Tim Denning—one of the most prolific creators on the internet with over 170,000 newsletter subscribers—recently said something that stuck with me:

“The only way to succeed as a creator in 2025 is to start a newsletter… and then race to 5,000 subscribers.”

Not 500.
Not 1,000
But 5,000 email subscribers.
People who choose to hear from you, week after week.

That’s what we’re going to focus on in July. Not that we’re going to magically hit 5,000 subscribers in a month, but we’re going to learn the levers that’ll get us there, over time.

Denning's own journey reflects this philosophy.
He didn’t grow his newsletter overnight, he did it over 10 years, dedicating more than 10,000 hours. His success story serves as a testament to the power of consistent effort and strategic audience building.

But before we shift into growth mode, let’s take a breath and look back.

In June, we laid the foundation.
We focused on the Write phase of the 90-DayWrite-Grow-Monetize system.

We showed up.
We refined our signature offers.
We validated it using 3-step process.
We updated our bio and short description.
We rewrote our About page and Welcome emails.
We built our publication homepage like a website.
We identified our writing style and generated content ideas.
We learned to write like we talk and how ot bring our personality into our writing.
We learned to write posts that generate trust started becoming the kind of person who writes a newsletter people want to read.

That alone is worth a standing ovation. 👏

But now?

Now we shift gears.
Because writing is just the beginning.
July is about Growth.

Not the scary kind that involves sales funnels and spammy tactics.
The honest kind. The aligned kind.
The kind where more of the right people find your work and say: “This is exactly what I need.”

So, June was about showing up.
July is about showing up in front of more people.

This month, I’m inviting you to take growth seriously, not for the metrics, but for the momentum.
Not to chase numbers, but to create connections.
Not to impress… but to impact.

Ready? Let’s start.

Growth isn’t optional, even if your newsletter is a ‘hobby’ for you.

Let’s clear something up.

Growth isn’t just for people who want to turn their newsletter into a business.
It’s not only for the personal brand builders or the digital product sellers or the “I’m monetising by Q3” types.

Growth matters even if your newsletter is a labour of love.
Even if you started it just to write.
Even if you told yourself, “This is just a fun creative outlet.”

Because here’s the truth:

“An unread newsletter is like a book on a dusty shelf — it might be brilliant, but it won’t change anyone’s life unless someone opens it.”

Whether you’re writing about parenting, poetry, politics, productivity or living in a campervan, your words have the power to move someone, help someone, shift someone’s entire week.

But they can’t do that if no one sees them.

And while numbers aren’t everything, they do unlock a few very real things:

• Growth gives you a reason to keep showing up. There’s something magical about knowing people are waiting to read your words.

• Growth creates impact. It shows that your words resonated with someone, that they actually mattered.

• Growth means your ideas ripple further. One good article shared at the right time can spark opportunities you never planned for.

• More readers mean more responses. More comments. More “You wrote this for me.” That’s how you find your voice faster.

For hobbyists, more readers means more encouragement.
More evidence that your writing belongs out there.

For entrepreneurs, growth brings clarity, freedom, income.
Your email list becomes an asset. A foundation you can build offers, courses, and a whole business upon.

But no matter which path you’re on, growth is what keeps the engine running.

You don’t need to grow fast.
You just need to grow on purpose.

Here are some real people who grew from 0 to 5K+

Let’s talk about some real people on Substack, creators just like you and me, who started with nothing but an idea and a blank Substack page… and built something meaningful.

Ana Calin: From zero to 50K+ in 7 months

Ana Calin launched How We Grow and, within seven months, amassed over 49,000 subscribers and generated more than $15,000 in monthly revenue. She achieved this rapid growth by consistently delivering valuable content and engaging with her audience.

Rapid growth is possible with consistent effort and valuable content.

Walter Rhein: Building a community through authenticity

Walter Rhein newsletter, I'd Rather Be Writing, focuses on empowering progressive writers. He has cultivated a community of over 9,000 free subscribers and more than 100 paid subscribers by sharing authentic content and engaging directly with his readers.

Authenticity and direct engagement can foster a loyal subscriber base.

Michael Thompson: Embracing Shyness to Stand Out

Michael Thompson , author of Shy by Design, transformed his personal challenges with shyness and stuttering into strengths. His newsletter, shy by design, has attracted over 4,000 subscribers by offering insights on leveraging introversion as a superpower.

Embracing and sharing personal experiences can resonate deeply with readers and drive growth.

All of them started where you are:
Zero audience. No roadmap. Just a commitment to keep showing up.

You don’t need to go viral.
You don’t need to be famous.
You just need to start.

What growth really looks like (beyond just numbers)

Let’s talk about the kind of growth that doesn’t show up on your Substack dashboard.

Because yes—numbers matter.
But they’re not the only thing that matters.
And honestly, they’re not even the most important thing.

True growth isn’t just a bigger number on your subscriber count.
It’s deeper connection.
It’s stronger momentum.
It’s you becoming the kind of person who keeps going.

Here’s what real growth looks like:

• Engaged readers — not just people on your list, but people reading, replying, reflecting, and saying “This felt like it was written just for me.”

• Conversations started — a single thoughtful response from a reader can teach you more about your writing than any analytics chart.

• Opportunities opened — someone shares your post. Someone invites you to a podcast. Someone says, “I’ve been following your writing—can we work together?”

• Confidence built — you start second-guessing less. You stop editing your voice out of your own writing. You trust yourself to hit publish before the self-doubt creeps in.

I’ll tell you something a little surprising:

When I had my first 100 subscribers, it felt bigger than having 2,000.

Why?
Because I knew every name.
Because every reply lit me up.
Because it proved something I wasn’t sure about yet—
That people wanted to hear from me.
That I had something to say.
That I could do this.

That’s growth too.

So when we talk about growing our newsletter this month, we’re not just chasing numbers.
We’re building something richer.
Something deeper.
Something that makes you feel like a real writer, a real creator, a real builder.

Because you are.

Commit to starting your growth this month

Let July be more than just another month on the calendar.

Let it be your turning point.

Because you’ve already done the hard part: you started.

It’s time to grow.

Don’t just publish. Build.
Don’t just write. Rise.

This month, we roll up our sleeves and get practical—with two newsletter growth strategies that actually work.

Ready to Go Deeper?

If this issue lit a little fire in you—
If you're ready to stop guessing and start growing—
Then I’d love to invite you to join us as a paid subscriber.
Because, in July, the paid subscribers will get the full, behind-the-scenes growth strategies.

That includes:

• The exact growth strategies I’ve used to gain 300+ subscribers in 3 weeks

• Real examples from my list-building experiments.

• Growth prompts and actions you can take the same day.

• Private discussions and Q&A threads to get your questions answered.

• And a community of others doing the same thing, right alongside you.

To kickstart, I have started a 30-Day July Notes Challenge.

Notes are the best way bring visibility to your publication and yourself.

And it’s the best growth engine.

In June, I ran a simple experiment: write two Notes a day on Substack and invited others to do it with me.

No pressure, just show up and share.
After 30 days, the results spoke for themselves:
- Anna gained 29 subscribers
- Kathleen 25
- Alyssa 44 (with one paid!), and
- I added 374—15 of them paid.
All from consistently posting, connecting, and supporting each other. That’s the magic of Notes—and doing it together.
To join check my daily Chat.

Rules are simple:

• Write 2 Notes a day — one in the morning, one in the evening.

• Paste the link to each Note in the daily chat thread I’ll create.

• Comment on at least 5 Notes from other participants.

That’s it.

Let the writing, and the fun, begin!

That’s all from me today.

As always, thanks for reading.