My Newsletter Journey || How I Started, Learnings, & Looking Ahead

Or as I like to call it: here's what I decided to do on a whim! (x2)

It's been a long time since I wrote an impromptu post, let alone an announcement post. I think the last time was when I went self-hosted which was a whole four years ago. It feels a bit weird to write out of my head without having notes or a proper idea of what I want this post to be but I'm happy to write impromptu.

I have no idea if this is going to be a short or a long post. Knowing myself, it'll end up being long. I'm just going to free-write and take you along with me. Grab a cup of your favourite drink while you catch up with me!

a little history

I started the newsletter and resource library on a whim.

I had newly set up this self-hosted blog and the freedom of being able to do anything on it kinda went to my head. I spent a bunch of time customizing the look of the site and tweaking tiny things over and over. Once I was done with the look of the blog, my mind was free to latch onto something else.

Back then, I followed a few bloggers who earned fairly well from their blogs. They blogged often and had a bunch of other related things that would lead to earnings. One of those things was a newsletter. They mainly used newsletters to push their products and affiliate codes but the idea of directly telling people something appealed to me.

I didn't have anything to sell so I knew that my newsletters would be different from theirs. However, I didn't subscribe to many newsletters then and theirs were the only ones I could learn from. I decided to go for it and figure it out on the way.

Many of those bloggers linked their newsletters to some of their resources. For example, a freebie that all subscribers would get on signing up. I saw a couple of bloggers have resource libraries which seemed interesting. I had never made "helpful" items (beyond guide posts on the blog) and it felt like another new thing to try.

So, on a whim, I decided to set up a newsletter and a resource library and figure out both along the way. I didn't worry about people not being interested in them because I was still starting on them. The best time to experiment and learn is when people aren't looking at it and I was ready to experiment.

It took a bit of research to figure out newsletter platforms (I was mainly looking at MailChimp, ConvertKit, and one other that I can't remember). As I was linking the resource library to the newsletter, I needed a way for them to work together too.

My vision was to have a library of helpful things (mainly for bloggers) and write about content creation. If someone subscribed to my newsletter, they'd get the password to the resource library where they can download a bunch of things to use. I'd regularly add new stuff to the library and also promote them on blog posts so that people sign up for the newsletter if they wanted any resources.

Honestly, I had (and have) no use for a big newsletter subscribers list. There was no reason for me to add resources to entice people to subscribe to the newsletter. It was a shiny feature that I liked setting up and figuring out.

For example, not all newsletter platforms would allow me to customize the newsletters fully so that it had the same branding as my blog. Only some platforms had automation sequences. The pricing of platforms varied too. I needed enough control over the subscription process to hook it up with the resource library.

The part that took me the longest was the part that I had fun with—setting it all up. It actually wasn't straightforward. In case you're curious, here's what I did:

• Set up an account on ConvertKit (now rebranded to Kit).
• Install the ConvertKit plugin on WordPress.
• Integrate a basic subscription form to my homepage (this was a bit complicated).
• Set up a newsletter page on my blog which displayed a landing page from ConvertKit. This took a while too.
• Create the main resource library page which spoke about what it contains and included another subscription form. I created this using Elementor which was also new to me so it took a good while.
• Create the actual resource library page which would list the items with the download links which was password protected. Created this using Elementor too. You can have a look at it here.
• Create a Google Drive folder to store the actual resources.
• Created a page that contained the password which would be given as a link in the subscription confirmation email.
• Set up the subscription verification and confirmation emails.
• Created another couple of ConvertKit forms to include in blog posts.

Of course, making the above and making them perfect took a while. I had broken links and subscription workflows a few times. I actually subscribed (over and over) to my newsletter via another email regularly for the first few weeks to make sure that everything works fine. Still, sometimes I'd not catch issues and people contacted me to notify me of it.

It took a few months of tweaking and testing the newsletter and then it was done! I spent a bit longer tweaking the resource library pages—especially after adding a fair number of resources. I would say that it took around a year for it to be complete.

Along with all that, I was writing blog posts regularly, sending newsletters every month, and adding at least one new resource to the library every month. It was a busy time and I had fun.

I successfully kept up with the newsletter until now i.e. almost 4 years. At one point, I tried sending newsletters twice a month but it didn't work out so I soon reverted back to once a month. I curated that space over time, learning about the audience and myself. It took a good while to figure out what content I wanted to send.

