A Substack About Substacks, Part I
A list of all of the newsletters I subscribe to that have something to do with children's or teen literature, or parenting/education/youth in general. (And why I subscribe to them.)
This week I’m sharing some of my favourite Substacks. Like with any platform, I sometimes find it hard to sort through the overwhelming amount of information to find the stuff that really appeals to me. My home feed (is that what you call it?) on the Substack app is often filled with clickbait-y, self-marketing titles like “How I make 6-figures on Substack” or “If you’re just starting on Substack, don’t make the mistakes I did”. And then just endless impractical home-improvement ideas, bad poetry, and seemingly AI-generated opinion pieces. Sometimes it feels like a cross between the DIY collage-style of Tumblr circa 2010, and life advice from people you definitely shouldn’t be taking life advice from. Honestly, it’s a bit of a mess.
But then there’s the good stuff. The reason I’m here. It’s important to curate your own reading experience on Substack, as with anywhere. And what that means for me is avoiding the home feed and just sticking with the work I actually take time to subscribe to. My favourite newsletters are the ones that have a very clear purpose and an authentic voice. The writing might meander, or digress from time to time, but it never feels like content for content’s sake. These types of newsletters have meaning, and creativity, and honesty, and they really fill my cup. With the best kind of liquid (which is, for the record, Twinings Australian Afternoon and full-cream milk, steeped for a good while).
I pay for as many Substacks as I can, and sometimes pause and restart subscriptions depending on my budget or interests at that moment. What makes me fork out cash for something? Consistently good content. Newsletters that are so worth reading that I drop everything when they arrive. But also just a firm belief in what the writer is doing and a sense of goodwill to support them where possible. On that, there are admittedly a few I subscribe to or pay for that I don’t necessarily read thoroughly every single time they appear, but I think the writer is doing a really good job and want to encourage them (in my own small way) to keep going.
I started writing this with the intention of sharing the full list of Substacks that I currently subscribe to (29 in total), and why. But then I realised there were way too many to do it justice in one week, so I’ve split this newsletter into two parts.
Today is all the newsletters to do with children’s and teen literature, as well as just parenting/education/youth in general. I’ve broken it up into three loose sections depending on the content. It’s a list of recommendations, because I love every single one, and I encourage you to check out (and support) those that appeal to you.
I have listed the newsletters that I currently pay for, and the ones I have paid for in the past but have let my subscription lapse. (I may go back when I can afford it or when the content is more aligned with my wants/needs.) There are quite a few and I got a bit carried away writing about them all and how much I love them. Sorry! Enjoy!
Part two will be released in coming weeks and will include a list of all the reading/literature Substacks I follow that have nothing to do with children and teens, plus some that don’t have anything to do with books at all.
Children’s/teen literature
Looking at picture books (paid)
Picture books are real literature. The best ones are artworks as great as any books humans have made. But like all children’s literature, picture books are misunderstood and undervalued, a centuries-old problem we expect to have fixed after two or three posts.
Hopefully it’s obvious why I subscribe (and pay) for this one. Jon Klassen and Mac Barnett are two giants in the world of children’s literature, and their Substack is smart, irreverent, wide-reaching, and full of very intricate insights into the nitty gritty of creating picture books. They even have merch!
A lot of their posts take the form of texts sent between the two of them, which feels intimate and perfectly suited to my fly-on-the-wall intrigue into their friendship and creative partnership. They are very funny, and some of their best work is unexpected in its subject-manner and level of detail. They tend to answer a lot of reader questions (“We got a great reader question asking what role criticism played in our lives, but when we tried to answer it we ended up just sending each other screenshots of bad reviews we’ve gotten on Amazon.”) but also deep dive into different elements of their industry, including rhythm in picture books and darkness in children’s literature. This Substack is well-worth paying for, and the archive is a treasure trove.
Favourite recent posts: Choosing Cover Fonts, 34 Questions from First Grade and 12 Goods Songs for Children
Your Kid’s Next Read (paid)
We believe it takes a village to grow a reader, and we’d love you to join ours!
Again, I feel like this one needs no introduction or explanation. Megan, Allison and Allison are a powerhouse team when it comes to getting the right books into the hands of young people. They play a really important role in the local children’s publishing industry and are huge advocates for Australian children’s authors and books. Alongside their Substack, they also have a podcast and a Facebook community, and have recently announced a new chapter book series with Affirm Press. What can’t they do!?
Their Substack is a mix of bookish news, book reviews, their own work in the industry (Megan is a teacher-librarian and Allison and Allison are kidlit authors), and tips for getting young people reading and writing.
Favourite recent posts: How to Grow a Story and Creating Reading Nooks
A mix of craft tips, creative inspo, behind-the-scenes peeks at the writing and publishing process, interviews with fellow creatives, plus what I’m reading, watching, listening to and working on.
This one is written by fellow children’s literature author Cassy Polimeni, who has published picture books (The Garden at the End of the World) and junior fiction (Ella and the Frogs series). There aren’t many Australian kid lit authors on Substack (that I know of?) and I enjoy reading Cassy’s posts about her creative process, what she’s reading, and her creator interview series. She’s also just a super nice person in real life, too!
