I don' think it's necessarily fake, it's just that sometimes there are too many people that a person follows to manage efficiently. The reason I follow you is because I have a thing about France. (And also, I DO like your writing!)
Your words warm my heart, Ann! Thank you for reading and for sharing your thoughts. 🧡That's the whole “nonsense” of social media. It's absolutely impossible for a responsible adult who works and leads a somewhat active life to read dozens of people every day or every week. Well, it's very complicated! Our time is so limited...
I read this with a smile …but also with a slight sting of truth.
I think you’re right that Substack, like any other space, ultimately just reflects human behavior. We bring here the same instincts, the same projections, the same blind spots. The platform changes, but the human doesn’t.
At the same time, I feel it’s not only about appearance or superficiality.
More about the desire for connection without commitment. People want to be close without having to respond. To see without having to react. To be present, yet invisible.
When someone follows but doesn’t read, it doesn’t strike me as simply fake — sometimes it feels more like overload, caution, or fear of stepping into a real dialogue. Because reacting means taking responsibility. And that might be harder today than clicking “subscribe.”
I take your idea of the solid color background as a beautiful gesture — not as a solution, but as a question:
What would remain if we removed the image?
Maybe not many people would stay.
But those who would remain would be real.
And perhaps this is the quiet luxury of writing:
not to reach everyone, but to allow someone to pause. To truly read. And to respond … maybe with just one sentence, but honestly.
Thank you for this text.
Not as a criticism of people, but as a mirror of the space we all move through.🙏🏼✨
Dora, your words warm my heart. Thank you for taking the time to share your valuable thoughts with me. 🧡
Well, I'm glad I made you smile! That was the idea behind this satire, even if the underlying message is very serious.
The desire for connection without commitment resonates with me, you're probably right. We can read and enjoy without responding, and thank goodness! If we had to respond personally to an author every time we read one of their books...
So, are you going to try it out with a new profile picture? 😉
I really like what you said at the end.
Thank you again for being here, for the right reasons, I'm sure. 🤗
I just read your post. Hopefully, I follow people for the right reasons. I have not changed my background colors or pictures to attract anyone . I follow people whose works I find interesting.
I don' think it's necessarily fake, it's just that sometimes there are too many people that a person follows to manage efficiently. The reason I follow you is because I have a thing about France. (And also, I DO like your writing!)
Your words warm my heart, Ann! Thank you for reading and for sharing your thoughts. 🧡That's the whole “nonsense” of social media. It's absolutely impossible for a responsible adult who works and leads a somewhat active life to read dozens of people every day or every week. Well, it's very complicated! Our time is so limited...
Dude, you are so right!! I have beautiful eyes!!!
I know! You could be an eye model! 🤣
Thomas,
I read this with a smile …but also with a slight sting of truth.
I think you’re right that Substack, like any other space, ultimately just reflects human behavior. We bring here the same instincts, the same projections, the same blind spots. The platform changes, but the human doesn’t.
At the same time, I feel it’s not only about appearance or superficiality.
More about the desire for connection without commitment. People want to be close without having to respond. To see without having to react. To be present, yet invisible.
When someone follows but doesn’t read, it doesn’t strike me as simply fake — sometimes it feels more like overload, caution, or fear of stepping into a real dialogue. Because reacting means taking responsibility. And that might be harder today than clicking “subscribe.”
I take your idea of the solid color background as a beautiful gesture — not as a solution, but as a question:
What would remain if we removed the image?
Maybe not many people would stay.
But those who would remain would be real.
And perhaps this is the quiet luxury of writing:
not to reach everyone, but to allow someone to pause. To truly read. And to respond … maybe with just one sentence, but honestly.
Thank you for this text.
Not as a criticism of people, but as a mirror of the space we all move through.🙏🏼✨
Dora, your words warm my heart. Thank you for taking the time to share your valuable thoughts with me. 🧡
Well, I'm glad I made you smile! That was the idea behind this satire, even if the underlying message is very serious.
The desire for connection without commitment resonates with me, you're probably right. We can read and enjoy without responding, and thank goodness! If we had to respond personally to an author every time we read one of their books...
So, are you going to try it out with a new profile picture? 😉
I really like what you said at the end.
Thank you again for being here, for the right reasons, I'm sure. 🤗
I just read your post. Hopefully, I follow people for the right reasons. I have not changed my background colors or pictures to attract anyone . I follow people whose works I find interesting.
And it warms my heart to read that, Phyllis! Thank you for being here!