An update about The Hyphen 🗞️
Why this newsletter is no longer free
Hello! You are one of my free subscribers of The Hyphen and I’m so grateful you chose to subscribe in this vast ocean of Internet Things.
Some news: I’ve recently made the decision that The Hyphen is no longer operating as a free newsletter. Not only because I believe paying for Substack subscriptions means we are encouraged to appreciate/honour the value of words (in a world that often doesn’t; just look at the current writer strikes), but also because I work so hard behind-the-scenes on producing this newsletter. I’m like a little writing machine, sparks flying off my fingers. You might have noticed that you receive something in full very occasionally (like this!) or there is a preview paywall on most of my posts. Maybe you click on and then click off.
In all honesty, there’s not much point being a free subscriber anymore — and to get the most out of The Hyphen it means opting in (at just over £1.50 a week) and you receive everything — a 200-post back catalogue, long-form essays, guest columns from my favourite writers, zero adverts, giveaways and a thriving community-led comment section discussing topics that bring us joy, books, culture and wellbeing. All the good stuff.
Here is a taste of some of my popular recent posts:
If you really want to subscribe and join the community but are unable to afford the current price, please drop me an email me at hello@emmagannon.co.uk and I’ll give you a complimentary paid subscription for a month so you can have a look around.
It’s true that you could also pay £6.99 for a whole host of other things that you value more. What we each individually value is up to us. But I have to say, my subscriptions to Substack writers that I enjoy/get direct access to/want to support are personally one of my favourite things to spend money on currently.
The Hyphen is a place I created because I was feeling depleted/lost on social media as it felt further and further away from a place of connection. I also wanted to write for you outside of the (rather long) book publishing cycle. I shut down my successful podcast and felt compelled to write more. I wanted a safe and joyful place to talk about books, creativity and living a life on your own term — topics I’ve been writing about in my Sunday Times Bestselling books over the years (i.e Sabotage, Olive, Disconnected and The Success Myth.) I really care about the positive impact of online communities to talk about meaningful things in our lives and quite simply facilitating a space to make life a little easier and navigate change together. I guess that’s also why last year I also trained to be a life-coach (not that I’m a huge fan of the word itself). I learned the core skills needed to help people get unstuck and navigate the tricky bits, and it’s one of my favourite things to do (more on the course I took here if interested). I mention this because years of my writing and coaching experiences weave their way into every single post on The Hyphen. I’m also planning a few different ways we might be able to meet up in person, and ways I can offer coaching/retreats.
If you have been interested in upgrading for a while, and want a little nudge, here is a one-off code to use (today!) at 20% off. My hope is that you’ll join so we can chat/connect more (and that you’ll perhaps introduce yourself here but not compulsory), I’d love to see you there.