Notes
Notes are short-form posts published to your Substack profile and shared with subscribers in the Home feed.
With notes, writers might:
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Write short-form posts (like microblogging)
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Restack posts they enjoyed and think others might like
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Promote a recent post by sharing a quote
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Tag a writer they admire to start a conversation
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Reply to the notes they find most interesting
Any writer or reader on Substack can start a new note– a publication isn't required.
In the Substack app or on the web, visit the Home tab and click the “+” button. Then tap "Note".
Notes are public and available for anyone in the Substack network to view. They can appear in the Notes feed of people who subscribe to your publication or follow you on Substack. Notes also appear on your profile.
Learn more about Notes here.
Chat
Chats is a space for writers to host conversations with their subscribers. These are private messages sent only to subscribers, which are meant to encourage discussion or conversation.
We hope it’ll allow you to share quick updates, photos, and discussion prompts on the go; and make reader engagement more vibrant through features like image replies and emoji reactions.
Who can start a chat thread?
The default is that only publication contributors can start chat threads. Writers have the option in settings to let subscribers (founding members, paid subscribers, free subscribers) participate by starting top-level chats. This empowers subscribers to help steward the community around your publication.
Who can see my chat?
Only subscribers can access your publication's chat. When you start a new thread, you can also send it as an email and subscribers can view the chat on the web or on the Substack app.
Can I paywall a chat?
When you start a new chat thread, you can select the option to have only paid subscribers be able to view and reply. Free subscribers will see a "Subscribers only" lock screen on paid threads.
Read more about Chat here.