Special request for my paid Substack subscribers to help with a problem...
Good morning from New York. We're having a little issue with the Substack subscription system and would appreciate your help.
If you’re a paying subscriber here on Substack, this message is for you. Thanks for taking a moment to read.
Dear Friend and Reader:
First, thank you for paying for your Planet Waves content. You are among the few and the proud who do not take the work that I do for granted. Given that these days about 1 in 200 readers offer something back, I am especially grateful for your contribution.
If you want to help, can may a one-time donation directly to Planet Waves using this link.
Or you may make a one-time (or recurring) donation to our nonprofit organization Chiron Return using this link.
Here is what happened.
Back in August, we added a large group of readers to the Substack list with a complimentary one-month subscription. (Note — you may be one of those; not everyone reading this is a paid subscriber, but a few of you are.)
We had these email addresses from our official Planet Waves lists, or in our sales database. Comping people for a limited time is a pretty good way to encourage them to sign on.
However, many of those who were comped were already paying — and this suspended your payments. Worse, the comp was applied twice, meaning that subscription fees were suspended for two months for a large number of our paying Substack subscribers.
Building a Subscriber Base Takes a Long Time
It’s taken a long time to get up to the level we have reached and this set us back a year of progress. You will know this is about you if you’re not seeing Planet Waves on your monthly statements but expect it to be there.
In effect, we have lost two months revenue for a large proportion of our paying Substack subscribers — which is a pretty big deal for us as a small organization. So I’m here to offer you a method of covering some of our lost fees if you want.
For paying subscribers, this amounts to $28. Those who are receiving comps are also welcome to participate in this voluntary payment experiment.
Donating to Chiron (the journalism budget) is a good option for those who can only give a few dollars a month. Write to us at cs@planetwaves.net and I’ll make sure you get the content you want.
If you are a potential major donor, I would love to tell you about some of my plans for developing Chiron Return journalism projects over the next year or so.
The benefit I offer is more than the wide diversity of my content or my distinctive approach to astrology. I offer more than the ability to get a complicated news story right. Mostly, I emphasize the beauty of life, and am here to provide a reassuring voice of sanity reminding you that you are free to live and live fully, despite the strange and tragic times in which we find ourselves.
Thank you for your business and your trust — and for helping with this little problem.
With love,
PS— If you love Planet Waves, check out the full portfolio of what we offer on our new website, the Astrology Boutique. There is something for everyone; my work is appropriate for young adults about 14 and up.