Reading on the Phone
Substack's new phone app + recommendations
Hey there, survivalists,
I’m dropping this mid-week mailing to share some good news for all of us weirdos who read long form writing on their phones: Substack has released its first phone app.
Some quotes from the announcement, which I quite liked:
. . . As media businesses became more and more anemic, writers were relegated to content-production roles and playing attention games on social media, where “engagement” is prized above all else, including quality and truth.
It is clear to us that these problems can’t be solved with a tweak to an algorithm or a just-so regulation. Instead, the entire system needs to change. With Substack, we have set out to build an alternative media ecosystem . . . where writers are rewarded with direct payments from readers, and where readers have total control over what they read . . .
It is an app for deep relationships, an alternative to the mindless scrolling and cheap dopamine hits that lie behind other home screen icons. It offers a quiet space to read, where the work itself is given the spotlight and you’re not pulled into status games or trivial diversions.
iphone users can get the app here. Android users, like me, have to defer gratification a bit longer. Here’s the waitlist.
If this inspires you to financially support independent writing, here is another thing to click.
Here are some newsletters that I actually fish out of the chaos of my email so that I can read—which is honestly my best recommendation.
Gossip Time is clever and nicely snarky and is positioned for something like ‘middle millennial ‘ up through GenX.
For balanced, thoughtful, information about Covid-19 and other matters of public health, Eric Topol’s Ground Truth delivers.
Betsy Marro’s The Spark treads similar terrain to that of Survival by Book: creativity, books, life; think of it as our West Coast booksister.
The Lunar Dispatch has all of your moon-gazing covered.
Why is this interesting? is old school, high quality, feature writing on interesting topics that we have forgotten to care about because they are not in the shape of memes.
Feeling a bit uneasy about inflation, gas prices, the world economy? In Big, Matt Stoller’s lens is monopolies, but his range is expansive.
If you are hungry, enjoy beautiful art design, or just want the Wordle of food blogs, try Above the Fold
If you need to know the difference between a leftist and a liberal, (you knew I had to drop one of these) Freddie deBoer’s your guy. I like him for his range of interests and moral courage. He’s not for the politically faint of heart, though, so look after yourselves.
Ok, now I gotta go back to my day job. Happy reading and don’t forget to share the love.
Hey, thanks for including me and Spark, Courtney! I like the idea of being the West Coast sister to Survival By Book.