TWO YEARS OF SUBSTACK

Two years ago this week I started Writing Unchained on Substack. This is how I saw it at the time…

WHY SUBSTACK?

…Whether the proclamations of Substack’s directors to build “a new economic engine for culture” or predict “what comes after social media as we know it” turn out to be true, or even partly true, it would seem to offer another way to connect readers and writers. I’m game to try it. So tomorrow I’ll post the first two chapters of a new novel, then in weekly installments thereafter, along with intermittent commentaries on the writing life, Mexico, travel, and perhaps more. I hope you’ll join me.

Two years on, I’ve pretty much done that and more. Two novels, some chapters of a third. Portraits of artist and writer friends. Election reports from Mexico. An audio excerpt. A video clip. A musical playlist and a few photo montages. Travels in Mexico and elsewhere in the world. Posts from the community where I live.

Among the most viewed pieces this past year were:

Artists/Writers: Morrison

(https://writingunchained.substack.com/p/artistswriters-morrison)

Where I Live

(https://writingunchained.substack.com/p/where-i-live-8c7)

Land of a Thousand Benches 1 & 2

(https://writingunchained.substack.com/p/land-of-a-thousand-benches) and (https://writingunchained.substack.com/p/land-of-a-thousand-benches-2)

Monk

(https://writingunchained.substack.com/p/monk)

Artists/Writers: Victor

(https://writingunchained.substack.com/p/artistswriters-victor)

Meanwhile Substack’s platform has broadened its palate, adding so many multimedia bells and whistles beyond mere text that they no longer address us as “Dear Writer” but “Dear Creator.” The term “Substack” has wormed its way further into the wider public conversation, and the site hosts more prestigious and well-known writers than ever, alongside raw beginners. Companies and institutions have set up Substack pages. (A bad sign?)

“A new economic engine for culture”? “What comes after social media as we know it”? Not so sure.

Where it is headed I have no idea. But I’m up for continuing.

So, with a heartfelt thanks to subscribers new and old, Onward!