From Zero to 100 Paid Subscribers on Substack
People are paying you to get your twist on things. They are paying you for being you.
“After I saw my first 100 paid subscribers, even just on Substack alone, I was just like, holy cow, you guys like me, you really like me.”
That’s what Substack writer
shared with me in my new interview on YouTube.The recent Medium algorithm shift and earnings calculation update in autumn 2023 left her vulnerable.
“A lot of opaque behavior, no transparency, people being paid pennies, and a Boost system that’s basically totally randomized.”
This is how she summed up the state of Medium four months ago.
That’s why Substack is in everybody’s mouth and many (seasoned) Medium writers also start sharing their stories on Substack — even legend Tim Denning.
Ossiana wants to earn a full-time income
Although Medium’s CEO, Tony Stubblebine, repeatedly said Medium isn’t a platform to earn a full-time income, some Medium writers want to earn a full-time income (and also have to earn it to make ends meet) such as
, who I recently interviewed, or Ossiana.“These are people who deserve full-time income because they don’t just write well. They put their souls into their writing. Their writing is so beautifully human and talks about things many people won’t or don’t.”
This is how Ossiana describes herself on Substack and Medium:
“I’m a weirdo who loves to write. Deal with it.”
Ossiana worked as a porn journalist.
“In that field, it is illegal to advertise through typical routes. You can get banned on social media in a heartbeat. So, you have to get creative”, shares Ossiana in her newsletter.
On Medium she writes about her life, life lessons, LGBTQ, feminism, dating, living in a man’s world, and many more unconventional and controversial stuff.
She’s pretty successful with 24K followers and nice earnings (which she calls her “golden handcuffs”) on Medium.
Four months ago, Ossiana joined Substack as a result of the writer's revolt, stating:
“Many writers, myself included, wrote open letters explaining why we are quitting Medium — or why, in my case, we’re trying to quit but have golden handcuffs holding us back.
I don’t think I need to tell anyone that Medium has slashed earnings and views once more. This has been awful. In fact, I still don’t know how I’ll make rent next month at this rate. I’m applying to jobs everywhere. It sucks.”
Most writers don’t know that you can also build an email list on Medium.
She left a “suicide note” telling her followers she’d leave Medium and go all in on Substack.
Whereas followers are just a vanity metric, Ossiana could take her subscribers with her, and then this happened:
See?
You don’t have a HUGE subscriber base on Substack to earn a decent amount of money that helps you make ends meet.
If you want to become a paying subscriber to get the Ossiana twist on things, you have to pay $5 per month or $47 p.a.
It’s recurring income.
That’s what sets Substack apart from Medium.
You can earn recurring income from people who want to read more from you.
They love your content.
You’re not one of the millions on a platform you’re paying a subscription for.
There’s no algorithm.
It’s all about you being YOU and producing content that your audience loves
Ossiana found a way that made writing engaging and meaningful for her.
Professional diversification in the most risk-averse manner possible.
She’s still writing on Medium but is also creating original content for her “true fans” on Substack.
Biggest takeaways from our interview:
No matter how weird or wacky, there’s a niche for everything!
You’re not crazy, others are seeing it too!
Of course, there’s more.
In today’s video, Ossiana will share how she republishes her Medium stories on Stories, what new opportunities have come her way, and what her plans are.
Engagement BONUS: I love to gamify your newsletter experience, so if you leave a comment on YouTube, you could win a special prize!
can already win.New VIDEO: Ossiana Tepfenhart - From 0 to 100 Paid Subscribers
✅ VIDEO CHAPTERS
00:00:00 Who is Ossiana Tepfenhart and what is she writing about
00:01:07 The tipping point to leave Medium and join Substack
00:03:24 How Ossiana went from zero to 100 paid subscribers
00:05:17 How Ossiana felt when she saw 100 people were willing to pay for her newsletter
00:05:40 How does the connection change when you have paid subscribers
00:06:59 How to handle exclusive content and republishing content from Medium and Substack
00:08:08 Tips for republishing writing online and getting syndicated
00:10:28 Biggest challenges and rewards of growing a Substack newsletter
00:11:17 There's a niche for everything - learnings from being a porn journalism
00:13:26 How is the engagement on Substack with subscribers and writers
00:14:01 Future plans and biggest struggles
Often I get asked:
“Kristina, how do you find all those WOW-worthy interview guests?”
If we take Ossiana for example she somehow invited herself. I mentioned her in a newsletter edition and she replied this in the comments:
So feel free to tell me who you’d like to see as an interview guest.
Maybe it’s you because you have something valuable to share about your online writing journey. Within the next weeks, I’ll share interviews with
, Sarah Fay, Ayo the writer, and an interview with Substack. Stay tuned for more.
Ossiana knows how to write interesting things. It's her superpower.
I enjoy reading these stories to orient myself in the world of Substack. To be honest, all the buttons and landing page options make my head spin. It's fascinating to look at these great accounts and see how the writers have optimized them. Writers need a steady income, so the balance between something like Medium and Substack is both obvious and necessary. Ossiana's advice about collaboration is also on point! Great stuff!