Substack
Independent newsletters. Read or write.
What is Substack?
- Newsletter platform.
- Writers publish directly to subscribers.
- Many free, some paid ($5–$10/month).
- No algorithm filtering.
- Independent journalism + commentary.
- Quality varies — pick wisely.
Popular for seniors
- Heather Cox Richardson — daily history + politics.
- The Pour Over — neutral news summary.
- Garbage Day — internet culture.
- Astral Codex Ten — long-form thinking.
- Slow Boring — Matt Yglesias.
- Many free + paid options.
How to subscribe
- Visit Substack.com.
- Search topics or writers.
- Click Subscribe — enter email.
- Free if author hasn't set price.
- Or pay through credit card.
- Newsletters arrive in email.
Reading experience
- Substack app — read all subscriptions.
- Or read via email.
- Audio narration on many posts.
- Comment + discuss with other readers.
- Adjustable text size.
- Save for later.
Start your own newsletter
- Free to publish.
- Substack takes 10% of paid subscriptions.
- Many seniors share life stories or expertise.
- Write about retirement, gardening, history, etc.
- Family + friends auto-subscribe.
- Build audience over time.
Cancel subscriptions easily
- Each newsletter has Manage Subscription link.
- Or visit Substack.com → Settings.
- See all paid subscriptions in one place.
- Cancel anytime, no hassle.
- Most senior readers have 1–3 paid.
- Keep checking + pruning.
Heather Cox Richardson is free
If you're curious about Substack, subscribe free to Heather Cox Richardson's "Letters from an American." She's a Boston College history professor who writes daily about American history + current events. Over 1 million subscribers. Free. It'll show you the format. Then explore other writers in topics you care about.