I kept up with the resource library for a couple of years. Making something "helpful" every month isn't as easy as I thought. It took time, effort, and mental energy. I tried to pair a bunch of them with blog posts too which took more effort. The last time I added something to the resource library was at the beginning of 2023. I didn't mean to stop adding stuff—I took a break and never returned.

on the way...

Sending newsletters and maintaining a resource library was fun, more than I expected. I loved writing something random every month that was borne out of how I felt then. My newsletters were almost never planned. I'd sit down one day at the end of the month, write whatever comes to mind, and schedule it for the 1st.

The resource library was a fascinating little project. I spent a fair bit of time on making everything. I looked at what I used to make my blogging/journalling better and made things out of that. Whenever I had a problem, I'd think of how to make it better and share it with others too. When I made a media kit for the blog, I created a template to help others too. I made monthly notes on the blog for myself and created a template out of that.

When I started with both of them, I honestly didn't expect anyone to look at them. I thought it was going to be something I try out that may die after I'm done setting it up. Although I knew that quite a few people liked my writing on the blog, I didn't think it would translate to newsletter subscriptions.

It doesn't hurt to try and be optimistic, though. I kept sharing about the newsletter on the blog and my socials. I added subscription forms in my most popular posts. I wrote posts and made resources on the same thing so that anyone who found the post helpful could subscribe to get the resource for free. It was a challenge to come up with ideas that could work for both.

After a while, I set up a Notion page and copied over my past newsletters so that when new people wanted to sign up, they could have a look at my newsletter content first. ConvertKit doesn't allow an easy one-stop page for showing all the newsletters and hence I had to do it manually and link the Notion page in all subscription forms.

I put a lot of effort into the newsletter and resource library and it actually worked out well. I announced the new things before finishing setting up the resource library and 36 people subscribed almost immediately. I didn't think anyone would subscribe to the newsletter without getting anything out of it, but many did! Honestly, that increased my confidence in my writing.

The newsletter got 100 subscribers within the first 3 months. It wasn't just my friends or regular blog readers, though. It included a lot of people who came across the guide posts and wanted access to the resource library. My strategy actually worked. The newsletter's audience went beyond the blog's subscribing audience.

A huge chunk of the newsletter subscriptions are through the resource library page's subscription form. I know the trend because I created different forms for different areas and ConverKit shows the number of subscribers through each form. So many people went to the resource library page and then subscribed, instead of doing it through the embedded form in the blog posts, which was interesting.

There have been 2,117 downloads from the resource library until now. I actually didn't count the total until right and I'm a bit blown away.

I wouldn't say that my resource library is something unique or contains niche things—they're simple stuff that helps do something just a bit better and that's fine. I learnt that we don't need to be extremely helpful to be helpful, it's alright to make small things that help in small ways.

In this day and age of trying to be the best at everything or make huge leaps has made us forget that it's totally normal to make a little progress at a time. I didn't even think that anyone would find my resources helpful because they weren't revolutionary. But you don't have to be revolutionary.

Maintaining the resource library has been fun but I also learnt that I don't enjoy short things. Each resource was a product of spending a long time coming up with an idea and quickly working on it to make something. I much prefer writing blog posts and newsletters where I can expand on each point. I don't enjoy making tools as much as I like teaching how to use tools.

Another thing that I didn't think about but realized later on was that although I got many subs due to the resource library, they weren't active readers. What people came for and what they got later on was different. Since my newsletter content was very different from what I was putting on the library, it made sense that most people weren't interested in both. Regular newsletter readers were the people who subscribed for the newsletter and not the library.

That's why, when the novelty of the resource library faded and resource ideas weren't coming easily, I stopped working on it. I don't miss it.

On the other hand, writing newsletters has remained fun for me. I did not expect it because the idea I had of newsletters when I started was very different from what I've grown to love.

As I mentioned earlier, I mainly subscribed to newsletters from bloggers who had things to promote. I didn't come across newsletters by bloggers who simply wrote stuff. The newsletters I subscribed to had a small bit of personal stuff in the beginning followed by blog updates and other promotions.

Hence, I tried the same format. My initial newsletters was a mixed bag of many things—a tiny essay about something on my mind, books I recommend, resource library additions, causes to donate to, and new blog posts in the past month. I was trying things out to experiment and see what I liked.

