Happy New Beginnings from Publish Not Perish!
Introducing Paid Subscriptions
Greetings and a happy new year, dear Publish Not Perish readers! I hope your winter break was as relaxing and/or productive as you had hoped and that you feel rejuvenated for the start of the new year! I took two weeks off of work to vacation in Mexico, and I’m revived and ready to hit the ground running with plans and goals for 2023.
Publish Not Perish has grown to more than 2000 subscribers since I launched the newsletter in June! Substack also informs me that you all read my articles at a much higher rate than is typical for newsletters on the site. I am humbled and thankful that you want to read what I have to say each week.
I'm hoping you'll be willing to support the work I do even more by choosing the paid subscription option I'm introducing today. Now let me tell you why.
Reflections on Paying for Labor
Some of us are conditioned to believe that things we enjoy doing shouldn’t have monetary value attached to them. Setting a price for the work we find fulfilling feels in some ways like a sellout to capitalistic structures. But just because you like doing something doesn't mean that it isn't work.
When I was first considering how to share insights and reflections on the writing process and other professional topics, I brainstormed free labor ideas I could do for my university. One day it suddenly dawned on me that, while service is part of my institutional work, coming up with new unpaid labor doesn’t necessitate reciprocity. Many of us in academia love the life of the mind and teaching, so we find ourselves doing more than our fair share of labor to make our profession better, even if that work is uncompensated and above standard service expectations.
(To be clear, I continue to conduct professional development workshops for graduate students in my department because I enjoy it and it is a way for me to give back.)
Many of us in academia love the life of the mind and teaching, so we find ourselves doing more than our fair share of labor to make our profession better, even if that work is uncompensated and above standard service expectations.
I initially made my Substack completely free because I wanted to test the weekly writing process and think about how it would fit into my life before asking anyone to contribute. It turns out that I really enjoy curating Publish Not Perish and readers have given me such wonderful feedback. Thank you for that.Â
But Publish Not Perish is labor. I'm discovering that even though I might enjoy and find the work fulfilling, it doesn't make me a sellout to ask my readers for a return for the effort I put in. After all, I’m just asking that folks contribute the equivalent of one fancy coffee a month, and for many of us, that is a small ask. For those of you lucky enough to have professional development funds, a subscription to Publish Not Perish would likely be a reimbursable expense.
I'm well aware that not everyone will be able to pay $6 a month, so I don't want to completely paywall all my content. Free subscribers will still get my weekly posts, and those posts will remain open for two weeks following publication. After that, some of them will be paywalled, but many will remain open to all. I will also give away gift subscriptions from time to time.
In the months and years to come, I also want to grow Publish Not Perish and increase the number of resources I provide. In order to broaden the perspectives I can offer, I want to invite and compensate guest authors who have different experiences in the academy than I do. I want to interview prolific scholars and share their wisdom with my readership. I want to add the Substack chat feature to Publish Not Perish so that readers can get to know each other, help each other out, and talk to each other. I’m also considering creating short courses and writing retreats in the future. There’s a book percolating between the lines of this newsletter as well.
All of this requires more labor from me, so I humbly request a small financial commitment from you that affirms that this work is worth doing. So what do you say? Will you join me?
All of this requires more labor from me, so I humbly request a small financial commitment from you that affirms that this work is worth doing. So what do you say? Will you join me?
Membership Options
Free Membership. You will receive a weekly public post delivered to your inbox. Some of these will be paywalled two weeks after they are published; however, the posts that resonate the most with folks will remain open because access is important to me.
Paid Membership. If you find the information in my newsletter helpful for you, the people you work with, or the people you mentor, please consider supporting my work by becoming a paid subscriber for as little as $6 per month or $60 a year. Users with paid subscriptions have full access to all previously published public posts, additional posts, and the Publish Not Perish community chat on the Substack app.
Founding Membership. If you are an academic who has access to institutional funding for professional development, please consider becoming a founding member, as many institutions would reimburse you for this subscription. You may decide how much you would like to pledge above the $60 yearly subscription rate, with a recommended pledge of $200. Founding members will also receive three free gift subscriptions to give away.Â
Thank You!
Thank you again for joining me on this ride in 2022, sharing posts with friends, colleagues, and students, and engaging with the words I write. I’m excited for what 2023 will bring, and I wish you all success and happiness in your endeavors this year.
