30 min. to Substack Success w/ Sarah Fay’s Writers @ Work
How I used Friday Office Party + 1 session w/ Sarah to level up Story Waves
Sarah Fay is the go-to guru for all things Substack success. This week, she’s celebrating 10,000 subscribers in 13 months. Two lucky numbers in a row.
First, it’s essential to understand that I found Sarah Fay’s Substack, Writers at Work, doing a Google search on how to be successful on Substack.
I did not execute this search within the Substack platform. When I landed on her posts, I realized her articles on how to succeed on Substack were ranking outside the Substack platform.
I booked a 30-minute session and it was scheduled six weeks out because Sarah is booked at least one month ahead.
Now I had a 6-week DEADLINE to:
·Become a monthly paid subscriber to Writers at Work and study Sarah’s archive of how-to video workshops and articles - Check
Create my About page - Sarah had me flip it
Create a weekly writing and publishing schedule - Check, Sarah has posts on this
Create a Notes publishing schedule - Check, Sarah has posts on this
Create offerings for subscribers - Sarah had me restructure my subscription offerings
Create offerings page Work w/Kelly - Sarah had me change the name of the page to FULL ACCESS
Create time for participating in Friday’s Writer’s at Work Party thread - Check
Create a video series with added value for subscribers - Sarah had me repurpose the content strategically
Create a schedule for initiating engagement with other authors - Check
I booked one session. I focused on creating multiple income streams, one of which will be from Substack. Note my conviction.
Writers at Work‘s Friday Office Party thread
Then, I leveraged the Writers at Work‘s Friday Office Party thread (a monthly paid subscriber benefit) to ask our community how they prepared for their 30-minute sessions with Sarah Fay.
I got excellent responses, especially from Holly Starley’s Rolling Desk on the thread.
Also, check out Seth Werkheiser’s Social Media Escape Club. He did phenomenally well during his session with Sarah, even though Sarah made him change the name of his Substack, but then it took off!
Seth responded to my clarion call for help and gave me an insider Notes posting tip, noting his anti-social media method of only posting on Notes:
Writing angry is something I try to avoid because I don’t want to awaken the “mean English instructor” archetype within.
Story Waves exists to help support writers reach their creative potential.
But here’s the nugget that was so beneficial from Seth’s response above, “I copy and paste one – two chunks of text on Substack’s Notes twice a week usually.” ~Seth Werkheiser, Social Media Escape Club
Brilliant, Seth!
So, instead of coming up with more words to promote your Substack posts on Notes or social media, Seth puts down a few of the best parts. It’s like he working Natalie Goldberg’s famous writing exercise from her book, Writing Down the Bones. Seth selects drops prime sections that show off the flavor—and readers eat it up.
Paulette Bodeman, Sage Sanctuary, gave me an inside tip to draft my hero’s story and pin it to my About page. Paulette also recommended I check out Sue Ferrera’s The Wayward Yogini, hero post:
Ann Richardson, The Granny Who Stands on Her Head, and Cathy Jacob, gave the chatbot a thumbs up! And here’s are more tidbits about that:
CHATBOT: Want to find out how to pin a post to your homepage? Go to your dashboard’s lower right-hand side, locate the orange chatbot, and type your technical questions in the chat.
TECHNICAL VS. STRATEGIC QUESTIONS: Figure out all the technical stuff on your own using the chatbot, and ask Sara about strategy. For example, how to increase paid subscribers.
So, when it finally came down to my 1-to-1 session with Sarah, I made a list of all the helpful suggestions:
What should be pinned to my homepage?
What should be pinned to my About page?
When should I go paid?
How should I use Notes effectively?
How can I attract more subscribers?
Beyond these authors’ fantastic advice, I would also add:
Don’t worry, and don’t try to rush to get everything in 30 minutes.
If you have a knee-jerk reaction to a suggestion, Sarah will listen. In turn, you will listen to yourself and clarify your Substack’s vision, which is super important.
To be successful on Substack; you must be clear about what you offer your readers and what you are writing about. And you have to love it.
Breathe, relax, and have one main question or objective prepared.
I am glad I used this strategy because Sarah spent her time effectively using her expertise to do a SWEEP of my Substack during our first session.
Then, Sarah compiled a list of chiropractic adjustments for my publication that were specifically designed for me.
After my session with Sarah, I did the following (with minimal tweaks):
Redesigned my About page
Redesigned and restructured my offerings for free, paid, annual, and changed my founding subscribers to FULL ACCESS
Redesigned my offerings page, which is now FULL ACCESS
Acquired my next strategy to increase subscribers based on existing content that I’ve previously published on Substack
That’s a lot, though, and it would’ve been more if I hadn’t spent so much time and effort putting my ducks in a row before hand.
Now, my ducks are walking straight to the pond of what is becoming a clear brand.
Story Waves.
New! STORY WAVES Writing Challenge, APRIL 2024
Coming in April, get the kind of secret sauce writer conviction by learning techniques about how to transfer that conviction to your character and story.
I’ll expose Will Ferrell’s secret sauce story formula from his Sanchez production companies.
I’ll also surprise by teaching my unique secret sauce story recipe that stems from my background as a sugar-free, gluten-free, and sometimes vegan, healthy chef.
Look out for announcements next week about…
The 4-week Writing Challenge: Add Secret Sauce! in April…
Secret Sauce in Story Structure definition
Secret sauce in a story is a slow-cooked persuasion that thickens the premise/concept/thesis/plot… through the actions of a character who has 100% conviction that the impossible is possible.
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Testimonials
Kelly Keough is a genius! Not only does she take the time to ensure that every writer gets an adequate amount of notes that successfully sets them up for the next draft, but she also uses her industry expertise to bring every script to the next level. I couldn’t recommend her workshops more. ~Zach B.
Working with Kelly Keough is amazing! She has helped me with two of my scripts now and I cannot be more grateful. She always has incredible insight and her knowledge and command of structure are top notch! She’s great at helping you get through writer’s block. Kelly is direct, honest, caring and has a keen intuition that really benefits her clients! Thank you Kelly! ~Beth N.
Kelly Keough is an incredible teacher and writer whose skill and wisdom can only be matched by her compassion and encouraging nature. I was lucky enough to have her as my professor in college and the way that I approach my writing has been forever changed by her teaching. As you can tell from her workshops and videos, she is concise and clear, accomplished and knowledgeable, and most importantly eager to help you succeed and find your voice. ~Emma M.
I look forward to reading your stories and connecting in 2024!
Best wishes,
Kelly E. Keough
Love this post Kelly! I love how actionable Sarah's advice is and how it allows you to serve your community better!
So glad I was any amount of helpful! My absolute mission in anything in this creative field is for people to do well, so we can all have wonderful books and music and poetry and videos!