5 Keys to Audience Growth for Writers

How do you find readers?

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Many of you have been asking: “How do you find your readers?”

Let’s discuss that today with 5 Keys to Audience Growth (scroll down if you want to get straight into it.)

But First:

AI slop ~ the most important writing trait ~ change ~ shifting ground ~ glimpse of hope

I have to be honest, I’ve been struggling to write my Substack this year. Why?

Because I run a newsletter based around encouraging writers, meanwhile AI slop eats up more and more space on the internet, squeezing real writers out.

Linda Caroll wrote a fantastic piece on popular Substacks using AI and how to spot AI as a reader this week, which I highly recommend, so I won’t cover the same things.

What I want us to consider is how we respond as writers.

It’s hard to stand here, cheering you on, encouraging you to spend hours developing your beautiful writing skills, when so many ‘writers’ are punching in prompts, churning out slop, and claiming the spotlight.

In that environment, it’s hard to know how to serve writers best. Things have changed since I started Because You Write six years ago.

Of course, change is normal and expected in writing.

I often talk about how flexibility is one of our most valuable traits as writers.

After almost 17 years in this industry, I’ve seen several major changes.

The biggest shift was when magazines went from print to digital. As a magazine writer that was huge for me, but also exciting. Switching to digital magazines was like gutting an old 1950s house, tearing down the dated wallpaper, and doing a full modern refit. It brought life back to magazines and came with a lot more opportunities for writers.

But now, the writing world isn’t just being redecorated. The ground has shifted entirely.

I have some experience with the ground shifting.

Back in 2010 and 2011, I lived through a major earthquake. Many, in fact. That’s the thing people don’t think about with major earthquakes. There’s never just the one.

The first large quake was a magnitude 7.1, centered right near the small rural town where I lived.

I braced the doorway cradling my 6-week old in my arms, watching the floor in the hallway turn to liquid. Rolling like someone violently shaking out the carpet. No-one died, but people’s homes and businesses were destroyed.

A home damaged by the first magnitude 7.1 earthquake. Source: Britannica

Then almost 6 months later, a large aftershock hit. This time a magnitude 6.3, but in the middle of Christchurch, right under the high-rises in the busy city center.

The damage was devastating. 185 people lost their lives. 115 from just one building collapsing. Almost 7,000 others were majorly injured.

Compared to other large quakes around the world, we’re lucky in New Zealand. Our buildings are generally a high standard. We live on fault lines and have built with that in mind, but it’s hard to describe the impact it had on those of us who lived through it.

The city is recovering. In some ways, far better than before. But you never forget one thing: the ground isn’t as secure as you thought.

There’s no guarantee it will stay in place forever.

Generative AI feels like that earthquake for the writing world.

So how do we respond? How do we move forward when many of us have lost our source of income or our hope of building one.

I’m still working that out.

In the last few months though, I’ve had some glimpses of hope.

In a romance writers group I joined online, I heard about writers making $250,000+ a year from their self-published work. Others making a living with audiobooks and finding loyal readers.

I know real writers doing well here on Substack, too. They put the work in, hours of research and quality writing, and it’s paying their bills.

I know others who write as a hobby, finding wonderful communities of readers and growing their readership daily. Readers who care about supporting real writers.

My favourite glimpse of hope is at home. My husband has recently discovered comedy writing and watching him write for the love of it, finding joy in writing, delights me.

So, I’m still here.

I want to stand with you and not give up on this most beautiful craft. Writing is about connection. Connecting to our thoughts, our memories, our history, each other.

Let’s keep exploring ways to connect to our readers.

5 Keys to Understanding Audience Growth

First off, we need to be patient. Audience growth is like…nope can’t think of a fun analogy…I’m just going to give you a visual I made instead.

Most audiences, on any platform, grow in a similar way. There’s a lag stage where you feel like nothing is happening.

For. A. Really. Long. Time.

I call it “Desperation Alley” because it feels like that sometimes (but it can be exciting and pretty fun.)

When you’ve got a tiny audience, you have freedom!

1. What can you do in Desperation Alley?

You’re free to play, so get to it!

When no one’s watching, it’s a great time to get creative and find your jam.

When you’ve got a few thousand eyes on your work, you’re not going to feel as unrestricted as you do right now.

Party up.

Be Yourself.

Aim to produce pieces that rock your audience’s socks off!

2. When the red carpet hits

Different people hit the “red carpet” phase at different speeds.
It’s your exponential growth phase. Fast and heady. This stage of audience growth is quite the rush.

Overnight, one piece—usually not the one you expected—will just take off.

Momentum builds, like that time your dad made you sled down the hill and you picked up speed until you flipped over and ate snow. Just me? Okay.

Before you know it, you’re adding new readers daily. Hourly. Minutely (I know that’s not the word, but it should be, right!).

You can’t force this stage. There’s no “secret sauce.”

But there are things you can do to nudge yourself towards it. Here are some:

• Write pieces that people feel both entertained and educated by. The “Edutainment” combo is a powerful beast. Readers love to share fun pieces that also taught them something.

• Ten great pieces are better than one perfect piece.

  You know the good-old Pareto principle? 20% of what we do creates 80% of the benefits.

  In writing, often 2 in 10 of your articles will do well. I find that idea takes all the pressure off. I can write eight flops and it’s no big deal. Another success is just around the corner.

• Improve your audience awareness. Get to know your readers, even if you only have two of them. What do they seem to like from you? What doesn’t seem to be working? Be prepared to drop something that isn’t resonating with readers. No point selling fur coats if the people want bikinis.

3. The writer’s dream

We all imagine once we get success it will continue ad infinitum.

The pings of “New Subscriber” notifications: the soundtrack of our new famous lives.

Sadly, it’s rarely the case.

4. Reality Check phase

There usually comes a point where the stream of new readers flattens out.

You gain some. You lose some. A balancing out happens. By this stage, perhaps our egos need a balancing out?

But it’s fine. You still have a truck load of loyal readers.

What to do in this stage? Take care of your readers. Be good to them.

Keep your quality high and remember, growth isn’t everything. A loyal reader who’s been with you for years is far more special than 100 new readers who barely open your emails.

I’ve had readers at Because You Write who’ve stuck with me since 2019. That feels like a huge internet hug every time I think about it.

5. The Sinking Ship phase

We all hope to avoid this phase, but especially when you write on a platform, like Substack or Medium, Twitter/X or Facebook, there comes a time for certain common happenings:

• You get bored or lose interest in the platform/topic/social media in general.

• Your life moves on and fills up with other things. A new job, family, etc.

• The platform declines.

But it’s totally okay. It feels sad, but you can jump from a sinking ship without guilt. Even if you’ve been building your audience there for years, there’s no obligation to continue.

If the platform declines and you want to shift your audience, you usually can. It’s often easier than you might expect. Many writers have recently shifted their audiences from Medium to Substack for example.

And if you’ve moved on, that’s okay too.

I hope understanding the common stages of audience building helps you see where you want to head.

I’d love to hear which stage you’re at in the comments.

If you’ve found something has been working and you want to share with everyone, please do that in the comments too!

Until next time,

Kelly xx

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