I joined Lizzy’s online summer party and you have 24 hours to download 7 of my Substack classes for free - go here - click through to my listing and you’ll get them allllll. There are also some brilliant other classes and gifts on offer from other biz owners.

Hey Sparklers!

I hope you had a fantastic summer and life feels sweet?

We are just back from our family hols in Cyprus - the sunsets were magnificent - some of the best in decades.

I’m slowly turning the corner back into my heart work and I thought I’d drop in and remind you what’s on here at Sparkle on Substack next month. (September).

I’ve been mainly offline in August writing my book - announcement coming SOOOOOON.

I’m obsessed with this song and journalling out plans for September.

What’s on for creatives who LOVE to write here at Sparkle ON Substack…

1. Live Membership Calls

I’m excited to get back into hosting membership calls and we have 3 brilliant classes coming up this September… come as you are - cameras on or off/ participation optional or catch the replay and join in the chat.

Subscribe now

FREE CLASS for all - 17th September - 12noon (UK time) - Let’s plan your q4 on Substack - on Substack live - register here - https://open.substack.com/live-stream/321497 (replay only for members).

Have your say…

What Substack education classes would you like me to add in over the next 6 months…

Class Agenda

7th Sept - Joyful Growth, Visibility on Substack & Beyond + Notes Masterclass

• The gift of committing to your Substack vision long term.

• The concept of joyful, sustainable growth and how to work with it long term.

• Online Visibility as a feeling and an art.

• My audience growth this summer (3 summits and over 1400 new IG followers) (*)

• Notes mini class for newbies (**)

💎 Diamond Members - we have our regular hot seat mentoring so feel free to register to chat about your Substack goals for q4 or anything you’re stuck with.

2. 💬 Members Chat

Always open for your questions. I’m there the first Monday of every month to answer any questions you have. I have a couple of open tickets with Substack support so I’ll hopefully be able to update you on those.

3. 💬 Substack Notes Engagement Thread

Every month I give feedback on your Substack Notes (Substack’s inbuilt social media) and how to increase engagement - it starts the last Wednesday of the month and runs for two days.

Sparkle ON is YOUR community and I’m always open to suggestions for classes you’d like or ways to support your Substack experience.

4. The archive and your a-z

• The a-z of class replays is updated, there are NEW member perks - some expire at the end of the month - dive in, find what you need and don’t be a stranger - I’m a person here at the other side of the laptop and I LOVE hearing from you.

Hope to see you at class or inside the members chat.

I can’t wait to catch up!

Claire

✨

P.S - Shelf Help Queen and I are hosting a digital retreat focussed on creative living, using our hands to make work and opening our hearts to a new season of living on and offline - 18 Sept - register here, it’s free -

Turn the Page Retreat

Join us 18 - 20th September 2026 for our pop up Substack based retreat to help you relax, read, craft and unwind from life online so you can feel more in harmony with both on and offline choices.✨

By Claire Venus ✨

Subscribe now

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Ever wish you could just get inside of someone’s brain and understand exactly how they are running their online business and why? You’re in luck - I’m speaking at The Closed Door Panel event this Friday 14 August at 5pm UK time where you hear successful online creators say what’s real and working… no gatekeeping, all the tea! 🫖

I’m so excited to be on a panel with other global online business owners talking about what is working in the online space this Friday 14 August - I’ll share MORE about why I run low and mid ticket subscriptions here on Substack and SO much more - it’s free as part of ’s Closed Door Talks Series - there are 5 panels running this week - see you there? Sign up here. 1

Hi folks,

☀️ How’s your summer going? I’ve not done a Substack reading ‘round-up’ in a while so I thought it would be nice to link to some of my member’s work and share some things I’ve enjoyed reading recently here on this wonderful platform…

I also have to shout out to my two beautiful ‘Creative Growth Lab’ guests who shared their experiences of building using Notes recently. Thank you. 🙏 and !

If you have a story to tell about joyful growth (doesn’t have to be large numbers) and want to write for my Creative Growth Lab send your 100 word pitch to support@creativelyconscious.co.uk

💬 Chip in and post your favourite Substack reads in the comments and help people find GREAT things to read here on Substack?

Add your own posts or any others you’ve enjoyed reading this summer in the comments? You’re so so welcome. ❤️ 📖

Feel Good Substack Reads…

I loved this piece from -

Mark Diacono's Abundance

Perfect moments, honeysuckle scent, Tony Soprano, and the best elderflower cordial

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3 months ago · 124 likes · 71 comments · Mark Diacono

We had our first crumble of the season last night - we have apple and plum tree in the garden. I planted elderflower trees as saplings here at home and they are taller than our fence now - I have mixed results with making elderflower cordial but I love the berries so will wait for those and make an elderberry syrup.

Here shares her camomile tea ritual from her Mountain Hideaway which I loved.

Mountain Hideaway

Chamomile Tea Ritual:

Hi! How are you today…

Listen now

24 days ago · 6 likes · Blythe Edwards

This beautiful and honest take on how it feels to receive feedback on your precious art and work from really hit home - I’ve done more in person networking this year - it’s fun and absolutely exhausting. I don’t know if I can ever get the balance right.

The Seed

I did something scary this morning...

I asked my networking group to read my Bloom sales page and give me feedback…

Read more

3 months ago · 7 likes · 2 comments · Kendall Marie Platt 🌱

If we feel the old (crumbling) paradigm rules creeping in, this is a great read and reminder from

(Un)Learning

Still following rules you didn't choose? You're in the right place.

Hey there, if it’s your first time visiting then a massive hello - you are very welcome here…

Read more

a year ago · 8 likes · Lee Griffith

I always enjoy writing - she felt like a friend before I met her and now she is -

What Now? with Lindsay Johnstone

anxious, low, sad, angry or worse?

My first memoir opens in 2019 when I started out-patient psychotherapy to address cPTSD that had its origins in childhood. I was 37…

Read more

2 months ago · 24 likes · 8 comments · Lindsay Johnstone

This one from is a beautiful reminder of the passage of time and love - I am so glad we have space to pour our words when life is hard.

