Your Friday Email - Stay Creative on Substack
Collaboration for growth and community... and 🤫 the quiet ditch of social media...
Morning everyone! How are you?
Welcome back to another Friday Email. You’re receiving this email as you signed up to my Slow Lived Growth on Substack section. You can unsubscribe from these in your settings if you’d rather not receive them.
I (still) can’t believe how much there is to say about Substack!
This week, I was planning to talk about collaboration. I’ve been running a guest post slot here for a few months now. It’s called Big Dreams and Quiet Ambition and it’s designed to be aspirational and dreamy with a sprinkle of grit and determination!
You can read more from my guests in that section right here.
I’ve now created a short google form for you to apply to guest post here under my Big Dreams section. It’s here.
If you’re a mum and you’ve got things to say on the topic of being, balance and business in motherhood, you can also guest over at our other shared publication and community space
- here’s the call out.“Create before you consume… "always
From Substack…
So as timing would have it, Substack are calling our for collaborators and requests to collaborate - this thread is really busy and interesting…
Here’s more from Substack about collaboration and the collaborating thread…
and if you want to jump right into the thread on Notes and meet some new folks and collaborate there…
Last Week…
On Substack this Week…
I still can’t really get over the transparency on here - it’s like we’ve re-written the internet!
I “started on instagram” in 2017 and shortly after that was invited to a ‘comment pod’. I couldn’t believe this secret world of growth tactics.
Coming from a creative background, I knew that in reality the most authentic, interesting and hard won and special way to grow was to just shine your light.
Growth hacks aside please while Substack encourages us all to do just that.
Let’s re-write that book. Quality over celebrity every time!
On that note if
could take the NEW numbers of our profiles please - it’s not useful or helpful! Have you spotted it yet? I don’t feel like Substack needs to turn into social media so why is it trying to? Can’t it be an Elton rather than a Madonna (love them both btw).1
This piece from
was so generous on so many levels…
as was this one from
and this one from
I enjoyed this Note and replies from
And this one from
Outside of Substack
“Collaboration is all about a meeting of minds. It’s that special synergy with another maker or brand that produces something special, something which is greater than the sum of its parts. Feeling confident about a collaboration requires trust not just in your chosen collaborator, but also in yourself and your brand. It’s important to know who you are and to be grounded in a strong sense of what your brand stands for before melding your creativity with another.” Holly Tucker
There are not many emails make it into my inbox that aren’t directly related to work. I do let Holly Tucker’s email land and I read it every week.
For those of you who don’t know Holly founded ‘Not on the High Street’ - a UK based online shopping site profiling creatives and small businesses. She’s a powerhouse of in the small creative business world. I loved this article on collaboration and thought you might too.
My 3 Top Tips on collaboration
I’ve been working in partnership my whole career so it felt easy to do that here. It’s not actually that easy… it’s your space and in handing it over to someone you have to think through a few things so that it feels good to you…
The values connect - when and I decided to start a shared publication we’d known each other (although we’ve never met) for years. Our friendship has blossomed - I’ve mentored her and she’s coached me - we know each other well. We don’t agree on everything but we have a shared values system.
The creative constraints - creativity loves structure - if you have a set of questions or a way to make it easy for folks to post that will not only save you both some time but also enable you to think through the best connect for your audience.
The edit time and timing - editing takes a little while. I’m in a process with where she interviewed me on a video chat and is editing our transcript then I’ll see it and she’ll get it ready for posting. Here I paste the answers into the post first then add the bio, photos, buttons, page breaks. I then add my introduction and preview and edit a few more times before it sends. I can only do one a month so realistically 12 a year. Some pieces are pacy and fit with a mid-week posting, others feel more luxurious and seem like a better fit for a Sunday afternoon - I’m just making it all up!
Other links/ spaces you might like as you grow your Substack
My Youtube Playlist - Slow Lived Growth on Substack - I published my 9th video this week and it’s about running two publications here…
My ‘Raise your Profile’ on Substack chat group on Linked In
My Slow Lived Growth / Stay Creative on Substack section right here on Substack. There are over 20 articles now.
Mailing List Magic Masterclass and Workshop - ways to grow on Substack WITHIN the Substack network - it’s discounted for you through this link.
I’ve got a wait list open to explore Substack membership and paid walled options and retention coming this September. It’s new territory for us all so let’s get curious about what it can all mean.
I offer one to one strategy sessions too. You can email me claire@creativelyconscious.co.uk to book a 45 or a 90 minute session. I’ve helped lots of people find their title and brand, creative voice and strategy for posting and growth.
How’s your week on Substack been?
I hope this email has been of service to you and I’d love to hear from you in the comments.
Claire x
Elton was the first concert I ever went to - I was about 10. I watched him on the TV at Glasto this year - it’s the same. If it aint broke…
Another fab post, Claire! I put a call out for collaborators to my new Simple & Calm a interview Series and I’ve had a great response. Im in the middle of editing the responses and putting them into the final post. I’m SO excited to get it out there for everyone to read. Your post has made me question how many I’ll realistically be able to do, and I think one a month is achievable for me. Thanks for bringing that to my attention. Have a lovely Friday! 🥰
I didn't know Substack had made that change regarding the numbers. The thing I like (or I suppose liked!) about Substack is that you chose to share that if you wish. Now I fear the comparison/competition will start to creep in and I'm not here for that ....
Another good post Claire, thank you as always!