What is Substack good for, and how can it work for me?

This is the first in a series of skills share sessions organised by the Oxford branch of the National Union of Journalists, and is open to members and also interested non-members.

It is in-person only at our meeting place at The Source (bottom of St Aldates).

The session will be led by Penny Kiley and Hugh Warwick, two journalists with long track records of publishing in print and digital formats, for very different audiences. Penny made her name as a rock music journalist in the late '70s and 1980s, and her writing focuses on the whole post-punk music era and remaining uncompromising punk as she grows older. Hugh loves and writes about all things hedgehog, and more generally nature and conservation.

Neither Penny nor Hugh is an expert in using Substack. But they are experts in their own areas of journalism and have found ways to make good use of what Substack can offer, which they have kindly agreed to share.

In this session they will:

• Introduce you to Substack and how to get started
• Explain their own reasons for starting a Substack

They will then talk you through their own decision making, experiences and tips on:

• Defining a target audience
• Sourcing content
• Promoting content
• Building subscribers
• Building paid subscribers

And they will talk about the demands on their time and how the work put into their Substacks does (or does not) either draw on other work they are doing, or feed into other work they are doing

There will be plenty of time allowed for Q&A and discussion.

Doors open at 6.30pm

The session starts at 7.00pm . We expect to finish by 8.00pm or 8.30pm at the latest.

Access is free but you must register so we can keep track of numbers, as spaces will be limited.

Tickets are on a first come first served basis, but with priorty given to NUJ members.

Register early for the best chance of securing a place. NUJ members get priority.

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