Wellgevity Warrior with Daria Diaz

The Legacy We Leave Behind

This has been a difficult two weeks…

Read more

2 months ago · 31 likes · 32 comments · Daria Diaz

A couple of viral essays to accompany your morning coffee…

A new writer to me - I couldn’t not click on this title…

Hannah Arrasmith

I Moved to France & Forgot About Wellness

For years I have been seeking health by concentrating on it daily and reducing possible threats in my routines. What I didn’t realize was that constantly scanning for toxins was becoming a toxin itself…

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3 months ago · 1324 likes · 122 comments · Hannah's Atelier

and this one…

even better

What exactly is a French Sunday and why is everybody talking about it

For a while now, the internet at large has been obsessed with the idea of ‘Sunday resets.’ We have all seen the videos, no doubt, of 20somethings with their hair in a bun, literally pulling their whole lives and homes together on a Sunday, in a sort of manic preparation for a busy week ahead. Or catching up, perhaps, from a week that was so busy and ove…

Read more

4 months ago · 735 likes · 23 comments · Trine Jensen-Burke

And one that might support your writerly dreams

The Forever Workshop

How Writers Get Agents in 2026 (What Actually Works)

Read more

7 months ago · 1155 likes · 129 comments · Jane Friedman, Karin Gillespie, Erin C. Niumata, and The Forever Workshop

I was enchanted (and outraged) reading this one by the lovely -

SoulStack by Beth Kempton

A love letter to café owners everywhere

Read more

23 days ago · 101 likes · 46 comments · Beth Kempton

As some of you know I post all my Substack tips I share on Notes on a lovely little page so you can refer back to them if you need a boost… here you go -

♥️

I loved this chat with where I live audited her Substack - Bella is a wonderful writer, she really makes you laugh and she’s gone through such a journey in her personal and online life which she shares openly -

I’m mostly offline this summer - I hope you are having a beautiful time inside your creative life and finding time to relax and let the ideas flow. Members, the chat is still open for you to chat to each other and connect.

Claire

✨

P.S - Did you see and I launched a retreat - it’s in September, it’s free, right here on Substack and you’re all invited to become analogue explorers for the weekend. Can’t wait to share the full programme when it’s ready and make some new crafty friends. 🧶 🎶 📚

Turn the Page Retreat

Join us 18 - 20th September 2026 for our pop up Substack based retreat to help you relax, read, craft and unwind from life online so you can feel more in harmony with both on and offline choices.✨

By Claire Venus ✨

“Most of us have experienced the disconnect between what our body is telling us and the stories our minds create.”

Sarah Raad

I’m delighted to introduce my friend to the Creative Growth Lab (the place where we bring the lighthearted FUN to growth experiments and audience alchemy on Substack).

I literally harangued Sarah into starting a Substack pretty soon after I did because I knew she’d love it! She’s also a HUGE supporter of my work and it always feels nice to share an online universe with people who deeply ‘get it’.

She runs a beautiful membership right here on Substack, she’s also a brilliant writer!

Subscribe now

Ok let’s get into it… I know lots of you have questions about going viral on Substack Notes, how much energy to bring - how to play the slot machine of algorithms without it sucking out your soul.

Let me tell you I have NEVER gone viral on Substack notes - sure I’ve had over 300 likes, I’ve had lovely chats, I’ve had followers and subscribers join me but my joyful, sustainable growth this past four years has not included a viral note - I don’t make that to mean ANYTHING about the quality of my work or my worth. I keep going regardless.

A viral Substack Note, it’s impact and returning to joyful, sustainable growth…

A few weeks back something VERY exciting happened in that one of Sarah’s Substack Notes started to pick up some speed reminding us of alllllll the opportunity and sheer number of eyes now on this platform…

I invited her to tell us more about her relationship with her writing, Substack Notes and her journey over the last few years…

You can subscribe to Sarah here…

Gather & Grow

Structured clarity for creative women who want less overthinking and more grounded action. I help thoughtful women think clearly, work with fear, and move their ideas forward through guided journaling, practical tools, and monthly live sessions.

By Sarah Raad

Hey Sarah… welcome to The Creative Growth Lab…

I’d LOVE to know how you feel about building on Substack three years into your journey?

Thanks for inviting me Claire - gosh a lot has changed hasn’t it?

I’ve enjoyed using the platform and building content and connection here, but I have never really seen it as a panacea for business growth.

As a Gen Xer I have ridden lots of waves in online business from the early days of blogging and online learning, through social media and now here with multiple platforms to choose from.

I’ve learned to take the good times when they roll but to expect ‘enshittification’ (which 100% always happens to platforms) and to keep looking ahead for what might be next.

That said, Substack has offered a lot of connection for me and a different feeling place to social media, which has felt off to me for years now. Substack Notes in some ways feels like the early days of twitter which is lovely, but we all know what happened to that! 🗑️ 🔥

At one point 80% of new business for my husband1 came from twitter so we rode that wave pretty well for a few years. It’s all such a moveable feast though, we cannot afford to get attached to platforms.

The mainstay of Substack for me is the (email) list.2

The gold is in the list and building and nurturing an email list has always been the heart of my coaching business, and it always will be. In my heart I am a writer, and I have never written so much as I have in the past 3 years and for that, I am very very grateful.

What surprised you about your viral note and what it brought to your publication?

What surprised me most was the sheer reach of it.

It was only a note - a casual photograph of my kindle showing a quote from The Book of Magical Living by Poppy Jamie that particularly resonated with me. I snapped it, posted it and thought no more about it.

There wasn’t a strategy behind it at all. I wasn’t trying to create engagement or make a point.

I was sat on my couch on a Sunday morning, reading, and just thought it was such a true thing and wanted to share it. I suppose the only strategy involved is me always thinking about the kind of thoughts and opinions that my right people would like and appreciate.

The response was wild.

Thousands upon thousands of people saw it, liked it, restacked it and shared it. It travelled far beyond my own subscribers and more than 200 people subscribed to me as a result, a good proportion who seem a good fit for my work here, but a fair few that aren’t. 14k people liked it and over 1.7k people restacked it.

Although it dramatically increased my visibility on Substack over that time and I had lots of comments, most of which I replied to and had nice snippets of connection, it didn’t directly translate into lots of coaching enquiries or paid subscribers….yet. 3

And I think that’s a really interesting lesson for those who think virality is a growth mechanism or tool.

I have seen this happen to clients when their work has gone viral, so this aspect didn’t actually surprise me at all. I’d also had a previous viral note about how much I hate LinkedIn :)

Visibility and business growth aren’t always the same thing, despite the seductive idea of a viral note or social media post! There are people out there will tonnes of followers and whose posts get a lot of traction but who do not grow their business through that activity.

