More Than a Niche: Challenges of Being a Multi-Passionate Creator
I was told I must monetize the things I love
Through the end of February, I’m offering a yearly subscription for 50% off the regular price for those who want to support me. Only three more days to do this!
I read an article by a very popular and prominent content creator, who advised that you “must” monetize the things you love. I originally mentioned the person and linked their article, but then I removed it.
In some respects, that article was about people like me. I love writing, but I don’t earn enough from it to make it my sole source of income. Thus, I must work at a less fulfilling job—which, right now, is an AI trainer/evaluator—to afford to do what I love.
(Don’t worry, it’s mostly audio prompts and trying to improve the ability to remove people and furniture from photos, so I’m not training it to take the place of writers!)
It’s interesting work, but it’s not my passion. I’m helping to develop a better and more efficient assistant, but I don’t feel it’s making the world an exponentially better place.
I took advantage of a free video consultation with a team member of this popular creator to get help growing my publication. They asked some financial questions that I felt were too personal and weren’t relevant to my growth.
Because of my experience as an AI trainer, the consultant in the virtual meeting suggested I focus my content on that subject matter to make more money. Umm… no, thank you. Yes, I need money to pay bills, but I’m trying to get out of that arena, not lean into it. After two virtual meetings, I decided their strategies weren’t in line with my standards.
In some articles in my Substack publication, I’m amplifying issues that affect us all, but especially the Queer Community. In others, I focus on humor and satire, cutting through the negativity and the noise of politics to find humor in our everyday lives.
Gaining subscribers was a slow process at first. I tried various things to pull in more people.
I began a weekly podcast, which has done surprisingly well. I think I’m still doing something wrong, though. One of my episodes has over 1,000 downloads. Given that my publication has fewer than 1,000 subscribers, it’s obvious that many of those listeners aren’t subscribed to me.
How do I convert them? A Jehovah’s Witness might tell me to knock on their doors, but I’m skeptical about their success rate. When I was a kid, my mom told us to hide and pretend we weren’t home when they came knocking.
Turning to another strategy, I started appearing as a guest on live broadcasts last year. I’d been a guest of Escapist Delights, The Daily Whatever Show, Wendy🏳️⚧️🏳️🌈🌈, Murphy, and Karen Marie Shelton. I also went live on my own many times.
Then, I came up with a brilliant plan: A “Midwest Pride Tour.” I went live at a different Pridefest around the Midwest every weekend in June. I thought, “This is something people will want to see!”
I didn’t get as many viewers as I’d hoped, but I gained one paid subscriber during my first Live Pridefest video. I thought it might be the beginning of a tidal wave of subscribers.
It wasn’t.
I brought attention to how the Midwest celebrates Pride, and that made it worth my efforts. I also interviewed awesome people and highlighted businesses that support the LGBTQ+ Community. People enjoyed the videos and continue to bring them up almost a year later.
Maybe I didn’t gain the subscribers I’d hoped for, but I still pressed on. If I have a goal, I like to see it through. Plus, I know it takes time to gain momentum when you start writing on a new platform.
I gradually gained paid subscribers over the months that followed, but by the end of my first year, I still hadn’t reached 50 (I’m currently at 37). Other new creators in my category had gained over 100 during the same period. My pervasive thought was:
What am I doing wrong?
Part of the “problem” was that others in my category had a very specific niche, while I provided more variety. More variety sounds appealing, right? Apparently, many people want only a particular type of content.
I’ve heard many readers complain that they can’t afford to subscribe to all of their favorite creators. When you subscribe to me, you’re getting articles, weekly audio podcasts, live cooking/baking videos, Trauma Talk sessions, weekly interviews with other Substack creators, and a weekly entertainment podcast with Sturg Writes It Down called “Tuesdays with Two Gays.”
Isn’t that worth at least $30 a year?
I offer most of my content for free because I know what it’s like to be on a budget. I also know how I feel when I’m reading a post that I enjoy, only to hit that paywall.
Writers often reserve their best work for their paid subscribers; yet, their best stuff is what would likely get people to subscribe, and it’s hidden behind a paywall. It’s a conundrum that’s difficult to circumvent.
At the beginning of this year, I started a new publication. In Ellrich Unraveling, I write short stories and poems that usually include life lessons in both an entertaining and metaphorical way. Even if people read them simply for their entertainment value, I believe these are worthy endeavors.
I paywall part of that content, because I’m using it in place of publishing and selling a book. If you enjoy short stories, serialized novels, and or poetry, you can subscribe to that one through the end of February for a $25 yearly subscription (50% off the regular price).
I’m terrible at self-promotion, but as any kind of artist knows, it’s necessary to earn a living. Actors and singers appear on talk shows and on billboards to promote their movies and albums. Authors go on tours and sign copies in bookstores. And me? I send out promotional newsletters (though probably not as often as I should).
I saw a Substack Note from a writer who’d been on Substack for two years and finally gained their first paid subscriber. That helped put things in perspective. No, I don’t have thousands of (or even a hundred) paid subscribers, but I have more than others.
If you’ve been reading or listening to my content but haven’t subscribed, what’s missing for you? I’d truly like to hear some thoughts.
It’s so difficult to avoid comparing ourselves to others. I try to look at where I came from and celebrate my progress, but the voice of “imposter syndrome” is sometimes very loud.
Help me prove it wrong.
A message for my paid subscribers:
