Celebrating One Year of Those Who Wander on Substack!
Cheers to all my subscribers and moving forward.
Greetings fellow wanderers!
I am thrilled to be celebrating Those Who Wander’s first anniversary on Substack this week! I cannot believe I’ve been writing for an entire year. I have published an article a week, averaging 1200 words per article, totaling 54 posts to date. But all that work would be in vain without all the subscribers and followers supporting me and cheering me on. To date, Those Who Wander has reached 300 subscribers and is quickly approaching 500 followers! That is astounding to me and humbling that this many people are interested in my writing. Your support means everything. I am also deeply grateful for my brother-in-law Matt Wickes and wife Hilary Wickes who continue to provide invaluable edits and keep my writing sharp and on point.
I cannot thank you all enough so cheers to all of you for the support!
Moving Forward
I am thrilled to be entering a second year of writing on Substack. As I continue to maintain a weekly cadence for my posts, they will likely become shorter as I focus more attention and energy over the next six months to publish my book ‘An Anthropology of Wandering: How Adventure Can Alleviate a Fearful Culture.’ I hope to have the book available by early 2025. Stay tuned!
I would like to take a moment to make a special offer for anyone wanting to upgrade and support my writing. Running through the end of July, you can get 20% off my newsletter which amounts to only $4 per month or $40 a year.
Here are the benefits you receive from becoming a paid subscriber:
Access to the full archive of my articles (54 posts to date).
Access to all excerpts from my upcoming book (11 excerpts to date).
Knowing you are supporting my work and enabling me to publish my book An Anthropology of Wandering: How Adventure Can Alleviate a Fearful Culture.
Know someone who might enjoy Those Who Wander? You can gift a subscription to someone as well.
Recommended Posts
If you are new to Those Who Wander and looking to get caught up to speed with some of my writing, might I interest you in some initial posts?
Consider starting with Those Who Wander’s About Page to get to know a little about me and what I’ve been up to in archaeology and anthropology.
Read about the Motives of Those Who Wander.
Read my first post and first published excerpt from my book Our Ancient Narrative.
Check out some of my favorite and popular posts of late:
On how I was inspired to become an archaeologist see Mesa Verde and the Power of a Place: An Archaeologist Dwells On Human Memory and the Meaning of Our Past
On becoming a coffee snob in Italy see The Subtle Ways Travel Changes Our Habits: A Brief Reminiscence on Italy from the Perspective of a Coffee Snob
On the question of whether adventure writing is dying see No More Blank Spaces on the Map: Is Adventure Writing Dying?
On the deeper meaning of travel and adventure see Why Travel and Adventure are Existential Concerns
And for an in-depth look into hunter-gatherers and our problems evaluating human progress see Hunter-Gatherers and Human Resilience: An Homage to the OG Wanderers and the Problem of Assessing “Progress”
Those Who Wander’s Mini-Manifesto and Business Model
If you’ve been here a while and value this writing, please consider supporting Those Who Wander in whatever way you think is fair. I make 90% of my content free.
Here’s why:
It has always been a challenge for new authors to break into the writing scene. It is incredibly challenging in today's market and media ecosystem that vies for everyone's attention. So much content, even great content, is expected to be free. This presents a dilemma for authors, especially aspiring new ones like myself.
What an author cares most about is getting people to read and enjoy their writing. Sharing ideas is what I care most about. This is why I’ve committed to my readers that most of my content will remain free. If there is ever a paywall that prevents you from seeing content that you think you'd enjoy reading, please feel free to reach out to me either by DM on Substack or by email at baileyjs08@gmail.com and I can send it to you for free (I sincerely mean this and it is very easy for me to do so do not hesitate). I care more about people reading, reflecting on, and enjoying my work than making money.
That said, if you value this work and can spare a few dollars, please consider supporting this project via a paid subscription, or simply by sharing your thoughts and engaging with the content.
Substack is not like other social media platforms in that its business model embraces an experimental new strategy in online media that empowers writers to share their ideas and build an audience in a highly authentic and organic way. When a reader pays for a subscription to their chosen Substack, an average of 86% of the money goes to the writer and the remainder covers Substack’s revenue share and the processing fees.
Here’s what it looks like:
Thus, Substack does not rely on advertisements for revenue but on a minority of people who recognize and support quality writing. It is that simple. As a reader, you can rest assured that the bulk of your contributions go directly to the writer. Please consider supporting the writers you value on Substack.
Thank you all again for your support and to another year of Those Who Wander!
Cheers!
-JSB
Congratulations, Justin!
🥾🌎🍻