Ironically, it was a completely different piece a little later, a full article that bestselling author liked and restacked, that generated far more meaningful business for me.

That article brought in, in a much smaller number, exactly the sort of readers I wanted and led directly to coaching enquiries, including one who told me she booked a discovery call almost immediately after reading it. She’s now a coaching client.

The note gave me reach but the article was my own voice and idea and so it built genuine interest and trust.

Subscribe now

Do you know why the note went viral?

I don’t think anyone really knows why something goes viral.

I see viral notes all the time that I simply don’t understand why, as the point being made or the idea being shared seems very obvious or not super interesting (and often looks like the work of AI if I am being honest!)

If there were a formula to going viral we’d all be following it but then, I guess that wouldn’t work either as the whole point is that not everything can go viral.

My guess is that a few things happened at once which collided into something reaching further.

• The quote itself is incredibly memorable and is something people can immediately get on board with.

• Most of us have experienced the disconnect between what our body is telling us and the stories our minds create.

• It’s simple enough to grasp immediately, but deep enough that people want to save it and share it and try to embed the thought somehow.

• People replied saying how it just instantly landed with them, they got it, they felt they needed to hear it.

Notes work differently from newsletters.

They’re designed to spread quickly, particularly when people restack them, so once a few more influential people shared it, it gathered momentum of its own and kept running.

A lot of people were also replying to it or restacking with a comment so the Substack algorithm picked up on it and pushed it out even further.

And finally, I think timing always plays a part.

There seemed to be something in that particular moment that meant people needed reminding to trust themselves a little more. I posted it on a Sunday, maybe people were in a reflective mood which gave it that initial momentum.

The restacks and likes kept going for 10 days in total. I turned off notifications in the end as it was distracting! The funny thing is that I couldn’t recreate it if I tried and I certainly wouldn’t want to spend my time chasing viral Notes.

I’d much rather write articles that make one person think differently and book a call, than create content that reaches thousands of people but changes very little in my business. Having said that I am glad the note landed with people and it shifted their perspectives, that’s always valuable stuff.

✨

Find me on my website www.sarahraad.com. Anyone who wants some support with their creative work and life, to get clarity around a decision or make a plan to take action can come and meet me online in a free 30 minute coaching session so see if we are right for each other. This can be booked at https://calendly.com/sarahraad/30min

I so LOVE a bts don’t you?

🎧 Sarah and I have chatted a few times if you want to listen in…

Join us over here, simply subscribe to our brand new pop up Substack and we’ll make sure you get the updates.

Turn the Page Retreat

Join us 18 - 20th September 2026 for our pop up Substack based retreat to help you relax, read, craft and unwind from life online so you can feel more in harmony with both on and offline choices.✨

By Claire Venus ✨

I use Claude ai for generating transcripts and interrogating my Substack data. I’ve been using it for 6 months and I learnt about training it and conscious use through this course by one of my highly trusted mentors Mya Nichol.

I’d HIGHLY recommend the course if you want to use Claude and deep dive into how to set it up properly, how to use it to save time and better understand the things it can support you with.

In this class, I give you some set up instructions and walk you through how to create a ‘project’ so you can work with your data and examine the movement (and people) behind the numbers.

More on that here…

Subscribe now

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Hi folks,

Every month inside of - the membership, we all take part in a Notes Engagement Chat Thread - I give feedback and support folks with their engagement practise, their confidence and what feels fun to post.

We’re about to go on summer break but I think it’s always nice to cheerlead each other.

Noting the community guidelines, feel free to share a n…

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Data tells us very sophisticated things about our audience behaviour.

We can get insight seasonally, year on year, read into more about the attention economy generally. We can see why certain headlines drive higher open rates, why writing more personally drives more free subs.

It also gives us intel into the heartbeat of our publication. ❤️‍🔥

Substack give us lots of insight into what’s happening with our publication and if you’re finding yourself missing the engagement (likes and comments) from yonder years here’s what you need to do to understand what is engaging your audience and moving the needle on your publication…

✨

Subscribe now

If you’re not in a data analysing mood, save this one for later? 📖 💾 💫

➡️ Head to your Substack publication dashboard and to ‘stats’ on the left hand side menu…

Click along the row until you find something you want to look at… (this is a nervous system friendly approach to data).

You don’t need to scratch at something that confuses or upsets you.

There are three main places I like to look at my data on Substack…

1. Post Views

There is often a hidden little nugget of gold or two when you look at stats especially if you give the timeline of 3-6 months.

2. Subscribe sources (6 months) (especially if you are giving lots of energy to growing outside of the Substack network). Mine is mainly inside Substack but it’s worth noting how that breaks down…

3. Posts

   Including

   • open rates (often to do with the headline or a direct email - top two)

   • conversions from readers to subs

   • and subs to paid.

See data is fun and if you don’t believe me, take a look for yourself and tell me what you learnt about your own work and how it’s resonating with your audience?

WIN A MEMBERSHIP - ALL shares (restacks to Notes) will be entered into a draw to win a free annual membership here at Sparkle on Substack + a spot on my signature course - Your Beautiful Digital Magazine on Substack!! (Closes end of August)

💗 It’s FREE to like this post and share it and it really means the world to me and helps me understand where my work is helping your joyful, sustainable growth journey. ✨

Claire

💫

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Back in May, I spotted a note from writer and coach - we’ve chatted a few times and I always enjoy her posts.

A week or two later I spotted another note thanking everyone for all their support and gathering around her idea… my ears pricked up. I love a bit of an online movement…

Turns out the audience of Substack had gathered round to support Sam’s beautiful BIG dream!

A dream of opening her first bookshop in the UK…

Come with me in this BTS interview as we find out from Sam exactly what happened and what it means for her?

Hey Sam welcome to The Creative Growth Lab at - here we celebrate creatives who also write doing big, beautiful and joyful things using Substack.

Can you tell me a bit about you and your Substack journey?

I’m a business mentor, writer, toddler mum, and aspiring bookseller based in Hove, UK. I’ve been self-employed for ten years, working with founders and creatives, and in 2023 I started a Substack: where I write observational essays about self-employment and offer quarterly workshops to paid subscribers.

In two years I grew the publication from 0 - 1.4k. Small but the right audience, which was more important to me as the publication is a lead generator rather than a focused income stream.

