Now live: Substack Notes
A new way to discover and discuss great writing on Substack
Today we’re launching Notes to all writers and readers. Notes is a new space where you can find and publish short-form posts and join conversations with writers and fellow readers from across the Substack Network.
The Notes tab is designed to inspire, enlighten, and entertain readers based on the writers you’re already reading and help you find new writers worth subscribing to. Both writers and readers can share links, images, quick thoughts, and snippets from Substack posts to Notes, which lives in a tab beside Inbox at substack.com and in Substack’s mobile apps.
Notes marks the next step in our efforts to build our subscription network—one that puts writers and readers in charge, rewards great work with money, and protects the free press and free speech. This work is at the core of the Substack model, and we believe it will be an important part of a new economic engine for culture. But what you see today is just the beginning. Notes is a long-term project and success will ultimately be determined by the trust expressed by writers and readers over the course of years. We do not take that trust for granted.
This release is an early version of the product that we have been testing with a small group of writers and readers in recent weeks. We expect it to have bumps, bugs, and imperfections, and for it to evolve rapidly in response to feedback. If you have ideas, please let us know—preferably in Notes.
Join your favorite writers on Notes
Here are some notes from writers, illustrators, journalists, comics creators and more that you can join today:
Margaret Atwood called attention to a quote by Wayne Grady
emily nunn restacked a post on Substack by Jenny Rosenstrach
Carmen Maria Machado shared an essay in the Yale Review by Garth Greenwell
Hetty Lui McKinnon polled readers on a highly contentious topic
See which of your favorite writers are posting in notes.
How to navigate to Notes
Head to substack.com/notes on the web or visit the new Notes tab in the Substack app.
In Notes you will see two tabs: “Home” and “Subscribed.”
The Subscribed tab shows notes and activity from writers you have subscribed to directly.
The Home tab shows notes from writers you are subscribed to and writers they recommend, making up your extended network.
How to publish your first note
Here’s how to get started with Notes:
Visit Notes. Head to substack.com/notes or visit the new Notes tab in the Substack app.
Curate and share as you read. When you find a great piece of writing or podcast episode, it’s easy to share it to Notes. Simply click the “restack” icon or highlight an excerpt you love and click “Restack quote” to spread the word to the Substack network.
Tell your friends! Share a link to your Substack profile (here) so that your friends can see what you are reading. They can subscribe to your profile to see your notes.
Have questions about how Notes works? Head to the Help Center or visit our Note FAQ.
If Substack Notes can become twitter but with writers instead of drama, I’m here for it!
So this is how democracy thrives.