This post is a bit all over the place and probably better suited to Substack but hope you enjoy this mixed bag!
My Substack Prediction
Have you heard of Substack? I think it’s going to explode next year. Founded in 2017, Substack is a platform that enables anyone to create a digital newsletter and build an audience of readers. You can think of it as a blogging platform, as creators can build out their Substack to essentially be a standalone website. New posts are delivered via email, but you can find the archive on the Substack platform. There’s also a social feed on the homepage, that functions more like a Facebook feed, where creators can post daily updates that don’t count as an official Substack article/post.
Readers can subscribe to Substacks for free, or pay monthly/annually for a subscription to get extra posts/premium content (if the author has enabled paid subscriptions, some of the smaller ones are all free!). All Substacks are immediately eligible for monetization from the day they’re created (payments are handled via Stripe), unlike blogging, where you have to have a certain amount of site traffic for premium ad networks to accept you like Mediavine, or Instagram/TikTok where you have to have a certain amount of followers to join the creator network.
Independent journalists like Bari Weiss, Matt Taibbi, Andy Borowitz have started their own newsletters on Substack covering the latest news with their own standards of integrity in reporting. Adam Grant is publishing his newsletter, Granted, on psychology and work. Chefs like Alison Roman are sharing recipes on Substack. Former NBA champion Kareem Abdul-Jabbar is sending his sports and culture newsletter to 155,000 Substack subscribers. Tegan and Sara are writing about their music. If you have an interest in something, there’s a Substack for that.
I personally subscribe (for free) to a few LA-based writers on Substack, and I don’t even follow all of these people on Instagram. I like Sarah Paocicco’s Ticket to Sarahdise. She’s a friend of a friend and probably doesn’t know I exist, but I love to read about her foodie experiences in LA and beyond. I honestly don’t even know who writes Bite Sized, but I also read this one to keep up with the LA restaurant scene and general food brand news. Ella Henry’s Gut Feelings is all things health and wellness. She just moved from LA to NY, so I’m sure the content will get slightly less relevant for me, but oh well, I’m already hooked. LA lifestyle blogger Emily Shuman started Cupcakes and Cashmere during the blogging heyday and now writes more on her Substack called Fwd: from a friend.
I’m shocked more brands aren’t on Substack yet, but I think that will change in 2025 (sigh). I think you’ll see a lot more influencers join as well. Substack newsletters are the new podcasts, everyone will have them. The algorithm responsible for the content on your customized Substack homepage hasn’t been optimized to drive a profit for a parent company the way Instagram and TikTok have evolved. And it’s mostly just written content for now, so the more high quality, engaging content that you provide, the more money you can make. You can’t just make a meme or make a 6 second video using a trending sound. The ROI of podcast advertising is still hard to measure, so Substack provides a clearer revenue stream and honestly, writing is just easier than producing a podcast.
Will Lively by Laura be joining Substack?
I know you’re just dying to know and believe me, the urge is strong, my friends. I did set up an account and took the Lively By Laura domain name just to have it, but I am torn. I do love the informal nature of Substack and how it’s more focused on the writing instead of the photos. I also think the ease of monetization and audience discoverability is very intriguing.
However, we all know what happened to Twitter. What if Substack is purchased or gets shuts down? What if it gets censored? I know my content wouldn’t lol, but still if you don’t own the platform, then you don’t really own your content, do you? In my case, if GoDaddy shuts down, then I just purchase my domain name through another domain provider. If WordPress shuts down, I’ll migrate to Squarespace or Wix. If Substack goes down, how am I going to get all my content out and onto another platform? I can’t.
Most people know me as a photographer, but I think of myself as a writer first. I won a state writing competition when I was in sixth grade and there’s been no looking back. Reading different Substacks has inspired me to write more casual posts on this blog. Some people are publishing their thoughts on Substack daily! All of my trip recaps take hours to put together and I just want to write about random things, so that’s why I created this “mixed bag” post, and I intend to write more!
So I think for now, I will maybe crosspost some of my posts from here to Substack, just to see if I can gain any traction. If you want me to post on Substack, please let me know!
My Grocery Staples
I don’t really cook much, but I always make sure to have these 10 things in my kitchen and fridge, so I can make a quick meal. The recipe combinations are endless!
- Quinoa: high in protein and you can eat it with any veggies or meat.
- Yogurt: I eat yogurt bowls all the time, for any meal of the day.
- Frozen berries: These are great for my yogurt bowls or for making a smoothie.
- Eggs: I eat these for any meal of the day, they’re so versatile.
- Frozen peas: Sometimes I feel like I need some green on my plate, and these will do the trick with eggs or a ramen package.
- Shredded cheese: I love cheese and always have it for nachos or eggs or whatever else my heart desires.
- Canned chickpeas: I go through a Costco pack of chickpeas pretty quickly. I have them in all my salads, I make hummus, or I air fry them as a snack.
- Oats: These are great for smoothies, making oatmeal, or making protein pancakes
- Protein bar/granola bar: Like they say, you’re not you when you’re hungry. If I’m out of the house for a while and don’t want to spend money on food, I’ll always bring a bar with me. It’s also easy to eat during my morning walks for breakfast.
- Bread: I am cooking for a family of one, so I’ll put bagels, English muffins, or a loaf of bread from the farmer’s market into the freezer. It’s so convenient to pop something into my toaster oven and make a pb&j or have it with eggs.
My Movie Challenge
I like watching TV, but it’s not my main pastime. When my roommate isn’t home, I can go days without turning on the TV. I even have a TV in my bedroom (not ideal, but had nowhere else to put it), and I mainly use it to watch YouTube workout videos. I cancelled my AMC Stubs A-List membership this summer, but I do miss putting my phone on Do Not Disturb for three hours and completely being immersed in a movie.
A couple of weeks ago, I had a good 3-hour catch-up call with my friend, Maddy, who is an entertainment aficionado. She made me a list of like 60 movies to watch that she thinks I’ll like (not scary, no blood, nothing too old). We’re keeping track in a shared note. I’ve only watched Notting Hill so far, and it might take me a couple of years, but I’m excited to get through this list!