Most subscribers find me from Google, Instagram or my website. Very few came from Substack Notes. I tried having very business focused Notes but they got next to no engagement compared with anything I wrote on the fly, like in the post office queue or if I shared a pic of my dog or what I was reading, those did really well but didn’t grow my publication.

In late April 2026 everything shifted. I’d been slowly losing faith in the direction of my business – I’ve talked a bit on Substack about how Ai is “coming for my job” and I found myself staring down a big question: WHAT next?

I love writing always have done, and it goes right back to sitting in my grandparents garden under a blanket fort tapping away short stories on a typewriter. The casual notes that were doing well on Substack got me thinking about why and how I could expand these into articles within a new publication.

Since Strategy with Soul doesn’t rely on the Substack ecosystem to grow, I restructured my Substack presence. I switched Strategy with Soul to a different author (still me just a new profile) so it no longer showed up in Notes when a new post went out, revised my entire bio to better reflect me as a person and the new chapter I was embarking on and launched a new publication called .

✨

So as I understand (from what I saw online), you had the idea to research opening your own bookshop and told Substack about it on Notes – where did the idea come from?

It’s been a long time coming, I’ve taken a very scenic route to get to this place. I worked in a bookshop at sixteen and loved it. Over the years – through corporate retail, a social media agency, and a decade of mentoring – I always had this background hum of one day I’ll have a shop.

When I returned from maternity leave in early 2025 I found the business landscape had changed significantly, both myself and many of my clients who work in creative areas, were finding their pipelines drying up due to the rise of Ai.1

When their cash flow slows – that impacts me. Over the last twelve months I have had to confront the question of what I actually want next.

The bookshop idea resurfaced a couple of months ago.

In addition to the romantic idea of a bookshop…

and my love of indie retail, I am also passionate about reading for pleasure.

In my first post about the bookshop I wrote in detail about how few adults and young adults read for pleasure and how children’s literacy is declining. I want to try and tackle this head on.

Why Substack Notes?

Two reasons, 99% of the readers of my Strategy with Soul publication read on email, rather than the app so I wasn’t going to confuse them - which was really important as I don’t want anyone to get the impression I’ve stopped mentoring, I haven’t and won’t be able to do for some time.

And secondly, I’ve found Substack to be very supportive, friendly and engaging.

Notes need to go pandemic-level-viral before you get a nasty comment. It felt safe to be vulnerable there and announce my idea.

✨

Amazing - walk us through the timeline up to now - what happened?

On 26th May I wrote my first essay announcing my intention to open a bookshop. I posted a fairly simple announcement on Notes

…saying that I’ve published the first essay, come on the ride.

The Substack algorithm is a strange one, things don’t go viral straight away, for the first 24 hours at least it ticked along and had maybe 50 likes, and then suddenly at around day 3 it started to go viral.

As I write this the Note is now 8-days old with: 66,954 impressions, 2,419 likes, 173 comments, 32 shares and a crazy 810 free subscribers and 3 paid.2 The Note drove people to an essay that had been sent to exactly 19 subscribers. Nineteen.

The Note now…

That essay went on to get 2,298 views and 130 subscribers (4 paid subscribers, 126 free subscribers) in 8 days. It’s still gathering views and subscribers, but I have noticed the original Note slowed right down at 7 days, almost to the minute it was posted.

Since sharing I have had booksellers reach out, strangers say they’re emotionally invested in the outcome, and readers from all over the world are cheering me on.

🌍

In total the combination of that one Note + part 1 and part 2 of the bookshop journey; I have gathered over 2000 free subscribers and 50 paid subscriptions. I haven’t shared the article or my publication off Substack either. This is all growth within the Substack ecosystem.

I can hand on heart say, I did not see any of that coming when I posted that first Note.

✨

Love all of this - how magical - what a beautiful universal nudge - how far are you in your research into opening the shop now?

Further than I expected to be, and more sobered by reality than I anticipated. I’ve bought and read the Booksellers Association’s guide to starting a bookshop cover to cover. The numbers are significant – you’re looking at £70k–£80k just to get to opening day, excluding a coffee shop, non-book stock, or anything to live on while you set up. I’ve been researching start-up funding: crowdfunding, grants, a start-up loan, and opening as a community interest company or company limited by guarantee; as I want this to be a not-for-profit business that benefits my local community.

I also have my eye on a specific unit. The current occupier owns rather than rents, and has been there for over 40 years – I’m exploring whether there’s a conversation to be had about becoming their tenant. But I need to get my funding picture clearer before I plant that seed as it really is the perfect unit.

✨

Are you gathering support from international subscribers? What does that look like?

Yes – and honestly it’s been one of the most unexpected parts of this whole thing. Subscribers are spread across 59 countries and 42 US states.

Nearly half my audience is American, with the US, Australia and Canada all featuring in my top five countries alongside the UK.

There’s something about the bookshop dream that seems to cross borders – a lot of people have the same dream, and they are invested in seeing someone actually do it. So many people all over the world have reached out to me sharing their plans, hopes and dreams of opening their own bookshop. As well as tell me I am brave and have balls for doing it. Which is honestly so supportive when there are certain hurdles that feel very high to jump.

✨

Sam thank you so so much for sharing your journey.

We’re all cheering you on - where can we connect with you and support you further…

In Good Company

I'm trying to open a not-for-profit bookshop. I'm also somewhere between who I was and who I'm becoming. There are book reviews, a dachshund, and the occasional ugly cry memoir. If any of that sounds like your kind of thing, you're in good company.

By Sam • Aspiring Bookseller

• Business Substack: strategywithsoul.substack.com

• Instagram (bookshop): @goodcompanybooks

• Instagram (personal/mentoring): @samburgessuk

• Business website: samburgess.uk

Subscribe now

Subscribe now

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Get more from Claire Venus ✨ in the Substack app

Available for iOS and Android

Get the app

You can subscribe to Bella here…

The Pug's Ear

Life in Mallorca, in sickness and in health.

By Bella younger

And I highly recommend following her on IG here…where you can also download the template I mention…

• https://www.instagram.com/deliciouslystella

• Her book The Accidental Influencer is here… https://www.amazon.co.uk/Accidental-Influencer-Likes-Nearly-Ruined/dp/0008402493

Ai overview thanks Claude

What this session was: a live audit with Bella Younger (author, “The Pug’s Ear” on Substack) covering identity/rebranding on the page, the about page, positioning.

