There’s now a Google Reader-style RSS feed for your newsletter habit
You can add RSS feeds to Substack Reader, too, but it's fairly bare-bones.
One issue some people are facing amid the boom in email newsletters is staying on top of all the ones they're interested in while managing their inboxes. Substack, one of the most prominent newsletter platforms, is trying to remedy that by rolling out a newsletter reader.
Substack Reader, which is available in beta, already includes all of the newsletters to which you're subscribed. It's fairly bare-bones as it stands, though. You can't read entries in the reader itself — clicking on one opens it in a new tab. There's currently no way to clear out posts either. Substack co-founder Hamish McKenzie told The Verge that the team is "strongly considering" adding in-line reading at a later date. The company also plans to improve the reader experience in the coming months.
Still, the reader could let you automatically archive all of the Substack emails you receive and ensure you're not missing out on anything. You can bookmark the reader on your phone's home screen for easy access. If you sign up for the beta, the reader will take over as your Substack homepage.
Folks who yearn for the days of Google Reader or Digg Reader might appreciate the tool as well, since you can add third-party RSS feeds. There's support for podcasts that are published on Substack, too.
The platform has also introduced another way to discover newsletters in both the reader and the Substack homepage. There are lists of the top newsletters across a number of categories (including culture, technology and sports), along with a featured section to shine a spotlight on some under-the-radar publications. Previously, there were only lists for the top paid and top free newsletters, so it should be a bit easier to find more that catch your interest.
