Addictive stories and embarrassing tell-alls from the front lines of online business. Written by reformed girlboss who learned a better way. Read by 10K+ consenting adults.
My Substack hit 17k subs. Here’s what I learned (guest essay)
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The messy truth about growth, doubt, and doing the work Alex Dobrenko here. I write Both Are True, a comedy newsletter that I’ve grown to 17k subscribers in three years. I’ve achieved so much and yet, somehow, still, doubt that I’ve done anything at all. Both, it turns out, are true. My newsletter is simultaneously the greatest thing I’ve ever done and the thing most directly responsible for my depression, anxiety, and baseline state of unwellness. And I’d love to tell you about it! All of it. The good stuff, of course, but also and mostly, the bad stuff. Not because I prefer that (though I do), but because that - my being able to honestly share the irrational madness of my idiot brain - that’s my special sauce. So if you want to learn how to have a super successful newsletter AND still fall apart every time you publish something, this one’s for you. Here then is the good, the bad, and the ugly that’s actually beautiful. The good stuff I started Both Are True (BAT) in 2022 and quickly settled into writing David Sedaris-style stories about my life that blend absurd comedy with vulnerable truth. “Stand-up comedy on the page” is what I called it, and somehow…it worked. People dug it and then some more dug it too and then 17,000 human beings agreed to receive my emails. Of those, 300 even pay me real-life actual money, resulting in about $15,000 in yearly revenue. That’s insane! I’ve never made money on my art let alone low five figures worth.
Yea but it could be better Did y’all see that? It was Crit. That’s what I call my critical voice. He’s a jerk but is basically family so I can’t really do anything about him.
Crit makes me obsess over the numbers, tactics, growth, etc. All of which help, don’t get me wrong, but I really do confidently believe that the number one thing that’s driven my success is simply creating good work. Work that connects with people. And yet, still I scheme, rubbing my grubby little paws together and thinking, with 100% confidence, “I bet THIS will get em” because of course I do. We all do. We’re scared and this game’s far more an art than a science, more casino than chemistry lab, more insane than sane. Which is also why we love it, maybe? But I’m getting off topic - here’s some more good stuff. More good stuff About a year into the ‘journey’ I finally decided to offer my services to help other people with their writing. That led to my working with a bunch of amazing writers and businesses including Tarzan - we worked on her list-renegagement sequence and I, quoting her here, “improved it a shitload.” My writing also led to not one but two full time jobs, first as the editor of a Morning Brew-style daily news briefing newsletter called The DONUT and then as head of creative at Sublime, a knowledge tool for creatives. In both cases, the founder of the company came to me saying “hey, I love your vibe, your voice, the way you create community. come do that for us?” That’s genuinely insane. I haven’t even mentioned the best part: I've created an amazing community of friends and collaborators. We've come up together on Substack and become genuine and, in many cases, IRL, friends. And that includes Tarzan who I'll be meeting next week at Audience Camp. Yet still, I complain. Wait so what's the bad stuff? There isn’t any! And also of course, that’s all there is. Things for the last year have felt stagnant. Growth has plateaued. I’ve started saying stuff like “growth has plateaued.” I know, I know, these are champagne problems, but still, they’re real problems that make me feel terrible. And this is my point! I feel bad because I believe, as we all do, that if only things changed, if only they were better, then I'd feel good. False. A few months ago, I launched a whole new “offering” for paid subscribers called the BATCAVE, a cowriting group for unpretentious creatives who frankly need the deadline. It’s been amazing and has finally “turned things around”, as in my revenue is up instead of down, but still, I complain. The ugly that’s actually beautiful The bad news is that feelings of inadequacy don't really go away, no matter how 'big' you get. The good news is: there's no magic place I (or you) will one day arrive when any of this will go away. The bad and the good and everything else are always here, always now, no matter the details. I find this strangely encouraging! It means that things are okay, they will be okay, and so will I. And so will you because you already are. Omg am I about to self-help talk my way out of this darkness? Not fully, no, but I am on the way. We all are. I am grateful for the crazy success I've had. I'm most grateful to people for reading my work, for engaging with it, for sharing it, for supporting it with their money. I’m grateful to Tarzan and you all for reading this. As I often tell people, Both Are True is the first creative project in my life that's really...worked. I've made lots of stuff and people have liked it, but it's usually mostly my friends and family and a few others. BAT exploded. That's new. That's epic. But it isn't a given. Nothing is. So I trudge on and enjoy the ride. Literally, I find that helps a lot: focusing on the experience of the thing itself, not the reaction to it. I’ve had a blast writing this piece for you. That matters. It might be the only thing that does. Before I go though, let’s talk Substack: “Do I need to be on Substack” People ask me this a lot. My answer is...maybe? If you want to give it a try, go for it, If not, don't. What matters more, I think, is writing consistently. For years. Getting better at your craft. Communicating the truth of what you want to say, not what you think other people want to hear, what you think will bring in sales, but what demands release from the wiggles of your soulwomb. Here's what I'll also say about Substack - it's changed. A lot. And I think there's a whole lot more change afoot. Here’s what I also believe - I want to be around longer than Substack. Focusing too much on what platform to be on is like obsessing over what running shoes to buy when what matters, really, is…running. That’s the main thing. And as my close personal friend Lebron James once said, we must “keep the main thing the main thing.” I hope this was helpful. If you want to read more of my stuff, you can subscribe for free here. PS - Tarzan made me add one thing that blows about Substack: you can’t do automations. The fact that I didn’t even realize this was a bad thing is case and point that I am an idiot who should not be trusted for most things besides, maybe, being honest in my writing lol. Wanna hang and cowrite and ask me questions etc?? The big new thing I just launched for BAT is live cowriting sessions called BATWRITE which are 2hr structured writing sessions for unpretentious creatives who frankly need the deadline. I’m hosting one specifically for Tarzan’s amazing community on Wednesday, August 27 from 4-6p EST and I’d love to have you all there. RSVP for free here.
See you there? Alex
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Emails, but better.
Addictive stories and embarrassing tell-alls from the front lines of online business. Written by reformed girlboss who learned a better way. Read by 10K+ consenting adults.