I'm in the process of making my own WordPress website. I'm still learning. I'm so scared that it won't get the attention my Substack does. Thank you for including alll the helpful resources.
I just feel too tired to start over again. I have been thinking about setting up a website anyway but it's so much with everything else I am not on top of.
Percy, I finally caught up with your last few posts and just want to say you are on fire lately, so cutting and insightful and powerful, basically saying all I wanna express in my blog but better.
I’m staying on substack because I’m too lazy to change and enjoy the network effect, but PSA to all the peeps: I’ve never downloaded the app, rarely use notes, and otherwise avoid their more predatory features.
and i wish i had the self-control to not engage with the other side of this place, unfortunately I don't and I feel like by being here I trap others here with me...
thank you! I feel like I’ve had some posts I feel extremely good about, but the other funny thing about Substack is that they don’t do well compared to the posts I don’t feel as invested in, or perhaps the ones I don’t want to share as much going forward… the analytics starts to mess with my head and I start writing what people want to read, thinking “oh this will do well” rather than what I feel must be said. Going through a deep period of re-evaluation about what I am doing :) no answers yet, just more questions
tuhat looks like a really cool place! I was about to sign up and then I kept reading your post and remembered that I already have a bearblog account. Logged in, poked around their discover feed and stumbled upon someone's website that has a little bird friend that you can interact with!!
I'm new to Substack, and while I have found a lot of thoughtful and thought provoking writing here, there are no cute interactive bird friends. being able to truly customize your space makes such a big difference.
I’m currently all over the place. I have a self-hosted WordPress site at Cory.panshin.com, and I post essays both there and at Substack. In addition to Substack, I’m on BlueSky and Mastodon, and I participate in the NeuroCourage Discord. I suspect this may all be getting too complicated, but it seems necessary to cover my bases in a time of transition.
as someone with a big audience here, i resonate so much with this. it’s frustrating to see the space where i share my views of the world turn into much of what i stand against. i’m still gauging what my next move will be and when, but substack does not feel like the right place for me anymore—or at least to the extent of how i use it right now.
Immensely grateful for the labor of this post. I'm especially intrigued by tuhat, which I'd never heard of before now 🙏🏻
Also leaving a comment here after voting in the poll to say I would enthusiastically be down for some sort of discord like what you floated. Heavily relate to the disabled isolation you write about--so looking forward to connecting to your words somewhere that isn't here. Subscribing now!
Wow, this is great info – thank you!! I don't even remember how or why I ended up starting my Substack a little over a year ago, but I want to make a more intentional choice about wherever I'm going next. Appreciate the work you put into this to guide me in this decision!
thank you so much for doing all the research and I'm glad you're doing what's best for you. I'm very undecided because i agree with everything you said but I also hate the idea of splitting myself across multiple platforms so would probably need to pick ONE and then stick to it. which is not ideal for an indecisive person who doesn't like change 😭
that's how i felt a year ago, mostly because i didn't want to be on facebook, instagram, tiktok or youtube so i just stuck with substack but it just started to feel icky to be giving them all my work, and not building something of my own as well.
yeah that makes so much sense. I expect I'll be where you are very soon once I've had time to think more about it! thanks again for laying out the alternatives ❤️
Great post Percy. Real shame that there is no clear alternative to substack to come take its place… maybe myspace. And if you want to draw to something self hosted you have to advertise somewhere.
in a way yes, but in another way a clear alternative would be just the same - a social media in the beginning stages and eventually it would go the same way as Substack and all the rest. I think we need to shift how we think of and use the web entirely, if we hope to escape this social media big tech trap.
I've been using bluesky for a lot longer than substack because my chronic conditions prevented me from writing long form for a long time. I also managed to set up a website by some miracle of the gods earlier this year and cross post my articles there. The notes function, which I initially was against, has become a pretty safe space for interacting here, and I resonate with the feeling of loneliness due to the isolating nature of being chronically ill. So I feel a lot of what you're saying. I've also toyed with Patreon as an option, especially as the bluesky witchy and occult community seem to be big on it, but it feels difficult to manage so many social media platforms and I'm exhausted. Anyway all of that just to say, well done on finding an alternative to substack that works for you. Wishing you all the best in this shift and looking forward to your mastadon and poss discord updates!
I feel you on the crash, summer is not my season. I barely have enough energy to cook and clean. For bluesky I created a mastadon account and used that to login to bluesky. They seem to be the same company? Just type bluesky login into a search and you'll find it. Take your time. If you join bluesky let me know so we can follow one another 🤗
BLESS U for doing all this work, it is immensely helpful
<3
I'm in the process of making my own WordPress website. I'm still learning. I'm so scared that it won't get the attention my Substack does. Thank you for including alll the helpful resources.
I think there are plug-ins that should make it possible for you to transfer your readership, mail services may cost though
I just feel too tired to start over again. I have been thinking about setting up a website anyway but it's so much with everything else I am not on top of.
i feel that
FYI... Someone created a letter generator with the legal stuff to get Substack to turn off Pangram AI detection at the account level
https://substack.com/@privacat1/note/c-308544221
Percy, I finally caught up with your last few posts and just want to say you are on fire lately, so cutting and insightful and powerful, basically saying all I wanna express in my blog but better.
