Retrospective

Last year in review, and this year in consideration.

Jan 05, 2024

Yes, even I’m making one of these.

I made my Substack back in March 2023. At the time I had no clue what I wanted to do with my Substack, other than post some writing for some friends and garner their affection with rage-bait articles lampooning the publishing world.

Those articles are all gone now. It’s for the best I think, because while they were funny and true, they were exhausting to write every other week. Eventually I grew to dread having to trawl through my email looking for work to crap on.

I started skipping days, and then I skipped weeks. I tried to transition to “Literature World Reviews” where I gave weekly shakedowns of the news in the literature world, but that didn’t seem good either. I wasn’t a fan of that sort of news journalism. It didn’t do anything for me. It was just work.

I made two actual posts interspersed with these initial attempts at finding an audience. They were a simple poem and a flash fiction. They’re so old by now that you won’t see them in their respective tabs unless you click “See All”. They were inklings of what I wanted out of my Substack—what I really desired to be known for, all the while I tried to do something else.

Around August 2023 I gave up on the lampooning of other works. I decided to start posting flash fictions, poetry, and the occasional short story. My goal was a flash fiction every other week with a poem in the “off” weeks. The poetry helped keep my pace up while giving me breaks from flash fiction to work on my books and submissions to magazines. (I’ve more or less dropped this in favor of weekly flash fiction).

September 2023 was when I started seeing progress. I got connected with others through Substack Notes and Twitter and fell into a fairly easy pace of interaction. I’ve met great people so far and enjoy the things they have to say. I got too obsessed with keeping up with Notes at one point, so I’ve mostly pulled back from scrolling to focus on my work. That’s what I’m here for, after all.

It’s important to remember that while Substack’s network and Notes in general does have readers, it is also filled with writers, all of whom are intimately focused on their own work. Don’t get me wrong: some of the best readers are other writers. And sure, with writers you can always workshop, but that’s not enough for me.

I don’t want to be workshopped. I don’t want other writers to read my work because there’s an obligation or an expectation of quid pro quo or because they feel “Well he posted, so I have to read it.” Who wants that? I want people reading my work because they are excited to see what I write next.

So, What is Next?

I haven’t given too much thought to the next big growth leap for my Substack. After my initial influx of subscribers from my friends, my growth has been fairly steady through the Substack network, recommendations, and Notes.

My current M.O. consists of flash fictions every week. I’m not foolish enough to believe this won’t lead to eventual stasis or stagnation. The reality is right now this is what I like. I love writing flash fiction and putting it up online. It makes me giddy to see people like it up and (sometimes) comment.

I want more of that. I want to continue on that path, and so I often ask myself the question of what else should I do to grow? Is more diversity in media necessary? Youtube reviews, more podcasts, collaborations with others? Should I try essays? Maintain flash fictions?

There is plenty to consider. I don’t think any one or multiple combination of avenues is bad. It depends on your goals for the year.

And as I set personal and professional goals for this year, I’m looking back and thinking about what I started last year with my Substack and where I might go someday. Last year I spent a lot of hours working on submissions for magazines, trying to get my name in people’s mouths, and ultimately fell short.

I think the quality of my writing needs more work, as does my dedication to the art and the craft. As a result, I will submit less this year and focus on my other works. I have novels (some complete and ready to edit) that need to be worked on, and so this year I foresee weekly flash fictions as my Substack grind.

If I can focus on just those two things, I predict a successful year. I may not be in the ballpark of 1,000 subscribers yet, but there is no real hurry yet. I’m content to work at my craft at my pace. That is my plan this year.

All writers seek readers. By sharing with a friend you think will like my work, you can help me find them.

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