On Sep 28, 2025 I had exactly 94 paid subscriber. Today, I am creeping up on 400.

I haven’t posted here in a while so I thought I’d just jot down a few things that I think have helped me grow my paid subscriptions so quickly.

And these are just my guesses - I could be totally off-base. Maybe it’s just dumb luck, I don’t know. But I did do 3 different things in that time frame and each one corresponds to a sharp bump on the graph.

• September 28, 2025

• January 1, 2026

• March 1, 2026

By the way, I just checked my Mediavine earnings for the past few months and they are in a steep nose-dive. I dropped over $1,000 in income from Dec to Jan.

Ouch.

Pretty sad AND pretty scary. Fortunately, my substack is helping to make up the difference. It really makes me wonder about the future of blogging in general.

Anyway - let’s get into what I am doing on Substack.

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And it seems to be working

When I started blogging in 2013, everything felt fresh. Shiny. New.

There weren’t many plant-based food blogs back then. We were all figuring it out in real time, sharing recipes because we were genuinely excited about what we were discovering.

It didn’t feel crowded and it didn’t feel competitive.

Fast-forward to now, and the landscape looks VERY different.

Scroll through the plant-based space and you’ll see the same foods, the same photos, the same captions, the same “new” recipes that aren’t really new at all. How many ways can you make tofu before it all starts to blur together?

I don’t say that as a criticism — it’s just reality.

There are no copyright laws on recipes. People copy each other. Some have copied me. That’s part of the deal. When something works, it gets repeated.

Then came COVID

Suddenly, thousands of new blogs appeared almost overnight. SEO experts were talking about the explosion in new sites, and the competition for attention ramped up fast. Around the same time, recipe-scraping apps made it easier than ever to pull ingredients and instructions without ever visiting the original site.

Now we have AI doing the same thing — faster and at scale.

At some point it became clear to me: competing on recipes alone was a losing game.

Not because I don’t have recipes — I have hundreds of them — but because recipes are the easiest thing to replicate. They’re data. Ingredients and steps. Machines are very good at that.

So I stopped trying to be better…. and started trying to be different

• Different doesn’t mean louder

• It doesn’t mean trendier

• And it definitely doesn’t mean chasing every new platform or tactic

For me, different means being me.

• MY experience

• MY opinions

• MY mistakes

• MY long view — from someone who’s been doing this since 2008, long before it was popular

You can’t scrape that. You can’t generate it. And you sure as hell can’t copy it.

When I started my Substack, I wasn’t trying to replace my blog. If someone wants a recipe, they can find over 300 of them there. That’s not going anywhere.

What I wanted was a place where the thing I was offering wasn’t just food — it was perspective.

I imported my email list. Some people left. That’s fine. The ones who stayed wanted this. And over 300 of them decided it was worth paying for.

That told me everything I needed to know.

In a world full of AI-generated content, people aren’t looking for more information.

They’re looking for connection. They want to hear from someone real. Someone who’s lived it. Someone who’s still figuring things out out loud.

That’s the difference I’m leaning into now.

Not because it’s trendy — but because it’s the one thing that can’t be automated.

And so far? It seems to be working.

• They’re my age (silver hairs unite!)

• Plant-based or vegan (or at least flirting with it)

• They’ve got a few health issues they’d rather not collect any more of

• They want to feel better

  • Move better

  • Stay independent longer

  • Be around for the grandkids

That’s my person

And because I know that, everything I write comes from that place.

Now contrast that with how a lot of bloggers operate.

• They don’t really know who they’re writing to

• They write for Google

• For Pinterest, or Instagram, or Facebook.

• For “traffic.”

They cast a giant net into the internet and hope a few people wander in so they can earn a couple pennies in ad revenue.

And when you write for everyone… you end up writing for no one.

Creating Your Avatar

Years ago, I went to a blogging conference run by Ruth Soukup, author of “How to Blog for Profit Without Selling Your Soul”.

