I’m honored to be in the same breath let alone newsletter as these are great writers! Substack for me has been like ice cream too - it brings me joy, it brings color to my life, and I discover new flavors every day. I’m grateful for the shout out and the community. While I wax nostalgically about the good days of the blogosphere I’m glad Substack caters to those evolving with it while also keeping the spirit alive. Just cuz it’s free doesn’t mean it’s any less good
Thanks for calling my piece on Aretha a gift and likening it to one of my favorite treats, Nick. I think it's about paying it forward for me. I feel remarkably lucky to have had this music in my life, and if I can share it on with others who may feel equally uplifted, comforted, or inspired, then that is a lovely reward for me.
Unlike some others on substack, music has not been my career and I don't have their professional credibility or authority. Although I've been researching and writing professionally my entire career, it's in an entirely different area. So although I would love paying subscribers because I keep buying rock autobiographies and they're not cheap, this is not my main gig and it's more an incredible musical journey for me. I'm eating the delectable ice cream as much as my readers if not more, and I'm loving all the flavors!
"Free ice cream"? Is that what you think the professional writers who've been working on their craft their entire lives (55 years of work, for me) are giving away while we struggle to build our readership? Writing is hard. Every post (198 by me so far), is designed to read smoothly because of the hours spent making it read that way. Next time you come by my Substack, NickS, I'll give you a cone of blood and sweat. Sprinkles, or as they call them in Boston, "jimmies," are free.
I appreciate you saying that (even as I think you are partially teasing me), because I don't want to come across as trivializing or even making it seem too cute.
"Come all you upstart jugglers / Are you really ready yet? / Who will help the tightrope walker / When he tumbles to the net? / So come with me to see Valerio / As he dances through the air / I'm your friend until you use me / And then be sure I won't be there" )
We are far enough past the early days of the blogosphere that I think we all have a sense of the ways in which writing on the internet can be a struggle. Both, as you say, the effort of writing, and the difficulty of working out the implicit contract between writer and audience; what do we owe to each other.
I'm not trying to say that we don't owe each other anything. I am saying that it's remarkable that it can work as well as it does.
Yes, I'm partly teasing, but really, it's a hot summer, and if you take an ice cream from my store without paying.... And I didn't mean to make this about me. I know how hard my comrades Robert Gilbert and Ellen from Endwell work to come up with fresh and interesting takes on albums (Robert) and singles (Ellen). The other writers I'm not as familiar with, though I think I know Richard. As Substack aims to become more of a social network, there's even less of a pay incentive, since readers think they're in the same Twittersphere as the writers. I think of this as less of a blog than each of us with own little magazines.
I feel a little sensitive on this point, which I think is a sign that you're saying something important. The simplest thing I can say is that I don't know how the financial model of Substack works long-term. At the moment there are a few people writing here who have found a good business model and who are doing well financially and a lot of people who are hoping that it grows and that they can capture part of that growth. It seems likely that a lot of those people will end up disappointed.
I don't want to make that worse and, separately, I don't want to imply that that people should be praised if their motivation for writing is generosity or criticized if their goal is to find and write for a paying audience.
I don't think my post was saying that.
But, and this is why I'm sensitive, I may well be taking advantage of an unstable situation. I may be the person saying, "I know this is a hard way to make money but, I'll enjoy reading the free posts for now."
Within that, I want to be a good citizen, and I'm trying to talk up people's work, but I'm also not doing anything to change the underlying problem.
There's a lot more that I could say about that but, to keep this shorter, I'll just say that thinking about it now reminded me of a paragraph from Simon Reynolds _Rip It Up And Start Again_ which shows that challenge of trying to have both a community in which people are supportive and generous of each other's work and also have a path to making money is not new, and predates the internet.
---------------------------------------
New York/New Wave turned Basquiat and Haring into stars. As Vincent Gallo, Basquiet's erstwhile Gray bandmate put it acidly, "The minute Jean-Michel had a chance to move into the place really wanted to be--the art world--he quit the band in a second." The bubble of dilettantism that had insulated and protected all the polymath creativity of downtown suddenly burst. "There'd been an incredible mix of filmmakers, musicians, poets, all this crossbreeding of artistic practices, but at a certain moment people began specializing," recalls Gary Indiana, himself a jack-of-all-arts in those days, involved in writing poetry and art criticism, directing plays, and playing music. "They began narrowing their field of interest to a specific thing they were going to make a career with. Reagan came in and everyone had to make money. You couldn't be all over the map anymore."
