The invincibility of the simple newsletter
amongst total media madness, it feels good to simply write some words
I used to find the podcasting market interesting, but I no longer do. I still listen to my favourite familiar shows, and most of them do not have an accompanying YouTube channel. Caroline O’Donoghue, host of Sentimental Garbage, for example, once told the listeners that she and her friend Jen were sitting on a bed with the microphone balanced in a shoe. I love the intimate DIY feel of it (and this doesn’t mean low listenership—it recently sold out a 900-person event at London’s Union Chapel.) I prefer to listen to podcasts that feel intimate.
Every now and then, I come across a new ‘This American Life’-style show, but again, there’s no need for accompanying video—it’s the audio I’m after. Right now, I’m hooked on The Telepathy Tapes, about people who have the remarkable abilities to read minds. When a podcast has an overly polished studio or endless TikTok clips, I tend to tune out. Just my preference. The same goes for newsletters. The media industry has been flattened—everyone is desperately trying to create (similar) content and fight for views. Over time, using this strategy, everything ultimately becomes devalued.
Conversely, I’m still surprised by the sustained longevity of newsletters in the media. John Cleese has joined Substack. Sharmadean Reid, an entrepreneur, has a popular newsletter on Ghost. TV presenter Angela Scanlon has started a new offline club where she hosts in-person walks with her followers and has an accompanying newsletter. Bestselling author Glennon Doyle announced she has personally left social media and would rather have your email address via her website instead.
For the most part, I plan to stay platform-agnostic and focus on my newsletter rather than a specific platform. However, Substack co-founder
recently shared an interesting stat: 1 million posts are discovered in the Substack app every day. These aren’t just social media ‘posts’—it has more of a Tumblr-meets-WordPress feel. Through Substack, people are discovering (and re-discovering) long-form writing and culture and art.A friend of mine, who has been nominated for a BAFTA, was telling me about the unpredictable and troubling state of the industry. Like Hollywood, the TV industry is currently investing in very little and is obsessed with ‘owning IP’—that is, creating formats that can be replicated and monetized globally. There seems to be a lack of both creativity and direction right now.
Many things are unstable too: media giant CNN recently laid off 200 people. Amazon almost cut ties with Bloomsbury, one of the biggest publishing houses. Musicians are frustrated with the industry, including Chappell Roan, who voiced her concerns at the Grammys. Some artists are even turning to OnlyFans to fund gigs.
In 2016, I was featured in a newspaper article alongside Lena Dunham,
and Ann Friedman all about our popular newsletters. It’s almost a decade later, and I’m still here, writing away and hitting send to people’s inboxes. Who knew it would be one of the most stable jobs I’ve ever had.All this to say that I’m pretty much going ‘all in’ with writing my newsletter this year. If you are new around here (I’ve been away for a couple of weeks and have seen lots of new sign-ups) I’d love to offer you a discount to The Hyphen’s paid membership tier.
I primarily write for my paid subscribers, as I no longer have time to write for free due to other work commitments. I LOVE writing this newsletter for the community and The Hyphen will always be a space for creative inspiration. I write articles, share links to my favourite books, articles, and podcasts, and foster a wonderful sense of community in the comment section. Readers love my Sunday Scroll emails (every other week) full of creative curation. For more information about me and my newsletter, you can click here.
I’d love to extend an offer: a special 60% discount to sign up to The Hyphen which is just £27 for the year (usually £65). I believe good writing deserves to be paid for—and I think you’ll enjoy being part of a community of curious, kind, and interesting readers. This link will only be available for a few hours.
And if you want to say hello once you’ve joined, please do introduce yourself here! I love reading them! It’s my favourite corner of the internet.
TL;DR: If you’ve been intrigued about joining for a while — I want to make it easy for you. The best part is peeking behind the paywall to read the articles and engage in the comment section. For £27 for the whole year (it’s usually £65), link here.
Looking forward to connecting with you! <3