If you were there, you know what it really was: a very polished sales pitch for Elite Blogging Academy. (Yes — I bought it 🙄 and no - I try not to think about it much)

But one lesson did stick with me:

• Create your avatar (your ideal reader)

And I mean really create them.

• What’s their name?

• How old are they?

• Married or single?

• Kids? Their names?

• Income? Education?

• Hobbies? Favorite brands?

• What keeps them up at night?

Pages and pages of detail.

If you know exactly who you’re talking to, your writing becomes clearer.

Because if you don’t write to them…. who are you writing to?

• Algorithms?

• Keyword tools?

• Social platforms that could pull the rug out at any moment?

That’s the shift I see now — and it’s why Substack feels different.

When you write directly to people who choose to be there, it makes all of the difference in the world.

• They’re commenting

• They’re showing up again tomorrow

• You’re not writing to traffic

• You’re writing to people

• YOUR people

And once you know who those people are — really know them — the writing gets easier.

Clearer. More honest. More human.

And a whole lot less exhausting.

Specifically:

Is it formatted in a way that Google will pick it up?

It’s a fair question, but…

That question tells you exactly why someone is on Substack in the first place.

Two Very Different Mindsets

There are (broadly speaking) two ways people are using Substack right now.

Neither is wrong, but they lead to very different outcomes.

Mindset #1: “Substack as a Google Extension”

This approach treats Substack as another publishing surface—just one more place content can live.

The goal is still:

• Visibility

• Discoverability

• Search traffic

• Reach beyond your existing audience

In that context, recipe cards that are “Google-friendly” make total sense.

Pros

• Potential for long-tail traffic from Google

• New readers who’ve never heard of you

• Recipes may show up in search results alongside traditional blogs

Cons

• You’re still playing the algorithm game

• You’re still optimizing for machines first

• Readers arrive because they searched for a recipe, not you

That’s not bad…. it just sounds… familiar.

Mindset #2: “Substack as a Relationship”

This is why “I” came to Substack

• not to replace my blog

• not to chase search traffic

• And definitely not to rebuild everything I just escaped

I came here to:

• Write directly to people who already care

• Get out from under SEO pressure

• Stop optimizing headlines for bots

• Talk like a human to other humans

In this model, the recipe card isn’t bait….it’s a service to people who already trust you.

Pros

• You own the relationship

• No dependency on search engines

• Readers subscribe for you, not one post

• Engagement tends to be deeper, not wider

Cons

• Slower growth

• Less passive discovery

• You’re not “casting a wide net”

And honestly? I’m okay with that.

The Bigger Question Isn’t the Recipe Card

Whether Google can read the recipe card is almost beside the point.

The real question is:

Who are you building your substack for? And there truly are no wrong answers.

• Search engines? Or subscribers?

• Reach? Or resonance?

• Traffic? Or trust?

For years, many of us built businesses where Google was the middleman. Substack gives us the option to remove that middleman entirely.

Some people will still want him in the room. And some of us politely showed him the door.

Final Thought

• Using Substack for Google isn’t wrong.

• Using Substack instead of Google isn’t wrong either.

But mixing the two without being intentional? That might get frustrating.

So if recipe cards help you serve your goal—great. Just make sure you know what that goal actually is.

Because Substack can be a search tool… or it can be a relationship.

And those are two very different things.

One in particular is about the app.

I see a lot of people confused about how to modify their home page on substack, while using the app.

I tried to explain it yesterday, but more from a reader’s point-of-view. Maybe it will help from a creator’s point-of-view.

Think of it as there being TWO Substack platforms

In one substack, you get your very own URL for a blog-like homepage.

• You can make this look just like a blog. Perfect if you’re a creator.

• Homepages have several different layouts to choose from.

• And you can have a custom menu

• This is where you create your posts, be they text, video, audio, or live

• The OTHER Substack is an APP - and really designed for one purpose only:

  • It’s for your readers to read your latest post

    • it’s just a feed of your latest posts

    • no menus, no navigation, no homepage

    • just a feed

No matter what you do to your homepage in your browser - the substack app will ALWAYS look the same.