I’m staying on substack because I’m too lazy to change and enjoy the network effect, but PSA to all the peeps: I’ve never downloaded the app, rarely use notes, and otherwise avoid their more predatory features.
Percy, I’ve signed up for all your new platforms!
and i wish i had the self-control to not engage with the other side of this place, unfortunately I don't and I feel like by being here I trap others here with me...
thank you! I feel like I’ve had some posts I feel extremely good about, but the other funny thing about Substack is that they don’t do well compared to the posts I don’t feel as invested in, or perhaps the ones I don’t want to share as much going forward… the analytics starts to mess with my head and I start writing what people want to read, thinking “oh this will do well” rather than what I feel must be said. Going through a deep period of re-evaluation about what I am doing :) no answers yet, just more questions
tuhat looks like a really cool place! I was about to sign up and then I kept reading your post and remembered that I already have a bearblog account. Logged in, poked around their discover feed and stumbled upon someone's website that has a little bird friend that you can interact with!!
I'm new to Substack, and while I have found a lot of thoughtful and thought provoking writing here, there are no cute interactive bird friends. being able to truly customize your space makes such a big difference.
soo cute - one of my ideas for my own site was to make it “inhabitated” by all kinds of weird little creatures!!!
I’m currently all over the place. I have a self-hosted WordPress site at Cory.panshin.com, and I post essays both there and at Substack. In addition to Substack, I’m on BlueSky and Mastodon, and I participate in the NeuroCourage Discord. I suspect this may all be getting too complicated, but it seems necessary to cover my bases in a time of transition.
this gave me the push I think I needed. I miss the community of old days like livejournal or modblog, but I don't think I;m getting it here either.
as someone with a big audience here, i resonate so much with this. it’s frustrating to see the space where i share my views of the world turn into much of what i stand against. i’m still gauging what my next move will be and when, but substack does not feel like the right place for me anymore—or at least to the extent of how i use it right now.
wow u were not kidding about the big audience ... the thought of paying for mail services to that scale... yikes!!!
Immensely grateful for the labor of this post. I'm especially intrigued by tuhat, which I'd never heard of before now 🙏🏻
Also leaving a comment here after voting in the poll to say I would enthusiastically be down for some sort of discord like what you floated. Heavily relate to the disabled isolation you write about--so looking forward to connecting to your words somewhere that isn't here. Subscribing now!
Thanks!
Wow, this is great info – thank you!! I don't even remember how or why I ended up starting my Substack a little over a year ago, but I want to make a more intentional choice about wherever I'm going next. Appreciate the work you put into this to guide me in this decision!
thank you so much for doing all the research and I'm glad you're doing what's best for you. I'm very undecided because i agree with everything you said but I also hate the idea of splitting myself across multiple platforms so would probably need to pick ONE and then stick to it. which is not ideal for an indecisive person who doesn't like change 😭
that's how i felt a year ago, mostly because i didn't want to be on facebook, instagram, tiktok or youtube so i just stuck with substack but it just started to feel icky to be giving them all my work, and not building something of my own as well.
yeah that makes so much sense. I expect I'll be where you are very soon once I've had time to think more about it! thanks again for laying out the alternatives ❤️
Great post Percy. Real shame that there is no clear alternative to substack to come take its place… maybe myspace. And if you want to draw to something self hosted you have to advertise somewhere.
in a way yes, but in another way a clear alternative would be just the same - a social media in the beginning stages and eventually it would go the same way as Substack and all the rest. I think we need to shift how we think of and use the web entirely, if we hope to escape this social media big tech trap.
such generous and kind work! 🙏🏻🫡
<3
I've been using bluesky for a lot longer than substack because my chronic conditions prevented me from writing long form for a long time. I also managed to set up a website by some miracle of the gods earlier this year and cross post my articles there. The notes function, which I initially was against, has become a pretty safe space for interacting here, and I resonate with the feeling of loneliness due to the isolating nature of being chronically ill. So I feel a lot of what you're saying. I've also toyed with Patreon as an option, especially as the bluesky witchy and occult community seem to be big on it, but it feels difficult to manage so many social media platforms and I'm exhausted. Anyway all of that just to say, well done on finding an alternative to substack that works for you. Wishing you all the best in this shift and looking forward to your mastadon and poss discord updates!
how do you find bluesky?
I relate very much to the energy expenditure, i've put a lot in to sorting out these alternatives and crashing very hard rn...
I feel you on the crash, summer is not my season. I barely have enough energy to cook and clean. For bluesky I created a mastadon account and used that to login to bluesky. They seem to be the same company? Just type bluesky login into a search and you'll find it. Take your time. If you join bluesky let me know so we can follow one another 🤗
Great article! Also I’ll join you in Discord!!! Might just be us 2, but I promise I’ll be active 🤝
<3