The Campfire in the Wilderness
Most creators are shouting into the forest, hoping someone hears them. That’s the traditional model — churn out content, feed the algorithms, maybe throw money at ads, all in the hope of capturing a bit of borrowed attention ...
Part 2: Substack Alternative (A Better Self-Hosted “Substack”)
This is Part 2 of a two-part series about building a “better,” self-hosted alternative to Substack. Better is subjective, of course. In Part 1, I made a case for why Substack isn’t the ideal platform if you value ...
Resonance Fidelity: Attracting the Right People
“Education is when you read the fine print. Experience is what you get when you don’t.” — Pete Seeger Note: This is a slightly edited (for the web) issue of a previous email newsletter. (If you’re not subscribed, ...
Part 1: Substack Alternative (A Better Self-Hosted “Substack”)
Note #1: I’ll be using the terms writers/publishers/creators interchangeably within the context of this essay. In doing so, I’m addressing all independent individuals with skills, ideas, and opinions so valuable that an audience is willing to pay for ...
The Internet Paradox
While we probably all broadly understand what a “paradox” is, I think it’s still useful to define it so we’re all on the same page. A paradox consists of a set of beliefs or statements; each is seemingly ...
(Personal) Psilocybin Journey (written for FutureAndré)
12 min read In honoring the privacy of those I shared the Kiyumi experience with, their names have been omitted in this version of my essay. I wrote this on October 8, 2023, a week after my return ...
Ideas are Fractal: Path to Better Writing
8 min read Ideas, much like fractals, reveal deeper complexity and variety the closer one examines them. This concept is not just a fancy metaphor; it’s a path to better writing. When we recognize that each idea contains ...
Experiences
7 min read It was late December 2016, and I was making my morning coffee. Radio Gibraltar streamed from a little Bose Soundlink Mini. It must have been just after 8:31 am because a news piece came on ...
Cities and Ambition
6 min read Have you ever been to a city that gives off a subtle “message” of either resonance or dissonance? Dissonance is sometimes easier to sense or feel. The first time I visited Sofia, Bulgaria, was in ...
(Review) Why I use Kit for Email: Lessons from 22 Years of Sending Email Newsletters
This is more than just another review. Based on twenty years of sending emails, I landed on ConvertKit, a tool I can't recommend highly enough. While not perfect, I believe ConvertKit is the best email marketing platform for creators (for reasons I unpack in this review). Enjoy.
The Invisible Conversation (Attention & Value)
6 min read “Attention is a resource; a person has only so much of it.” Matthew Crawford (The Cost of Paying Attention, The New York Times) As knowledge workers, creative professionals, influencers, and thought leaders, when performing the ...