Old identity, new chapter: Bella’s wrestling with how much to reference her old “Deliciously Stellar” persona.

Claire’s take: you can honour a past identity without leading with it; people don’t need to know who we are in the world, we can just be who we are.

• The about page is prime real estate: a photo, a book link, and social proof (testimonials) belong there — and most people never find the edit button because Substack keeps moving it.

• Subscribe buttons need repeating: one at the bottom isn’t enough. Put one early too, because people get distracted mid-scroll.

• Say less than you’ll do: if you might publish weekly, promise two to three times a month instead — it protects you on a bad week and it’s fairer to readers who are giving you their attention.

• Pricing is emotional, not just mathematical: low, easy price points (the “cost of a coffee”) bring in more subscribers overall, and subscriptions are often the first thing people cancel when they feel overwhelmed — a cheaper annual plan protects against that.

• Momentum beats perfection: scheduling a post before it’s fully finished can be the deadline that actually gets it out the door.

“Nothing has had such a revolutionary impact on my writing... than starting to write on Substack and staying on Substack. It’s an extraordinary thing.”

I don’t usually email my podcast out but I really felt called to share Mark’s beautiful episode with more of you. You can listen here or wherever you get your podcasts!

✨

is a writer, cook, gardener, walker and photographer who lives in the south west of England.

He writes about life, mostly through food and everything connected with it. You’ll find stories, recipes and much about growing and cooking incredible flavours.

He hosts Cafe Murano Book Club and Limewood Book Club, with the wonderful Angela Hartnett. He once led the garden team at River Cottage and I created the groundbreaking Otter Farm

Mark writes monthly food column for The Sunday Times, and a monthly gardening column for Country Life magazine.

Mark Diacono's Abundance

Food and everything connected, by James Beard shortlisted and multi award-winning author and photographer Mark Diacono, of Otter Farm, once of River Cottage.

Subscribe now

Digital Detox (13-17 July 2026) - by Claire Venus 💫

Home of mini courses/ challenges on Substack. Next up - digital detox week!! Build with clarity & confidence so that you can earn sustainably, share your work with joy & build a publication that truly supports you & lights you up.

By Claire Venus ✨

I did the money work BEFORE I arrived on Substack - cleared a tonne of blocks, self limiting beliefs and turned on the paid subs option from the off. 1

My paid newsletter has brought in over £12k since I started here. This community has brought in over £100k.2

Today though, I want to talk about something practical that makes selling easier… Substack’s brand new Paid Subscriber Perks feature. If you offer digital products alongside your paid membership, Substack Perks is the perfect partner.

Here’s the re-frame - Sales is Service! Showing up to tell your audience about your BEAUTIFUL offers is the biggest act of service aligned with what you are here to do. Here to do in the universal sense, Substack is just the vehicle!

If you are congruent that energy comes through and it’s MAGICAL and MAGNETIC and your right people WILL find you!! ✨

Subscribe now

NEW on Substack

It’s summertime and Substack are in their annual - HERE’S ALL THE NEW SHINY THINGS roll out!!

1. Substack Perks are a GAME-CHANGER if you offer digital products with your paid membership or subs offer. The design is clean, the uploads are super easy and then it pops them all in a ‘perks’ tab on your navigation bar. I’d like to tidy mine into my ‘membership’ tab but you can’t have it all.

On Substack

New on Substack: Subscriber Perks, saved Notes, scheduled Chats, MCP, redesigned podcast player, and more

Whether you’re spending your Substack summer tinkering with your existing newsletter or podcast or launching your first one, we’re shipping features that make it easier to publish, customize, and distribute your work, and engage with your audience. We look forward to hearing what’s most useful and what you want more of. Here’s the latest…

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2 months ago · 1313 likes

How to add your Substack paid subscriber perks

Check out my perks page

I went live to chat about Substack Perks and the new creator kit yesterday if you want to catch up -you can listen here or in your podcast player… Ooo and I’m hosting a free session if you want to design your creator kit with us? https://luma.com/8pp6mcr1

Sparkle on Substack

Cha cha cha changes (on Substack)

We covered…

Listen now

2 months ago · 14 likes · Claire Venus ✨

Substack Perks are also a GAME changer for being able to articulate the depth of the offer within your paid tier.

Here’s my advice on how to approach ‘selling’ your paid offer on Substack…

• You want to build an evergreen sales page (search ‘page’ in your settings)

• List the value, the transformation, the depth of the archive, the cost, the currency conversion in USD, CAN, AUS and EUROS.

• Think about your ideal reader - what their thoughts and feelings are when they wake up, what they want, what they don’t want… circle back and WRITE to them

• Link to your pub url and ‘subscribe’ or inset the subscribe buttons and if they are a free sub they’ll see ‘upgrade to paid’.

  

  

• Add testimonials

• Talk about your why - if you’ve not done the 5 whys exercise I highly recommend to get yourself feeling MORE purposeful. 3

• Don’t make it TOO too long…

• Use this page everywhere - pop it in your email footer, link to it from your about/ hero post, your socials - get some traffic to it.

• Re-read it often - stay connected to the energy of what you’re selling, your why and who is showing up for you…

✨

I hope that’s been helpful, this post is free so please do share it - I deeply appreciate all your likes and shares - it means the world to do this work. I’ll be off all of August on hols and on digital detox but I have some BRILLIANT scheduled posts coming up.

Hope you have a great day ahead - thanks for being here and all your shares!

Claire

✨

P.S - my FREE digital detox starts over here next week - will you join us? Click in and subscribe and let’s get you balanced and reset in life online and off.

Digital Detox (13-17 July 2026) - by Claire Venus 💫

If we're not meant to be ON all the time?

Millennials average 205 minutes a day on social media specifically, compared to 169 minutes for Gen X and 136 for Boomers. Approximately 69% of Americans have experienced a phone-related physical hea…

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2 months ago · 9 likes · Claire Venus ✨

• Substack Creator Kits -

• How to be a Bestseller - no drama - https://clairevenus.substack.com/t/growth-to-bestseller-challenge

• Perks! (article out tomorrow).

Join me for my digital detox challenge next week?

Digital Detox (13-17 July 2026) - by Claire Venus 💫

Home of mini courses/ challenges on Substack. Next up - digital detox week!! Build with clarity & confidence so that you can earn sustainably, share your work with joy & build a publication that truly supports you & lights you up.

