A peculiar aspect of the dawning of the digital age is that it has, in some respects, returned literary life to the 18th century. A hullabaloo of pamphleteers, the effective abolition of copyright – and a return to patronage networks and serial publication. In this context, then, the way in which literary writers are now turning to Substack – a platform that allows authors to send emails to a list of subscribers, and allows those subscribers to interact in comment forums – seems entirely natural.
Literary Substacks don’t follow a single pattern. For some, it’s a way of getting new work into the world, whether publishing a novel in serial form or hot-off-the-keyboard short stories; for others, it’s a way of interacting directly with readers (while building a handy marketing list); for still others, it’s a home for criticism, journalism, personal blowing off of steam, self-promotion, or a more direct version of the traditional writerly side hustle, teaching creative writing to aspiring authors.
