There is a solution to the annoying pings -if you go into Settings on your phone, scroll down to Notifications,and scroll further to find Substack, you’ll be able to switch off the sounds. Peace will then reign but you might then miss an article which you’d want to read. I think switching off the banners in Notifications may also solve the problem on your computer, but if I went upstairs to my computer to test this, I would wake the dog, which would be a bad idea!
I just took my private Substack public after populating it for 10 months in front of a small audience of friends (l used a paywall and then comped free subscribers with a paid account, a little hacky but it worked).
Definitely recommend, especially if you're just trying to find your voice and/or getting into the habit of regularly publishing for an audience.
I started my newsletter in private mode for a few months while I was getting started and it gave me a chance to experiment, make changes, and find my path forward without distractions. I love it, and I'd definitely use it for more personal, intimate newsletters as well.
May not be possible, but "private mode" for individual sections within a newsletter could be worthwhile...
Love all the community features. On the app side, it would be great to enable voice transcription to draft multiple posts. That way writers can work on content on anywhere!
Have you tried Otter Ai for this? I keep thinking to give it a go (do an audio post, have otter transcribe it and then use that to do the written version of the post) but haven't spent enough time getting to grips with it yet.
Okay so for people wondering how this works and benefits other than “the cool kids” social media-esque exclusivity:
I made another substack earlier this month documenting the feelings and motions I’ve been going through since my mom passed last month.
I wanted it to be private, but didn’t have that option. I just wanted small groups I trusted who were also caregivers for loved ones to see it because I wasn’t trying to market it or anything; they were literally my own thoughts and feelings during a pretty vulnerable time.
I think it’ll help for moments like that, or like if you truly wanted to just have a substack for a small group you could make it private so people didn’t have to pay for a more casual substack that has a smaller, more intimate audience.
I loved substack too much to write anywhere else to share those thoughts!
Thank you so much; I left a comment on your latest post because I enjoyed how you took me on a journey of what you’ve been through and how it’s changed recently!
Leaving the rest of my response here cause it’s more relevant haha. But yeah, I can’t write like I used to on my main Substack. None of my queued ideas and drafts feel “right” anymore, and literally nearly everything I think of writing is laced in mom’s passing (like the aftermath or just reflections).
I was her full time caregiver for 8 years, a few weeks after I graduated college (so I stayed home with my dad, bro, and her). So now, I feel like I’m getting to live life for the first time, and it’s slightly overwhelming at 31 to be starting for the first time.
Death and grief is weird and rough! Resized I experienced anticipatory grief for months before she passed, and maybe even a full year before it happened.
Lots of thoughts, lots of thoughts. A wild ride overall!
But thanks for letting me know about your substack, and your condolences!
Wow: 8 years! You are a saint of some sort. Hey: 31 is still very young :) You’ve got everything ahead of you! Maybe go travel a bit? I feel excited for you.
Haha, thank you. It was definitely a ride of ups and downs for sure, no saint here! Wanted to help my mom, and the time just passed in the meantime, until it had to end.
Traveling's definitely an option down the line! I'm currently trying to find my footing with even getting jobs/careers/a more stable grip on my identity currently, but I'd love to travel!
I'm literally gonna have to watch college kids and see how do they just... DO things, whether alone or with a friend (I have a feeling I'll be doing quite a bit alone). Kinda scary for me at the moment, not gonna lie!
But I'm excited too, and to document! Thanks again!
And I honestly might use it as I rebrand. Turn it on private make it feel exclusive and ask people on IG to leave their emails if they want in and tease it 👀 I dunno! Just rambling!
This is an epic new feature!! It helps me feel more comfortable writing so vulnerably to the community of 'Explorers' as I call them. I felt in my last post (my most vulnerable post to date) I had triple the number of views as I did subscribers and I know it was because curious people off my social media wanted to snoop and read - but not subscribe. If they are interested, I hope they are invested to be apart of the wonderful community of explorers. I appreciate this feature for my Substack sooo much! https://www.thehumanatlas.live/
Thank you Yuezhong! The stats are so revealing for this! I love this feature as it further fuels my courage to write with no filter for the community of 'Explorers' - not the entire internet of stalkers haha :)
Thanks! Perfect, I’m checking it out!! I’m guessing that this new feature will be a big hit because so many of us are on Facebook Fumes and have no interest wading into Twitter or joining other social media platforms like Social, Getter, etc. This option is promising for quality not quantity in content.
