I have news of a significant change to how I send out my email newsletters. For the last couple of years I’ve been using a tool called Substack to deliver my emails to you. However, I am moving away from there and from now on I will be using a new service called HEY World.
I’ll explain why (if you’re interested) below. But, if you are already a subscriber to one one of my newsletters, the change will need you to confirm afresh that you want to keep receiving emails from me.
It’s a two step process:
I’ll explain why (if you’re interested) below. But, if you are already a subscriber to one one of my newsletters, the change will need you to confirm afresh that you want to keep receiving emails from me.
It’s a two step process:
- You enter your email address at the bottom of this page
- You click on the validation link in the confirmation email
To make it easier, if you are already a subscriber, I will complete the first step for you over the next few days. So keep an eye out for the confirmation email, click on the link within it, and you’re good to go. Of course, if you want to get signed up immediately, you can do so below.
As well as the change of tool, I am also merging the two newsletters I publish – Awaken and The Book Haven – into one. There’s a lot of crossover of readers already, and managing a single newsletter is just simpler. The themes I tap into in my Awaken posts run parallel to many of the types of books I discuss via The Book Haven.
So Awaken readers will enjoy more posts on similar themes, inspired by the books I'm reading. And The Book Haven readers will have the bonus of some extra posts, on similar themes, where I'm not limited to books as the source of inspiration.
All said, I'm pretty confident 99% of you will be more than happy with the resulting singular newsletter! Of course, you are free to not resubscribe, and you can unsubscribe at any time if it's not for you.
That's all you need to know. I'll look forward to seeing you on the other side! Look out for an email from confirm-subscriber@world.hey.com soon asking you to confirm your subscription. Or get signed up now below.
–Sam
In case you are interested...
Why the change from Substack to HEY World?
The main reasons I am switching to HEY World is so that I am using a tool that respects your data and privacy.
Did you know that, currently, I get told whether you open any of my emails? And how often? And whether you click on any links? (If I was using a tool like MailChimp I'd pretty much know where you live too. No joke! This world of newsletter tracking is messed up.)
And I shouldn't have the right to that data. Imagine receiving a piece of physical post and there being a tracker in it to let the sender know whether you opened it or not. Somehow, a lot of unhealthy practices surrounding online mass mailings have become normalised. 'It's what everyone does,' is not a good enough defence though.
Over six months ago, I asked Substack for an option to remove all tracking from the emails I send. But they have not made any changes. So when Jason Fried announced Basecamp's plans for HEY World, with zero tracking, it was an easy decision to make. Even if I lose some readers in the transition process. It feels like the right thing to do.