It was a bit daunting to experiment with so many people subscribing to those experiments. In 6 months, I had 200 subscribers but was still experimenting with the content. I believe that you won't know if you like something if you do it only once. So, I tried every idea multiple times. Since I was sending newsletters once a month, it took a long time try things out.

After 6-7 months/newsletters, I realized that I liked writing about my thoughts more than featuring other things. Although I'm a huge bookworm, the newsletter didn't feel like the place to add them. I had a blog that's mainly about books! The newsletter had to be something else. I wasn't fond of featuring my blog posts prominently either, it simply didn't look good.

I stopped keeping many sections in the newsletters and focused more on what was on my mind at that time. At that time, I wasn't writing monthly wrap-ups on things other than books so I wrote writing monthly updates in the newsletters. Since the newsletters weren't going to be available publically, it felt like a safe enclosed space to share random things. That got old soon, though.

Then, randomly, I wrote a few newsletters with low-key advice. I'd talk about what I went through, what I learnt, and hence what I'd recommend or suggest if you were in the same position as I was. Although they seemed nice enough, they weren't quite what I wanted to do. I know that I'm good at giving advice (purely because both my parents are great at it and I've picked something up) but I didn't want to give different suggestions every month. That wasn't the vibe I wanted in the long run.

For a few months, I wrote essays or thought pieces on some topics. I wrote about the increasing culture of measuring gain in every action, what "good quality content" means, chosen community, etc. Some of them also nudged the reader to think about the topic and maybe implement some change in their life during the upcoming month.

This went on for a good while actually. The newsletters were like a mix between sharing something about myself, my thoughts on the overarching topic, and suggesting action items. It was close to my "newsletter niche" but wasn't perfectly it. I was getting closer with every newsletter, though.

Throughout the many newsletters, I was learning about what good newsletter length was, understanding what people responded to or resonated with, when I'm most motivated to write or what I was instinctively more passionate about, and more.

I think that I finally found "my thing" in 2024. I don't think it's a proper niche but it's something specific that I've noticed in my newsletters for the past few months. Honestly, the theme has been present since my very first newsletter and it has just become refined over the years.

Since I send newsletters on the first of every month, I'm usually thinking about reflections, life, and what I'm looking forward to. Consequently, my newsletters reflect that. I write reassuring letters to myself. I was conscious about writing to other people in the beginning but it's fallen away and whenever I write a newsletter, it's like I'm writing it to myself.

I've noticed that the way I get through anything in life is by saying reassurances to myself. "We can do it!" when I'm tired on a run, "let's give it a go" when shooting my shot, "it's okay, it's not the end of the world" when something didn't work out, and "we're enough" on days when I feel like I did nothing. The newsletters have become a natural extension of my dialogue with myself.

There's so much motivation and inspiration in the world that pushes us to do more. There isn't enough reassurance that what we can do or have done is enough. I've been filling that gap for myself through newsletters and it seems like others find comfort from them too.

changes to the newsletter & resource library

This post was initially supposed to have this section alone. I meant to announce the changes to the newsletter and resource library. I thought of giving some context and ended up writing 2.5k words. Classic me? 😂

I wanted a change with the newsletter because I was kinda bored. It didn't feel new anymore. Although I liked what I was writing, I was bored with the Kit platform. I also felt bad whenever someone new subscribed to get access to the resource library because I wasn't adding anything new.

On the second Sunday of the year, I was lazing around and read Michelle's newsletter on her year with Substack. She absolutely loves the space even after a year so I thought, why not?

I quickly did a bit of research on Substack vs Kit. I searched how Substack basically works to understand it better. I realized that it has an app which allows us to write newsletters on the go (something I wanted of late). I thought about having both but that was a bit too much effort and didn't make sense. After about 15 minutes, I decided to switch to Substack.

Of course, it takes time to dismantle the system I had for almost 4 years and figure out how to replace it with Substack. Kit and Substack are very different in the way they work too. The biggest problem that I realized after I made the Substack publication (which took a while, I was so confused with the platform) was the resource library.

I could figure out a way to link the two but I didn't want to. My resource library isn't an active thing now anyway so making a decision was easy. The resource library is now accessible without any subscription or password. Opening it was simple, much simpler than switching the newsletter. I don't care about using it to get more subscriptions.

