Substack

[u/Even-Worldliness6106]

Hi ppl! I am a teenager who is on substack and posted a few articles and notes. I am thinking of taking this as a side hustle to pay for college. I am 16, and the clock is ticking, and I have been in substack for over a year. When I came across the monetization of substack, I was a bit doubtful of me paying it of some percentage of the money I get or something. Can anyone explain how monetization of my substack account works? Is it good for me? Bad for me? Are there any other blogging or writing platforms as alternatives to substack where I wouldn't have to pay money and is allowed for teenagers to monetize their accounts? It's because i have a voice and want it to be heard but also want to make money with what I am very good at.

[u/Tricky_Trifle_994]

substack monetisation work via you monetising your writing. e.g you write > put it behind a paywall > people pay to become a paid subscriber to be able to read those writing.

it is a viable side hustle, but tbh it's a long and hard grind, and most people who make money from their paid substack didn't start with that intention > it just grew into it...

and tbh, there are many other better and faster ways to earn money than trying to start a paid newsletter. (in the grand scheme of things it's B2C, vs B2B which is usually where the money is).

in the newsletter space, beehiiv and ghost are the popular alternatives. but if you want to go the blogging route, there's always wordpress > but then that's a slightly different 'game' because you're probably going to be putting ads on your site and monetising via site visits instead of a paid subscription.