Hello! I've started a Substack, which will be my new newsletter.
But also, it's kind of a website. It's both! Keep reading because I'll explain everything.
It’s hard to figure out how to start the first of something. You want the very first edition of something to be extra meaningful—the absolute best impression. But that’s not why we’re here...
Why Substack?
I think I’ve longed for a space where I can share bits and pieces of my life—clusters of random thoughts written as longer-form content—in such a way that does not need to presented in an aesthetic way… which is how I feel about my website. I actually adore my site (meganstokes.com) but I feel like anything that I publish there needs to be worthy of a glossy magazine—from the perfectly edited photos, to including really cool graphics I’ve created on photoshop, to ensuring sure my words are edited well enough to be set in stone. I mean, I’ll spend a full day working on one blog post and it’s like… why? I could have just shared this on IG stories and it would have been so much quicker. But I’ll tell you why. It’s because Instagram is so fast. 24 hours and the IG story is gone for good… and once you keep scrolling on Instagram, that feed post is usually never to be seen again. Some content is just worth hanging around a bit longer! I do love Instagram, don’t get me wrong, but I also long for the good old days of long form writing. Which, yes, I could just do on my website, but then we get back to the problem there… it just takes me so long to update anything on the site because of how aesthetic I feel it needs to remain. This is time I just don’t have in this season of my life! So there you have it—that’s why I rarely update it anymore! And yes, I could totally just throw up some quick posts, but in my heart of hearts, I didn’t have the designer spend all that time making such a beautiful site for me then to go on there and throw up sloppy graphics and dark, grainy photos! Ya know?
But in my soul, I NEED a place to post those dark grainy photos!!! Like, bring on a place for me to spill out some thoughts and throw up some iPhone photos that haven’t even been edited! A place that isn’t presented as a portfolio, but a place for a deeper connection.
Substack gives me a place to do just that. It gives me a website presence that feels much more informal, but guess what? It’s also a newsletter! So every time I publish a new one, you’ll get the post right in your email. But again, you can also head directly to my Substack site to read the new post or any old ones… it’s up to you!
It’s like going back to the early days of blogging…
When I first started my blog (which you’ll have to remember was before instagram even existed), I didn’t even have my own URL. Instead, I had an account with Blogspot and through that, I had my own “page” that served as my blog. It was unfiltered and fun… truly what got me started in this “industry” of sharing.
Here’s the cool thing about Substack. Everyone’s Substack looks the same, with the exception of a few custom colors you can change. I like this very much… it reminds me of the old Blogspot blogs! Therefore, there’s no pressure to add these innovative plugins to your site to better serve your audience or beautiful graphics. It’s literally just writing. And linking things you like with no bells and whistles. It’s like the old days!
“Is it free or do you pay to subscribe?”
Something I wasn’t sure about when first starting to consume Substack content is wondering whether it’s free or do you pay? Every creator can do it differently, but I’ll be very up front and go ahead and tell you in full transparency that eventually having paid subscribers is likely the goal for every Substack creator, whether they tell you that out the gate or not. I think the trade off is that there aren’t ads on Substack (or at least that’s my vow). It’s all very organic, so it’s just a way to gently monetize something that takes time to create and is hopefully very valuable to the readers. But don’t let that scare you off! Let me explain…
Here’s the different ways to shake it. Some creators will write their Substack and you have to pay a small subscription fee to be able to read it. Think of it like an online newspaper, where you have to pay to subscribe. Some Substack creators will offer free posts each week, reserving some posts for paid subscribers only. The other option is to keep it all completely free. This is the way mine will be until I figure out how deep and personal I want to get on here and how consistently I post, etc. I just want to be very up front about that from the very beginning, so that one day you’re not shocked if I turn on the “paid subscription” option for certain posts. Free content would always remain, though. Think of it more like a “extra perks” kind of thing for paid subscribers! But also, I may never even do that! Just laying out the options so that we are all at the same starting point in terms of expectations.
Speaking of what to expect…
Here’s the fun part. I want to share all the things! I want to share pictures from our week, outfits I’m loving, random tidbits and thoughts, home renovation progress, and so forth. I want to give you a better peek into my life with more context than I can provide on IG stories. And I want to do it in a very unfiltered way. Just off the cuff!
I actually have no expectations going into this. I am going to post here because it’s fun and it’s on my heart. Stream of consciousness style. Some weeks, I might post once. Some weeks, I might post 4-5 times. At least until I find my rhythm and we figure out a good cadence.
Substack will not be taking the place of any other content! It’s not going to reduce my presence on Instagram in any way. This is all just extra.
And I won’t be abandoning my actual website! I know I haven’t posted there much lately, but I hope to get back to it. Basically, anything worthy of more of an aesthetic presentation will go there. (Think travel guides, gift guides…things like that.) Eek! I don’t know. We are going to play it by ear and learn together as we go.
Speaking of still learning, I think you can hit the subscribe button, if you haven’t already, to keep being notified via email every time there is a new Substack post!
Oh look at me learning to put a button up there! Okay Megan!
I’m so glad you’re here! Thank you. x