I'm Removing The Paywall On Rosacea Club

All the information you need to know

The title of this article is pretty self-explanatory, but I appreciate that it will bring up a few questions so I’ve included everything you need to know below.

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Why?

I’ve been writing on Substack for about 18 months and I opened paid subscriptions a year ago. At the time, I had absolutely no idea how much my life would change in the following year. My husband left, I had to sell my house, I took my first salaried job in over 10 years… it’s been a huge adjustment, on so many levels.

And the short story is that, unfortunately, I just can’t justify the amount of time and energy I spend on writing here when I compare it to the amount of money it brings in.

I am unbelievably grateful for the support that my paid subscribers have given me. The fact that there were people who saw the value in what I do and wanted to support that work every month was honestly so wonderful. Thank you.

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What will happen next?

This article will go out, so that everyone understands what’s going on, and then I’ll shut down paid subscriptions. You will get an email informing you that your paid subscription has been cancelled and you will receive a pro-rata refund for any of your unused subscription.

You don’t need to do anything on your end, as it’s all automated. You will remain as a free subscriber to Rosacea Club, so you will continue to receive emails or notifications in the Substack app whenever I publish new articles.

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What will Rosacea Club look like now?

I’m going to continue to share free articles here on Substack, the same educational rosacea content that I’ve been sharing across the internet for 13 years, but there will probably be fewer of them.

I’m aiming for weekly articles but, by removing the (completely self-imposed!) pressure of having paid subscribers, I will have the freedom to fit this work around the other paid work I must prioritise in order to pay my bills and keep Douglas in sausages.

My monthly newsletters will still go out on the last Thursday of every month, and I think I’m going to keep doing the monthly Rosacea Clubhouse Q&A posts on the last Tuesday of the month, but these will now be opened up for all to take part.

Previously paywalled articles will be free to read for all.

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How do you feel about it?

This is a tricky question. I’ll be honest, at the moment it feels like another failure, on top of a billboard year of perceived failures. A marriage, a house, closing Real Skin Club… it’s been a really rough 7 months!

But I’m hoping that this is just a knee-jerk emotional reaction and once the dust has settled, and I can look at things with more clarity, this will all feel more like an opportunity. A release. A weight lifting.

I’m excited to see what Rosacea Club can be when I’m not panicking about asking people to upgrade, nervously watching subscriber numbers, and writing until midnight to meet (self-imposed) deadlines!

I wanted to end with another thank you. Whether you’ve been a paid subscriber for a week, or for a year, I am so grateful for your support. Thank you. I hope you stick around for the next chapter of Rosacea Club.

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If you have any questions about these changes that I haven’t covered above, or if you have any thoughts on the above, please do let me know in the comments. It’s always lovely to chat to you!