The hottest Writing Substack posts right now

And their main takeaways
Category
Top Literature Topics

Hey Now!

The Contender • 2338 implied HN points • 07 Aug 23
🎭️ Culture Writing
  1. Personal connection is key in newsletters.
  2. Consider the value of choices and idiosyncrasies in content creation.
  3. The importance of letting creative work evolve and staying true to foundational principles.

THE JC PENNEY DEBACLE

Cintra Wilson Feels Your Pain • 1316 implied HN points • 18 Jan 24
🎭️ Culture Writing
  1. The author faced backlash and public condemnation for an article she wrote about JC Penney that was perceived as snobbish and cruel.
  2. The incident led to the author being publicly renounced by The New York Times, causing significant personal and professional consequences.
  3. Despite the backlash, some individuals supported the author and appreciated her humor and writing style.

Here are the Substacks You Should Read

Political Currents by Ross Barkan • 12 implied HN points • 06 Mar 26
🎭️ Culture Writing
  1. Comedy Distant is a sharp, darkly funny satire newsletter that skewers improv and workplace culture with wicked wit, filling a rare comedy niche on Substack.
  2. big reader bad grades mixes memoir and literary reportage in a distinctive numbered format, offering poignant and often funny reflections from life as a grocery-store clerk and a singular novelist’s perspective.
  3. Cross Current delivers deep, wide-ranging cultural and political essays that weave history, media, and ideas together, pushing readers beyond simple left‑versus‑right debates and rewarding slow, thoughtful reading.

From the Road

Story Club with George Saunders • 77 implied HN points • 29 Jan 26
📚 Literature Writing
  1. French dance phrases act as small bursts of physical action that stop long interior monologue from feeling static and help the reader picture the character moving through the house.
  2. Those interjections create a staccato rhythm and audible pauses chosen by ear, giving the prose variety and little moments for the reader to gather before returning to inner thought.
  3. The technique is improvisational and ear-driven, mixing high and low diction, jargon, foreign phrases, and typographic tics to produce a controlled cacophony that makes the voice feel lively and invites the reader to lean in.

Don't Let Good Ideas Get Away

Range Widely • 2279 implied HN points • 06 Jun 23
📚 Literature Writing
  1. Having a grab bag for ideas can help save you from distraction and preserve your thoughts.
  2. Stimulate curiosity by keeping a list of facts, ideas, and experiences that intrigue you.
  3. Organize ideas and spark creativity by keeping a repository for interesting things you come across.
Get a weekly roundup of the best Substack posts, by hacker news affinity:

Five years here: post #250!

Brain Pizza • 264 implied HN points • 27 Nov 25
🎭️ Culture Writing
  1. A creator is marking five years on the platform and celebrating their 250th post.
  2. They’ve been consistently prolific — about 50 posts a year, each 1,000–2,000 words, adding up to roughly 400,000 words in total.
  3. The full post is behind a paywall and requires a subscription, though a 7-day free trial is offered.

Open Thread 362

Astral Codex Ten • 3303 implied HN points • 30 Dec 24
📚 Literature Writing
  1. This is a space for open discussions where you can share anything or ask questions. It's great for connecting with others about various topics.
  2. Jimmy Carter, the former president, has passed away, and there was a biography about him that many people found interesting.
  3. Happy New Year to everyone! Regular updates and posts will be coming back soon.

When does a diary pay off?

Austin Kleon • 2797 implied HN points • 18 Jul 23
🎭️ Culture Writing
  1. Keeping a diary helps you pay attention to your life. It makes you notice what's happening and appreciate your everyday experiences.
  2. Writing in a diary allows you to track your personal patterns and understand yourself better over time.
  3. Having years of diary entries gives you a chance to look back and reflect on your growth and memories, making it easier to connect with your past.

who are you (hoo hoo)???

Both Are True • 118 implied HN points • 05 Jan 26
🎭️ Culture Writing
  1. Say hi and connect — everyone is invited to introduce themselves and join the community in the comments.
  2. Be real and spontaneous — embrace questions, oddness, and unpolished ideas instead of polished brand messaging.
  3. Celebrate change and play — treat the new year and the shifting online neighborhood with humor, curiosity, and togetherness.

"DIY"

Nice Try • 319 implied HN points • 05 Jun 24
📚 Literature Writing
  1. The essay discusses the myths about doing things on your own, known as 'DIY'.
  2. It emphasizes that being self-taught or an 'autodidact' isn't always as straightforward as it seems.
  3. A key point is knowing how to find information is more important than memorizing everything.

