5 Proven Rules to Reach 100 Paid Subscribers in 2026
No huge audience needed. Here’s how Ellen Scherr did it and how you can reach bestseller status in 2026, fast
Did you know you can become a Substack bestseller with only 100 paid subscribers in total?
You don’t need a massive audience from other platforms.
You simply need 100 people who trust your voice enough to pay for your writing.
Today I want to show you exactly how to do this in 2026 using a real case study.
We’re going to look at my friend and this year’s Substack Bootcamp co-host Ellen Scherr and how she reached bestseller status so quickly to celebrate her huge milestone:
Congrats!! 🥳🥳🥳🍾🍾🙌🏻🙌🏻
If she can do this in a busy season of life, then you can do it too.
What the Subsatck bestseller badge really means in 2026
Let’s start with something many writers don’t fully understand yet.
Substack has three levels of bestseller badges that show your growth.
The white badge means you have 100 of paid subscribers already.
The orange badge means you have reached 1000 of paid subscribers.
The purple badge means you have tens of thousands of paid subscribers.
Ellen has the white badge right now, and that means she’s a bestseller with 100 paid subs.
I also got the white badge two years back in March 2024.
Ellen Scherr’s Substack success story to inspire you
Let me tell you why Ellen’s story matters so much right now.
Psychotherapist Ellen is a midlife truth teller who writes bold and honest pieces for women. She recently moved back to sunny Florida while unpacking boxes and rebuilding her life. Even with all that chaos around her, she kept writing and showing up online.
She started her Substack journey in autumn with me and stayed consistent every single week. Although growth felt slow in the beginning and she felt as if she’d be talking into the void…
…within five months she has now grown to 19,000 subscribers on the platform with Life Branches .
Soon after that she reached bestseller status with her paid subscribers.
Her Substack success came from clear decisions and daily action.
🔥 Tiered Promo To Celebrate Bestseller Status and my Dad’s 80th Birthday
To celebrate bestseller energy and help you reach your first 100 paid subscribers, I created a simple upgrade promo with stacked rewards.
Here’s how it works.
The first 5 upgrades get 80% off the annual plan as yesterday was my dad’s 80th birthday
The next 10 upgrades get 70% off the annual plan
The next 15 upgrades get 60% off the annual plan
The next 20 upgrades get 50% off the annual plan
Once one tier sells out, the next one activates automatically.
So the earlier you upgrade, the bigger your discount will be.
Everyone who upgrades also gets 60% off the Notes Kickstarter Bootcamp (I’ll send you the code). I bet you can also meet Ellen as one of the rockstarts inside ;)
That means you get the growth strategy, the community, and the full Notes playbook and tools to help you reach bestseller status faster.
Rule #1: Take action even if it feels quiet
The biggest lesson from Ellen’s story is surprisingly simple but very powerful.
You must be biased toward taking action even when nobody reacts at first.
When Ellen started posting long form and late short form, it felt like she was talking into empty space online. There were almost no comments, and engagement felt very low at the beginning.
But she continued to post because she believed in her message and voice.
While it looked quiet on the surface, people were still reading her words carefully. Many silent readers were watching her long before they ever clicked subscribe.
Those quiet readers slowly turned into subscribers and then (when she dard to hit the paid button a few weeks back) paying supporters. Momentum always begins with consistent action rather than perfect timing.
If you want 100 paid subscribers in 2026, then action must come first.
Rule #2: Turn on PAID early, baby
The second lesson might feel uncomfortable if you’re just getting started and just want to write.
You should turn on your paid option much earlier than you think you should.
Many writers wait far too long before allowing readers to support them financially.
When you enable paid subscriptions, Substack has a reason to promote your newsletter.
The platform benefits when you earn (10% cut), so they help boost your visibility internally without you knowing it.
Ellen turned on paid a few weeks back and finally started to treat her writing like a real business. That single decision created momentum that kept building week after week. ANd here we are… Ellen is a bestseller now. (Told you, supergirl!)
You only need 100 people who truly value your perspective and insights. That number is far more achievable than most writers realize today - especially if you don’t write meta staff and about writing :) and have a wonderful topic you’re passionate about and so many more, too.
50 plus is a HUGE topic. Inside the Club Paul Cobbin’s is the 50plus space host. You can connect with him and he’ll also offer monthly sessions to meet and connect.
Rule #3: Find a voice people feel
One of Ellen’s biggest strengths is her unmistakable and honest writing voice.
She writes about midlife, identity shifts, menopause, and reinvention with courage.
Her headlines speak directly to emotions that many readers quietly carry inside.