By Claire Venus ✨

Thank you , , , , , and many others for tuning into my live video! Join me for my next live video in the app.

Get more from Claire Venus ✨ in the Substack app

Available for iOS and Android

Get the app

This is a popular topic.

Running a subscription model on Substack long term is FUN - sales/ coupons/ % discounts are part of the fun.

The key is feeling in alignment with your offer, your value and the price.

Those aren’t easy things to sit with but once you get it, it all feels easeful and that’s what I want for you.

Please know…

• You are NOT annoying anyone by sending emails with your beautiful offers.

• Unsubscribes are part of the game especially if you send regular emails.

• You’ve got this!

Subscribe now

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When I’m feeling down or when something bad has happened. I’ll watch a couple of episodes of magazine style chat show Lorraine. It’s the only time I watch it - I find it so comforting. She’s been on TV in the mornings in the UK since 1993 - I can’t remember a time she wasn’t there when I turned on my TV. She’s such a stable presence - the items and interviews are often light hearted, fluffy almost.

There’s an advert for her show at the moment where they’ve cut together vignettes of her repeating…

“Good morning”

lots of different ways in different outfits. I think you’d be hard pushed to find someone in the UK that doesn’t know who she is…

I feel like that in my community too… you know a stable presence for people working here on their joyful, sustainable growth. No empty promises - community, connection and some tips and a spoonful of gentle encouragement await you always.

“Hi guys, good morning… come on in…”

Hey everyone, good afternoon, come on in, you’re welcome…

I’ve always hosted two classes a month here at with the whole of August and some of December offline.

I started it to make sure as many people in different time zones as possible can come… I’m still not quite there but I’m getting better at understanding what time it is in other places now.

Welcomes are so so important.

I’ve noticed recently that most of my members arrive at the designated start time for class.

As a neurodivergent friendly space holder, I don’t mind if people come in later or need to leave earlier. I also don’t mind if people have their cameras on or off.

It doesn’t matter to me. I say that outloud at the start of all my membership calls because we all bring different lived experiences to the online space…

I think it’s helpful to set and repeat expectations…

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3 NEW shiny things on Substack! 💫

This handy tool lets you search what is trending in your home country or others - it’s a great time for new writers in Greenland - the categories are empty - https://substack.com/globe?country=GB

✨

Substack gave us comment reply rules…(works in Notes, in comments and in chat)

I immediately turned mine on…

And a FREE template for you if you’re building community on Substack or considering it

💌

Last week host of London based Substack writer meet ups and I finally got our community guidelines template finished. We’ve been going back and forth with voice notes to tighten it for a while. I want to record a video reading them out… I don’t know how many people will watch it but energetically it will feel good to read them aloud.

You are welcome to use and adapt it for your own setting if you like - here it is…

Sparkle on Substack

Community Guidelines Template

Community Guidelines Template…

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2 months ago · 9 likes · 18 comments · Claire Venus ✨ and Amy I Beeson 🐝

I was with 90,000 other fans at a Harry Styles Concert at Wembley in London on Monday. It was really special. I love big immersive experiences to remind me how expansive coming together around a shared interest can be. I chatted to lots of american gals who had come over for a few days and were in love with London. I also spotted videos on IG from others who were there that I ‘follow’ - isn’t the world of shared experiences so much smaller than we think?

How is your community building going on Substack?

Claire

✨

P.S - If you missed my podcast episode with over at (who happens to be number 20 on the UK leaderboards) - it’s a great listen especially if you’re considering running a community on Substack! You can listen here or wherever you get your podcasts - I’d love you to leave me a 5 star review in apple or spotify if you enjoy the podcast! ✨

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Feel free to copy/ paste/ adapt.

Welcome

This community () exists to support people through shared interests, thoughtful conversation and meaningful connection.

Whether you’re joining a chat, discussion thread, online gathering, workshop or in-person event, these guidelines help create a space where everyone can participate with confidence and respect.

By joining this community, you agree to contribute to that spirit and participate.

1. Treat Everyone with Respect

Please be kind, courteous and considerate in all interactions.

We welcome people from different backgrounds, experiences and perspectives. Discrimination, harassment or exclusion based on race, disability, gender, sexuality, religion, age or any other protected characteristic will not be tolerated. Comments will be deleted and you will be removed from the group.

2. Honour Personal Boundaries

Everyone has different levels of comfort around conversation, networking and social interaction.

Please:

• Respect when someone chooses not to engage.

• Accept “no”, “not now” or silence as a complete answer.

• Please avoid repeatedly contacting people who have not responded or who have asked for space.

3. Keep Communication Appropriate

Connections made through this community should remain respectful and consensual.

Please do not:

• Send repeated unsolicited messages.

• Contact someone across multiple platforms after they have not responded.

• Create new accounts to contact someone who has blocked you.

• Pressure others into coaching, collaboration, friendship, business opportunities or personal relationships.

4. Share with Care

Many people share personal experiences, creative work, ideas and vulnerabilities within communities.

Please:

• Respect confidentiality.

• Do not share another member’s work, comments or personal information without permission.

• Ask before quoting or screenshotting community discussions, feedback, messages. Our rule of thumb is that if it’s publically available online on the wider web you can screen shot but it’s still polite to ask permission to share.

5. Contribute Constructively

We are here to learn from one another. If you would like to disclose a disability or communication style that helps explain the way you want to interact feel free.

When sharing feedback with others in classes, chats or verbally in person:

• Take an appropriate amount of time based of who is in the room. For example if 6 people want to share in an hour long session - 10 mins each will work.

• Be thoughtful, specific and constructive.

• Speak from your own experience, holding up a mirror to support the participant rather than telling others what they should do.

• Approach disagreements, clashes with curiosity and respect.

6. Help Create a Positive Community Culture

Every member contributes to the atmosphere of a community which is not exclusive to the community but more an ethos of online conduct including other public spaces you might write or share.

We encourage:

• Generosity & Curiosity

• Encouragement

• Good faith discussion

• Respectful disagreement

We discourage:

• Personal attacks

• Dismissive behaviour

• Bullying or intimidation

• Disruptive or self centred conduct

7. Photography, Recording and Screenshots

Please respect other people’s privacy.

• Do not share screenshots, recordings or photographs of community members without permission.

• If attending in-person events, ask before taking photographs that include others.

