Confessions of a middle aged Substackaholic

1. I think Substack is great. So much so that I am often a little evangelical about it. But I’m not an idiot and I know that it wasn’t created by some altruistic deity to bring peace on earth to mankind. It was created by regular human beings a bit like me, with arms and legs and a brain and a heart and wotnot, who are doing their stuff. Just like I am. And therefore they will change it and evolve it and it will get busier and it might not always look and feel and work exactly as I think it should.

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2. I am writing and drawing for me. And that will always be enough. But I am also unapologetically writing and drawing and sharing here because I want people to see my work (I know, shock horror right.) I love to see those little hearts and I love to get a restack and a share and even a new subscriber or two. And if I dare to mention in my posts that you can show me support by sending hearts and restacking and sharing and upgrading, that does not make me a sell-out.

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3. If I get any of those lovely little ticks I would like it very much. Be they orange or purple, an outline or a solid colour, that will be super cool. I’m not going to pretend I don’t want one and I will take the opportunities when they present themselves to share and market my work, because I want people to see it!!

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4. Yes ok, branding is a word that divides opinion and as words go, it’s not my favourite. But I fricking love that I can brand the shiz out of my Substack and have my own cool little wordmarks and profile pic and fill my posts and feed up with words and pictures (until they hit the email limit 😁.) I LOVE how I made it all look. It is my jam, my cup of tea. My wheelhouse. But if it’s not your cup of tea, that’s cool.

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5. I LOVE that

   Elizabeth Gilbert
   and
   Margaret Atwood
   and other well known writers are here. How absolutely cool is that!? I’m on a platform where I can see them a bit more up close and personal (sort of) and get to interact and connect with them, even in just a small way. Elizabeth Gilbert even replied to one of my comments a couple of weeks ago!! That does not mean I am slobbering on them (such a charming phrase). It just means I appreciate their work and enjoy sharing this space. They are also just human beings like me, with ears and noses and heads and livers and kidneys and wotnot. Why shouldn’t they be here and enjoy this fab platform too?

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6. Hamish McKenzie
   once liked one of my Notes. And Substack restacked another of my Notes and it went a teeny bit viral and all that is super cool. I had no idea who Hamish was before I joined Substack but I will absolutely bask in the attention when it comes my way! Again, all the people at Substack are just human beings like me, with toes and knees and intestines and wotnot. While I hope that might happen again one day, I’m not going to bemoan my lot in life if I never get that spinning green badge thing (although that colour combo gives me the heebie jeebies.) But I will absolutely keep writing and drawing and sharing my work here regardless, because I like it and my readers seem to like it too.

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7. I am very excited and slightly freaked out that people are paying me for my writing and drawing here. And I would quite like more people to upgrade so I will blatantly restack my own posts and my own Notes, because, yes, you guessed it, I want people to read them and hit that little subscribe button and even upgrade!!! That does not make me needy (possibly a bit nerdy, but nerds are cool, right?)

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8. I am here a lot (A LOT). Embarrassing so. I am ashamed of what my screen time tells me about my Substack habit. But I like that my phone categorises Substack as Information and Reading. And honestly, whether or not Substack is or isn’t social media doesn’t make one iota of difference to my level of enjoyment. I will eat as many Jaffa cakes as I think I can reasonably get away with when no one is looking, whether they are actually a biscuit, or a cake is irrelevant.

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9. I am supremely unqualified to be here, unless you count my English GCSE (grade B no less), or the fact that my mum constantly corrected my spoken grammar. Something that I have pleasure in repeating with my own children (and husband) because it drives them potty. Nevertheless, I will continue to write and to draw and to use bad grammar and long sentences and break all the rules of proper writing because it is fun, and I like it.

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10. I will unashamedly share and restack and @mention people when I read something that I love because I LOVE IT!

If, like me, you sometimes read things that make you feel a bit disheartened, that seem to shame you for enjoying it here, for marketing your work, for the heinous crime of wanting to be seen, that tell you you’re not good enough to write, how about this instead….

We are all just human beings, with mostly the same appendages and internal organs (I am missing a couple, but who’s counting?) and every one of us just wants to be seen, and appreciated and valued and loved. So, don’t let any of it stop you doing your thing.

So, dear creative, go do your work. I am going to carry on doing mine.

Bye for now.

oh, and P.S. If you enjoyed reading this little confession, please do send me some hearts (click the ❤️), comment 💬 or restack🔁 on Substack or share on social media!

And if you subscribe, you’ll get a beautiful bundle of illustration assets in my Welcome Letter or upgrade to access my every growing gallery brimming with gorgeous illustrations to create beautiful things for your home, your life and online spaces.