Substack Advice from Book Marketing Experts

Oct 21

Today I’m wrapping up my short series that delves into the question asked by many of my website clients: should authors be using Substack, or not?

Previously, I shared some of your opinions, and offered this in-depth guest article from an email marketing strategist.

And two of my best-performing posts show you how to embed your Substack signup form (in Squarespace) and how to embed your Substack feed (again, in Squarespace).

I also wanted to review what other publishing and book marketing experts have written about your decision to add Substack to your author toolkit.

After all, the “best” tool for you is a complicated question, influenced by your author goals, book marketing preferences, tech ability, and time available.

Here is my round-up of Substack advice previously published by others:

1) Jane Friedman

Substack Is Both Great and Terrible for Authors (updated 2025)

overall: mixed

“They offer you their tools for free, then they make money if you start charging for your newsletter. So every step of the way, Substack will put this idea in your head that you should charge.”
Friedman’s main concern is that authors will lose sight of the importance of building an email list and sending a (free) newsletter.
Considerations: the appeal of Substack’s recommendation engine, and the bandwagon pressure to be where everyone else appears to be. Also see the link at the end of the article, about Substack’s hands-off approach to moderation and associated controversy.
Asserts that (platform-building on) Substack is best for nonfiction writers.

2) Build Book Buzz (Sandra Beckwith)

4 Important reasons why I don’t recommend Substack for authors (2024)

overall: no

“It’s crucial to put informed decision-making over blindly following trends.”
Beckwith includes a helpful summary of why Substack is so appealing to authors.
Main concerns: undermining your own SEO, while boosting traffic to Substack with your efforts; lack of email automation features; the monetizing hype is misleading; you’re hosting your content on a platform you don’t control.

3) Katie Sadler (Plotting)

Thoughts on Moving to Substack (6 months on) (2024)

overall: mostly yes

“Overall, I like it and I’m staying. BUT there are some cons, and if you’re thinking of moving your list here, you should be aware of them.”
Written after six months of regular Substack use, I like this piece for its personal insights, plus pros and cons not mentioned in other comparisons.
Sadler also takes us behind the scenes, disclosing the increased interaction she gets, and the massive growth in her list, since moving from MailerLite.

4) Author Media (Thomas Umstattd Jr.)

Substack for Authors: An Exciting Opportunity or Just Hype? (2023)

overall: yes

“Substack is one of the most intriguing tools for authors that I’ve seen in a decade.”
Lots of pros listed, including Substack’s impressive ability to reduce your tech stack (the number of tools you have to learn, use, and pay for). “Substack has about 80% of what you’ll need, and it’s free.”
Cons: watch out for potential changes in terms & conditions; poor SEO features; and breaking the rules if you do heavy book promotion.
This article also has great information on Substack vs. Patreon and Substack vs. Kit (formerly ConvertKit).

5) Jenn Hanson de Paula

To Substack or Not to Substack: A Comprehensive Guide for Authors (2023)

overall: mixed

“You still have to do a lot of work to grow your following and keep them interested.”
As well as some pros and cons you’ll see in other pieces, this one includes a helpful analysis of an author success story highlighted by Substack themselves, including the two big audience boosts that actually came from outside of Substack, from very famous writers.
Concludes that Substack is better than nothing, but it’s not a silver bullet.

My Conclusions about Substack for Authors

Based on this generous information from other experts, your input, and my previous explorations of Substack, as of October 2025, here is what I now recommend:

The best email / blog / connection tool is the one you’ll actually use. So if that’s Substack for you, I’d prefer to see you active there, versus never using something else.
But, be cautious. It’s borrowed land and you might inadvertently violate their content guidelines (see Bev Felman’s excellent guest post to understand this subtlety).
Want to be found by Google and AI search? Be especially careful if you post the same content to both Substack and a primary blog on your website (you could harm your SEO)
Register your own domain name and maintain at least a simple author website as well as your Substack.
Disclosure - I’m a website designer! - see here for my Express Author Website service.
Always publicize your website address (which you own) and not your Substack URL, which might change in future. For example, don’t put a Substack link in the back of your books.
- Or, pay the one-time fee so you can use a custom domain that you control.
Integrate your website and your Substack so that you:
- show a Substack sign-up form on your website and gather subscribers there.
- show your Substack feed on your website, enabling your latest content to appear, keeping your site fresh.
Make a calendar note to download your Substack email list regularly.
Understand that free tools have a habit of changing their rules and charging structure, once they get sufficiently established.
Know that if your author business gets big, if you sell services as well as books, or when you reach the point of wanting to segment your readers, you’ll likely need to migrate to a more sophisticated email marketing tool.

Want help with your Substack-Squarespace integration?

If you’re using both Substack and Squarespace and want to make the best of this pairing, I have a new one-day service where we’ll focus on getting them working in harmony. We’ll integrate both your Substack feed and your sign-up form, make sure your branding is consistent, and check you’re not making SEO blunders by duplicating content.

Learn more about working with me for a day project like this, and then schedule a complimentary chat.

Substack + Website Glow Up

More in my series on Substack for authors

Save 10% off your first subscription for a Squarespace website by using the code PAULINE10

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