I like the catchy title of her Substack and the behind-the-scenes look at her life and work. I am also currently very jealous of her writing residency at Billilla Artists Studio.
Favourite recent posts: Meet the Creator: Deborah Frenkel and Autumn Interlude
MOONBOW (recently lapsed)
Moonbow explores children’s literature as an art form and discusses why adults should take it seriously (because many don’t). It aims to broaden and provide context to the texts, encouraging adults to think deeply about children’s books and see them anew.
MOONBOW was one of the first Substacks I ever subscribed to. As you can see by its description, it is focused on treating children’s books as serious art (as they should be), and often takes a forensic and philosophical look at certain titles and authors. The newsletters favours vintage over new releases (think Margaret Wise Brown and Maurice Sendak) and encourages secondhand book-buying more than anything. It is also very American. But there are so many good think pieces and insights into how to properly appreciate picture books, and the below post on “favourite picture books” of last year was a knockout list of great contemporary releases.
Favourite recent posts: The Moonbow Guide To Buying Used Books, 5 Things We Can Learn From Margaret Wise Brown and My Favourite Picture Books of 2024
Slowpoke (recently lapsed)
Slowpoke is always evolving, but it generally focuses on art and being an artist.
I’ve put this one in the children’s literature grouping since Carson Ellis is one of my all-time most-admired picture book creators, however her Substack is a bit of a mix of things, including a travelogue, crafting tips and musings about her life on a farm. All her bits and pieces on children’s books are collated here so you can head straight to them if you’re interested. That’s the stuff I follow her for, but I don’t mind the rest either.
Favourite recent post: Translating Du Iz Tak?
I am back at the writing desk the last few days, fitting in writing between intensive Dutch language classes. My little head is exploding with new words and knowledge and I am deeply fascinated by how fast this language acquisition is happening now that I’m properly applying myself.
Another Australian kid lit author on Substack! Rare but appreciated! (Please send me more if you know them!) Notes from the Sunshine House is written by Zanni Louise (author of Queenie in Seven Moves, This is Love, and many more) who is currently living in The Netherlands. Her newsletters are a mix of her works in progress, reading recommendations, travels, and general observations and musings. I especially like reading her thoughts on technology and humanity. Her newsletters are sporadic, but I enjoy them whenever they pop into my inbox.
Favourite recent posts: Ways to activate humanness in 2025 and Whatever you do, do not feed the beast
Literature or creativity in general (that also includes children/teen stuff)
Receipt from the Bookshop (paid)
Every week I send out my free post, the actual Receipt from the Bookshop, live from my award-winning independent bookshop by the sea. I open the draft when I open the shop, detail the day’s customers and transactions, and then send it out to readers before I go home. Paid subscribers get access to the full archive, plus an additional post from me every week. This might be a book review, an essay on writing, or some bonus bits from the bookshop. Paid subscribers can also access my monthly book club discussions.
This is possibly my favourite Substack out there. Katie Clapham, a children’s author, bookseller and bookshop-owner is based in Lancashire, and writes a weekly bookshop diary. It’s flippant, meandering and very, very funny. But also somehow comes across as sincere and heartfelt? Such a nice balance. Plus it’s just perfect for those curious about bookshop life, insofar as the special moments when a customer finds the exact right book, to the dragging hours without any visitors at all. I think it especially appeals to me as someone who lived in the UK for a couple of years and romanticises and misses the British lifestyle dreadfully. Receipt from the Bookshop is a great sneak peek for anyone who wants to live out their dreams of working in a small town bookshop on the English seaside, even if sometimes the most exciting thing that happens in a day is the boiler gets repaired.
I pay for this Substack, but actually read the free posts more closely and religiously than the paid ones. Because I love what Katie does, and because I want to help keep independent bookshops alive all over the world, I am very happy to help fund her work in this small way.
Favourite recent posts: just any of the Receipt from the Bookshop newsletters, as well as this book club one because I was the one who recommended the book!!!! Huge!!!!
It’s a terrifying time. I suddenly have a whole new perspective on all those history lessons I sat through about rising fascism and my constant question of; “but how did they not do something? How did they not know?” … within the microcosm of books and publishing it’s again interesting (/terrifying) to see the plan play out. The alarms sounding, red-flags raising and alerts pinging.
Danielle Binks, as you probably know, is an Australian children’s author and all-round children’s literature expert, however, her Substack goes beyond just kid lit which is why I have included it in this grouping instead. This is one of those scarce, completely free newsletters that isn’t on any kind of regular schedule, but when it is released, it is always a goldmine. Danielle writes about everything from politics to AI, book banning to audiobooks, as well as book reviews and life updates that list the various culture she is consuming, including podcasts and film and tv. It’s an insight into the things she is preoccupied with, and I am always happy to see a new newsletter from her.
Keep reading with a 7-day free trial
Subscribe to I Read A Lot to keep reading this post and get 7 days of free access to the full post archives.