Substack Drinking The Kool Aid
Oh What A Difference A Year Makes
Substack recently came out to announce that they will be fighting for freedom of speech. Sounds great, right? Especially in these times, right? However, if you continue to read the article, they seem to be cozying up with Elon and his antics.
From the Article - “Elon Musk has been a vocal supporter of free speech. It’s no secret that we haven’t always seen eye to eye, but he deserves a lot of credit for advancing freedom of speech on X, before it was popular and in the face of fierce criticism and opposition.”
Those who have been around on Substack for some time now have noticed a shift in “Notes.” Especially right before the US election, the content you were seeing was a little less fun and a little more, well, rage baity. As writers, we banded together to create a space that was safe for everyone, and all of a sudden, it took a turn. Sure, compared to other platforms, it’s still relatively safe, but, for some, the atmosphere hasn’t been the same since.
So, how should we deal with the change?
A Shift in Growth Formula
If you look at the “for you” feed on Twitter or Threads, it’s almost solely content meant to trigger you, and send you into a doom-scrolling marathon. My most popular original Thread was talking about standing up to Nazis and the KKK. The intent was of course good, but Threads probably boosted it because of the word “Nazi”. I have that word muted now.
It’s instances like these when you post something that doesn’t align with the platform’s vision, your posts could be censored or not have as much reach. This is the reality on many platforms. At one time, if your account wasn’t focused on politics, hate, etc., you were able to grow organically on platforms such as Instagram, Twitter, etc. Those days are gone. Your best chance right now is over on Bluesky, but how long will that last? It also doesn’t help that these platforms are now on a “pay-to-win” model.
It’s one of those things where we need to decide where we fall. Do we want to drink the Kool-Aid and start releasing content that would get you traffic? Or do we want to continue to create the things that make us the most happy and let those people find us? Perhaps it’s a good time to think about why we wanted to create content in the first place. Make peace with our work and accept that perhaps we won’t go viral writing fantasy fiction rather than spreading hate.
Sayonara Twitter and Meta
Taking my personal account off of my phone for Twitter has been great for my mental health. Kathy actually deleted her entire account. That place, even with all of my muted words and blocked profiles, is a complete cesspool of unchecked hate and bigotry.
The Facebook feed is filled with nothing but fake news and rage bait shared by your own family and friends.
Threads, a product of Meta, is not far behind in this fact. As previously mentioned, the “for you” feed is nothing but content meant to trigger you and try to get you to doom-scroll. By also doing away with facts, they are trying to confuse and poison the minds of those who engage in their content.
The richest people in the world don’t want you to be smart. They want you to be sick, addicted, and acting on hatred because solely acting on that means you’re not thinking straight. It’s also a way to divide people. If the people are divided, they hold less power. We’re all too busy fighting amongst ourselves while the ones with the real power are skating by doing what they want that will harm us more than help us.
Taking Control
While Substack has decided to come down on the side of Elon Musk and Mark Zuckerberg, picking up and leaving the platform entirely isn’t particularly feasible. If for no other reason, you can’t keep running forever. Substack has been hosting racists and bigots (and proud of it) for a while now, so we can’t be all that surprised that they also fall on the side of two billionaires who want more hate and bigotry on their platforms.
But, we can’t run from these people. Leaving Substack completely and quickly isn’t in the best interest of many subscribers. What we need to do is try our best to own our own platforms and content. Take what we can from these platforms, but make sure we only use them so much.
Here are some good ways to diversify:
Owning your own blog or website. If you are an author with an existing website, you can copy and paste what you have here and put it there.
While platforms like Medium no longer serve us the way Substack does, it doesn’t hurt to still share your work there.
Share your posts in places that are niche. Reddit groups are not great for reading comments, but if you find the right places to share your articles, you will find your people that’s for sure.
Include “Buy me a coffee” options. If you do not want your paid subscribers to support the platform, they can support you in other ways.
Remember, you don’t have to get up and delete your account, but you can utilize what you already have and your existing network. You can control how you want your audience to access your work by redirecting them to your preferred platform.
This is also the best time to separate a product from the name. We have seen the hate for Tesla, Amazon, etc. But not many of us have the means or money to just pick up and leave. It’s about controlling what we can. Sure, you can cancel your Prime account, but it won’t be easy to leave your KDP account when it grants you access to a whole market that your career depends on.
Support Each Other
We came together to write this because we felt it needed to be said. Plus, we have wanted to collaborate for a while. We need more collaboration. We need to support one another now more than ever. In case it is not obvious, the social media platforms claiming to want what’s best for you only want to use you. So, we have to find ways to support one another all while keeping those who don’t have our best interest at heart at arm's length. What was it they said about the Grinch? I wouldn’t touch you with a… thirty-nine-and-a-half foot pole?
We also need more empathy. The more online we are, the less empathy there is in the world.
Social media platforms are good at feeding us divisive rhetoric and trying to pit us against one another. In general, it is much easier to be cruel to others when you don’t see them as human/sentient. It’s a lot easier to hear a child crying out for its mother if you don’t think that child, or its mother, are actually human. Lean into empathy. Find more of it. That is the exact opposite of what Twitter, Meta, and now Substack, want you to do.
Breathe, and Act With Purpose
If history has taught us anything, it is to never put all your eggs into one basket. This is why we need to diversify our platforms and take control of our narratives before it’s too late. As we have said, for some it will be easier than others. Plenty of wonderful people are here on Substack and will continue to thrive in spite of the platform embracing hostility towards anyone that can be perceived as an “other”. We will continue to support the wonderful creators and writers on here (including one another) that we are lucky enough to call friends.
Acting with purpose is the best way to move forward. Rash decisions will only harm you, and the platforms will barely take notice. Until a relationship with a platform becomes truly untenable, use it for all it can offer. Continue to foster relationships with Substack subscribers and tell them about your new ventures. Write down all those Facebook birthdays so you can reach out to those people via text or even with a call! Re-establishing our relationship with social media platforms is the way forward. We need to make sure we are using them, and not the other way around. When the time comes to switch—whether by choice or necessity—position yourself to move on easily and continue to thrive.
We can be disappointed with where Substack falls on the pendulum of being decent to human beings, but that does not mean we have to completely abandon the platform. At least, not just yet.
Thank you
for bringing this idea to me for the first (of what will be many I am sure) collaborations moving forward! You can also get more of her work (and more importantly the work of her cat Nezuko) here:Also, thank you for reading Preston’s Eclectic Musings. Any support whether that be a like, share, or subscription is always appreciated.
Or, if you’d like to send me some sustenance in the form of a healthy beverage, consider buying me a “coffee” (Tea!) instead!
 | A guest post by
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Preston and Kathy this was an awesome article. I feel so much of this Well done and thank you!
Unfortunately, no platform will be completely perfect. There will always be arseholes. However, we can come to a new platform (like here), and make it as clear as possible that we won’t tolerate it. Unfortunately, twitter, Facebook, TikTok, instagram, n many places r breeding grounds for all sorts of scumbags - extenuate on all sides, opportunistic attention seekers, etc.