Substack: My New Blogging & Newsletter Platform
I am now writing blog posts and newsletters on Substack instead of my old web site. Finally, my days of dealing with WordPress are over!
A Timely Video
One of the simple pleasures David and I enjoy is watching YouTube videos, often while sitting at the kitchen table eating lunch. This is especially true on weekends when our weekly news programs are not on (to which I say Hallelujah!).
And that’s how this Substack idea was launched. I simply asked him to find something for us to watch and he randomly chose this:
Why everyone should start an email newsletter by Ali Abdaal
In the video, Ali mentioned Substack and said it was an excellent platform to use if you’re wanting to start an email newsletter. I had heard of the website but knew very little about it. So I decided to check it out.
And I’m SO glad I did. But before I tell you why Substack is a much better tool for me to use for blogging than WordPress, let me give you some background. After all, this IS my first post here, so I want to share a little of my personal story.
My Blogging Backstory
David and I met in 2006 on BigChurch.com, a Christian dating website with an unusual feature: blogging. (BigChurch called it blogging, but the posts were more like what we now see in our Facebook news feeds — a paragraph or two written BY friends TO friends about something going on in their lives.)
Why is this significant? Because David was in Gainsborough, England, I was in Lynchburg, VA. We each had our geographical region for meeting people set to 50 and 300 miles, respectively. But when it came to the blog feed, your location didn't matter because everyone on the site could see your posts.
And that is how WorshippingOne (me) met WorshipGuitar 2: I was writing blog posts, and David was reading them. One thing led to another, and — well, it's quite a story and one I will share more about here in the future. In the meantime, you can watch our YouTube video, Our Amazing Story1.
We married a few months later, then moved to Texas in 2008 to help my parents with their VERY old apartments. Talk about stretching us! But we knew God had called us to do it. So we did — with His grace every step of the way!2
If there is something that we are supposed to be doing, the Lord will give us the ability to do it. There is no way that He is going to lead us into a situation and then leave us there to face it alone in our own weak, human power. (See Is. 41:10) — Joyce Meyer
Real Blogging Can Be a REAL Pain!
In 2010, I decided to try my hand at REAL blogging. So I set up a free account with WordPress.com. It was fun and relatively easy. Then I learned from Michael Hyatt, former CEO of Thomas Nelson, to do it right, you need to get a domain name and sign up with a Web hosting company like BlueHost. After all, it’ll only take you 20 minutes!
Yeah, right! Any time you see articles online saying you can do this in 20 minutes, laugh and keep scrolling. Even with my 32+ years as a computer programmer, intermittent technical issues almost did me in. Things would go well for a while. Then, something would happen that would derail me for days and even weeks at a time. It was maddening!
We sold our apartment business in 2016, and despite the technical challenges, I managed to launch SharonOutlawHillam.com in 2018, build a small email subscriber list, and publish a handful of blog posts over the next four years.
I started with HostGator, then switched to WordPress.com's business plan in April 2020, which included support via chat with their Happiness Engineers. At that point, I thought all my technical woes were a thing of the past.
And they were — for a while.
A Stumbling Block or a Roadblock?
A few weeks ago, just as I was finally getting back into a bit of a writing rhythm after suspending ALL blogging for over two years due to some health issues and other things, I hit what I thought was just an annoying stumbling block3. I was wrong. It was a roadblock, which meant I could NOT keep doing what I HAD been doing the WAY I had been doing it. I didn’t realize it until a few days later, but the Lord orchestrated the situation to get me off the bumpy road and onto the superhighway!
Can you relate? Have you ever been going down a road you KNOW the Lord put you on when suddenly, you can't go any farther? What's the first thing you think?
"Well...I must have missed God."
Maybe? Maybe not? But here's what you need to remember in moments like this: There's always purpose in the process. In fact, according to Oswald Chambers, “What we call the process, God calls the end.”4 God isn't nearly so interested in our reaching the goal as He is in us experiencing Him as we learn to wait on, rely on, and follow His leading along the way.
I [the Lord] will instruct you and teach you in the way you should go; I will counsel you with My eye upon you. Be not like the horse or the mule, which lack understanding, which must have their mouths held firm with bit and bridle, or else they will not come with you.
Substack: Our New Superhighway for Online Content Creation
After watching Ali's video, I began researching Substack. It didn't take long before I realized it was the complete package for writers like me. Chris Best and the founders of Substack have nailed it!
I created my account that afternoon, went through the guided initial setup, and began drafting the first post. David, who is now joining me in this new thing, designed the logo using Canva, and we uploaded it to our Home Page a few days later. (Great job, Honey!)
It took me about a week to craft the About Page, tweak the settings, import six posts from SharonOutlawHillam.com, and manually move a few subscribers over from Aweber, my old email marketing service provider. That's it! While our new Substack Site will always be evolving, it's up and all systems are GO!
