the allure of the paywall

costs and benefits of covert media

the desire to create content online and make a living off of it are often at odds with one another. the internet allows you to share and spread your ideas, but the main means of monetizing free content is through sponsorships and advertising - inhibiting what you can create and necessitating a certain sized audience to do so.

paywalled content on platforms like Patreon, Substack, and Gumroad allows creators to profit off of their work, but comes at the cost of inhibiting growth and preventing access to those who may derive benefit from it.

if you believe your work has value and you want to grow an audience, then it should be as widely available as possible. but if you want make a career doing what you are passionate about without resorting to advertising, a paywall becomes the only option.

this dilemma puts online creators and thinkers in a double bind: either work for free, accept sponsorships, and shill keto breakfast cereal when the time comes; or hide your labours of love behind a digital wall, dramatically reducing who can derive value from them and netting a few free lunches along the way.

i was recently featured by Substack Reads which gave my little corner of internet philosophy a big boost. my subscribership doubled over the following week and i received my first injection of paid subscriptions. if you’re new here, welcome! Wonderland is my digital series where i explore philosophy and political theory from first principles. i have also started live-streaming as another avenue to discuss, develop, and share my ideas. my long term goal is to create a community of people who are excited about the future and passionate about thinking through and building better ways to live.

i have a few friends who are able to pay their rent through Substack or Patreon subscriptions while rarely putting out additional content, their fans simply want a way to support their work. i can appreciate this show of generosity, but it’s hard for me, as a staunch capitalist, accept this notion of monetary support without some exchange of goods or services.

i want the core of my work to be as accessible as possible, but i also want to share some more personal aspects of my life online, and maybe that can come with a price.

going forward, every month i will share at least one paywalled post, containing content less integral to the core of my philosophy but hopefully interesting for those who want to get to know me a little bit better.

to whet your appetite, here’s what you can expect to find below:

1. a secret

2. a collection of some media i have enjoyed recently

3. a poem, written by me

   

   Wonderland is a free publication that outlines a philosophy and political vision for the 22nd century. To support my work and receive updates on new posts, sign up for a free or paid subscription.