Open Thread #18 - Site Updates
Updates on site design/layout, navigation, featured content, etc.
All:
You may notice some slight changes in the appearance of the front page of this Substack. This is thanks to Substack continuing to work on design options for us writers who use their platform.
I want you to pay particular attention to this at the top of the main page:
I’ve spent the past several hours organizing all the content up on this site, filing each entry into the section that they best belong to. I do not yet have the option to change the order of these sections as they appear, but once I am able to do so, I will re-order them to my satisfaction.
The introduction of sections will make navigating this site much, much easier for you, as the only options prior to this were keyword searches, or spending too much time scrolling back throug the Archive.
Unfortunately for now, I cannot add subsections to each section. I want to do this especially in the “Special Series” section (definition below) so that I can separate individual series from one another (e.g. Early History of HIV/AIDS, My Political Journey, etc.).
What I CAN do to help you navigate this site even better is to add tags to individual entries. I will begin doing this most likely tomorrow, but it will take a couple of weeks at the minimum, as I will have to edit every single entry, and revisit the subject matter in order to create the best and most relevant tags for each one. This will be an important excercise for myself, and will help the readers pull up information that they wish to retrieve in a more timely manner than has been available up until now.
New Sections
As mentioned above, I will change the order of the sections at the top of the main page once I am given the ability to do so. For now, I will give a brief description of each and every new section.
Edit: I figured out how to re-order the sections at the top of the page, and have done so.
For the most part, this consists of light reading material about places that I have visited recently. You will find some broad observations on what I encounter, from the architectural to the personal. Sample:
By far the least populated section, you will find three entries here. Two of them are from podcasts that I have been a guest on. The following sample is from when the New York Times’ Ross Douthat wrote in reaction to my interview with Marc Andreessen:
This section contains standalone essays that don’t fit in any other section. The subject matter ranges from the political to the personal, and everything in between. Sample:
The subject that I am best known for writing about is geopolitics. This is also where the people who loathe me and my writing find their inspiration to loathe me and my writing. Sample:
This is where you will find series of essays on a particular topic. As mentioned above, I want to break this section down further, but cannot do so just yet. There are three series (with the third still in progress) up so far. Sample:
Pretentiously named in honour of the French Film magazine, this is where I review movies and documentaries that I chose to present to you. These productions are not necessarily the best known, but each has a quality that I want to bring to the attention of the larger public (at least to my readership). I also allow myself a bit more leeway in terms of creativity when writing these essays. Sample:
This section is where you will find each and every Saturday Commentary and Review (122 editions as of this date). These will always be free to the reading public. I enjoy doing these because I have always liked to share articles with others. It also disciplines me in that I know that I have to crank these out every weekend, barring roughly six weeks off as per European custom. Most recent edition:
Without a doubt the most popular feature on this Substack. Several of these have received over 100,000 page views, which is an incredible stat for an unknown writer like myself. I am (once again) doing my best to re-start this feature, with an excellent interview subjct to help me kick it off again. I enjoy doing these a lot, as I get to try out my humour, but it takes two to tango, and not everyone is willing to participate (or to keep up their end of the commitment, unfortunately). Sample:
Here you’ll find everything from open threads to updates (like the one that you’re currently reading), non-essays, and short pieces that are low-effort/not essay quality. Sample:
To date, we have made our way through five different books. We will soon be launching the sixth entry in the FbF Book Club (see below). These do not always generate the most commentary, but have provided quality for many partcipants per the feedback that I have received over the years. Sample from the most popular series (unlocked for free subscribers):
Thanking My Subscribers
From the very beginning of this Substack, I have plotted to keep the subject matter as wide as possible, with the caveat that it would be based around topics on which I felt comfortable writing about. Too much focus on politics, for example, makes for a dull publication…at least in my opinion.
I am thrilled that the Saturday Column now easily surpasses 100 likes and comments every time. This shows the health of my Substack because it proves how appealing it is to many readers from around the world.
I will shamelessly ask you to please do me the honour of not just continuing to comment not just on the Saturday Columns, but also on all the entries that land in your inbox, “if the mood strikes you to do so”, as I write every time. Even more shamelessly, I will ask you to hit the like button at the top of the page. Specifically, the heart that is coloured red in the following example:
The higher the numbers, the more interesting my Substack looks to the casual observer. Metrics do matter!
This entry that you are currently reading is the 320th(!) that I have published since this Substack began three years ago last month. I’ve put A LOT of work into this, but it has been a labour of love. Not only have tens of thousands of people (sometimes more) read what I have written, but I have also gone on to meet some wonderful and incredible people in real life thanks to my writing. For example, I go out of my way to meet any and all readers who show up in Split, Croatia (if humanly possible), and to show them a good time while they are here.
This Substack has a bright future, and I am more energized than ever before, as I have managed to strike a good balance in personal terms between subject matter, consistency in schedule, and so on. What I mean is that I am not burnt out ;)
For those who have yet to take the plunge behind the paywall, you should consider doing so as that is where the best content appears on this Substack. I don’t want to spam you with recommendations from notable (and less notable) people, but those that do take the plunge and become paying subscribers overwhelmingly tend to stay paying subscribers.
hit this button:
DO IT! DO IT! JUST DO IT!
Note On Upcoming Content
I am going to add two more entries to the Colour Revolutions and Regime Change series:
Colour Failures - where attempts to overthrow a government have failed, and how the legacy of the first three colour revolutions also resulted in failure in varying degrees
The Mechanics of Colour Revolution - where we dig into the specifics of how Colour Revolutions happened, and even more importantly, a schematic on how western mainstream media, NGOs, local media, and the US State Department/Congresss form a closed information loop that works to justify their policy objectives. It’s lesson in recognizing ‘fixed’ media.
At that point, I am going to take a break in the series (with a possible three part look at George Soros somewhere in the next two or three months as a “series within a series”) in order to clear my mind and to switch gears to begin another book series as promised a little over two months ago:
Many of you are excited for this one, as am I. If you have difficulty in locating this book, just reply to the email that you got for this Substack entry that you’re currently reading, and I will loan you a version.
I want to start this one in three weeks from now.
Alright….so tell me what you think about what I’ve said here.
Alright, let's hear it.
Edit: I have figured out how to re-order the sections at the top of the homepage and have done so.
Unfortunately, these changes bring little to the general conversion rate: few people check the front page, or care about archives and tags.
On the upside, a well kept garden is a great magnet to get paid subscribers, as they feel the care.
Having links to previous posts is still the best, in my experience.
If tags increase your visibility in the Substack universe, that's a different matter (didn't see it in the announcement)