by Julie Bonn Blank

If you’ve been reading my heaven blog, you have been on Substack and may not even have realized it. That’s how smooth it can be to get from your website to a blogging platform that will bring much of your audience to you (with time and some effort) instead of struggling to get people to your site. Although I will be teaching a Members Circle class in the next few months on this topic, I thought I would start you with some preliminary information for those not already on the platform.

Substack was developed with writers in mind. That is why they encourage subscriptions from readers—so that writers are paid for their work. But please know you can both write on the platform and read posts there without paying a penny. You will find a multitude of Christian writers who are producing quality content and insights. You will discover life experiences, illustrations, photographs, devotionals, stories, and more. A wide variety of people, from pastors to best-selling authors, publish there, and we all may do it a bit differently.. You will find that there are no ads (yay!), and unless you find politically minded people and follow them, not a lot of politics either (double yay!).

Here are some of our members who have taken the Substack plunge besides me:

  • Matt Davenport, board member and author, writes about Bible themes and the word that God gives him each day.
  • Tom Gillard writes true-life short, humorous stories with an applicable Bible verse and theme for each one.
  • Linda Heath provides inspirational nonfiction stories with a tap of biblical application.
  • Susan Kuenzi writes about trauma, life, and what God teaches her.
  • Rebecca Meek writes about motherhood, growth, obstacles, and maturity in Jesus.

There are also a few of us there who are posting notes (short posts like a feed) and reading others, but not yet posting blogs. I won’t call you out, but we hope that you join us soon in providing quality Christian content. :-)

Here are some basics to know:

  1. You can likely find writers penning similar topics and other interesting ones if you watch what those of us on Substack comment on. You will also find readers!
  2. I recommend setting up as a “publication,” or you will not show up in search when someone who does not follow you looks for you. If you already have a profile, you can change it to a publication without losing any of your work. Publications are also easily backed up, as opposed to a profile only with your posts.
  3. You get a URL that is all yours when you make a publication. This greatly helps in searches. Substack will appear in top results when people search your name/blog title. And you already know that I recommend branding your name along with your book or ministry.
  4. You do not have to charge for people to read your work. However, you might want to consider a tier. Many have their basic posts free but provide extra content or giveaways to paid subscribers. Many also have a way for people to contact them for help with paying for a subscription if they are in need (other subscribers will pitch in). Know that if you do choose to subscribe to someone, the most popular range of costs seems to be $5−$8 a month.
  5. If you subscribe (even for free) to a publication, you will get emails when they post, although you can turn that off in settings. The blogs you subscribe to will also appear along the top of the page when you log in. If you don’t want all the emails, I recommend you “follow” the people/publications instead (often the three dots to the side of their name when you click on their “page”). Their notes and posts will still appear in your feed.
  6. Substack writers and readers desire genuineness. Connecting with people and commenting on their work or notes is important to build your readership, but you will gain much more traction when you start or continue a conversation verses saying “hey, thanks for the post.” I recommend finding the pubs that you truly can relate to or that raise your passions and taking the time to write extended, thoughtful replies on their posts rather than zipping through. Substackers know when someone is just zipping through and that doesn’t appear to be “genuine” at all.

Happy Substacking! Email us if you have any questions.