The Separationist Moves to Substack

The Evolution of The Separationist

For many years, The Separationist was a printed newsletter mailed to members. Eventually, it became available online, with the print version posted as a PDF. Over time, the printed edition was phased out entirely, leaving only the online version. Then the pandemic hit—and the newsletter disappeared altogether.

In February 2024, we revived The Separationist in the form of a MailChimp email. This new version combined our regular email updates with a few feature articles. The format was more a product of available resources than a carefully considered decision about what would work best. We expanded the editorial team and quickly reached a consensus: we needed an alternative to the MailChimp format.

There were several drawbacks to MailChimp. First, the layout is just one long scroll—adequate for reading on a phone but lacking in visual appeal and organization. Second, we had concerns about long-term archiving. One of the strengths of the older versions of The Separationist was the ability to look back through past issues, archived on the SHL website. (Side note: we’re still missing issues from 1995–2000 and 2017–2020. If you have copies, please email us at newsletter@lowcountryhumanists.org.)

Perhaps the biggest drawback, though, was readership. One of MailChimp’s few advantages is that it tracks email opens and link clicks. Unfortunately, the data showed that of the 500+ people receiving the newsletter, fewer than a third were even opening it—and only a small fraction of those were engaging with the content. It's difficult to stay motivated to produce a newsletter when it feels like no one is reading it.

Substack was one of the alternatives we considered. This July issue marks our first attempt at using the platform. So far, we’re pretty pleased with the results. It’s not perfect, and we’re still finding our way, but the new format already feels like a step forward. That said, there are things we don’t love—chief among them Substack’s relentless push to get readers to create accounts and become subscribers. No, you DON’T need to create a Substack account to read our content, but Substack really, really, really wants you to. And yes, that’s annoying.

Still, one of Substack’s biggest strengths is the vibrancy of its community. It’s full of talented writers and journalists and has become a hub for thoughtful, engaging writing online. We hope that joining this platform will increase exposure for The Separationist, raise the profile of the SHL community, and support our long-term growth.

Substack is widely known for being a platform with paid subscriptions, allowing writers to charge for access. Many great journalists have left major outlets and now support themselves through paid Substacks–which we think is great. Writers should be able to make a living from their work. That said, The Separationist will continue to be free–there is no cost for subscribing to our newsletter on the new platform. It is part of the ethos of SHL that we are a volunteer run, member supported organization. The work that goes into creating the newsletter is volunteer service to our community.

We’d love to hear what you think of the new platform. What works for you? What doesn’t? Will Substack’s pestering turn you away? Were you one of the few reading the MailChimp version? Let us know at newsletter@lowcountryhumanists.org.

Also, since we are total novices with Substack, if anyone out there is a seasoned Substacker with tips or advice, we’re all ears! 👂