Moving on from Substack
+:｡(ﾉ･ω･)ﾉﾞ
Hello, I wanted to let all 63 of you know that I’m moving off of substack. Not because I’m not writing anymore, quite the opposite! ✧*｡٩(ˊᗜˋ*)و✧*｡
I’m writing a ton, but it’s not making it’s way here. Out of all the subscription type of apps, this one has been the least engaging for me. So I’m just cutting it loose. I’ve tried patreon, I tried this app, and I tried Bindery, and the last was just the best option for me. If you haven’t heard of it before, Bindery is essentially a publishing company that offers people their own subscription service similar to the tier system on patreon, and run by their communities.
Bindery aims to be a different type of publishing company, helping indie authors get a spotlight through partnering with book centered content creators to create mini imprints and get these authors published. It’s a very unique platform and it’s constantly changing. I do not have an imprint myself, instead I’m on there as a “tastemaker” which means I host a members only page where I post reviews, written posts like the ones I’ve made here on substack, and I’m able to cross post content from other apps onto my Bindery feed.
This is what it looks like. Once you hit the follow button (totally free, same as this page), you are prompted to sign up with Bindery using your email, and then you can get updates right to your inbox on all that I post. It’s a mix of writing, videos, and graphics I make across the internet all in one place.
I called my page Fairly Queer Books, and I still think it’s a very clever name. If you’d still like to hear my rantings in your inbox, that’s where you can go. Meanwhile, all my posts on substack will be archived and potentially reposted there (we’ll see, I do hate rereading my own writing).
If you’re wondering why I am leaving this space, I made a tiktok a while ago about how this platform and a few other book centered apps have been operating with their use of ai, general censorship, and weird business practices. I’ve really been taking into consideration how I want to show up online and what type of writing/art/videos I feel called to continue sharing. Social apps can offer a ton to people who need that virtual third space, tiktok is where I found mine initially, but there is only so far any of these apps can go in providing that.
My video was inspired by writer and activist ismatu gwendolyn who posted their final piece on substack that detailed this site’s anti-black and racism allegations. Since posting it in December, she has fully left substack. You can find the post on their new publication threadings (it was posted in December and is behind a paywall on an independent host site. Would highly recommend checking it out if you can support financially). Now, she is not the first to call this out, but her piece was how I found out and naturally, it led me into a deep dive on substack. From all the critique I’ve seen, this space doesn’t seem to take reports of hate speech or violent rhetoric seriously. Instead, it regularly benefits and actively profits off of controversy, hate, violently anti-black comments and posts, and n*zi publications. I don’t like any of that at all.
Fascists should never have platforms. Racists should be banned from spreading their vitriol. Zionists do not have valid critiques to share. Sharing the work of the three is antithetical to what I believe in and how I move through the world. I shouldn’t have to say that I’m very much against fascism, but here we are. I am against fascists, and we should all be very clear about what companies, apps, brands, media, writing, art that we put our attention and energy towards.
I have a very small page. I am not on substack as frequently as some others, and I do follow many queer BIPOC writers and artists here that I admire greatly. But I need less spaces that hold parts of my creative output, especially when I know they don’t care about me or my communities.
That being said, I know a lot of people get a bit tired of moving from one app to another, one subscription platform to the next, but I really think diligence is needed these days. For me, it’s about reclaiming my digital spaces. If the app itself is hindering my ability to create for whatever reason, then why am I using it at all? I made this page with the intention to connect with you, but there are other ways to do so. I will never be fully attached to a platform or an app. These social media spaces are useful tools for communication and reaching across the globe, but they can become toxic very quickly if we’re not intentional about how much we give them.
I am an artist, I’m a lifelong writer, I am wholeheartedly dedicated to liberation, global intifada, land back, and climate justice. I really enjoy engaging people through storytelling, and I find that books are often the best way to get people to think about the world beyond suffering & pain, and into restorative dreaming beyond the systems we currently suffer under. No matter where I am on social media, expect that much from me.
I may continue to trim down the amount of digital spaces I have, but for now in 2025, here is the full run down of spaces I’ve decided to keep:
Yes, I’m still on tiktok. I use it frequently. Will probably be on that ship till it’s sold to the highest bidder. (╯°□°）╯︵ ┻━┻
I am on youtube ヽ(´▽`)/ at fairlyoddfareeha I’ve been posting tons of shorts directly from tiktok onto that page, slowly rebuilding a following there. My arbitrary goal is to upload at least 2 long form videos this spring and summer. Ambitious, I know. I’d love to turn this channel into an extension of what I already do, but also use it for some casual vlogging, book ranting, and other stuff. Very much will be my yap space.
Bindery, like I said above. I really like the site, it’s constantly going through updates, they’re committed to not using ai, they listen to user feedback, and they’re constantly inviting more folks to apply and get their own pages made as tastemakers. I’ve been on there since June 2024 and post at least once or twice a month. I’ll now be posting there much more frequently. My latest post was a comic review for International Women's Day. You can check it out to see the types of reviews I’ll make there.
($)If you would really like to join my inner circle ($5 tier) on Bindery, I appreciate you! I have tons planned, but for now I urge you to just follow on the free tier, you’ll get updates when I finally start posting exclusive content at the pace I am able to. They will most likely be early youtube uploads, longer essays, giveaways, and some phyiscal sticker rewards!
Hopefully coming to you this summer ≧(´▽｀)≦
I have a discord server that you can join through my Bindery page, this is what the button looks like. It’s called the Comic Cove and it’s where I host book club, do silent reading nights, co-working, it’s where my community share crafts, our current reads, our bookish rants etc. It’s a fun time.
For book apps, I use storygraph and I update it every week with what I’m reading, my entire tbr is on there, and I regularly refer to the stats and share them on ig. It is also where I share what my book club is reading next. My page there is called fareehareads.
($)I have a bookshop.org storefront also called Fareehasreads where you can shop the books I talk about. I do recieve revenue from those purchases, the same way any indie store you support on bookshop would if you select that storefront. This is where all of my favorites and other curated book lists live. If you have ever gotten a recommendation from me and plan on purchasing the book, this is one way you can support me and grab your next read.
($)I have a Kofi page which is essentially a tip jar. You don’t have to make an account or anything to send a tip, this is basically to fuel my matcha addiction. I’ve had people subscribe to me on there as well and that type of support is greatly appreciated! (๑>ᴗ<๑)
Also I’m on instagram & bluesky. I have a twitter page that I keep for mutual aid campaigns, it is not active.
Most recently I made a twitch. Stay tuned for that!
Okay, I think that’s everything. This was meant to be a brief farewell, yet here we are. Thanks for following along, hope to see you in any of the other spaces! ヽ(・ε・｀)