I went to a Substack happy hour and all I got was this lousy T-shirt
An update on the future and first three months of Links 2.0
I was roughly an hour into Substack’s Toronto happy hour, wishing I’d had the good sense to stay home, when I asked a neighboring college student how she’d learned of the event at all. It had gone out in a blast to Substack writers — a chance to meet each other and the Substack staff, they said — but I’d shouldered my way into several little huddles and found only marketers and students.
“It was posted on Luma,” the girl told me. Luma, Luma … I came up blank.
“You know, it’s like Eventbrite! But for, like — cool tech things.”
Er, was this a … cool tech thing? I and my glass of lukewarm tap water had our reservations. They were handing out promotional T-shirts, though the logo placement suggested some unfamiliarity with the female form. There was also an open bar, though it soon ran out of beer and served not a single non-alcoholic option. The coffee shop was narrow and claustrophobic; tight clusters of people bloomed from the walls. The walk to get pizza was a noisy, flesh-filled gauntlet, which I braved only to give my weary soul a break from interrupting stranger’s shouted conversations.
But maybe that is cool! I couldn’t tell you. I haven’t been cool since at least 2018. In fact, I spent the past six years of my life in a midsize, post-industrial city that some cool tech people can neither locate on a map1 nor deign to visit, even momentarily.2 Buffalo doesn’t have a ton of media jobs; it’s the hub of very little besides bar food and stained glass. But this is a luxury that Substack helps afford me: I can live in Buffalo with my family … and still make my living as a journalist.
How it started/how it’s going: In the three months since Links relaunched, I’ve replaced roughly 40% of my previous local news salary with Substack subscription revenue. I’ve written more than 20 pieces, some of which I really loved. I’ve gotten to chat with a whole bunch of you.
At the same time, I want to be candid: This isn't all puppies and Cool Tech Things.™ “Creator journalism” is also lukewarm water and pineapple pizza and underboob Ts. Sometimes, I get a bit lonely at work. Often, I feel overwhelmingly stressed! That 40% figure is a tricky one — low enough that I still need to work several jobs; high enough to make me think I’ve got a shot at this.
Either way, getting to figure it out is an enormous and thrilling privilege.3 *Thank you* for believing in me and this work. None of this happens without your support.
Ch-ch-ch-changes
Here’s a preview of what you can expect from the next three months of Links.
New and expanded paid subscriber benefits:
Weekly culture recommendations: Paid subscribers are already getting book recommendations in the paid Saturday edition, but that’s been so fun and flirty for me that I’m expanding the franchise a bit. That subscriber-only block will now officially include a weekly list of broader cultural endorsements, to include books, podcasts, TV shows, movies, newsletters, social feeds, artists, recipes and who knows what else. (You’ll still get gifts links from NYT/WaPo, etc; this doesn’t replace any other benefit.)
Stickers for everyone: I initially offered Links stickers to the first week of paid subscribers, but the economy of scale is pretty solid here. SO: Links stickers are now available to all paid subscribers, wherever you live, and you’ll see the link to request one in your confirmation email. If you’re already a paid subscriber and did not previously qualify, just email me to get on the list. And if you’re a paid subscriber who has not yet gotten her sticker — I literally wore off a nail strip addressing envelopes last night; it is on its way to you at this very moment.
The Links guide to paywalls: I understand that the experience of reading Links is greatly reduced when you hit a paywall. I have limited options for dealing with this, but I do want to make it easier. Starting next month, paid subscribers will receive a site-by-site guide to paywalls and paywall-evasion tools, which should make linked articles marginally more accessible. I know this isn’t ideal!, but neither is the predominant business model for online media.
Rabbit holes: I’m adding a fourth format to our Wednesday line-up. Now, each midweek edition will feature either an essay, a reading round-up, a Q&A or a rabbit hole — a light/fun/mildly obsessive dive into an internet community, personality or subculture. I want to introduce more opportunities for fun and discovery in the newsletter and free myself from my very conventionally journalistic preoccupation with stuff like “news pegs” and “relevance.” If it’s online and it’s interesting, we’re gonna rabbit hole it. (Though I’m seeking other titles, if you have suggestions!!)
Saturday edition: As you might have noticed already, I’ve streamlined our weekly round-up a smidge to free up more time for the midweek edition.
That’s it for today … and our first three months! WHAT A WILD WHIRLWIND. Have a great end to your week, my friends. I’ll see you this weekend.
Caitlin
One Substack employee asked me why I’d come to Toronto when their NYC event was so much closer. My friend: I would be decamping to Beehiiv right now if you lured me seven hours for pizza and water.
A second Substacker — this one fairly senior, for whatever that’s worth — told me that he’d only “been” to Buffalo once, when he had to re-enter Canada for immigration reasons. He crossed the bridge at Buffalo, made a U-Turn and came right back to Ontario again. Like — you didn’t want a chicken wing? A beer? Anything?! Did Drake’s ode to our mall mean nothing to you?
On the subject of “thrilling” — and also, more pointedly, “stress”: Have you ever tried explaining to border patrol what a “Substack happy hour” is???
Crossing the border and immediately turning back around is a rite of passage for many of us Canadians with US work visas!
That t-shirt is truly hilarious.