Substack Just Changed! The NEW "Go LIVE" Button Writers Fear… Until They Try It Once
The livestreaming update no one wanted… and why it might be the push you need
You know that moment when you walk into your favorite quiet cafe, ready for a long sit with a good book, and someone sets up a tripod to film a “Day in the Life” vlog right next to your gluten-free muffin?
Yeah. That.
A lot of folks on Substack are feeling like the writers-only treehouse they climbed into just got a ring light installed.
Online writers like me came to Substack for writing. For calm. For depth. For a corner of the internet that did not yell at them.
And today Substack drops a big update via email that says:
“Surprise. We added more social media.”
And writers everywhere whispering into their coffee while reading their announcement….
Please. Not here. Not this.
I get it. I really do.
Here’s The Truth Most Online Writers Don’t See
Video is only scary until you try it once. Then something shifts.
Ask
from .
Substack Bootcamp alum. Afraid to go live. Did not know what button to click. Thought she would break the internet by accident.
We did her first live together. She pushed through the fear.
Now?
She’s at 8,000 subscribers and growing fast. She’s shining. And next week I get to share a podcast episode with her!
But Ellen is not the only one.
Meet
.Another Bootcamp alum. She’s 87. Yes. Eighty seven. And she’s rocking Substack.
She started turning on the mic.
She started showing her face.
She started sharing weekly videos on Substack Notes.
And the algorithm noticed.
One of her Notes went viral with more than 20,000 likes.
Because she shows up. Because she shares. Because she creates both videos and written posts.
And because the moment she dared to go live, something changed for her too.
Patricia is also a published author this year. And soon she’ll be podcasting with the incredible
. Both Bootcamp alums. Both crushing it and doing Substack “their way”!This is what happens when you take the leap. You don’t become someone else. You just become more of who you already are.
The Ultimate Guide to Substack Live - Made Easy
Let’s make this simple.
Substack now lets you go live from desktop. Before it was only available via the app and mobile.
Good news:
No heavy setup.
No expensive editing tools.
No tech headaches. Yay!
I tested it already:
From your desktop or laptop you click “Create new” as if you’d like to write a post
You choose “New Live Video”
You enter a preview room to check your camera and mic.
You can invite co-hosts by searching for them inside the Substack universe or inviting them to join you from outside
You can keep the video private or public.
The easiest way to grow in January is to start in December.
Let my rocking hubby, full-time software developer, part-time YouTuber and online course instructor Patrick God coach you LIVE together with me.
My friend, Club community member and orange badge health and fitness writer
asked:
So let me show you even more WOW-ness:
But first off, I don’t know about a time limit. I did 15 minute lives, 30, 1 hour or even 2. It’s livestreaming. And as far as I know there’s no one stopping you from screaming from your bathroom, as well, or simply just leave for a quick break and then come back.
When you end your live, Substack gives you two things:
an automatically generated video post with title of the LIVE and a thank you to the people who joined the LIVE as the one about midlife writers with
You can posts this only a few minutes after the actual live session.
ready made short social clips (like on YouTube with Shorts or on TikTok with the super short videos) you’ll get via email and can access by clicking on the settings button of the video post:
These clips are cool! They…
cut out dead air
zoom in on the speaker
add clean titles
are ready to share anywhere
can auto-post to YouTube and LinkedIn, if connected (!), Hint: Make sure to click to check the button or uncheck otherwise you might publish things on YouTube you don’t want to share there (happened to me already!).
You might wonder:
Kristina, why should I care about this ….?!
Today Substack shared that clips have already brought in almost 500,000 new free subscriptions across the platform!
That’s why Substack as a platform for all types of creators and people who want to monetize their skills keep building video tools.
Because clips help people find your work.
Because they grow your audience.
Because they build trust faster.
But you’re always in control. You get to choose what you want to use.
Things To Keep in Mind When Using Substack’s Social Clips
There are multiple things I helped my members with this year.
One of them was … of course… starting doing lives, creating video content and speading the live videos.
I learnd you can choose whether you want to share
portrait or landscape
you can download all (! attention, WITH Substack Logo!) videos
create your own clips by clicking on “create”, checking the transcript and then do text-based editing and create your own videos
Join The Substack Live Challenge NOW!
If you want to try going live, do it in the next dasy. Try it once. That’s all.
Tag @SubstackTeam so your clip has a chance to be featured on their Notes account, as they announced. That’s a one-of—a-lifetime chance similar to the time when Medium would feature writers who would share stories about a specific topic and then tag e.g. #inequality.
Me and my tribe members got featured multiple times!
And tag me — @kristinagod.
I’ll re-stack you and share your clip or video post with my 26,000 (!) followers. I will hype you like a Taylor Swift crowd seeing their favourite song live.
Because when you go live, the world gets to see the rockstar you already are!
Hot & NEW: Live Class Next Week, Friday 12th w/ YouTube Rockstar and 6-Figure Instructor Patrick God
This is the season to finish strong. One brave step now can change your whole year ahead.
Next week I am teaching a live class on video and Substack Lives with my husband and YouTube rockstar Patrick God (almost 100,000 subscribers). If you can’t make it, you can watch the recording.
Patrick is an introvert. Shy. Couldn’t talk in front of a class, camera or ask a girl out. Now he’s crushing it on YouTube, selling high-ticket courses and educating his community on how to use .NET Web, Blazor and all things software development.
We’ll be holding your hand. Teaching you everything you need to know to go from camera-shy to -confident and our tips and tricks as two introverted online creators.
Also we’ll share our low-budget tech stack!
Just make sure you join us on Friday 12th! (As always, I’ll share the link with paid members!)
BONUS: If you do join us, you’ll get two special bonuses to end the year strong!
This will help you feel safe and ready on camera. We’ll also go live on Substack together, as I did with Ellen and multiple others this year!
One of them was million writer
Trust me… it gets easier with every time you hit record or the GO LIVE button. I’m proof.
You Need More?
Here’s my masterclass on how to go live on Substack via mobile/app. Desktop works the same. Check it out! Paid-members only post!
This is about my first LIVE in January.
joined me spontaneosly. We had a blast.
My LIVE with Ayo
Get the Substack on-demand Bootcamp!
The internet doesn’t need another quiet talent.
It needs the version of you that shows up.
So… what are you waiting for?
Build your own era!
Good article Kristina. I heard Patricia Ross on GenXy's "The Daily Whatever" yesterday, and she is amazing - 87 and far more articulate and switched on than me - I am very slightly younger!
Regarding the "Live" thing, I have a face made for radio, and have the verbal fluency of a Trappist monk, so will probably just stick to writing, but for those that can, it opens a whole new dimension to Substack that does not exist on Medium, so it seems clear where the future is, particuarly since the Medium earnings crash.
Dear God! Did you just write this now?
My prayers are answered in real time. 😏😌
Thank you so much! 🔥