š©š½āš» Things I'm doing LESS of on Substack in 2026...
+ MORE of too! š«
My FREE Substack/socials party for 2026 is here if youād like to watch.
Hi Sparklers,
Happy New Year! (again) - Iāll stop saying it soon but today is not that day! I seriously wish you all the best for a firecracker year of creativity, connection and joyful growth. I hope the bumps in the road are bolstered with self compassion and kindness too. š«
More, Less and about the sameā¦
I wanted to write on what Iām doing more of in Substack in 2026 and invite you to share what you want MORE of in the comments below.
I led with the headline of less because negative bias in headlines getās more clicks - Iām not mad about it - itās all just a beautiful game. š
Itās inspired by those popular āmore and lessā lists - have you seen them? I think itās so helpful to write about what we want MORE of and in duality what we feel we need less ofā¦
Infact, sometimes if we start with what we donāt want, it can be an easier question than asking what we do want. Unless youāre going to the shops and then Iāll always want more milk for the fridge, some satsumas (so good) and maybe a chocolate bar to give me energy for the live calls inside of Sparkle on Substack . š š«
Next week inside my membership here at Sparkle on Substack , we have our annual visioning retreat - yes I do a visioning retreat for Substack - this is the place of MANY life changing opportunities. You are so welcome to join us. My 14 Day free trial is still running if you want to try it out. We go deep into nervous system work to hold audiences and peel back the layers to better understand our creative practise - as well as learning the platform of course.
So to moreā¦
I missed some of the goals I set last year so Iām just continuing on, adventuring into the second actā¦
Edits - I was a write and go gal - I had to be when my daughter was small - now I have more time and Iāve grown to love the editing process. So more of that. That said - I donāt want a post to take me more than two hoursā¦ itās so personal isnāt it but thatās where Iām at.
Membership focus - last year I focussed deep on the membership experience making sure my community had super warm welcomes. My material met them where they are at for a wonderful time. I also focussed on space holding so they could support each other to grow joyfully. Iām doing the same amount of that but with more regular feedback. The 2025 members survey is here. Did you know you could make surveys in Substack? Head to dash/ āstatsā to find the composer.
SEO friendly posts - I actually have a tonne of amazing posts in the archive that I didnāt do the āproperā SEO work on so Iām re-editing those now. I talk more about this in my new course - Audience Alchemy which is about building work that creates a legacy and a constant stream of new readers, customers and opportunities rather than feeding the social media gods your daily energy tokens.
Guest posts and taking my time with those - I often felt rushed with guest posts - I always say yes but I intend NOT to feel rushed while doing more connecting to the work for those.
Sparkle on Substack The Podcast - I wanted 100k downloads on the podcast in 2025 but with the algorithm shifts my new readers slowed down and it didnāt happen.
I could have done way more to make it happen so this year I am. Iāll be recording new episodes and I still have 6 from last year all edited and ready to share. I do more solo episodes too. You can listen here or search Sparkle on Substack wherever you get your pods. I talk to writers, creatives and entrepreneurs about how they are using the platform and staying creative hereā¦ their work before Substack and their plans here.
Less
Emailing - I burnt my audience out a bit whilst trying to be helpful so now I only email readers once a week on Wednesdays. My other articles are posts and I share them in Notes and in the body of the main weekly email (see below). The views are way less this way but the churn has plateaued so Iām continuing with this method. If I accidentally email you when Iām going live - apologies in advance! Marketing gurus will tell you; unsubscribes are none of your business but as this space got busier and we all got subscription fatigue, I made it my mission to ask people and I got the full picture. More is not necessarily better and it wonāt necessarily get you more readers overall - itās just more to process. š
Striving to keep two bestseller badges - my paid newsletter Creatively Conscious by Claire Venus has (at the time of your reading) 95 paid subs (not 101 as you need for a bestseller badge) and my membership (whilst wildly successful) is down by 100 members since last summer. What is sustainable in year 4 here Iāve found to be different to what was sustainable with joy at the heart in year 2 and 3. Thatās all I want to say about that, oh and that Iāll ALWAYS be honest with you.
Rolling my eyes in Notes - Notes are the one and only place you get knocked off centre unless you have a super thick skin.ā¦ Substackās social media is a great opportunity for views but we need to be cautiousā¦ You used ai to write your Note - good for you but also āmuteā. You are teaching folks how to grow on Substack after one viral post - thatās great and generous - mute! Your triggers will be different.
I need Notes to be a CALM, nervous system experience; photos of nature and stories from the heartā¦ a place where I show up to create and chat with my colleagues and members not a noisy marketplace of comparison. What do YOU need in Notes? Thereās no harm if we mute, block if we need to and we move on. Small actions - big compounding impact.
The Sameā¦
I love a new year for a fresh start on things but these reflections have come out of over a month of DEEP reflection work and my annual process. A process which pretty much eats me alive and allows me to process every negative comment and subconscious thought. Iām fine!
Substack Lives - I love lives - I love that we have a smoothing filter now. Iām looking forward to meeting more colleagues live - come check out my live schedule for January Joy here. Here are my tips for going live.
Self Belief - Itās hard not to waiver when your online home is rearranged before your eyes but self belief is a real gift. My word of the year is serenity and my intention is self compassion - it should serve me super well. Being on the fire horse energy!
Acts of service - I love teaching here, I love writing Notes to connect. I also love holding space in live courses, I love working one to one - I was called to do this work - it was a āI canāt not do thisā - not a decision born out of strategy. Iām very grateful to God/ The Universe for showing me this path at the right time and Iāll keep leaning in and battling my own ego to better understand where and why and when Iām needed. Ever grateful to my Human Design (HD) teacher Lauren Barber for space holding and support and my business mentor Leonie Dawson who held me through such a rough patch last year and got me re-connected to my power! š
Join hundreds of members inside of Sparkle on Substack and get instant access to over 400 posts, tutorials, member call replays and our community chat. We are meeting on Monday for our 2026 Visioning Retreat and you are SO welcome to join us. 14 Day Free Trial is here and expires on 2nd Feb so you have the whole of January to explore.
Sparkle on Substack is an invite to Substack mastery, strategy and your connection to your heart work. Itās the endless invite to connect to what makes you uniquely you whist also alchemising your BEST fit audience and making the most of this WONDERFUL platform.
š¬ Iāll see you in the comments below or tag me in Notes if you fancy with your more and less on Substack lists!
Until this time next week, stay sparkly and remember we have time!
Claire
āØ
This was a perfect coffee read this morning. Maybe kicked me back into Substack action
Loved this one Claire! š¤āØ looking forward to really dive deep on substack this year!