Arguing with bots

Austin Kleon • 2118 implied HN points • 26 Sep 23
🎭️ Culture Writing
  1. People often get upset about things online that aren't true. In one case, people thought they were angry at a famous author but were really just mad at a fake account.
  2. It's easy to fall for misleading quotes. Even I made that mistake without checking the original context first.
  3. Social media can often showcase poor writing. It might be better to focus on reading good stuff instead of engaging with low-quality content.

Beginnings and enchantments

The Art of Enchantment, with Dr Sharon Blackie • 2116 implied HN points • 05 Apr 23
⛪ Faith & Spirituality Writing
  1. Moving into a new house can be disruptive but redecorating and making it your own can be joyful and rewarding.
  2. Returning to a place where you feel a sense of belonging can bring a profound feeling of being at home, even after many years.
  3. Exploring familiar landscapes and being close to family can bring a sense of ancestral connection and understanding of oneself.

How I learned to love literary criticism.

The Common Reader • 3154 implied HN points • 12 Dec 24
📚 Literature Writing
  1. Literary criticism can be valuable for helping readers understand deeper meanings in texts. It can guide readers to appreciate literature beyond just their personal thoughts.
  2. Reading secondary literature can enrich your understanding of authors and their works. Many great critics highlight unnoticed details that make reading more enjoyable.
  3. Critics who focus on the structure and style of writing can improve our reading skills. They help us notice important aspects of a text that we might otherwise miss.

Resist Summary

The Map is Mostly Water • 2942 implied HN points • 31 Dec 24
🕹 Technology Writing
  1. We read too many summaries instead of diving deep into topics. This can make us miss the detailed understanding that comes from exploring original sources.
  2. Writing from your own experience and observations is important. It helps create richer and more interesting content than just summarizing others' ideas.
  3. Using AI for quick answers can simplify things, but it might prevent you from understanding complex ideas. Building a deeper understanding requires slow and careful thinking.

The Maybe Baby Archive

Maybe Baby • 143 implied HN points • 26 Dec 25
🎭️ Culture Writing
  1. The writing covers a wide range of everyday and big-picture topics — existential life questions, culture, relationships, parenting, work, and mental health. It aims to help readers think through how to live well in modern life.
  2. Content appears in many formats — free essays, advice columns, podcasts, recommendation lists, and even diagrams or invented theories — so readers can choose between personal essays, practical advice, and bite-sized recs.
  3. A clear tagging system and curated samplers make it easy to find pieces by theme or series, with recurring features like recommendation lists and annual community calls to help discovery.

Morning Stretches

CRAFT TALK • 2083 implied HN points • 24 Feb 23
📚 Literature Writing
  1. This newsletter is about writing and creativity.
  2. The author is working on finishing two books.
  3. To get back into writing, the author is doing morning stretches like reading shorter novels and taking care of their health.

Since You Asked

Chuck Palahniuk's Plot Spoiler • 2083 implied HN points • 08 Jun 23
📚 Literature Writing
  1. Writing is about risking looking bad and giving others the same opportunity.
  2. A proposed series may fail to find a large readership and face challenges with publishers.
  3. Persisting through challenges is important in creative pursuits like writing.

Mailbag Grab Grab

Freddie deBoer • 3434 implied HN points • 23 Nov 24
📚 Literature Writing
  1. The writer is open to doing a podcast if it's funded and someone else handles the technical aspects, but they don't think it would attract enough new subscribers.
  2. They are excited about their upcoming book projects, including a novel and a nonfiction book about mental health, with expected publication dates in 2025 and 2026.
  3. Despite receiving many emails, the writer can't always respond due to time constraints but values the input and feels guilty for not replying.

Five books that taught me how to write

The Intrinsic Perspective • 7525 implied HN points • 13 Feb 24
📚 Literature Writing
  1. Writers often look up to their influences rather than trying to be completely different from them
  2. Identifying your greatest influences can help you understand the standards you strive to meet in your writing
  3. Having a unique style in writing is valuable amidst a world where many pieces sound similar

2025 Is Finally Over—But Not Soon Enough

Slack Tide by Matt Labash • 154 implied HN points • 30 Dec 25
🎭️ Culture Writing
  1. Conservative media is cannibalizing itself. Influencers often attack one another because they won’t challenge their leader, and politics has largely turned into entertainment rather than a real contest of ideas.
  2. Pop culture feels stuck and fragmented — the old monoculture is gone, nostalgia is everywhere, and streaming plus AI are devouring and hollowing out the internet; still, you can find unexpected gems if you bother to hunt for them.
  3. Keep writing and creating even when you feel malaise, because it helps clarify thought and can be its own reward; small humane acts and humor in hard times also give real inspiration and steadiness.

