Friends, here we are, the moment we’ve been waiting for… Lady Parts, the newsletter we've been publishing for more than 550 weeks, is now on Substack!
What does that mean?
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Lady Parts will still be delivered weekly. If you’re reading this message, I’ll keep landing in your inbox until you hit unsubscribe (but please don’t do that, mkay?).
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You do not need a Substack account, but if you choose to set one up, you can access extra features such as liking posts, audio, commenting, and more. This is one of the reasons why I am migrating to Substack; the community aspect of it feels too good and full of opportunities to pass up.
Lady Parts will continue to be a free publication, but if you choose to support it, there are monthly and annual subscription options that come with heaps of fantastic perks. The biggest, in my opinion, is the ability to be a part of the community discussion through the comments. I put a lot of time and energy into writing Lady Parts because I want this to be something you look forward to reading every week. I hope that you are inspired, challenged, and delighted. I know I don’t hit it out of the park every single week, but if you value what I put out into this world, please consider a paid subscription.
Why the switch?
Community: As I mentioned in #2 above, one thing that I love about Substack is how it helps foster community with likes (it makes me feel seen and like I’m not speaking into a void) and comments (it’s less one-way and it brings us all together).
Extras: Substack doesn’t exist to sell things; it’s here to support long-form writing and community building. There’s no other platform that includes so many bells and whistles to make this possible and fun! With Substack, I can include polls, voice recordings, and videos. Moving forward you’ll find offerings to bring us together outside of the newsletter, like our monthly Backcountry Beta series and group sessions that connect and inspire. All Lady Parts posts also will be archived, making them accessible if you happen to miss a week or someone wants to go down the rabbit hole (with that said, if there are any Lady Parts you have absolutely loved, please tell me so I can get them posted).
Discoverability: Another reason for choosing Substack is discoverability. The majority of our readers are not customers, and I think there are so many more of you out there—people who care about the intersection of the outdoors, social justice, and culture, but don’t necessarily have a reason to visit the Coalition website or may never find us. You can help with this by sharing posts and adding Lady Parts to your list of reads if you have a Substack account.
Compensation: While this newsletter will always be free, I’m at a point in my life where I’m not afraid to ask people to participate in an equitable exchange. If you value what I put out into the world every week, and you have the financial means, your paid subscription is a way to show your support and it helps me keep doing this. There is no money tree, family money, or pool of investors. We’re a scrappy, small team, and every bit helps.
Why the new look?
With every platform, there are design limitations and opportunities. It’s impossible for this newsletter to look exactly the way it has in the past, but I believe the new look is just as fresh, fun, and digestible. I also was inspired to bring back the typeface and graphic elements we used so many moons ago, designed by Lauren Bello Okerman. With all of the changes we’ve gone through as a business over the past few years and the roller coaster chaotic nature of this thing called life, it feels good to settle into something familiar. I’ll be reworking the Coalition website this summer to reflect the look and feel of Lady Parts, so come August the two will look like they fit together.
A final note…
This is all an experiment, from the new-old typeface to making the switch to Substack to the subscription tiers. And I’m inviting you to put on your lab coat and safety glasses and join me in testing what works and what doesn’t. Your feedback is incredibly helpful, so don’t be shy. Feel free to drop me a note in a DM on the Substack app or send me an email.
Thanks for being here friends! I’m excited about what we can create together.
Until next week,
Jen Gurecki, she/her, CEO of Coalition Snow