• The BROWSER version is for YOU, the blogger

• The APP is for everyone else

There is very little you can customize in the app. BUT…. the app DOES have a link to your ABOUT ME page…..so make that a good one.

I hope this clears up some confusion.

You’re not imagining things.

Substack is not just one experience.

From a reader’s point of view, there are two very different ways to consume the exact same content.

Reading Substack in the App:

Feed-First, Minimal, Social

The Substack app is designed to feel like a reading feed, not a website.

When you read in the app:

• Posts appear in a scrolling timeline

• Layouts are standardized

• Navigation is minimal

• Everything looks… the same

This is intentional.

The app:

• removes sidebars

• hides menus

• strips most layout choices

• prioritizes text and conversation

From a reader’s perspective, it feels closer to:

• a magazine feed

• or a calmer social platform

• or email without the inbox chaos

You’re there to read, not explore a website.

Reading Substack in a Browser

Website-Like and Structured

Now switch to reading Substack in a browser and suddenly:

• it looks like a website

• there may be a homepage

• there can be menus and sections

• older posts are easier to browse

• the layout feels intentional

From the reader’s side, this feels familiar—especially if you come from blogs.

In the browser, a reader can:

• click around

• see categories (if the writer uses them)

• view an archive

• understand the structure of the publication

This is where Substack feels less like an app and more like a traditional website with a newsletter attached.

Same Content. Two Very Different Experiences.

Here’s the key idea most people miss:

The app and the browser show the same writing

but not the same context

Nothing is missing in the app.

Nothing is “extra” in the browser.

They’re just answering two different reader needs:

• App: “What should I read right now?”

• Browser: “What is this publication about?”

Why This Confuses New Readers (and Causes Panic)

Readers often say things like:

• “I can’t find your older posts”

• “I don’t see your menu”

• “This looks different on my phone”

They’re not wrong.

They’re just:

• reading in different places

• expecting a website when they’re in an app

• or expecting an app when they’re on a webpage

Once you understand that, most confusion disappears.

The Simple Reader Rule

If you want:

• easy reading & discovery → app

• context, structure & browsing → browser

Neither is better.

They just serve different purposes.

Why This Matters (Especially for Food Bloggers)

If you’re used to blogs:

• categories

• recipe indexes

• navigation menus

• homepage layouts

Those expectations live in the browser experience, not the app.

Substack didn’t remove websites.

It just stopped forcing readers to deal with them every time they read.

He’s a former pastry chef at Chez Panisse, the author of multiple bestselling cookbooks, and he’s been running a successful food blog since the early days of food blogging — long before social media or SEO became the driving forces they are today.

Which is why his move to Substack is worth paying attention to.

David Lebovitz Newsletter

A tasty mix of recipes, Paris food tips, personal stories, and more... Sign up and get my newsletter delivered right to your Inbox!

David didn’t “leave” his blog. He simply added Substack.

His blog still does what it’s always done.

• His recipes live there

• search traffic finds it

• the archive remains intact

But Substack gave him something the blog never really could:

• A direct line to readers

• No algorithms

• No intermediaries

• No guessing who actually shows up

On Substack, he can:

• Write without worrying about SEO

• Share side stories that don’t need a recipe

• Talk directly to people who want to hear from him

The blog is the archive. Substack is the relationship.

That’s the part worth noticing. This wasn’t about chasing a new platform…it was about separating distribution from connection.

And to me - that’s the future of blogging in 2026.

“Build a set of superfans, and no matter what happens, they’ll always be there for you. Instead of spending money on ads, spend more time on people. Instead of worrying about the latest growth hacks and strategies, worry about identifying and addressing the biggest pains and problems in your target audience. Instead of figuring out how to optimize your conversion rates, figure out the rate at which you’re able to connect authentically with your audience and make them feel special. Fans are important, but superfans are everything. - PAT FLYNN”

In my early days of blogging, I quickly found the SmartPassiveIncome blog and Pat Flynn. He immediately became my ‘guru’.

