Gentle Monetisation

How to make money from Substack without the horrible pain

“Focus on the work for its own sake. Sometimes the money follows that, sometimes it doesn’t, but it’s the only way.” -

Summer Brennan

Photo by micheile henderson on Unsplash

This quote is from a Note by Summer Brennan, in which she muses about how anxious writers can get about competition, success, and monetization. She joked in a reply that she should write an article on ‘gentle monetization’, and I hope she does - in the meantime, here is mine. If you would like to make money from your Substack AND be cool as a cucumber at the same time, read on.

My history of making money from my writing has been varied and non-traditional. I have published ten books - some of them with a small publisher and some of them through my own imprint. One of my novels bought us a new extension and a fancy new greenhouse, but most of them have only brought in pocket money. I ran a mindful writing company with my spouse for a few years and we made a third of our total income from the online courses we ran. 

I’ve been on Substack for a year and I’m currently making around a tenth of my income from this platform - I have more than 100 paid subscribers. I plan to grow this to a third of my income over the next year or two. When I first started getting paid subscribers last January I was wary of spending the money - people were paying for a whole year’s worth of writing. I decided to tuck it away and I have only just started to spend it - I’ve just taken January 2023’s Substack income this January, and so on.

I am aware that I am probably more nerdy/cautious about this than most folk will be (I’m the kind of person that does my tax return on the first day of the year that I’m allowed to do so. I know 🙄) but I do think that this approach has contributed to my feeling more relaxed about the urge to succeed on Substack. I’m driven crazy ENOUGH with my jealousy of other more successful authors here (who are also gorgeous, witty and kind - grrr) without having to be anxious about money on top of that.  

My top piece of advice for gentle monetization is, therefore, the first from my list below: don’t rely on your Substack income until it’s pretty stable. 

This advice may not be popular, because I know it’s hard to make a living, and writers have it harder than most, and you might just want to plow all of your energy into making this work. Unfortunately, there’s no getting around the fact that, as Summer says in her quote, we just can’t control how much money we make from our writing here. This is true however perfectly we polish our pieces, however much time we spend amplifying our writing on Notes, however many authors we collaborate with, and however religiously we stick to our regular schedule. Growth may be veerrrrrry slow (and at the beginning, it is highly likely to be). We will lose paid subscribers for all sorts of reasons. Brilliance does not guarantee financial bounty!

We’re usually not in control of what the Universe pays us for our writing, but there are things that we do have control over. Here is my list of suggestions for how you can remove as much of the pain as possible from your monetization plans. Many of these issues are ongoing for me, as I make adjustments, learn new things about myself, and tend to my wounds and bruises after inevitable disappointments and setbacks. Unless you are already an enlightened being (if so you should be giving me advice!), they will probably be ongoing for you as well.  

Here goes. Do think about how these tips apply to you and your situation as you go.

⭐ As far as you can, and at least for a while, organize your life so the income from your writing is optional. I know that this might not be easy and that it might feel horrible. Low-paid work can suck up all your writing time. Higher-paid work can suck all your energy and inspiration. Should you sell out? Should you just wait until you’re retired? It sucks. It may help you to remember that artists over the centuries have wrestled with the same issue - you’re not alone!

⭐ Remember that your value as a writer is completely separate from how successful you are financially. (This is also true for your popularity as a writer.) It will be true that there will be a general correlation between the quality of one’s writing and how successful one becomes, but this is by no means guaranteed. For evidence of this, just flick through a few terribly written ever-so-popular books. 

⭐ Remember that making money from writing is not impossible but it is HARD.

Russell Nohelty

writes very eloquently about this. I don’t say this to dissuade you from monetizing your Substack, but to help you not beat yourself up when - well, when it’s hard.

⭐ Be realistic about your financial goals. Check them out against your current reality. Check them out with others who are making money on this platform. Check them out with your friends. It’s good and motivating to stretch ourselves a little, but it’s not helpful to set ourselves up to probably fail.

⭐ Appreciate every penny or cent of income that you make from your writing. Someone is paying money for your words! Isn’t that amazing?

⭐ Only include your writing income as your core income after it becomes reasonably reliable. See my ‘wait-a-year-before-I-take-any-money’ plan. Patience is king. 

⭐ Get support. It’s good to have folk you can moan at, folk who you can learn alongside, folk who support you and who get how hard it is, and folk who you can celebrate your successes with. Keep seeking them out. Be grateful if you have them in your life. 

⭐ Enjoy it! Make monetizing a little bit of a game. Be playful with your goals and your processes. Add a pinch of lightness to everything. Remember that, when you are on your deathbed, you probably won’t be worrying about the extra ten paid subscribers you didn’t get last month. You are a writer! At least a few people read and enjoy your writing! Isn’t that cool?   

I wrote this list because I want you to have the best chance of financial success you can have, and because I want you to enjoy yourself along the way as much as you can. I don’t think that ‘gentle monetization’ is an oxymoron. Good luck with your adventures, and I look forward to hearing from you in the comments.

Go gently,
Satya <3

Further reading:

Summer Brennan

went on to write this excellent article about how to succeed on Substack:

"How To Succeed On Substack"

You might also be interested in my Going Gently Guide to Success, back when I first reached 1,000 subscribers:

The Going Gently Guide to Success

Holly Whitaker

on removing her paywall:

#65 I'm removing my Substack paywall

And

Tom Pendergast

on why he doesn’t want to ‘go paid’:

Why I'm Not Going Paid on Substack

So, what do you think?

• How is your monetization journey going?

• Have you ‘gone paid’ yet?

• Does this strategy resonate with you?

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