My Two-Year Anniversary Writing on Substack

Photo by Kelly Sikkema on Unsplash

You’re receiving this newsletter because you signed up for Writer’s Notebook. My other newsletters are Fiction LaunchPad and Abstract Art. You can always adjust what newsletters you receive by going to the Manage subscription on your profile page while on my Substack. But I hope you stick with all three. You’ll enjoy it here.

I can’t believe it’s been two years since I started writing on Substack. Here I had all those years without anyone seeing any of my writing. And now everyone sees it. I’m making up for all that lost time.

I thought I would delve into the some of the stories I’m most proud of. Don’t get me wrong, I like everything I have written. These are just some stories that I took a lot of energy and time. And there a few funny ones too!

First, let me tell you how much I appreciate all my subscribers, readers, and followers. Each time you hit that like button or comment, it makes me feel good. These days there is a lot of stuff going on in the world and writing eases the tension I feel. It’s like I’m off in my own world. I feel that too when I’m doing my artwork.

If I have a bad day at work, I just remember all of you that are reading and writing comments. It cheers me up and I know I can count on you to make everything all better.

This is my 105^th newsletter. Can you believe it?

I have to thank all the friends I’ve made on Substack. Who knew it would be so easy?! If you ever want to contact me, just hit the direct message button on the bottom of any of my stories.

What’s Next

The sky’s the limit. I’m going to start writing more fiction. For those new here that is what I started writing. I have made up stories my whole life. I’ve got a bunch of stories in the works. I’ll still post stories about my life but those are dwindling. And of course, I’ll post my monthly abstract art.

Writing fiction comes so easily to me. I don’t know why it does but I guess some people just have a knack for it. I feel I’m better at writing fiction. When I get off on a tangent, I can just keep going.

If I ever get the time to read a book, I’ll always decide on a fiction book. I can also read those faster. I think it’s because I’m so interested in the ins and outs of the story and where it is going.

Looking Back

Let’s take a look back at some of my most popular stories. These are not necessarily popular by how many views it received. I liked writing these stories.

Some of these stories were embarrassing to write. But I decided I was going to let it all out (no pun intended on that first one).

Who Stole My Underwear?: This one has to be my most embarrassing story on here. It’s not everyday that you go to school and you come home naked. Of course, not totally naked, just missing your underwear. If you haven’t read it yet, I encourage you to go for it.

The Box That Made Her Cry (Fiction): This is the fiction story I’m most proud of. I took one sentence from an AI generator. I changed some of the sentence and then ran with it. 3,000 words later I had finished what I was meant to accomplish. Go ahead and read it. Let me know what you think.

The Woman on the Train (fiction): This is the second story I’m most proud of. I took a real-life incident from one of my fellow Substackers and created a great fiction story. What is up there right now is just a small snippet. I’ve been working on expanding this and did I ever. I’m up to 14,000 words and I haven’t even finished the ending yet. I had planned to release the newly updated Part 1 this week but then I noticed that it was the milestone week. So I’ll release Part 1 next week. I can’t wait to see what kind of feedback I get on it. After reading it over and over, I wonder if I might be able to release it as a novella or something at a later time (with some editing). I’m not posting the link because I want you to get the true effect next week with the updated material.

Trapped! Now What?: It’s not everyday you get stuck in your bathroom. The lesson is, always listen to your Mother!

Notes

I wrote a year ago that the verdict was still out for Notes. I’m here to tell you that I think it’s a great avenue to talk to everyone. I picked up some tips about posting photos. Since I have started posting photos, I have started to receive more followers and subscribers. So I would recommend that you try to post photos of your daily life. It’s nice to see what other people who live all across the world get themselves into. I know I’ve followed more people based on what they have posted.

Conclusion

It’s been a great ride. Let’s keep it going!!

I can’t wait to see what the next year brings! How much can I grow this Substack? It doesn’t have to be large to be successful. I would call it successful right now. I enjoy writing and meeting all the new people.

Don’t forget, next week I’ll be posting an updated version of “The Woman on the Train”. I’ve added 358 words and made it a “Part 1 of many”.

Again thanks for reading and I hope you continue to support my writing.

Until next time, happy reading!

-Matt