I learned a lot from Pat over the years, but one thing stood out above the rest - and that was the concept of “superfans”.

A superfan is someone who:

• Is deeply devoted to you and your brand

• Actively follows your work

• Shares your content with others

• Invests in what you create

• Often feels personally connected to your mission and values

➡️THIS type of person is who I created my Substack for. ⬅️

Question: What Is Your Substack's Purpose

I saw a comment this morning on a FB Group, asking for thoughts on offering paid subscriptions (Substack). Her idea was to use it as an extension of her blog. And while that might work for her, that is not how I am using Substack.

I’m reminded again of meeting blogger Ruth Soukup at a Mediavine Blog Conference. She told me the important thing I could does a new blogger was to build my email list.

So since my old 2013 blog is pretty much 100% driven by search-engine traffic now (and we all know where THAT is going) … “I” try to drive whatever traffic I can straight to my substack, because that

1. continues to build my list AND

2. provides a secondary income (if/when they become paid subscribers)

I use Substack to connect directly to the people on that list

Because face it - we’re moving into an AI driven world. And people are CRAVING that human connection more than ever. Sure they might just want a recipe - I have a blog for that. If that’s all they come for - they might unsubscribe, and that’s fine.

But if they like ME… my stories, reflections, reviews, opinions, whatever - then they stay. And some even become paid subscribers.

Those are my superfans.

And the whole purpose of MY substack is to connect with my them.

Human connection is everything.

Back then, food blogging felt… approachable.

You started a site, posted recipes consistently, let the Yoast plugin do its thing - and if you stuck with it long enough, things usually worked out. Not overnight—but eventually.

And to be clear, nothing I did back then was wrong. It just belonged to a different era.

• But internet has changed

• Google has changed

• Platforms have changed

• Expectations have changed

Which is why I can say this now, without anger or regret:

If I were starting a food blog today, I wouldn’t do most of what I did in 2013

Not because it failed—but because the environment it worked in no longer exists.

• Back then, I chased traffic

• I optimized for Google (tried to anyway)

• I built everything around pageviews and ad revenue

• I assumed growth was the goal, and that more was always better

And for a long time? That worked.

But here’s what I didn’t understand at the time—and what I see very clearly now:

What builds a blog isn’t always what sustains one

If I were starting over today,

• I wouldn’t chase every new platform the moment it appeared.

• I wouldn’t build my entire business on traffic I don’t control (this is the big one)

• I wouldn’t assume that working harder automatically leads to better results

• And I definitely wouldn’t wait years to write directly to real people (⬅️ this!)

I didn’t fail at blogging - blogging outgrew the version of me I was trying to be.

And the longer you do this, the more you realize that survival in this space isn’t about being the smartest, fastest, or most creative.

It’s about being adaptable.

Below, I want to share what I would do instead if I were starting over today—with less energy, more perspective, and a much lower tolerance for nonsense.

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I didn’t come to Substack with some ‘master plan’.

• Sorry - no growth spreadsheet

• No launch funnel

• No big promises

I simply started my Brand New Vegan Substack as an extension of the work I’d already been doing for years. It seemed like a good place to write more freely, without worrying about SEO, plugins, or whether-or-not Google would approve.

So I went for it. What surprised me was how well it worked.

And I hesitated to share this, but I think transparency matters — especially for tired bloggers trying to decide where to put their energy.

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I didn’t listen to it looking for tactics. I listened because I’m tired — and because I wanted to hear how someone else is navigating this same strange middle ground so many of us are standing in right now.

And honestly?

It didn’t make me want to do more.

It made me want to do less — but more deliberately.

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Not because it was some bold declaration, but that it just felt… true. Like something most of us already knew but hadn’t quite said out loud yet.

There really was a time when if you showed up consistently, made something useful, and kept doing it week after week, the work tended to add up. Not every post, and not instantly, but enough that you could build a life around it.