I moved some of my newsletters from last year to Substack. I'll probably slowly move the rest to Substack too (without sending notifications on them) just to have my archive in one place and let everyone look at all of my writing. I'm glad I don't have to manually copy over content to my Notion page to create an archive.

Substack's form embeds don't work on my site so I couldn't replace Kit's. I removed them all and replaced the one on my homepage with a form to subscribe to the blog posts instead. Instead of my newsletter page showing the Kit form, I added a redirect to Substack's page.

Finally, after all the blog changes, I moved subscribers from Kit to Substack and sent an announcement email notifying them about the change. The email actually didn't look great but oh well.

Since most of the subscribers aren't on Substack, there isn't much difference for them. The look of the newsletters will be different but they'll still be sent via email. For the people on Substack, they might receive push notifications instead.

looking forward

With the switch to Substack, I've been thinking of what other changes I can do to leverage what Substack has. I'm still learning how the platform works and I need to get used to writing on its editor but I can think of a few opportunities that the platform provides.

First is, of course, the social aspect of Substack. Although it's mainly for long-form content, it does have a "Notes" section which seems to be similar to Twitter. I.. don't really like Notes. I've not used social media regularly for a year and a half now and I'm unable to find comfort in reading tiny "posts" again. Every two sentences, the person and topic change. I'm trying the Notes feature but I'm pretty sure I'll end up using it to only promote the newsletters.

However, the social aspect comes with a boon too. People can find my writing without me having to promote it a lot on other platforms or using resources to entice them to sign up. I like that I can focus on my writing, share it on Notes, and leave. I don't have to do a lot.

It looks like the more someone uses Notes, the more people find them. I don't think I care about subscribers enough to get used to social media again, though. The few times I saw Notes, I mostly saw people quitting other social media for Substack and loving Substack. It's probably the algorithm trying to make me love the platform but I'm not a fan. I'd rather focus on writing and reading newsletters.

One of the reasons I chose Substack over Medium (I thought about the latter for a whole 3 seconds) was because Substack seems to have lesser "premium" content. Most articles on Medium are paywalled while it's less prevalent on Substack. I want to read what others have to say without stumbling into paywalls most of the time.

I'm not considering asking for paid subscriptions either. I tried the monetising route on the blog and realized that I just don't care. I want to enjoy writing and reading, not think about money. I earn well enough from my day job.

I might try writing newsletters more often. Writing on Kit required me to be on my laptop. I don't like writing properly on the Apple Notes app or Notion, I like writing on the site where it'll be published. But Substack has an app where I can write and publish posts. The features on the app are still not as sophisticated as what's on the browser editor but it's a start.

There are so many times when I have an idea and want to properly write it but I don't have the time to sit down to write. By the time I can focus on writing, my inspiration fades or I'm focusing on something else. Many of my ideas are neglected notes on my phone because of that.

I want to write those ideas. My first Substack newsletter was written in snippets while I got ready for work on a Monday morning! I may not send them as emails or notifications if I'm writing often (I don't want to bombard anyone's inbox) but I'll post them on the app.

At this point, I'm in a good place where I care more about writing than about what others will like (this post is literally a random free write of thousands of words lol) so I don't mind posting stuff that no one gets notified of. Maybe new people will find it through the algorithm or people will read when I link back to it later. It's fine.

A community aspect that I'm looking forward to is comments. When I sent newsletters through Kit, the only way for anyone to reply was to reply to the email. I like the idea but I think a lot of people don't reply to emails. While many people read my newsletters, very few responded.

Last month, a friend said that she responded but I never got it and eventually found the response in the junk folder. Who knows how many other replies I missed?

While I write for myself, I love receiving replies to my words and hearing what y'all think. I'm looking forward to getting comments/replies on my newsletters. The commenting option should make it easier.

The resource library will remain open but probably not be updated often.. or at all. I'm not passionate about it right now. I may add stuff in the future but I won't guarantee it. Meanwhile, everyone can use whatever's on there without any doors to get through.

I'm excited to write more random newsletters! I hope y'all like them too 🙂

chat with me!

Do you write newsletters? Do you subscribe to them? Have you used Substack? What's your favourite form of content—blog posts, YouTube videos, quick posts, or something else? Chat with me in the comments!