One year with Substack

Happy Substackeversary to me!

I’d been reading newsletters on Substack long before I ever thought of writing one myself. In my head, Substack was this shiny temple of knowledge, where people came to learn about AI, geopolitics, tech advancements and other words I can barely spell. And then there’s me with my non-productive, gluten-free thoughts. I mean, who’s got time to read that in an age where even relaxation has to be monetized?

Forget adults, even kids don’t get real summer vacations anymore. They’re out there learning horse riding, swimming, abacus (yep, that’s still a thing), and three foreign languages while also building their personal brands on Instagram. Meanwhile, adults are just wondering where the childhood has gone while filling out more admission forms for more summer camps. Irony just punched us in the face and left the group chat.

So yeah, I had major doubts about starting here.

Then one fine day, my friend Salil Bajaj shared a post saying, “Now that Nithin Kamath is on Substack, the world is finally seeing the power of newsletters!” He basically meant — get on the bandwagon or forever hold your irrelevant thoughts. Somewhere deep inside, I felt oddly comforted. I mean, I’d missed the bus on dancing to trending audio on reels (not that I can, but a wishful regret is still valid), but if newsletters were the new cool, maybe the universe was healing.

I immediately called him for a crash course. He explained everything like a true friend slash unpaid tech support. I got a full-blown KT (Knowledge Transfer) without switching jobs or pretending to like MS Excel.

It’s not like I was new to writing. I’ve said this before and I’ll say it again until someone claps — I’ve been writing on WordPress for over 10 years and shifting to Substack felt like moving to a cooler neighborhood.

Today, it has been slightly more than a year since I started writing on Substack and I want to take this opportunity to thank each one of you who has trusted me enough to subscribe to my newsletter and finds time to read it. Your support means the world. So now, by the power vested in me by free world and democratized internet, allow me to tell you everything that I’ve learned and earned in the last one year on this platform.

Growth here reflects life in many ways

At first, I thought no one will read my articles and I’ll have to abandon this place as well. And I was wrong. Thankfully. More than 500 signed up to read my articles. Holy crap! That’s wild.

Though this number looks amazing in long horizon but the growth hasn’t been linear. There are days when I don’t get any subscriber. Heck I even end up losing a few. And then there are days where I gain way more than I think. No two days are the same.

Just look at the graph below.

There are constant phases of doubt, frustration, happiness, and contentment. It’s a lot like personal growth. Day-to-day progress feels invisible, but when you zoom out, you realize how far you’ve come. Like growing up and navigating through breakups, tough days, puberty, jobs, taxes while discovering new Amul ice cream flavors along the way. The latest one, Shahi Mewa Khazana, is good — do try it!

To manage it all, you can just show up at your own pace. There’s no shortcut. You just have to be consistent, like that annoying Spotify ad which comes up in the middle of the song to remind you to move to a premium version.

I started with publishing every week and did that for around 6 months and then shifted to a fortnightly schedule. No complaints. I’m just happy that I’ve published over 40 articles.

Substack community is real

WordPress lacks a community. It often felt like talking to a wall, which I can already do at home (and yes, I have). I wanted to share my articles with the outside world, gain recognition and validation, read what the world has to say and be a part of community who loves to read and write. And that’s what Substack really excels at.

People here actually read. People connect. People care. And as someone who has full-blown debates with my ceiling fan, I cannot explain how refreshing that is.

I made lots of friends (at least acquaintances)!

Being a part of this community means you end up making friends both online and offline. (I hope they say the same about me as well. Fingers crossed)

I was lucky enough to start the Delhi-NCR chapter of Substack meetup when Utkarsha Srivastava and I took inspiration from the cool folks from Bangalore chapter.

I got to meet so many of the writers I absolutely love and I hope this continues to be a great experience for me and others who come for the meet. And not just this, Abhishek Singh (not me) started an online meetup where there is no geographical limitation and we meet once a month to discuss literally anything. You’ll be surprised how often your crazy matches someone else’s crazy even if they are 1000 kms apart. I always have their support and I feel motivated enough to write more. Truly blessed!

There are so many brilliant writers. So many!

Where do I even start? I’ve had the pleasure to read the articles of the following writers and I am thankful to

1. Rohan Banerjee for those witty articles. He is great at what he does.

2. Utsav Mamoria for reminding me that you can create a truly immersive experience through art, words and music put together in an intricate way. All his articles are unique and provide an unparalleled experience. Sheer brilliance!

3. Kanchan Balani, Mohika Mudgal, Jigyasa and Anjali Krishnakumar for writing stories that are full of warmth. Every time they write, I know that I’ll read the article with a smile on my face

4. Sarthak Dev for writing those super thrilling sports articles. You need to witness his prowess with words. He will make sure that you visualize the action, tension and grit of the game while you’re seated in your room

5. Aditi Taswala and Moloya for making me fall in love with history even more. If you love history, go and read their newsletters. They’re making history so interesting!

6. Shambhavi ♥‿♥ for being that honest voice with a dash of sarcasm that we all need to listen to from time to time

7. Shreya Goel for those relatable and fun articles

8. Priyanshi Jha for her amazing notes where she retells Hindi proverbs and sayings with modern interpretations

9. Hargun Kaur Sachdev for the honest essays she writes. Always amazed at her ability to weave articles around personal stories which are difficult to share

10. Isha, Nivetha, Namrata Gohain for helping me travel the world and enjoy different experiences without leaving my home

11. Abhishek Singh (not me), for the series on the importance of women in his life

12. Salil Bajaj for his business learnings!

13. aarjoo kharb, Amisha Verma for their poems

14. Shubham Khurana for the smart and witty comic on corporate culture!

15. Tapan Desai for simplifying those dangerous looking concepts. No idea how he makes them easy to understand and consume

And this is just the tip of the iceberg. There is so much more to explore in here! Writers like them make Substack such a great place to spend time and read.

My love for writing has grown

Put it all together — the growth, the friendships, all those brilliant writing and you realize that writing is more joyful and fulfilling than ever. My love for writing now has wings, without the Red Bull.

I never imagined I would write so consistently for this long. And yet, here I am.

Source

So what’s next?

More writing, of course. More chaos. More moments where I hit publish and immediately regret the typo or the quality of what I write only to have someone reply, ‘Wow, this really spoke to me,’ and suddenly I’m crying in the dairy aisle at the supermarket. (True story. Cheese is emotional.)

This past year on Substack has reminded me that consistency beats perfection, that sharing matters, and that the internet isn’t just cat videos and conspiracy theories. It can also be a warm, weird corner of creativity and connection. And honestly, that’s enough to keep me going.

Will I write with perfect grammar and deep insights?

No.

Sometimes, I’ll just write about avocados, socks or why I think pigeons have secret careers. But I’ll keep showing up, even when I feel like a potato with Wi-Fi.

Thank you again for reading, subscribing, restacking, commenting, lurking, or even accidentally clicking the link thinking it was a recipe blog. You made my year 1000% better.

And now, dear reader, before I let you go scroll Instagram for the 47th time today, I have one final, soul-stirring question:

Choose wisely. Your answer says a lot about your emotional stability.

Let me know. I won’t judge (out loud).

---

👌🏻If this piece was able to bring a smile to your face, nothing says I really loved your writing than liking, sharing, commenting and subscribing to my Substack.😄

---