That doesn’t feel like the world we’re in anymore.

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I don’t have a replacement model.

Which is probably not the most comforting way to start a post, but it’s the honest one.

I didn’t walk away from the old way of doing things because I had some brilliant new plan sitting in a notebook. I walked away because continuing to organize my work around it started to feel like banging my head against the same wall and expecting different results.

Right now, what I have isn’t a plan so much as a handful of small decisions.

• Things I’m trying

• Things I’m intentionally not trying

• Nothing flashy

• Nothing I’d put in a course or a YouTube thumbnail

This is me thinking out loud, not selling a solution.

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A few people have found their way here over the last few days (and welcome 🤗) , so I thought it might be helpful to pause and explain what this space actually is — and just as importantly, what it isn’t.

Not to teach, not to sell a system, and not to convince anyone of anything — just to write honestly about where I’m at and what I’m noticing.

This isn’t a growth newsletter

• I’m not sharing tactics, templates, or strategies.

• I’m not breaking down numbers, running experiments, or offering step-by-step advice on how to make Substack work.

• There are plenty of good places for that, and this isn’t one of them.

This also isn’t a rant space

I’m not here to complain about Google, social media, or “the algorithm.” Those systems did what they did, and for a long time they worked well enough.

Most of what I write here is behind a paywall, and that’s intentional. Not because the ideas are secret or precious, but because a paid space keeps the room smaller and the conversation more honest. It allows me to write without performing, defending every choice, or trying to make everything universally useful.

If you’re looking for clear answers, quick wins, or a new framework to follow, this probably won’t be a great fit.

There’s no pressure to subscribe.

You don’t need to agree with everything I write. And if this isn’t for you, that’s perfectly fine.

I just wanted to set the context and if you’re still with me so far….

Welcome.

— Chuck

I already had a high-paying job in Semiconductors and an Associates Degree in Electronics. But …

I was experimenting with a new diet, I liked the food, I loved cooking, and I liked sharing what I was learning. Writing things down helped me think, and if it helped someone els…

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• What to write

• What to post

• What to optimize

• What to chase next

But somewhere along the way, I realized that wasn’t actually the hard part.

The hard part was continuing to do things that no longer felt right — just because they were familiar, or expected, or once worked.

• So this is not a mani…

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I’ve been a food blogger for a long time (since 2013).

Long enough to remember when writing felt simple. Long enough to remember when publishing meant sharing something you cared about, not constantly wondering how it would perform, rank, or monetize.

Over the years, the work changed. Ads crept in. Algorithms tightened their grip. Google became less predictable. And slowly, without realizing it at first, a lot of the joy got replaced by pressure.

I don’t think that makes food blogging bad….but I do think it makes it harder to stay sane.

This newsletter exists because I reached a point where I wanted a smaller, quieter place to think out loud about what comes after that phase — or at least alongside it.

A place to talk honestly about sustainability, income, creative energy, and the trade-offs we rarely discuss in public.

Most of what I write here is behind a pay-wall, and that’s intentional.

Not because I think the ideas are precious or secret, but because writing behind a paywall changes the tone of the room. It slows things down. It discourages drive-by consumption. And it allows me to be more candid about doubts, decisions, and missteps without feeling like everything needs to be optimized or defensible.

I’m not here to teach a system or sell a framework and I’m not promising results.

I’m simply documenting what I’m learning as I experiment with newsletters, subscriptions, and a different way of showing up as a food blogger — one that feels more sustainable than chasing traffic and pageviews indefinitely.

If you’re here, you’re probably not new to this work. You’ve likely built something already. You may even still enjoy parts of it. But you’re tired of pretending the current model is the only option.

That’s who this is for.

I don’t know exactly where this goes yet. And I’m okay with that. This is a notebook, not a blueprint.

If you decide to stay, thank you.

If not, no hard feelings at all.

Either way, I’m glad this conversation exists.

— Chuck