This is a cool idea! I hope though that this doesn’t lend itself toward more and more of a social media app. But a neat way of engaging people into the Substack world.
I have an active substack but would like to make it private. I don't see that option in the settings. Can someone please help? I followed the instructions but I don't see the option.
My undergraduates use invitation-only Substacks in my introductory journalism course. This allows them to practice weekly publishing and develop newsletters without exposing their experiments or identities to the entire internet. We all invite the rest of the class. Some invite family or friends too. Most students wind down their publications at the end of the semester, but a few go public and continue after the course ends.
Love this! I’m sure lots of people will put private Substacks to good use. Equally cool, a product like private will bring more readers to the Substack network, which is good for growing writers.
Can public Substackers make private Substack part of their web sites? What if someone wants private Substacks for family, friends, close neighbors, colleagues etc. How would they set that home. Can you create home pages like we have in our newsletters?
Could this work like a private tab or would the whole Substack be private?
I mean, there’s already levels of exclusivity with free and paid. This seems like a velvet rope for the cool kids. I guess I’m just puzzled by this. Seems like (again) bigger substacks would benefit from this especially if they get a lot of trolls.
Dang, my account must be set to private by accident because I’m writing into a journal apparently.
In all seriousness though that’s a great feature to get comfortable before going live, I like that idea!
Fr fr
Plz visit my account and be my first paid subscriber .Dont mind brother
There is a solution to the annoying pings -if you go into Settings on your phone, scroll down to Notifications,and scroll further to find Substack, you’ll be able to switch off the sounds. Peace will then reign but you might then miss an article which you’d want to read. I think switching off the banners in Notifications may also solve the problem on your computer, but if I went upstairs to my computer to test this, I would wake the dog, which would be a bad idea!
I just took my private Substack public after populating it for 10 months in front of a small audience of friends (l used a paywall and then comped free subscribers with a paid account, a little hacky but it worked).
Definitely recommend, especially if you're just trying to find your voice and/or getting into the habit of regularly publishing for an audience.
Thanks for mentioning this hack. It was in the back of mind to try it. Glad to know it works.
I started my newsletter in private mode for a few months while I was getting started and it gave me a chance to experiment, make changes, and find my path forward without distractions. I love it, and I'd definitely use it for more personal, intimate newsletters as well.
May not be possible, but "private mode" for individual sections within a newsletter could be worthwhile...
Love all the community features. On the app side, it would be great to enable voice transcription to draft multiple posts. That way writers can work on content on anywhere!
Have you tried Otter Ai for this? I keep thinking to give it a go (do an audio post, have otter transcribe it and then use that to do the written version of the post) but haven't spent enough time getting to grips with it yet.
I feel you guys. Might as well plug in my newsletter: zedletterday.substack.com
Okay so for people wondering how this works and benefits other than “the cool kids” social media-esque exclusivity:
I made another substack earlier this month documenting the feelings and motions I’ve been going through since my mom passed last month.
I wanted it to be private, but didn’t have that option. I just wanted small groups I trusted who were also caregivers for loved ones to see it because I wasn’t trying to market it or anything; they were literally my own thoughts and feelings during a pretty vulnerable time.
I think it’ll help for moments like that, or like if you truly wanted to just have a substack for a small group you could make it private so people didn’t have to pay for a more casual substack that has a smaller, more intimate audience.
I loved substack too much to write anywhere else to share those thoughts!
Sorry to hear about your mom. My dad is going that direction. I write about it on SS.
Michael Mohr
‘The Incompatibility of Being Alive’
https://reallife82.substack.com/
Thank you so much; I left a comment on your latest post because I enjoyed how you took me on a journey of what you’ve been through and how it’s changed recently!
Leaving the rest of my response here cause it’s more relevant haha. But yeah, I can’t write like I used to on my main Substack. None of my queued ideas and drafts feel “right” anymore, and literally nearly everything I think of writing is laced in mom’s passing (like the aftermath or just reflections).
I was her full time caregiver for 8 years, a few weeks after I graduated college (so I stayed home with my dad, bro, and her). So now, I feel like I’m getting to live life for the first time, and it’s slightly overwhelming at 31 to be starting for the first time.
