Hi Parvaz, thank you for this compendium of questions! I won't be able to go in-depth but will try to give you the gist for each of these.
1) I take notes for everything that could be worth it. Every conversation, book or article I read, podcast or video I watch - I have my creative mind constantly on. Most essay ideas happen when I stop …
Hi Parvaz, thank you for this compendium of questions! I won't be able to go in-depth but will try to give you the gist for each of these.
1) I take notes for everything that could be worth it. Every conversation, book or article I read, podcast or video I watch - I have my creative mind constantly on. Most essay ideas happen when I stop conscious attempts at finding them. I've designed my life so that ideas come to me.
2) I use Notion now. Used Google Keep before, but anything would do actually. I credit my memory, not my note system, as the reason why I can come up with many ideas and remember the references and sources. Notes are useful, though, if you don't have good memory.
3) Not really. On the one hand, I capture every idea that can turn into an article, but on the other, if inspiration arrives, I stop everything and can write down a first draft in half an hour. At the very least I write down everything that captures the key ideas for the article.
4) Hmm, good question. I have. There are some authors I like especially but I tend to always be attentive to style whatever I read. Just to keep it short, I'll mention a few I like from here on Substack: Freddie deBoer's writing is great in that he displays an almost mathematical precision in how he translates his ideas into words. I find that really hard to do. I like Scott Alexander because he's very thorough in his arguments; he tries to find truth wherever that takes him. I don't always do that, but find it a good practice. I also like Noah Smith and Ethan Mollick because they clearly don't care about style - they just write how it comes to them - yet manage to output good content. I don't do that at all, but it's worth keeping in mind that style isn't always super relevant for success.
5) I edit them myself. I often spent days editing, to let them breathe. I find that practice very rewarding for my style. It's not the same editing with a writer mindset as with a reader mindset.
6) Nothing, just writing a lot and improving my writing over time. I don't know marketing, and on socials just do what feels right and appropriate for each platform.
7) I don't think there are books anyone must read. What I believe, though, is that how we read matters more than what we read (which still matters!). People tend to think that more books = better but I find that reading carefully - slowly and mindfully - is more important. I reflect as I read, take notes, and have a conversation with the writer (I do that even for fiction and novels - they're often have a much richer style and plenty literary resources).
8) I went paid at the onset because I had already 700 subs. I'd say this depends on whether you have other means to get subs (a sizeable following elsewhere) or whether you want to prioritize money over growth, etc. A good rule of thumb for beginners is to have 60-80% content free and reduce that number over time, as the newsletter grows. If your writing is good, people will pay you early on (growing the paid count is hard anyway). For paywall, I'd take one of two possibilities: Paywall the content that's most niche and harder to find elsewhere and write for free content that's more easily shareable and of common interest. Or give always your best content for free to capture interest and leave the rest paid.
9) Not really. But I have it in mind for the future.
10) Nothing, again I don't know a thing about marketing except the things I've learned along the way.
Thank you very much for your answers Alberto. These answers are like a masterclass in writing for Substack. I truly appreciate you taking the time out to answer all these questions. You’ve given me a lot to think about and inspirational cues to work on my own writing process. You’re a ⭐️
Hi Parvaz, thank you for this compendium of questions! I won't be able to go in-depth but will try to give you the gist for each of these.
1) I take notes for everything that could be worth it. Every conversation, book or article I read, podcast or video I watch - I have my creative mind constantly on. Most essay ideas happen when I stop conscious attempts at finding them. I've designed my life so that ideas come to me.
2) I use Notion now. Used Google Keep before, but anything would do actually. I credit my memory, not my note system, as the reason why I can come up with many ideas and remember the references and sources. Notes are useful, though, if you don't have good memory.
3) Not really. On the one hand, I capture every idea that can turn into an article, but on the other, if inspiration arrives, I stop everything and can write down a first draft in half an hour. At the very least I write down everything that captures the key ideas for the article.
4) Hmm, good question. I have. There are some authors I like especially but I tend to always be attentive to style whatever I read. Just to keep it short, I'll mention a few I like from here on Substack: Freddie deBoer's writing is great in that he displays an almost mathematical precision in how he translates his ideas into words. I find that really hard to do. I like Scott Alexander because he's very thorough in his arguments; he tries to find truth wherever that takes him. I don't always do that, but find it a good practice. I also like Noah Smith and Ethan Mollick because they clearly don't care about style - they just write how it comes to them - yet manage to output good content. I don't do that at all, but it's worth keeping in mind that style isn't always super relevant for success.
5) I edit them myself. I often spent days editing, to let them breathe. I find that practice very rewarding for my style. It's not the same editing with a writer mindset as with a reader mindset.
6) Nothing, just writing a lot and improving my writing over time. I don't know marketing, and on socials just do what feels right and appropriate for each platform.
7) I don't think there are books anyone must read. What I believe, though, is that how we read matters more than what we read (which still matters!). People tend to think that more books = better but I find that reading carefully - slowly and mindfully - is more important. I reflect as I read, take notes, and have a conversation with the writer (I do that even for fiction and novels - they're often have a much richer style and plenty literary resources).
8) I went paid at the onset because I had already 700 subs. I'd say this depends on whether you have other means to get subs (a sizeable following elsewhere) or whether you want to prioritize money over growth, etc. A good rule of thumb for beginners is to have 60-80% content free and reduce that number over time, as the newsletter grows. If your writing is good, people will pay you early on (growing the paid count is hard anyway). For paywall, I'd take one of two possibilities: Paywall the content that's most niche and harder to find elsewhere and write for free content that's more easily shareable and of common interest. Or give always your best content for free to capture interest and leave the rest paid.
9) Not really. But I have it in mind for the future.
10) Nothing, again I don't know a thing about marketing except the things I've learned along the way.
Thank you very much for your answers Alberto. These answers are like a masterclass in writing for Substack. I truly appreciate you taking the time out to answer all these questions. You’ve given me a lot to think about and inspirational cues to work on my own writing process. You’re a ⭐️