After working with it this past month, I’m more convinced than ever that Substack is our new superhighway for online content creation. Here’s why:
1. It combines blogging with an email subscriber list.
What this means for me as a former WordPress user is that not only do I NOT have to be a website designer (or maintainer!), I no longer need Aweber, Zoho Mail, Google Analytics, or any other app. Substack handles ALL of this for me! Hallelujah!
But it gets even better.
First, whenever we publish ANYTHING — blog post, newsletter, you name it — Substack automatically sends it as an email to all subscribers — not a notification of content, the content itself. (Think RSS feed.)
Second, ALL content is available on the site from either the Home Page or the Archive section. By doing this, Substack made newsletters evergreen or blog-like.
So what's the difference between a blog post and a newsletter? On Substack, nothing! All written content is input (using the editor), published, emailed, and accessible on the site without distinction as to the type of content.
2. It’s designed to facilitate engagement between writers and readers.
Substack does this by making it easy for readers to leave comments and replies on all content. You'll find either comment buttons (that writers insert at various points in the text) or links at the end.
If you're reading an email and click on Comment, it will act as a link and take you to the comments section of the post online where you can enter your comment and read others' comments and replies.
Substack also has a type of chat where writers can initiate topic-targeted discussion threads. We haven't created or participated in one yet, but we plan to because David and I are keen on interacting with our readers.
3. It’s like a giant shopping mall for readers.
Substack does for online content creators what shopping malls do for store owners: They create a one-stop location where unknowns like David and me can be more easily discovered by those simply walking by.
The address of our "store" (our site or sub-domain) in the Substack "mall" (their hosting website) is TheHillamBlog.Substack.com. The name of our publication is The Hillam Blog & Newsletter.
Readers can peruse the thousands of publications on any device via whatever browser they use (Chrome, Safari, etc.). But the best way to discover and read content is to download the Substack reading app from the Apple Store or Google Play. I have it on my iPad; David has it on his phone.
The app isn't just great for reading Substack content; it is also the best way to engage via comments, and it's the ONLY way to participate in discussion threads.
I hope you try it out, and if you do, leave me a comment and let me know what you think.
4. It’s free!
In most cases, it’s true: you get what you pay for. But that is NOT the case here. Rather than follow the typical model for apps these days, which is to limit functionality for the freebie version, Substack gives you the whole kit and caboodle!
Their philosophy is simple: we will take care of all the technical stuff; all you need to do is write. The more you write, the more and better your content, which, in turn, will lead to more readers. Then, as your readership grows, you can offer premium content to paying subscribers. That's when Substack gets their cut (a percentage) and reaps from what they've sown.
It's a win-win. And that's why we’re in, along with over 1 million others.
Conclusion
I’m sure glad David stumbled upon Ali Abdall’s YouTube video a month ago. I’m always amazed and humbled by God’s “suddenlies” — and always so very grateful for them.
I'm also grateful to those of you who have been following me on SharonOutlawHillam.com. Thank you for your encouragement and support over the past four years while I practiced in public writing blog posts there.
As David and I step into 2023 and this new adventure together, we invite you to join us by subscribing. If, over time, you decide our content isn't for you, then unsubscribe. No questions asked. We NEVER want anyone to feel bad about unsubscribing — especially our family and friends.
Do you have a question or comment? Are you maybe interested in starting your own Substack "store"? Then leave us a comment below. Or, if you're reading this via email, you can hit reply.
Thanks for reading my post. Until next time, have a peaceful, blessed, and joy-filled 2023!
Sharon
Special Notice: We do not use affiliate links. The links and footnotes we provide are for copyright reasons, for citing references, and for your convenience only.
For a slightly shorter version, move the slider to the 9:45 point to skip past the introductions. And if you run out of time (or patience!), be sure and check out the slide show of pics from our first year together in Virginia starting at the 52:50 point. I wrote and produced the background song, Oh Lord, You’re Faithful, and David put it all together. What a team!
The quote below is from Joyce Meyer’s book, If Not for the Grace of God: Learning to Live Independently from Struggles and Frustrations (Tulsa, OK: Harrison House, 1995), page 95. It’s available on Kindle for $1.99! Highly recommend!
I crafted a new post, and when I went to enter it into the WP Editor, everything went weird! The text was tiny, and the block quote was not working correctly. After two days of chats with Happiness Engineers at WP and several emails back and forth with the developer of my theme, Minimalist Blogger, I learned that it was no longer compatible with the WP Editor. That meant I had to change themes AND learn WP's new Full Site Editing, which would have taken me a week or more. What a hassle!
Oswald Chambers, My Utmost for His Highest: Selections for the Year (Grand Rapids, MI: Oswald Chambers Publications; Marshall Pickering, 1986), "July 28th—After obedience—What?", Logos Research Edition e-book.