Death and grief is weird and rough! Resized I experienced anticipatory grief for months before she passed, and maybe even a full year before it happened.
Lots of thoughts, lots of thoughts. A wild ride overall!
But thanks for letting me know about your substack, and your condolences!
Subscribed to your stack just now btw ❤️
Aw thanks so much!
Ah, I thought I did but saw I didn't when I rolled over your name just now! Did the same so I can keep following along!
Wow: 8 years! You are a saint of some sort. Hey: 31 is still very young :) You’ve got everything ahead of you! Maybe go travel a bit? I feel excited for you.
Haha, thank you. It was definitely a ride of ups and downs for sure, no saint here! Wanted to help my mom, and the time just passed in the meantime, until it had to end.
Traveling's definitely an option down the line! I'm currently trying to find my footing with even getting jobs/careers/a more stable grip on my identity currently, but I'd love to travel!
I'm literally gonna have to watch college kids and see how do they just... DO things, whether alone or with a friend (I have a feeling I'll be doing quite a bit alone). Kinda scary for me at the moment, not gonna lie!
But I'm excited too, and to document! Thanks again!
And I honestly might use it as I rebrand. Turn it on private make it feel exclusive and ask people on IG to leave their emails if they want in and tease it 👀 I dunno! Just rambling!
This is an epic new feature!! It helps me feel more comfortable writing so vulnerably to the community of 'Explorers' as I call them. I felt in my last post (my most vulnerable post to date) I had triple the number of views as I did subscribers and I know it was because curious people off my social media wanted to snoop and read - but not subscribe. If they are interested, I hope they are invested to be apart of the wonderful community of explorers. I appreciate this feature for my Substack sooo much! https://www.thehumanatlas.live/
I have so many of those "snoop and peak" people too! I feel you.
Thank you Yuezhong! The stats are so revealing for this! I love this feature as it further fuels my courage to write with no filter for the community of 'Explorers' - not the entire internet of stalkers haha :)
Thanks! Perfect, I’m checking it out!! I’m guessing that this new feature will be a big hit because so many of us are on Facebook Fumes and have no interest wading into Twitter or joining other social media platforms like Social, Getter, etc. This option is promising for quality not quantity in content.
Yeah. No more social media.
THIS is brilliant!!
This is a cool idea! I hope though that this doesn’t lend itself toward more and more of a social media app. But a neat way of engaging people into the Substack world.
I also fear the increasing move toward social media mimicry...
Agree. And that’s not a road we want to go down.
Good point. Let’s keep it about writing.
Thank you for this! I would love to have a way to create private posts, or private sections of a public substack, if possible.
Yes! This. I don’t want my whole publication to be private but having the option for certain posts or sections would be great.
I have an active substack but would like to make it private. I don't see that option in the settings. Can someone please help? I followed the instructions but I don't see the option.
The setting — in my Settings page, is called “Private mode”.
I don’t see that. I’ve been looking for 20 mins!
It's in the box that says "Import your email list" for some unknown reason. It's a button you toggle.
No wonder I didn’t see it either. Ty
My undergraduates use invitation-only Substacks in my introductory journalism course. This allows them to practice weekly publishing and develop newsletters without exposing their experiments or identities to the entire internet. We all invite the rest of the class. Some invite family or friends too. Most students wind down their publications at the end of the semester, but a few go public and continue after the course ends.
This is a great idea! Hadn't thought of that use case. Sounds like you're creating a safe space or your students to spread their wings.
Love this! I’m sure lots of people will put private Substacks to good use. Equally cool, a product like private will bring more readers to the Substack network, which is good for growing writers.
Can public Substackers make private Substack part of their web sites? What if someone wants private Substacks for family, friends, close neighbors, colleagues etc. How would they set that home. Can you create home pages like we have in our newsletters?
It would be great to be able to make private sections.
Could this work like a private tab or would the whole Substack be private?
I mean, there’s already levels of exclusivity with free and paid. This seems like a velvet rope for the cool kids. I guess I’m just puzzled by this. Seems like (again) bigger substacks would benefit from this especially if they get a lot of trolls.
So you need a private Substack for each group of readers?
I'm beginning to like substack even more now.
🙌🔥