• If the organiser plans to record or photograph an event, participants should be informed in advance.

8. Raising Concerns

If something makes you uncomfortable, please contact the organiser privately via email or dm.

Concerns will be handled sensitively and confidentially where possible. The aim is always to support the wellbeing and safety of the wider community.

9. Facilitator Discretion

The organiser may make decisions about participation, communication, group structure or event arrangements to support a safe and productive environment. Members are expected to respect reasonable facilitator requests and decisions.

10. Participation

The organiser reserves the right to remove posts, restrict participation or remove members whose behaviour is inconsistent with these guidelines or negatively affects the community.

Additional terms relating to refunds, event attendance or membership cancellations may apply and should be published separately where relevant.

Our Shared Intention

This community exists to foster connection, learning, creativity and mutual support.

We value trust, generosity, curiosity and respect. We believe communities thrive when people feel welcomed, heard and able to participate without fear of harassment or judgement.

Thank you for helping create a space where people can learn, grow and belong.

Template note: Feel free to adapt these guidelines to suit your community, audience and platform. Clear expectations help create communities where people can participate safely, confidently and respectfully.

Created by and 2026 - there is no need to credit us unless you’d like to.

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I stopped looking at my Substack dashboard stats last month, I deleted the Substack app for 6 weeks and I’m only just back. I don’t know if I’ll stay - I’m only a week in.

I didn’t do it because I felt negative about my experience here - I did it because I was utterly bored of having a feeling about it everyday. I wanted to push my creativity and to tighten my work / life boundaries, create more on instagram, write my book, re-launch my signature course without wobbles.

There’s a beauty of realisation in all of it… about what the stats mean EVEN if you are telling yourself ‘oh no it’s fine, I’m fine’ - what happens in your body when you see the number - good or bad?

We started on Substack back in 2022

Starting from the ground up is humbling because you literally connect to the ACTUAL people behind the subscriber names - it feels like a beautiful and magical act…people want to hear from you and read your work on the internet, then reply - I’ll never get over that.

Somewhere after writing for a while, the buzz of the Substack subscriber numbers (our readers) accidentally become a fun game of fire hose or die.

…green means go, grey signifies the not good enough sadness, then you’re in the spotlight or a worm that eats itself to better understand what you’re actually made of.

Then someone celebrates you, you feel the audience alchemy1, you turn into a butterfly and go again - it’s a lot. 🩶 🦋. Substack burnout is real - we don’t need to go there.

Subscribe now

Signals, your nervous system and the long game

Those early experiences of online writing are the breadcrumbs to the bigger picture you create for yourself here and more widely for your legacy.

It’s how being perceived feels under the microscope.

I LOVE my work. All of it. I bet you do too?

Work online is only in part about growth and at that it’s joyful, sustainable growth not frantic, not grabby. Showing up for your creative practise, doing the reps if that feels good, connecting with like minded people.

Sometimes it feels so quiet I feel like EVERYTHING is broken and I don’t know what to do to fix any of it. In reality there’s a steady pulse to the work, you can feel it if you pause and listen hard enough. Deleting apps really helps with this in my opinion.

Here’s where I’m at with it all;

• I refuse to chase the dopamine quests - it gave me a strange sense of self - I don’t need it.

• I won’t endlessly parade my successes in front of my colleagues but I will share aspirational things and milestone moments to inspire others.

• When epic growth was happening organically here, I expected that to continue at the same rate - that’s on me. Platforms can’t promise that and we shouldn’t ask that of ourselves either. It’s like pressing a random number generator and expecting to get the same number out twice in a row. Rare!

• When I zoom out on my own growth trajectory here on Substack I have vast, undulating feelings. The graph doesn’t contain viral moments but I’ve had an absolute rollercoaster of a time.

• Probably because writing online is like self development in technicolour with the intensity dialed right up to max.

• I’ve hired assistants (plural) to support me with engagement and customer service. I’ve struggled to put my phone down in front of my kids, replied to messages in the loo incase I’m judged for being ‘one of those mums’.

It’s easy to tell yourself everyone is growing except you…

Right now I’m in a slower period of reader growth. Paid members here and paid subs on have been going backward in numbers too.

I’m used to it now.

It’s not personal and it doesn’t say anything about the quality of my work or the gorgeous welcoming spaces I’ve created.

✨

Create the things YOU wish existed…

Sparkle on Substack was always created to be a nervous system friendly space, a space to ‘stay creative’ here, to lean into your unique creative practise, to write for you and figure out where that meets the audience who arrive. A space to add depth and education to your Substack experience. It’s primarily a space for female voice - my branding and my essence calls in the women who want to self express in safe ways online and learn more about their own visibility and what they are called to do.

So to a question -

How do you want your space here to feel over summer? Do you know?

Perhaps you’ll finally get to read those saved pieces or go back through your favourite author’s archive. Perhaps you’ll schedule some posts or take the whole summer away from writing and gift yourself a new notebook to observe summer and your part in it all?

What do you want? What do you want out of this wild and precious experience online this summer?

Subscribe now

Depth

Let’s talk today about what that’s taught me about depth. Depth of experience, depth of connection, depth of understanding - it’s all so helpful in the ‘quieter’ periods…

My intention this year has been about depth of connection - going deeper with the people who choose to show up. Being in acceptance about those who want to leave. This practise led me to my first $14k launch. Not bigger subscriber numbers than last year - DEPTH.

Maybe this is also a nice intention for you?

In practise -

• Coffee and coworking slots in real life

• Whatsapp voice note chats with colleagues

• Parties within parties 🎈

• Reaching out and breaking the fourth wall when someone shares something they are proud of in an email or post

• Thoughtful comments

• Supporting a colleagues crowd funding campaigns

• Letters, postcards, printing physical photos and giving them to my friends.

Let’s do it together?

👀 Hide your Dashboard Stats from the log in page for Summer with me? Or delete the app? Or both?

✍️ Before you go… a few questions/ journaling prompts to sit with…

Screenshot these or share them with a colleague to write on together with an iced fizzy elderflower cordial drink in the sun?

• Where might you be holding yourself to a pace of ‘growth’ your most congruent self doesn’t agree with.

• Which parts of your Substack world and experience feel heavy right now? Can you cut/ cull/ edit them?

• What would you change if you trusted depth over volume for this next season?

