How I plan to turn a satisfied reader into a returning reader

Is my writing worthy of being read?

I’d like to say that I take criticism well, but my astrological sign says the opposite… Instead, I tend to get very emotional and take things to heart.

But, I cannot allow myself to get too emotionally attached to any one unfinished idea. I mean, it’s unfinished for a reason, right?

So I made a prototype, and I’m nervous to share it with the public. I know who my audience is (I have a whole article dedicated to that here), but now it’s time to figure out how I will be able to reach them, and whether my writing is worthy of being read.

There is only one way to find out, and that is to send it.

In “What We Learned From A Week Of Prototyping A Newsletter In Public” by Millie Tran, beta testing your prototype is essential to identifying who your perceived audience actually is, and more importantly, what the best way is to reach them.

What better way to get a feel for how people really think about my potential Substack newsletter idea than to provide them with a taste of the real thing? If they like it enough, they may want to take a bigger bite out of the pie, and by all means, let them feast.

I will start testing out my Substack newsletter protoype by sending it to fellow student-athletes who play collegiate sports, old club and high school teammates, and even some of my coaches. After playing soccer for 16 years of my life, you’d think I’d know a person or two who may be interested… and let me tell you, I have a great database to pull from!

I will be predominantly focusing on taking the essence of what I’m looking to create with my Substack newsletter and learning from the feedback I gather to create a better experience for not only my readers, but also for myself as the writer, and in order for me to create a smooth and real experience for my readers, I cannot overlook the little things: the details will mean the difference between a simply satisfied reader and a returning reader.

Just because they are my good friends doesn’t guarantee that they will like my writing, nor that they would spare my feelings and at least fake their opinions of it…

But in all seriousness, I need their constructive criticism. If they like my work and the direction it’s heading in, awesome! But, if they think it could be better or tweaked in any way, shape, or form, I’ll be all ears.