The Life Unstyled newsletter is now free to all

Here's why

For a few months I’ve had this feeling in the pit of my stomach that something wasn’t right. I felt anxious when I hadn’t written a post in a while. And then when I did write, I couldn’t decide who should get to read it.

I realised I’d be happier writing and podcasting and sharing on here if one of two things happened:

1. I had enough paid subscribers to make the many hours I spend on each post feel ‘worthwhile’.

or

2. I opened up all my posts for free to everyone, thus eliminating the weird conundrum of deciding which posts were ‘worth more’ and should therefore be paywalled.

I have a really good amount of subscribers on here and a very tiny percentage of those are paid. The number hasn’t shifted in a while and I don’t begrudge anyone for it. I’m so grateful to those of you who’ve chosen to pay for my work, and I’ve worked hard to make you feel like it’s value for money.

But lately I’ve found myself in the odd position of having to assign different values to my writing. Before I send out a post I wonder, is this worthy of a paywall? Is there enough unique content to make a paid subscriber feel like their money is well spent? Should very personal, soul-baring posts be behind a paywall or are those the ones I should let everyone read to entice them to become a paid subscriber?

As soon as I started thinking that baring my soul for clickbait was a way to gain subscribers I knew the joy had gone from the process. Trying once again to find joy and purpose in my life - and maybe inspire some in yours as well - was why I moved to this platform a couple of years ago. And if you know my writing, you’ll understand I have no problem baring my soul anyway!

There are some brilliant interiors and culture writers on here who seem to have found a structure to their work - on Mondays it’s ‘design q&a’, on Fridays it’s ‘the best high street homewares to buy’ and on Sundays it’s ‘all the things I read and watched this week’. I admire their ability to make a plan and stick to it, but that’s just not how I operate. I will only share something with you if it is heartfelt and I never know when that’s going to happen.

It’s one of my most annoying qualities.

Part of me wishes I could be that person who writes under the same heading week after week, but I also wonder…doesn’t it get boring? Like people who eat the same meals on the same days of the week: Mondays are spaghetti bolognese, Tuesdays are stir fry…Fridays are fish. But what if you fancy cheese on toast on Monday or a curry on Friday? I guess it’s just not me.

I also have a really good sense of intuition (which I don’t always listen to) and this time it’s telling me this is the right thing to do - for me. At this stage in my life I know myself pretty well, at least when it comes to my writing.

Life Unstyled the newsletter was never meant to be like Life Unstyled the book - or any of my other books - with specific chapters about particular interiors dilemmas. It was intended to be a bit more free and exploratory and loose. Feeling like I owe a specific kind of post to readers because they are paying for it hasn’t worked well for me. I don’t plan on posting any less and I may even post more, but with the paywalls removed, I feel like I can be free to fully move out of the ‘interiors writer’ title I don’t think I fit in anymore. Despite having written five interiors books, I don’t actually want to write about interiors all the time. And if you’re finding me here through my interiors writing, I’m not sure you’ll be willing to pay to read my thoughts on anything else. At least not yet.

A lovely reader commented recently that some of my posts are like mini memoirs and it brought into sharp focus the type of writing I enjoy both writing and reading. I still love, love, love interiors - and as my book bios have always said, many a Friday night I can be found happily rearranging the living room with a glass of wine in my hand. I’ve just designed a collection of wallpapers and I work as an interior stylist/set designer, so clearly my head is still in the interiors world!

But my interiors writing has never been about the what - this pattern goes with that colour etc - but more about the why. Why we live the way we do, why we like the things we like, how we can make our homes a more authentic (ick, I said it) reflection of us. And the way I can connect with you and your home is often by speaking about my own home and my life in general.

I also don’t always want to talk about the home. Case in point, this piece I wrote on my old blog a couple of years ago that proved ridiculously popular and that I loved writing. (Do not click the link if you’re “sick of hearing about the goddamned peri-menopause!” as I overheard an American lady say on the tube last month).

There are SO MANY PEOPLE on Substack now. Big names not just in literature but entertainment as a whole who are moving onto this platform. Annie Macmanus (DJ turned author turned podcaster) has shut down her highly successful podcast Changes and moved it here for goodness sake! (I love her work and I’m thrilled she’s on here, but now I’ll need to add it my the list of paid subs if I want to read/listen/watch). Many of these big names are bringing over tens of thousands of loyal followers from elsewhere and as with everything it will become a popularity contest, the big guns winning out when it comes to the paid sub game. And the bigwigs at the platform will want to promote those big names to show the world how big the platform is. If I sound bitter, I’m not. It’s just frustrating.

I follow loads of amazing writers and content creators on here in fashion and interiors and art and perfume and culture but I couldn’t possibly afford a subscription to them all. I also follow many whose newsletters are always free. Like me, they earn most of their income elsewhere.

Mark my words - channeling my grandad there - Substack will change it’s pay structure because the current one isn’t sustainable as the platform gets more and more full of writers and creators. At some point I may go back to offering paid content or perhaps they will make it pay per article or something like that, but for now I am making all posts free to read/watch/listen.

It will still be possible to pay for a subscription if you choose to continue to support my work - and I would be tickled if you did! I’m not moving to a free structure because I don’t need or want the money - quite the contrary! Nor do I think writing shouldn’t be valued. But there is no obligation whatsoever to pay at this time. And if you’ve recently signed up as a paid subscriber and would like a refund please get in touch.

Thanks as always to old and new readers. I love knowing you’re out there so please leave me a comment x