Why I’m Switching to Substack

There are some big changes afoot at A Waldorf Journey and I’m SO excited to share them with you. Here’s the long and the short of it.

I’m switching to Substack.

I’ll go into all of the reasons why in a minute, but here’s the quick and dirty of what it means for you. (Or enter your email above to get all the details.)

What’s happening at Substack?

• Inspirational, practical weekly posts
• Premium content (downloads, coupon codes, etc.)
• Community participation
• Delivered right to your inbox

All for a $10/month subscription fee.

(Or join the free version for a monthly post. But keep reading to understand why you should passionately pay to support your favorite creators.)

Why the change? A few reasons.

A Community of Support

Back in 2010, A Waldorf Journey started as my sweet little corner of the internet where I could write about my teaching, reflect on those experiences and grow from them. I’m a writer at heart and composing those posts was cathartic as it helped me process what I learned in those early days.

But A Waldorf Journey has GROWN. And I’m not complaining. This growth has been oh-so-lovely. I’ve learned so much from this community and I’m filled with gratitude for the courageous, striving teachers, homeschoolers and parents I have met through this blog.

But it’s grown so much that I’ve become cautious about what I post. I don’t share (as much) about my challenges, failures, struggles and questions. I’m even more cautious about sharing the strivings of my students.

And though I hardly ever encounter unfriendly followers, these days I want to surround myself with a community of active supporters. I want the people who consume my work to be just as invested in the growth and development of this community and its members as I am.

I love the idea that by making that little $10/month contribution subscribers are saying, “I’m in. Let’s help each other grow.”

But there are some other aspects of this new platform that appeal to my writer-heart.

Focus on Content, Not Tech or Design

Back in those early days WordPress was NOT an easy platform. But I LOVED the challenge of figuring it out, and I loved expanding my skillset and working on creating beautiful web design. (I was so inspired by this work I actually went back to school in 2015 and got a degree in web design!)

A few things have changed since then.

• WordPress has become easier to use, but also a lot more complex. You should see the back-end of my website! It’s still fairly easy to write a blog post, but there are a lot of moving parts that keep everything looking pretty. Substack, on the other hand, is beautifully simple. Choices are limited, but sometimes limitation inspires the most creativity.
• I’m less interested in spending time to figure everything out. I’m still wooed by lovely design, but these days I just want to focus on the content. I keep coming back to the words I write and the messages they convey. I’m convinced that they’re what really count. Substack isn’t fancy, but it’s a place where words matter. It makes me WANT to sit down and write.
• I’m tired of thinking about internet-y things like SEO, page views, Facebook ads and beating algorithms. These are the tricks of the trade for making a living on the internet, but I’m completely disenchanted with it all. I want to connect with the people behind the metrics, not the metrics themselves.
• I want to write without thinking AT ALL about sales. Though I have the good fortune to write about something I love, the traditional online business game has me constantly figuring out how to weave sales messages and monetization into that content. Substack turns all that on its ear by allowing me to charge for the content itself. No more creepy sales messages finding their way in.

What it all boils down to is that I want to write about what I believe in. And I know there are lots of people out there, like me, who believe in it too. And I’m willing to bet they’re willing to put their money where their heart is.

Compensating Creators

The last reason for this switch is because I want to stand more fully in support of the creative world. There is so much out there — art, films, poetry, essays, photographs, memoirs, music — that make our world a richer place. Much of this content just doesn’t get picked up by publishers and producers. Substack disrupts this traditional model and allows creators to publish (and get paid for) content themselves. Being seen by the world is no longer decided by the powers that be.

If there’s one thing the past year has taught us, it’s that we need to notice and appreciate the gifts that touch our lives. And not just stop, notice and move on, but stand up for, sponsor and celebrate what matters to us. When people are free to write what they believe in and create from the heart, the world becomes a more beautiful place.

I hope you’ll join me in standing up for the creation of something you love and more actively supporting the growth of the other humans who love it too.

🧡Meredith