What Substack Is, Where It Comes From, and Why It Matters

Your First Month on Substack

When to read this:
A good article to read during your first month on Substack while you are setting up your publication and exploring the platform.

Why it matters:
It explains an important part of the bigger picture and helps you build your Substack step by step.

If you’ve heard people talk about Substack and thought, “Okay… but what actually is it?” — and now you are here.

It was the same with me. I was searching the internet for a writing-related topic. I can’t remember exactly what it was. I found an article about Substack, which led me here. I looked around, browsed a bit, and thought: Wow. I like this.

Today, I write about Substack and the technology behind it because I often see Substacks far below their potential. And that makes me sad. I see great ideas and strong texts, and it would be wonderful if more of the many creators on Substack were actually visible.

I’m starting this series at zero. I explain things for everyone new to Substack, as well as those who have been here for a while. I’m sure one thing or another might still be of interest.

➔ Understand the new Substack design

➔ Create a Substack Profile Banner (With or Without Canva)

Back to the subject.

Substack is often cited as a platform for writers and creators. However, many newcomers still ask the same basic questions: What exactly is Substack, why does it exist, and what makes it different from publishing on a personal website or blog?

This post explains the core idea behind Substack, how the platform has evolved, and why it has become an attractive option for writers, artists, and independent creators who want to focus on their work rather than on technical complexity.

The idea behind Substack is relatively simple, but it marks a clear break with how online publishing has developed.

Substack was created to allow writers to publish immediately, without building or maintaining their own website or investing in one.

While it is possible to build a reasonably affordable blog using tools like WordPress, the technical side can be overwhelming for many people. Not everyone who is creatively inclined is also comfortable with technical systems.

✅ This was one of the key ideas behind the platform: lowering the technical barrier so writers could focus on their content rather than on infrastructure.

A second important aspect is that Substack is a platform, not just a tool. Readers actively come to Substack to discover new writing. Through recommendations, shared articles, and the internal ecosystem, newsletters are easier to find than standalone websites.

✅ I firmly believe this makes it easier to reach new readers—especially at the start—than publishing on an independent site with no existing audience.
On a standalone website, writers usually have to pay much closer attention to SEO, actively post on social media, or even run paid ads to become visible at all.

➔ This is a significant advantage of Substack: Instead of chasing clicks or page views, Substack writers can focus on their content and on readers who actively choose to subscribe. The underlying idea is that writing has value, and that readers are willing to pay for work they find meaningful, helpful, or thought-provoking.

The platform provides the infrastructure, but the relationship belongs to the writer, not to the system. Writers keep control over their email list and their content.

IN SHORT:

Substack was created around one simple idea:
Make publishing direct and fair for the writer.

Instead of squeezing your voice through algorithms, ads, or platform attention games, Substack lets you send your writing straight to the people who actually want to read it — via email.

No middlemen. No gimmicks. No chasing trends.

The philosophy is straightforward:

➡️ Write something valuable →
➡️ Readers choose to subscribe →
➡️ You build a real audience you actually own.

In other words: It’s writing made simpler, and connection made clearer.

This idea resonates strongly in a world where most social platforms constantly change the rules — often without telling creators.

Substack says:
Your words. Your audience. Your choice.

Substack was founded in 2017 in the United States by Chris Best, Hamish McKenzie, and Jairaj Sethi (I will write more about the Substack team in my next post).

The founders had backgrounds in technology, media, and journalism. They were reacting to a problem they observed across the publishing world: many writers were producing high-quality work, but the economic structures of online media were making it increasingly difficult to earn a living from writing.

Advertising revenue was unstable, algorithms determined visibility, and writers had little control over how their work was distributed. Substack was built as an alternative to that system.

From the beginning, the platform focused on email newsletters with optional paid subscriptions, rather than on large, ad-driven audiences.

IN SHORT:

Substack was founded in 2017 in the United States.

The three founders are:

• Chris Best

• Hamish McKenzie

• Jairaj Sethi

They weren’t starting a tech fad. They were responding to a pattern they saw:

Writers were giving their work away for free. Platforms profited from attention, but the creators — the actual thinkers and storytellers — rarely did.

So they built something different — a place where writers could:

✔️ publish easily
✔️ build an email list
✔️ charge for subscriptions
✔️ keep ownership of their audience

That combination was new. And it hit a nerve.

In its early years, Substack attracted a relatively small group of writers, many of them journalists who were leaving traditional media organizations. Over time, the platform expanded far beyond journalism.

Today, Substack hosts newsletters on a wide range of topics, including culture, politics, technology, finance, personal writing, health, literature, and niche professional fields.

The platform has grown not only in the number of writers but also in its feature set. Over the years, Substack introduced paid subscriptions, analytics, recommendations, tagging systems, comment sections, and community-oriented tools.

Its growth has been driven less by mass marketing and more by word of mouth. Writers brought readers with them, and readers discovered new writers through recommendations and shared articles.

IN SHORT:

Substack started small — a simple newsletter platform with email delivery and a paywall option.

But almost immediately, it began to attract writers who were tired of:

✖️ chasing clicks
✖️ relying on ads
✖️ losing audience ownership

Over just a few years, it transformed into a global publishing ecosystem, with thousands of newsletters on topics like:

• politics

• technology

• culture

• personal journals

• finance

• health

• storytelling

In the early days, people came because it was easy. Then others came because it was profitable. Then even more came because it was honest.

And Substack kept improving, adding features like:

📌 paid subscriptions
📌 analytics
📌 community tools
📌 tagging and search

Today it’s one of the most popular places for independent writers who want to earn and maintain creative control.

Substack didn’t just build software.
It helped revive a basic idea that had been lost:

Writing is a craft worth paying for.

Earnings on Substack vary widely. Many writers earn small amounts, some earn a stable monthly income, and a smaller group earns substantial sums.

Writers who earn the most are often well-known journalists, analysts, or experts who already had an audience before joining Substack. When they moved their work to the platform, many readers followed and were willing to pay for direct access.

There are Substack newsletters with thousands of paying subscribers. Depending on subscription prices, this can result in annual incomes ranging from high five figures to six figures or more.

At the same time, Substack is not limited to high-profile names. Some writers earn a meaningful income with a much smaller audience by focusing on a clear topic, consistent publishing, and strong reader relationships.

IN SHORT:

Some of the top earners on Substack are journalists and writers who used to work for big media outlets. When they moved to Substack, their readers followed — paying monthly or yearly for direct access.

That includes writers in areas like:

✨ political commentary
✨ technology newsletters
✨ financial analysis
✨ cultural criticism
✨ niche weekly essays

Many of these newsletters have thousands of paying subscribers, which can translate into high five-figure or even six-figure annual incomes.

But here’s the most important point:

You don’t need to be a celebrity to earn money.

Success comes from:

🟩 consistency
🟩 clear value
🟩 an audience that wants what you write

Some writers earn a few hundred a month from a small, dedicated audience. Others treat their newsletter as their main business and make more than they ever did at a traditional job.

Substack doesn’t guarantee wealth.
But it does make earning from writing possible in a way that didn’t exist before.

💡5-MINUTE DIGITAL SHORTCUTS
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✨ Let’s make tech feel easy again.

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