What about our finances? I’m proud to report that despite leaving Substack, revenue was up about 11 percent year over year. Part of that reflects the fact that we no longer pay Substack 10 percent of revenue. But leaving incurred new expenses.

We pay our new provider, Ghost Pro, substantial fees for hosting and distributing Platformer. We pay Outpost for services we once got through Substack, such as sending welcome emails to new subscribers and reminders when your subscription is about to renew. We sprung for a nifty redesign. And we now handle our own customer service, sharing responsibilities between our managing editor Zoë Schiffer, our editorial assistant Lindsey Choo, and me.

It all amounts to less than we used to pay Substack. But it is also more work.