I wouldn’t overthink (d’ya think🤷🏽♀️) this, Nick. Your motives are good: We’re working for the Common Good here, a concept that used to be American bedrock, but fallen out of favor, made obsolete. It shouldn’t be: the Common Good.
Thank you for including me with these other super writers, all of whose work I enjoy reading. There are, I'm sure, many varied reasons why we're drawn to trying a platform like this, as well as many different ways of using it and hopes for what we and others might get out of it. I won't go into mine at the moment, partly because I feel I'm still learning. I began this last November very much as an experiment, realising it couldn't be my main gig but wanting to try and make it something that could complement what is my main gig. I've been delighted to find community here and the kind of engagement that is too often lacking from the world where I conduct most of my day-to-day business.
And I'm glad you mentioned the blogosphere because, if I think back a couple of decades, I recall my desire to be more of a part of that then, and also my mostly failed attempts, and I'm still not sure quite why I wasn't ready or able to commit to it then, but I know I feel so much happier doing this kind of writing now. To every thing its season, and all that.
Finally, thank you for what you're adding to the conversation too, and for your engagement with and encouragement of others.
I missed this comment at the time, and I appreciate it. I think it's good to have a spirit of experimentation about it.
A while ago I had done some previous music blogging (I should see if I could find the archives of that) and never felt like I had as much engagement or sense of community as I have on substack, so I definitely appreciate the people I've encountered here.
Just bookmarked the Belafonte album per these recommendations. Good stuff, I’m always looking for music outside the typical rock fare I indulge in. The Notes feature is something I’ve been considering but haven’t delved in. Seems like it’d be a good way to engage readers and get them responding with written responses rather than the typical (but appreciated!) “likes”. I’ll have to give it a shot.
I’m honored to be in the same breath let alone newsletter as these are great writers! Substack for me has been like ice cream too - it brings me joy, it brings color to my life, and I discover new flavors every day. I’m grateful for the shout out and the community. While I wax nostalgically about the good days of the blogosphere I’m glad Substack caters to those evolving with it while also keeping the spirit alive. Just cuz it’s free doesn’t mean it’s any less good
Thanks for calling my piece on Aretha a gift and likening it to one of my favorite treats, Nick. I think it's about paying it forward for me. I feel remarkably lucky to have had this music in my life, and if I can share it on with others who may feel equally uplifted, comforted, or inspired, then that is a lovely reward for me.
Unlike some others on substack, music has not been my career and I don't have their professional credibility or authority. Although I've been researching and writing professionally my entire career, it's in an entirely different area. So although I would love paying subscribers because I keep buying rock autobiographies and they're not cheap, this is not my main gig and it's more an incredible musical journey for me. I'm eating the delectable ice cream as much as my readers if not more, and I'm loving all the flavors!
Thanks, Nick, for sharing my essay on Laura Nyro, one of my favourite singers.
"Free ice cream"? Is that what you think the professional writers who've been working on their craft their entire lives (55 years of work, for me) are giving away while we struggle to build our readership? Writing is hard. Every post (198 by me so far), is designed to read smoothly because of the hours spent making it read that way. Next time you come by my Substack, NickS, I'll give you a cone of blood and sweat. Sprinkles, or as they call them in Boston, "jimmies," are free.
I appreciate you saying that (even as I think you are partially teasing me), because I don't want to come across as trivializing or even making it seem too cute.
(And, what the heck, there's a song for this topic, Richard & Linda Thompson -- "The Great Valerio" -- https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nXYi_jHYZZo
"Come all you upstart jugglers / Are you really ready yet? / Who will help the tightrope walker / When he tumbles to the net? / So come with me to see Valerio / As he dances through the air / I'm your friend until you use me / And then be sure I won't be there" )
We are far enough past the early days of the blogosphere that I think we all have a sense of the ways in which writing on the internet can be a struggle. Both, as you say, the effort of writing, and the difficulty of working out the implicit contract between writer and audience; what do we owe to each other.
I'm not trying to say that we don't owe each other anything. I am saying that it's remarkable that it can work as well as it does.
