What Are Patreon and Substack?
My newfound experience with two writing platforms
MEDIUM
It’s been about a year since I joined Medium and started to write. Happy anniversary to me!
What is it about this thing that writers do that is so appealing and even addicting? Could it be the therapeutic aspect of the craft? Or could it be the bonding that happens between people of like mind, virtually.
If I had the time, I might research the psychological ‘whys’ of the magic of writing. But I don’t have the time nor the want. So instead, I’ll just accept that there’s a fascination to writing that is unexplainable, at least to me.
Medium is not the only platform that has this appeal. There are a multitude of others with different philosophies that are especially for writers. I’ve found just a few so far in my year long journey, landing on two that have potential for growth.
Allow me to share these two platforms and hopefully you’ll discover for yourself the joy of a new reader experience.
SUBSTACK
This is a newsletter/email/subscription-based platform. The way it works is this:
- Sign up for an account with Substack.
- Create your own newsletter or newsletters. I created one newsletter and called it “Imagine That.” I share my current scifi and fantasy stories along with other fiction stories that are imaginative and sometimes very personal.
- Set up your newsletter to send to free and paid subscribers. There are options to ‘Comp’ a reader for life or a certain time period. Substack sets a minimum charge for your readers at $5 per month or $30 per year. There are other ways to get around this. Next…
- Set up specials occasionally. I’m running a special for ‘Imagine That’ through the end of the year offering 50% off for one year of reading. There are other options available, and you can set up a special in any way that you want.
- There are so many other features of this platform to explore. I hope that you will discover for yourself the potential of writing on Substack!
Substack newsletters that I follow and recommend include: Coffee Times — a publication and platform to house Winston’s thoughts and writings about life, self-development and his other inspirations. The CTS Newsletter — Graham D. Cooke provides writing tips and advice with relevant content from an experienced technical writer and editor. The Reader Experience — Zane Dickens the Instigator wants to empower you to write more fan-centric fiction and build a business. Neurodivergent Life — Micheal Woodruff writes a newsletter about Living with Neurodivergent attributes in a Neurotypical World. He also uses the Substack Podcast feature to bring his articles to life.
PATREON
This can be a really fun platform to show off your writing. Especially your web novel. Here’s what to do:
- Set up your account with Patreon.
- Set up Tiers. These are the backbone of your Patrons. I’ve offered three tiers at different subscriptions levels per month. My Chroniclers tier is $2 per month, Seekers is $3 per month, and Creators is $4 per month. I started on this web novel idea several months ago and Patreon is becoming the perfect place to show off! Here is the description of my web novel ‘The Realm of Quarkopolis.’
Welcome to the imaginary world of Quarkopolis where minuscule invisible beings of light and energy exist and thrive. The number of Quarkles is beyond counting and the deeds that they perform for mankind incomparable. Join me in this combination of fantasy and science fiction in the never-ending Realm of Quarkopolis! Source: Kathy K’s Patreon.
Intrigued? Start exploring, creating, and gathering Patrons!
On Patreon, you are not only a Creator, but you can also be a Patron. Essentially you have two profiles that you can switch between. I have decided to follow and support several Creators and would like to show them off too.
Bradan Writes Stories writes Luci’s New Hell — A serial urban fiction and AI generated art
Jay C Wells writes Stormborn — The Legend of Ylva
Zane Dickens the Instigator writes serial fiction and exclusive shorts in the Escape Town world.
JF Danskin writes Fantasy and LitRPG stories
FINAL THOUGHTS
There is so much more to both Substack and Patreon that I haven’t highlighted. They are both worthy of exploring and definitely have potential for growth for writers. I hope you found this article useful and productive. Happy reading and writing!
Thank you for reading about my experience with Substack and Patreon. I hope to see you there!