I was doing everything right.
Posting on Notes every day. Getting 20-30 likes per Note. Comments rolling in. A few restacks here and there.
I felt good about it.
Then I’d check my subscriber count and see 1-2 new people. Sometimes zero.
That pit-in-your-stomach feeling hit hard: “What am I doing wrong?”
Turns out, I wasn’t doing anything wrong. I was just chasing the wrong thing entirely.
The pattern I couldn’t unsee
I started saving my Notes in a Google Doc. Just the ones that actually converted to subscribers, not the ones that got the most likes.
The pattern actually surprised me.
My most-liked Notes? Maybe 2-3 subscribers each.
My vulnerable, story-based Notes? 10+ subscribers. Every time.
I couldn’t ignore it anymore. Engagement and likes weren’t driving growth. Something else was.
So, I started studying up more about how Substack Notes actually works. I tested a ton of different types of Notes and watched what was working for others. I also tapped into what was shared at the “NYC Notes Night.”
When Substack shared how the algorithm works
Mike Cohen (Substack’s head of machine learning) and Hamish McKenzie (co-founder) walked us through how the Notes algorithm works.
And it’s nothing like X, LinkedIn, or Instagram.
Those platforms keep you scrolling to serve ads. Substack’s algorithm is designed to help writers gain subscribers.
Not engagement. Subscribers.
The algorithm identifies Notes that make people think “I need more from this person.” Then it shows those Notes to writers who are most likely to subscribe.
Here’s the one thing it rewards: Connection.
Not tips. Not hacks. Not perfectly formatted advice threads.
Connection.
Stories beat strategies. Vulnerability beats value bombs.
My own data proved it: Story Notes with 12 likes got me 10 subscribers. Tip Notes with 30 likes got me 2.
The difference between a tip and a story
A tip sounds like this: “Post on Notes consistently to grow your Substack.”
A story sounds like this: “I posted on Notes for three months straight. Got lots of likes. But my newsletter stayed stuck at 8,000 subscribers. Then one Tuesday, I posted about wanting to quit. Twelve new subscribers that day.”
See the difference?
The tip tells people what to do. The story makes them feel something.
And when people feel something, they subscribe.
Your struggle is their struggle. Your breakthrough gives them hope. That’s connection.
The algorithm recognizes when a Note creates that moment. Then it shows that Note to more writers who need to hear it.
The story about that time I almost gave up
I’ll be completely honest with you: There was a moment where I nearly quit Notes entirely.
I’d been posting for weeks. The engagement felt good, but my subscriber count barely moved. I was spending time I didn’t have on a platform that wasn’t working.
I remember sitting at my laptop one night thinking, “This is pointless. I should just focus on my newsletter or maybe LinkedIn and forget about Notes.”
The next morning, I posted one more Note. A vulnerable one about feeling stuck as a writer. Nothing polished. Just real.
I went to bed that night and woke up to several hundred new subscribers.
That Note had gone semi-viral overnight.
And it kept happening. Just when I was ready to throw in the towel, Substack would reward the work I was putting in. Not with engagement. With subscribers.
It felt like the platform was telling me: “Keep going. Keep being real. This is working.”
That’s when I stopped chasing likes and started focusing on connection.
You can borrow my 20-minute Notes-writing habit
Here’s what actually works: I spend 20 minutes a day on Notes. That’s it.
Not hours scrolling. Not responding to every comment. Not trying to be everywhere at once.
20 minutes.
I write two story-based Notes in the morning. Something vulnerable, real. Something that shows my struggle or breakthrough.
Then I spend 10 minutes reading other writers’ Notes and leaving genuine comments.
That’s the system.
And it brings me 10+ subscribers every single day. 600+ subscribers in 6 weeks.
Before I figured this out, I was all over the place. LinkedIn posts, X threads, pitching podcasts, joining Facebook groups. Hours every day trying to grow my newsletter.
I was exhausted and stuck at the same subscriber count for months.
Now? 20 minutes on Notes. Consistent growth. Every single day.
The habit works because the algorithm rewards consistency and connection, not perfection.
I’ll help you write your first story Note right now
Want to write your first story-based Note?
Fill in this simple prompt:
“I used to [struggle/believe/do] ___________. Then [specific moment/realization] happened. Now I [result/new belief/what changed].”
That’s it. That’s the transformation framework.
Substack growth example: “I used to think I needed 50,000 followers to make money writing. Then I made $5K in one month with 3,000 subscribers. Now I focus on depth, not reach.”
Parenting niche example: “I used to yell at my kids every morning trying to get them out the door on time. Then one Tuesday, my daughter asked why I was always so angry. Now we wake up 20 minutes earlier and mornings feel completely different.”
Fitness niche example: “I used to force myself to run every day even though I hated it. Then I tried a dance class on a whim and actually enjoyed moving my body. Now I work out five days a week without forcing anything.”
See how it works across any topic?
Your story doesn’t need to be dramatic. It just needs to be real.
Why your best Notes feel too personal to post
You’ve been measuring success by the wrong metric.
“Likes” feel good in the moment. Subscribers build your business.
The algorithm can tell which Notes create relationships, not just reactions.
That’s why your best-performing Notes probably feel too personal to post. Too raw. Too vulnerable.
Those are exactly the ones the algorithm wants to show to more people.
I spent months chasing engagement before I figured this out. Once I switched to storytelling, everything changed.
Not because I cracked some code. Because I finally understood what the platform actually rewards.
Let me show you how to make Notes work for you
I teach this exact approach in my “10+ Subscribers a Day” Notes Growth Workshop.
I share everything about how I come up with Notes ideas, what types of Notes to write, and how to grow your audience.
Inside, I put together how to:
Stop guessing what to post—discover the specific types of Notes that consistently convert browsers into subscribers, with real examples from my journey to 14K subscribers
Write Notes that actually work in 5 minutes or less—so this doesn’t become another exhausting task competing for your limited time and energy
Avoid the engagement trap—learn which Notes get tons of likes and comments but zero subscribers, so you stop wasting time on vanity metrics that don’t move the needle
Master formatting that stops the scroll—the visual tricks and structure that make people actually read your Note instead of scrolling past
Build a sustainable daily practice—because showing up consistently only works if it doesn’t burn you out in three weeks
Special bonus: When you join now, you’ll get access to December’s 7-Day Notes Growth Challenge. I’ve put the Challenge’s 7 emails in a Google Doc, so you can get all 7 templates at once.
Notes works. It helped me grow to 10,000+ subscribers in a year.
You can join below with hundreds of writers growing with Notes:
Keep writing, Wes
Great insight! Thanks for sharing and testing.
Thank you! I am just starting to see growth on Substack and Medium.