I'm Quitting Substack

A farewell and looking forward to the future

If there’s one thing I’ve learned after almost a year of posting on Substack, it’s that:

1. Nonfiction is not my thing at all.

2. Social media isn’t for me.

3. You can’t change where you come from, but you can change who you are.

All these conclusions have made me realize that I need to quit Substack, but not in the way many of y’all might be thinking, so that’s what this post is about. Sit back, hold your breath, and prepare to die!

(Okno, don’t die, I just had to quote The Princess Bride, okay?)

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Imagination vs. Reality

48,645 words.

365 days.

36 articles.

2 publications.

And 1 year later… here I am, still not knowing what the future holds for me¹.

In a couple weeks it’ll be a year from the first time I posted on Substack, and so many things have happened since then that I wouldn’t have enough time to recount them all—though I’d love to. For starters, in February of this year, I met a random group of young Christians online who became my absolute favorite elephantine gathering. I’d be lying if I said I didn’t have friends throughout my life, because I did, but what I never had were like-minded friends. Friends who shared the same beliefs and perspectives. Friends who were as willing as I was to stand up for what is right and have fun in the process. So, finding the guys and ladies from The Elephant Under The Bridge and building something together is honestly one of the five best things that has ever happened to me. They are the miracle I didn’t know I needed. We haven’t met in person YET, but when I think about them, I can’t help but think, “Yes, these are my people, I hope it lasts forever.” My friends are amazing, and I wouldn’t trade them for anything.

Another thing that happened this year was that after writing more nonfiction in 365 days than I have in my entire life, I learned that fiction is my calling.

I was born seeing a story around every corner, breathing in every detail of the anecdotes and tales I heard. For every single story I heard, I wanted to produce five of my own. And, although you can tell a story through nonfiction, the reality of life was never my strong suit because it limits me. To quote L. M. Montgomery, “there is no room for imagination” in the reality of life. When I write fiction, however, my mind feels free to invent and reinvent whatever it wants because, as Tolkien said, “fantasy is, like many other things, a legitimate right of every human being, for through it one finds complete freedom and satisfaction.”

When I write fiction, something inside me simply switches; the words flow easily, I don’t even have to think about it. As someone once told me, “you have an innate instinct for immersing yourself in a story.” My literary voice for fiction has been fading because I’ve let it slowly die, but I can’t let it die because without it, I fear anything I try to write would be a tremendous failure.

I’ve been able to see the effect my fiction has on people, as well as my nonfiction, and I’ll tell you, the difference is striking. People enjoy my fiction more than anything else I could write, but why? Well, because I enjoy writing fiction, and that, whether we want to admit it or not, is reflected in what I write.

If the writer connects with what they write, the reader will too.

If the writer feels no empathy for their words, the reader will know.

It’s an instinct, an unspoken pact that exists between the two.

And I don’t connect with nonfiction; it’s not something I do naturally. I have to force it.

If I had to choose a voice to tell what my heart has to say, I wouldn’t hesitate for a second to choose fiction. Period.

I’m 1000% an introvert, okay?

Whether in person or online, socializing drains my energy like you wouldn’t believe.

When it comes to going the extra mile for someone else, I can always push my limits without a problem, but then I have no energy left for anything else. And my creative output suffers as a result. The attention required to manage social media can become truly overwhelming for me, not because I don’t enjoy spending time with people, but because whatever I do, I do it with complete dedication. Perhaps it would be easier if I weren’t so acutely aware of every single detail, but that’s not the case. That’s just not me and I don’t want to change it.

One of the reasons I started publishing on Substack and “making a name for myself” online was because I wanted to try my hand at marketing and see how it would help or hinder my goal of self-publishing. I’ve discovered that I’m not that kind of person. I can do it, sure, but at the end of the day, it’s not my forte.

“So how do you plan to build an audience and get your books to the right people?” some might ask.

Yeah, well, social media didn’t exist in the past, and yet we’re still talking about Dickens as if he were still alive, so even though I don’t know exactly how yet, I trust that if this is what God wants for my life, He will show me the way.

I need to manage my time and energy if I want to achieve my goals in life, and if that means not spending so much time building an online “brand,” then that’s what I’ll do. It’s not really socializing that drains me, but writing articles, keeping to a schedule, and figuring out how to keep my Substack alive. Because, again, when I do something, I pour my whole being into it. If I dedicate myself to writing articles—which, by the way, are nonfiction—I no longer have the energy to write fiction.

So, this introvert has decided to abandon nonfiction as her main genre and dedicate herself to letting her imagination run wild, as she used to do in her childhood and most part of her adolescence. I have several extroverted friends who I know would be more than willing to do the part of taking my brand and marketing to the right audience for a fair amount of money.

