keep your content interesting for a wider audience, but it will also make it harder for you to establish authority and a clear voice.

To pick a topic that you are passionate about and that has potential as a source of income, try answering these three questions:

1. What do I like to write about?

2. What can I write about consistently?

3. What could I say that others would want to read?

From there, you can choose a niche that you are comfortable with and that you think other people would be interested in reading. You can write about literature and narrative, or about career advice or human interest — whatever you want, as long as you are good at it. You do not have to pick a popular topic to make money, but it needs to have some kind of appeal and not be too obscure.

Within the topic, you can also narrow it down to a particular perspective or approach — rather than writing about books in general, for instance, you could write about contemporary romance, forgotten classics, or some other sub-category.

A unique angle will help you to build a following.

2. Write for Free and Then Convert to Paid

A common mistake of first-time writers is to try to sell their newsletter before they gain any traction.

This usually ends badly, since most people are not willing to pay for something they have never seen. To combat this, begin your Substack journey by offering some free content.

In other words, showcase your writing and let people get to know your voice before you ask them for money. These posts should reflect your expertise, but they should also highlight your personality.

Essentially, you give the audience something to love. Let’s say that your newsletter focuses on writing. A free post can be a tutorial or guide on how to write, while a paid version can be a workshop. Same goes for any other kind of newsletter: the free content is an entry point, while the paid offers something more substantial.

The whole point of this step is to build your audience, which is why consistency is important, but it should not come at the expense of quality.

Choose how many posts you want to publish per week and stick with it rather than trying to post every day.

3. Offer Subscriptions to Your Newsletter

One of the easiest ways to monetize your content on Substack is to offer subscriptions. In other words, you decide which content will be free and which will require a reader to subscribe to access. The paid content needs to be compelling enough to justify the cost.

As mentioned above, this can be a comprehensive essay, an in-depth how-to guide, or anything else, as long as it is worth the money. In the newsletter context, this could also mean offering special posts that are only available to your subscribers.

For instance, if you write a free weekly literary newsletter, you could offer a special edition once a month as a bonus for your subscribers. Another option is to provide additional content that expands on the themes and ideas of your free posts. The more you offer, the more people are willing to subscribe.

What’s important to note is that your audience needs to be interested not only in the price, but also in the quality of your content. Substack takes a 10% cut of any paid subscriptions, and additional payment processing fees may apply. Due to differences in payment processing and your tax situation, you will want to consult the Substack website to learn how much exactly you stand to make.

4. Find an Audience outside of Substack

Even if you have the best newsletter, it will not gain traction unless people actually read it. This is why audience building plays such a big role in your Substack journey. To begin building that audience, start with the people who have shown some interest in your writing, such as your social media followers. Engage with them by sharing your newsletter posts on your social media accounts, but do not spam. Rather, share interesting links and commentary that make people want to find out more. You can also share posts on sites that your target audience visits, such as blogs or forums.

Substack itself is useful for discovering new content through its recommendation system. Networking with other writers is also important, as it allows you to build relationships with other content creators.

For example, people interested in contemporary literature might want to collaborate with other writers, reviewers, or bloggers. Again, the point is not to spam everyone on your social media, but rather to invest time and effort in finding an audience that will be interested in your content.

5. Learn How to Make Money on Substack

The entire point of monetizing your newsletter is to generate income, which is why it is important to understand how to do this.

Your income on Substack will depend on how much you charge for your content, the number of subscribers, the cut that Substack takes, and several other factors. A good way to demonstrate how this can add up is to use a simple example.

If you have 100 subscribers that pay $5 per month, your gross subscription revenue would be $500 per month before taxes; that makes your total income $500. If you have 250 such subscribers, that makes $1,250 per month. These are just some rough estimates, as the numbers can vary substantially depending on the situation.

Another thing to consider is that it can take time to build up a substantial following. In both cases, it is better to err on the side of quality over quantity. In short, a small but engaged audience is more valuable than a large but disengaged one.

Moreover, you should not rely on this income too heavily, at least until you understand what your audience wants. Fluctuations are completely normal, and you will want to avoid disappointment and frustration.

6. Learn to Make Substack Work for You

Paid subscriptions are not the only way to make money with Substack. In fact, a successful newsletter can generate income in several different streams.

For example, a consistent body of work can help you secure clients for book reviews, other writing jobs, or speaking engagements. In a similar vein, you can partner with companies in a niche that supports your newsletter values. This can be a tricky endeavor, but only if you approach it carelessly. First and foremost, always disclose any partnerships or sponsored content, and make sure everything is up to the standards of your audience and the law.

That said, you should not accept every opportunity that comes your way, simply because it offers money. Your reputation is much harder to rebuild than your wallet once you anger the audience.

7. Think of It As a Long-Term Project

As you continue to post, keep track of what drives your audience to subscribe. What kind of content do they like? What gets them to come back for more?

Use that data to inform the rest of your content strategy, without losing sight of your voice and the message that you want to convey. Make a rough editorial calendar, a list of topics that you want to cover and enough time to research and write them. Most importantly, always strive to create something worth reading.

The Value of Building Something Worthwhile

While Substack does not promise riches and fame, it offers a unique opportunity to build a sustainable income around your writing. You are not required to jump in blindly, but rather to use common sense and pacing. Start with one article, build your voice, focus on one topic, and publish regularly while keeping your audience engaged. It might take time and effort, but the first couple of posts will always be easier than starting from scratch.

You may not see a large audience right away, but this is always the case for any new work. Any engagement is valuable, and every step of the way will help you to learn what you want and what your audience wants.

Reference: https://support.substack.com/hc/en-us/articles/360037607131-How-much-does-Substack-cost