How to Easily Grow your Substack as an Artist in 2026

Easy & fun ways to grow your account that actually work!

My Substack account is growing steadily. After 6 months I have a great community. It’s not huge, but it’s filled with people that are supportive, interesting and engaged! And I want the same for you.

One of the reasons I love Substack is because people generally don’t gatekeep information. And being of the same mind, I’m sharing some easy, actionable steps to grow your account. The following isn’t new information, but I tweaked it a bit for artists and it works for me.

Easy Ways to Grow your Substack that actually work

• post consistently at least one time a week. Write an article, share your work, talk about your inspiration, travel, process. All the art journey steps are things others want to hear about.

• immediately after posting go to your recommended feed and like 10 posts or notes
  * be selective! choose people you want to hear more from. see things your don’t like? click the three dots above a note and choose hide note. that’s how you curate your feed and get the content and people you want to engage with

• comment on 5 posts *BE GENUINE* write something insightful helpful supportive or genuinely curious. Cut/paste post and dash does not work! Its disrespectful. People notice. They won’t follow you back.

• contact at least one person through messaging with a supportive message, a question that you didn't want to ask publicly or strike up a conversation. Ask if they would like to do a collaboration with you of some sort. Doesn’t have to be a big thing, going live is awesome but if you’re shy then do a small writing or creative project. You’ll figure it out because you are, after all, a creative!

• avoid using a i Especially as an artist because it translates into “couldn’t be bothered” . like cut and paste comments, it is easily spotted and nobody wants to connect with a robot.

This is called community building and it works!

People just like you are on substack because they want to connect with REAL people.

If you’re on Substack thinking likes and follows translate into sales… well that’s older thinking. And did it ever get you the results you wanted? We can complain and get frustrated at what has not worked. OR we can try something new.

Take a chance - be your glorious self, share who you are as you are, right now. As well as images of your work or progress (we LOVE those) and of course your animal companions. Just sprinkle it all around in the notes and your account will grow organically.

And in the end, isnt it better to have 10 engaged people to connect with on Substack instead of 1000 followers and crickets on your notes or posts?

Have fun. Play around. BE YOU! And your account will grow naturally with people who really like you and your art.

ps: let me know in the comments if you give it a go and how it works! Or if you want to share your own growth tips with others.