I was WhatsApping a friend this weekend, apologising for not replying to a message.
“I got caught up with the Friday 5.” (my weekly round-up of recommendations)
“It was a long one.” she said.
“Not long and boring, I hope?”
“No not at all but not snappy which I think is how they started out. I liked them better when they were five quick reads but maybe that’s just me.”
Well, that gave me pause for thought. You always hope your writing is engaging enough to sustain a reader’s attention for 5 minutes or so but I realised she was right. It had changed since the early days
But was that for the worse?
My late husband, an academic, used to say that even when you don’t feel a criticism is justified it generally identifies an issue to which you need to pay attention.
Substack encourages you to be self indulgent. Without an editor to impose a word count we can just rabbit on.
I haven’t had that feedback before but maybe other readers - you - feel the same?
I occasionally lose the plot when I’m reading a long post and think I’ll come back to it. But rarely do.
The idea of the Friday 5 is to highlight five different things I’ve done or discovered in the previous week you might want to do or act on too. How much to write about each?
If it’s a round up of wines like the recent one on Aldi inevitably it’s going to run to a few hundred words.
But if it’s a restaurant recommendation, say, how much do you want to know? If I’m including it I feel I need to explain why. And ideally give some kind of takeaway in terms of an idea to copy at home for those of you who can’t get there and a highlight or two to try if you can.
Like other Substack authors I want to give my paid subscribers value for money but you also develop a relationship with them. You treat them as friends with whom you want to share your latest finds. Sometimes, I guess, we get carried away.
Of course there’s no one size fits all solution. Some people, my friend included, want something they can whizz through and pick up a few useful tips. Others enjoy sitting down with a longer read. In the same way some relish an 800 page blockbuster and others a novella.
So much mainstream media consists of bite sized content. Maybe it’s good to have a more discursive, personal read?
Anyway I’d love to know what you think so here’s a quick poll to fill in if you’re a paid subscriber
The Friday 5 is supposed to be a chatty list of recommendations but maybe too much chat?
And if you’re not a paid subscriber - and have got this far
Do you feel you get enough free content (bearing in mind I need to make a living!)
Should you get one recommendation for free in the Friday 5? Or make it free once a month as India Knight does in her excellent Substack Home (reverting to a paywall after 4 weeks).
How do the rest of you feel? Writers, do you struggle to keep to length? Readers, how much are you prepared to read?
If you found this post useful/illuminating/thought-provoking, maybe you’d give it a ❤️
And do feel free to comment at greater length below. Well maybe not at excessive length ‘cos that’s what we’re talking about aren’t we? 😉
Personally , I am happy to read whatever the author feels like putting in front of me . It is entirely my choice to subscribe , my choice to read to the end or not . I see absolutely no reason why any author should tailor their writing on Substack to attempt to keep everybody happy . Fiona , love your writing , it is informative , entertaining and pretty erudite so just keep going as you are
I've never once thought 'Fiona is wittering on'. I love your posts and I do think one of the pleasures of writing on Substack is being able to be as succinct or wordy as one likes.