When someone reads a headline that feels personal and true, they click. When they click and feel understood, they subscribe to hear more. When they trust your voice deeply, they are willing to pay for it.
Ellen learned in the last couple of months to write headlines that feel impossible to ignore or forget. That skill alone can dramatically increase your growth this year.
Rule #4: Own a clear core topic
Ellen knows exactly who she writes for and why it matters.
She works with women in midlife every day through her professional practice. She listens closely to their struggles, transitions, and hidden fears about change. To the words these women use.
Then she uses those real words and experiences in her writing. Readers feel seen because the stories sound like their own lives. You need to check her comments. The comments section is EXPLODING! THe best is community members are then also helping others, asking questions and really have the feeling they can finally share their feelings with others.
When your audience feels understood at that level, they naturally want to support your work and stay close to your voice.
Your core topic should be something you can talk about for hours! It should also be something your audience deeply cares about right now.
Ask yourself: What can I talk about for hours? When someone invites you to hop on a podcast or on stage… what would be this ONE thing?
Oh did you hear? Ellen also got covered by Oprah Daily! This was her dream coming true. We talked about it in one of our sessions when I asked her about creating a list for press coverage. Oprah was #1. And guess what? Only a few weeks later she sent me a message telling me about this HUGE coverage.
Rule #5: Use Notes to grow daily
Another key part of Ellen’s strategy was using Substack Notes consistently.
Notes is the discovery engine that helps new readers find your work. It shows your content to people based on interests rather than follower count.
At first her Notes posts received very little engagement or feedback. But she continued posting and sharing ideas every single day anyway.
Over time her long posts began to spread and reach new audiences. Every subs is a followers. So consistency on Notes helped bring new readers into her newsletter ecosystem.
Growth often looks slow before it suddenly becomes visible to everyone. Ellen was also like: Oh, I’m growing so slow… I said: Just wait and see :)
Let’s quickly review what helped Ellen become a Substack bestseller:
She stayed biased toward action even when growth felt slow at first
She turned on paid subscriptions earlier than most writers feel comfortable doing
She wrote bold headlines that spoke directly to real emotional experiences
She chose a clear core topic and served that audience deeply and consistently
She used Notes every day to expand her reach and visibility
Most importantly, she believed that 100 paid subscribers was possible. That belief shaped every decision she made along the way.
Your guidance got me unstuck and actually moving forward, which is exactly what I needed. It means more than you know to have someone in your corner when you’re trying something new. I coulnd#t have done it without you!
(Ellen Scherr)
Ellen is a rockstar
She did the hardest part.
She didn’t wait until she felt ready
She wrote while it was quiet
She kept going when it felt lonely
She stayed committed to the mission
And now her words are landing in the exact places her readers already trust.
So today we celebrate Ellen. Big time!!
🔥 Tiered Promo To Celebrate Bestseller Status and my Dad’s 80th Birthday
To celebrate bestseller energy and help you reach your first 100 paid subscribers, I created a simple upgrade promo with stacked rewards.
Here’s how it works.
The first 5 upgrades get 80% off the annual plan as yesterday was my dad’s 80th birthday
The next 10 upgrades get 70% off the annual plan
The next 15 upgrades get 60% off the annual plan
The next 20 upgrades get 50% off the annual plan
Once one tier sells out, the next one activates automatically.
So the earlier you upgrade, the bigger your discount will be.
Everyone who upgrades also gets 60% off the Notes Kickstarter Bootcamp (I’ll send you the code when you leave a DM or email kristina@onlinewritingclub.com).
That means you get the growth strategy, the community, and the full Notes playbook and tools to help you reach bestseller status faster.
ONE important question for you…
How many paid subscribers do you currently have right now?
How many more do you need to reach your first one hundred supporters?
That number is your focus for this year. Because once you reach 100 paid subscribers, you’re a bestseller. And everything begins to change from that moment forward. Trust me.
P.S. 🥳🥳Let’s CELEBRATE Ellen and share this post so she can inspire more and more women! By doing so you support a solo indie writer. 🥳🥳
P.P.S. Want to get an asset from the Bootcamp? The 100 Paid Subscriber Bestseller Playbook 2026 with multiple success stories from the Club and beyond to learn from and a clear PATH.
If you want this for FREE reply with:
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Let’s try this, if you read so far you deserve to get it. Of course, also if you become a new member you’ll get that.
(Told you, supergirl!) She can tell me, "I told you," because she was right! From the beginning, she told me to start paid subscriptions, and I kept saying, "No, not yet." Follow her advice, and your Substack will grow!
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