I’m building a cooperative media ecosystem

The Novelleist • 2736 implied HN points • 03 Jan 25
🎭️ Culture Writing
  1. The goal is to create a media platform owned by the writers, not big media companies. This helps ensure that stories and ideas come from creative individuals, fostering a better media environment.
  2. Instead of focusing on problems, the aim is to spark ideas and solutions for a better future together. This will include publishing various themes in print magazines and books, sharing profits fairly.
  3. The plan involves inviting other writers to collaborate on projects, learning from the process, and slowly building a community. It's about teamwork to make meaningful content and potentially inspire change.

The Power of Words

Break Free with Karen Hunt • 1100 implied HN points • 21 Jan 24
🎭️ Culture Writing
  1. Words have tremendous power to bring people together and break down walls of prejudice.
  2. Face-to-face communication and sharing stories can unite people who once were enemies.
  3. Writing is a powerful tool to understand oneself, connect with others, and fight back against tyranny.

Still Going...

Story Club with George Saunders • 60 implied HN points • 01 Feb 26
📚 Literature Writing
  1. Travel is hectic with a packed schedule of events across multiple cities, but a pause is coming soon.
  2. Long posts are apologized for and blamed on the rushed pace, with a wish there had been more time to write shorter, tighter pieces.
  3. This post is behind a paywall and directs readers to subscribe or sign in as a paid subscriber.

I'm doing Inkhaven

Aliveness Studies • 9 implied HN points • 24 Feb 26
📚 Literature Writing
  1. A month-long Berkeley writing residency forces daily output (residents must publish 500+ words a day), giving strong structure and accountability for people who want to write more.
  2. The program’s main benefits are community, feedback, and networking — being around other writers and experienced bloggers can help workshop pieces, boost productivity, and even support mental health through co-regulation.
  3. Even without clear long-term goals, committing to a focused month can clarify thinking, be a fun way to explore the area, and many participants report very positive experiences.

30-day challenge

Austin Kleon • 5875 implied HN points • 01 Nov 22
🎭️ Culture Writing
  1. Doing something small every day can lead to big changes over time. Just like writing a page a day can add up to a whole chapter or even a novel.
  2. Focusing on daily progress is easier than thinking about long-term goals. Trying to do a little each day keeps you grounded and motivated.
  3. Don't be afraid to start small and accept that being bad at something is part of getting better. The key is to practice regularly and enjoy the process.

How my son got in to Duke

Penelope Trunk's Substack • 599 implied HN points • 01 Apr 24
🚌 Education Writing
  1. Focus on self-directed learning and unique experiences rather than typical benchmarks like SAT scores.
  2. When writing, be specific and share personal experiences to create content that AI cannot replicate.
  3. Homeschooling can give students the opportunity to stand out in college applications by being remarkable and avoiding common educational norms.

Time is not a butler

Austin Kleon • 3517 implied HN points • 07 Apr 23
🎭️ Culture Writing
  1. Don't stress about finding your own style; focus on creating instead. It's okay if your style evolves over time.
  2. Learning from others doesn't mean copying them; it’s about using reference images to grow as an artist.
  3. Meeting new experiences, like seeing a screech owl or watching unique movies, can inspire your creativity and add joy to your life.

Medium School Will Officially Open Its Doors and 30-Day Writing Challenge in April

Kristina God's Online Writing Club • 579 implied HN points • 02 Apr 24
🚌 Education Writing
  1. Medium School is opening soon, offering a chance for people to improve their writing skills. It's a great opportunity for anyone looking to get started with their writing journey.
  2. There's a 30-day writing challenge to encourage participation and help boost your writing practice. Even if you're late to join, it's never too late to start.
  3. The school will provide resources and support to help writers earn from their work. The aim is to help participants progress from making little money to achieving their goals.

Subscriber Writing, July 2025

Freddie deBoer • 897 implied HN points • 22 Jul 25
📚 Literature Writing
  1. There are monthly writing roundups that showcase great pieces from various authors. These can help writers grow their audience and connect with readers.
  2. Many articles discuss social issues, politics, and personal stories that reflect on current events and human experiences. This variety makes the writing engaging for different readers.
  3. Readers are encouraged to be supportive in the comments for the writers sharing their work. Kindness can foster a better community among both writers and readers.