Yes, I'm partly teasing, but really, it's a hot summer, and if you take an ice cream from my store without paying.... And I didn't mean to make this about me. I know how hard my comrades Robert Gilbert and Ellen from Endwell work to come up with fresh and interesting takes on albums (Robert) and singles (Ellen). The other writers I'm not as familiar with, though I think I know Richard. As Substack aims to become more of a social network, there's even less of a pay incentive, since readers think they're in the same Twittersphere as the writers. I think of this as less of a blog than each of us with own little magazines.
I feel a little sensitive on this point, which I think is a sign that you're saying something important. The simplest thing I can say is that I don't know how the financial model of Substack works long-term. At the moment there are a few people writing here who have found a good business model and who are doing well financially and a lot of people who are hoping that it grows and that they can capture part of that growth. It seems likely that a lot of those people will end up disappointed.
I don't want to make that worse and, separately, I don't want to imply that that people should be praised if their motivation for writing is generosity or criticized if their goal is to find and write for a paying audience.
I don't think my post was saying that.
But, and this is why I'm sensitive, I may well be taking advantage of an unstable situation. I may be the person saying, "I know this is a hard way to make money but, I'll enjoy reading the free posts for now."
Within that, I want to be a good citizen, and I'm trying to talk up people's work, but I'm also not doing anything to change the underlying problem.
There's a lot more that I could say about that but, to keep this shorter, I'll just say that thinking about it now reminded me of a paragraph from Simon Reynolds _Rip It Up And Start Again_ which shows that challenge of trying to have both a community in which people are supportive and generous of each other's work and also have a path to making money is not new, and predates the internet.
---------------------------------------
New York/New Wave turned Basquiat and Haring into stars. As Vincent Gallo, Basquiet's erstwhile Gray bandmate put it acidly, "The minute Jean-Michel had a chance to move into the place really wanted to be--the art world--he quit the band in a second." The bubble of dilettantism that had insulated and protected all the polymath creativity of downtown suddenly burst. "There'd been an incredible mix of filmmakers, musicians, poets, all this crossbreeding of artistic practices, but at a certain moment people began specializing," recalls Gary Indiana, himself a jack-of-all-arts in those days, involved in writing poetry and art criticism, directing plays, and playing music. "They began narrowing their field of interest to a specific thing they were going to make a career with. Reagan came in and everyone had to make money. You couldn't be all over the map anymore."
Lovely stuff and good on you for promoting the great work of others
I wouldn’t overthink (d’ya think🤷🏽♀️) this, Nick. Your motives are good: We’re working for the Common Good here, a concept that used to be American bedrock, but fallen out of favor, made obsolete. It shouldn’t be: the Common Good.
Thanks. Yes, "overthinking it" is often my middle name.
Thank you for including me with these other super writers, all of whose work I enjoy reading. There are, I'm sure, many varied reasons why we're drawn to trying a platform like this, as well as many different ways of using it and hopes for what we and others might get out of it. I won't go into mine at the moment, partly because I feel I'm still learning. I began this last November very much as an experiment, realising it couldn't be my main gig but wanting to try and make it something that could complement what is my main gig. I've been delighted to find community here and the kind of engagement that is too often lacking from the world where I conduct most of my day-to-day business.
And I'm glad you mentioned the blogosphere because, if I think back a couple of decades, I recall my desire to be more of a part of that then, and also my mostly failed attempts, and I'm still not sure quite why I wasn't ready or able to commit to it then, but I know I feel so much happier doing this kind of writing now. To every thing its season, and all that.
Finally, thank you for what you're adding to the conversation too, and for your engagement with and encouragement of others.
I missed this comment at the time, and I appreciate it. I think it's good to have a spirit of experimentation about it.
A while ago I had done some previous music blogging (I should see if I could find the archives of that) and never felt like I had as much engagement or sense of community as I have on substack, so I definitely appreciate the people I've encountered here.
Just bookmarked the Belafonte album per these recommendations. Good stuff, I’m always looking for music outside the typical rock fare I indulge in. The Notes feature is something I’ve been considering but haven’t delved in. Seems like it’d be a good way to engage readers and get them responding with written responses rather than the typical (but appreciated!) “likes”. I’ll have to give it a shot.