• If a post or a note or post went viral tomorrow, how would that feel? Would you change anything about your publication to receive the influx, tighten up your welcome email - better explain your position? Subconscious work is important.

Tell me in the comments: what are you choosing for your own Substack experience this summer? Posting, not posting, going offline, staying on - nothing changes if nothing changes.

Enjoy!

Claire

✨ Incase you missed it…

There’s never anything ‘to do’ here at but you can dip in and out of posts, classes, the community and our members group chat too. Your question will never go unanswered and we’re kicking off our Notes engagement chat thread today so you don’t feel like you’re posting into the abyss.

Recent posts…

Live video catch ups are here or listen on Apple or Spotify…

https://sparkleon.substack.com/t/live-chats

✨

Thank you , , , , , and many others for tuning into my live video! Join me for my next live video in the app.

Get more from Claire Venus ✨ in the Substack app

Available for iOS and Android

Get the app

✨

Subscribe now

Links’ people mentioned;

• My Substack book - https://www.amazon.co.uk/How-Build-World-Class-Substack

• My visioning class for 2026 -

• London writers summer picnic in Kensington - https://luma.com/coimrglv

• , and their podcast recording -

The Hyphen by Emma Gannon

Do you need a writer 'brand'?

Welcome to the first episode of my new podcast exclusive to The Hyphen: Creative Coffee with Emma Gannon. This is a Substack-only podcast focusing on writers and their creative process, discussed over a laid back coffee…

Listen now

2 years ago · 206 likes · 35 comments · Emma Gannon and Farrah @Substack

• My friends , , ,

• Other mentions - , , , , and the podcast I recorded with her yesterday -

• My mentor

• Co-founders of Substack - &

• The piece I wrote sharing more about my insight of the Substack Bestseller’s Party

  Creatively Conscious by Claire Venus

  You're already at the party...

  Hi loves…

  Read more

  2 months ago · 27 likes · 3 comments · Claire Venus ✨

• from and her gorgeous nervous system, mindset work.

• Jesse Jean - https://www.instagram.com/jessijeanhome/

Being able to earn money online and be home with my family is the biggest gift I could have chosen for myself. It can also be volatile at times - up and down, that’s why I opt to have nine income streams. Just like a cat has nine lives, it helps me feel more secure. I’m three years into running a 6 figure business. I don’t think I’ll run a 7figure business but you never know… 1

Many of us already add the odd affiliate link, gift guides at Christmas and align with certain publishing partners too.

We showcase brands whether we think about it or not…

“Where are your shoes from?”

“Where do I get a t-shirt like that?”

But should commercialism creep into our work, are sponsorships a good and necessary thing or will we see the unsubscribe button hit hard in disgust?

I know from experience sponsorships can help creators build extensions on their homes, take them on dream holidays and pay off mortgages. Brands bring big budgets and big financial opportunity.

No money is ‘sleazy’ or ‘selling’ out if it feels aligned.

Let it rain! ☔️

That said, we have to be discerning, we have to understand our audience and where partnering with a brand might land.

Here’s what we know about Substack’s early access to sponsorships…

This is the email I received from …

I wrote a little more about it last year here…

✨

I also really like Justin Moore’s emails - it really opens your eyes to sponsorship potential…

Here’s an example of what I presume is a sponsored Substack ad (but could be self organised) by the wonderful -

Things Worth Knowing with Farrah Storr

Inside the life of a 47-year old executive & writer

This week’s post is free thanks to Dove and the new Dove Whole Body Deodorant Range which you can find here…

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2 months ago · 29 likes · 7 comments · Farrah @Substack

What’s the difference between affiliates and ads?

Honestly not much - you’re still aligning with a brand. Affiliate income means if someone buys through your unique link (or sometimes even just clicks it) you receive a small commission. The influencers I talk to tell me these ‘small commissions’ add up to thousands of pounds but saying ‘small commission’ feels better to them while selling the tiny mic or the supplement or the piece of furniture.

With ads - an advertiser might choose to ‘sponsor’ your newsletter for a week, a month or a year and get a link back - you’d get paid an agreed fee in the thousands sometimes 10s of thousands. The type of sponsors who approach me tend to be female supplement companies or tech organisations. I don’t get many.

I also have a whole class on how to be a great affiliate and work with brands who align with your personal brand. (Affiliate income brings over £3k into my business) and it’s a great way to practise selling sustainably if you find that hard. My affiliate income is mainly for other service providers I love but I also have a curated bookshop that lives on Substack (in a page)!

Take easy affiliate income here

✨

Getting ready to advertise on your Substack…

There’s no criteria other than being a bestseller, if your not close or not interested, my understanding is this will be a subtle shift. Your creator kit automatically shows your audience breakdown, your open rate, your sub number and suggests some posts you might like to showcase.

If you’ve already done brand partnerships, plug one of those in, use your best testimonials - suggest things your audience would like…

If you already read a Substack bestselling newsletter, in the future you might see ads like

• For an illustrator - “this newsletter is sponsored by Adobe.”

• For a minimalist - “this post is sponsored by Balance Phone”

• For an entertainment pundit - “this podcast is sponsored by Sky TV”.

• For an author - “this book launch is sponsored by Moët”

• For a writer - “this year my posts are sponsored by Papier”

I don’t know what type of brands Substack have managed to secure or invite in because I’ve not seen any ‘sponsored’ content yet.

Have you?

I think they will be aligned - maybe some that connect well with a ‘thinking’ audience, partner well with creatives, maybe some more indie brands who have smaller budgets.

When women get their hands on money, the world changes.Let’s face it – men have had their chance having all the money & power – and they haven’t done the most stellar job at taking care of the planet & all her people. Stats show that when women have money, they put those $$ into looking after their children, their community & donate money at FAR higher amounts then men do..

I don’t think we’ll see ads on Notes (yet) because the algorithm is too unpredictable but I do know it will help secure Substack’s business model and that’s a good thing for us all.

💬 What do you think? Are you leaning in and thinking about it or do you feel it’s the end of Substack as we know it?

I’d love to know.

Claire

✨

P.S - if you’re curious about leaning into ‘new Substack’ you might be interested in the experiment I ran last Christmas (remember all the rules are made up) - walk your own path and be congruent in what feel GOOD to you…

Examples of ads I ran for my own work and my members last year. My ads brought in over £500 which paid for my kid’s christmas presents and I donated 3% to a rainforest re-development fund.