Changing Paywall on Posts, My Upcoming Novel Reveal, Special Reports & Merch Section

Big changes coming to Hard Problems

Reflecting on this publication, what we’ve accomplished so far in just 8 months, and where I’d like to take things going forward, it occurred to me that some big changes would be necessary to deliver more to all subscribers.

While like every substack creator, I wish more could subscribe to the paid version, and while yes that would help me post with more frequency, my focus remains on providing good content, speaking truth to power and delivering for all my readers, paid or not. 🤘🏾

Changing the Paywall

Based on that, I’ll be changing the paywall from 2 weeks backwards to 2 months. This way, every reader can enjoy and read every new article for longer, strengthening this community, while at the same time, helping Hard Problems attract new readership.

Also, I might add, I’ll be removing the Paywall on video posts henceforth. :)

My Upcoming Novel

I’m writing a novel (gasp!). I’ll gather myself for a moment. It’s a big moment. It’s almost done, and clocking in currently at around 55k words. It’s a tentative cover. I’ll be sharing more about the book to all subscribers in the upcoming weeks as I get ready to release.

It’s a psychological thriller set in the near future with some heavy post-apocalyptic themes. Many of the themes explored will be familiar to readers of this blog, and in fact, it was written as a cautionary tale. The story begins as suddenly nuclear ICBM’s are launched into the upper atmosphere, and no one knows why or where they come from. Will humanity survive? Will we find out the reasons for the launch? How does society react?

More details to follow in the coming weeks…

Merch x Special Reports

I had the idea for special reports, sort of a side quest for Hard Problems I could offer to paid subscribers, but not sure where people stand on that. If ya’ll are into it, send a comment, email, DM, whatever you like. Or if you just have strong opinions, that’s cool too.

I will also be offering a more permanent merch fixture here on Hard Problems. You’ll be able to purchase official merch—Hard Problems hats, totes, t-shirts and the like it will be sustainably sourced and reasonably priced as I think it really resonated with subscribers a few months back while allowing Hard Problems to create a sustainable revenue source that’s not subscriptions.

I thank everyone for being a subscriber and wish you all a wonderful summer.