Small Breaths of Faithfulness

I don’t know how, but while I was thinking about writing this article and what I would say in it, the idea suddenly came to me to compile all my articles from this year and print them as a collection. To put them on my shelves, contemplate them, and enjoy the fruits of my labor.

Perhaps this idea stemmed from the frustration I felt about not having finished writing any novels. My goal-obsessed self didn’t realize that maybe I hadn’t achieved what I wanted, but that instead I had accomplished many other things. Now I realize that not having finished a single book isn’t because I’m inconsistent or irresponsible, because otherwise I would be here writing this, I wouldn’t have 36 published articles, and I wouldn’t have been so faithful in continuing to show my face here.

I’ve decided to title my collection of articles Small Breaths of Faithfulness: A Substack Journey because, above all, what stands out most from this year and what I’ve learned is that God is faithful. Always. I may fail a thousand times, but as long as I am willing to return, He will receive me with open arms. And He has also taught me to be faithful, to say “just one more,” take a deep breath, and go for the next one. For me, every breath is an act of faithfulness, even when it’s sometimes hard to keep breathing.

Quitting but not leaving

This is where you can breathe again.

I believe the reason my fiction didn’t make much progress this year is because it was never the main goal; Substack was the real main project. While with my fiction I waited for a divine spark of inspiration to strike, with Substack I was mentally, emotionally and physically committed to producing at least one post per week. I didn’t always manage it, but the commitment was there, and that’s why I got to where I am. Otherwise, I’m afraid I wouldn’t have been able to.

Perhaps I should have focused more on my fiction, but the truth is, I don’t regret what I did. What happened, happened, I learned what I learned, but now it’s time to make a change and concentrate on other things. After all, that’s what seasons are for. I'll continue publishing a bimonthly newsletter, occasional articles, and maybe some flash fiction, though. I don't want to become a ghost, either.

So yes, I’m giving up Substack as a main project, but I’m not leaving our dearly community. I’m afraid I’ve grown too attached to you all to do such a thing. Besides, posting Notes has become almost as natural as breathing, so stay tuned. I won’t let you go without my random, humorous thoughts! I also have a commitment sealed with a blood pact—okno, just kidding—with a certain community of elephants, so there’s that, heh.

A packed year

I didn’t mention this before because it’s not the main reason I decided to leave Substack as my primary project, but from what I can see, 2026 is going to be a busy year for me and my family. 2025 was a quiet year for us, which I appreciate, but it’s time for things to pick up a bit. We have several trips planned, ministry projects, family business projects, responsibilities to our friends and family, and more.

As for me, I’ve committed to learning a lot, I already have a thousand projects in mind, and if I’m not mistaken, the Abi who was inventing new things every two seconds is back. And she, well, she doesn’t care if the idea is too far-fetched or if she lacks experience—I don’t recommend you follow her example, by the way, she’s crazy.

There’s also school, the responsibilities of daily life, the pretty long visit I want to make to my great-aunt, my fiction projects, self-publishing what I can, starting a business, tutoring via Zoom, a thousand other things, and of course, life’s unexpected events. There are always those, I’m sure you’ve all experienced that for yourselves.

On another note, a friend and I will be starting a new publication called “Roses in Bloom” next year. We don’t know the exact date yet because we’re both very busy and don’t want to rush things, so stay tuned because I know it will be worth it! We have a rough idea that it will launch around spring. I know it sounds a bit illogical that I’m starting a new publication on Substack when this post is literally about not writing on Substack, but in my defense, it’s a project we had already started before I made the final decision, so there you have it. Besides, it’s a team effort, so that means balanced work.

Makeover plot twist!

And last but not least, I’ll no longer be Abigail Rhoeas as such here.

I’m crazy, I know.

But let me explain the situation a bit.

For as long as I can remember, I’ve known I want to keep my “normal” life separate from my “artistic” life. The Abi I’ve become here is the “normal” one. This is the everyday me, but I also have a side that’s dying to be professional, and I want to keep both parts separate². I’ve tried merging them before, but it never works.

You can see the changes I've made to my profile in the image above. I plan to create a new Substack account for Abigail Rhoeas and her fiction at some point in the future, but for now, I don't need to, so I won't burden myself with something that isn't essential to my current responsibilities.

All being said, I won't bore you any longer with my ramblings. As always, thank you for taking the time to read. Until next time!

Dietro le lettere,

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1. Like everyone else, I guess XD

2. 🎶How we touched and went our separate ways🎶 (iykyk)