Practical guide
Organize a large Substack reading list
Organize publications by the question they answer and the contribution they make. Record official URLs, authorship, access, and recent issues; keep navigation relationships separate from companion approval.[1][2]
Why this gets difficult
A large Substack list is difficult to organize because categories describe broad subject matter, not the reading goal, evidence role, or reason two publications should be read together.[1][2]
A practical way through
- Create a catalog with publication name, official URL, byline when verified, paid status, and current reading goal.[1][2]
- Read recent public issues and write one distinct perspective for every retained publication.[1][2]
- Use categories only for browsing; approve companions manually from actual issue compatibility.[1][2]
- Review paid renewals, dead feeds, and redundant sources on a fixed schedule.[1][2]
An example
The situation: A reader's business category contains operator advice, economics, policy, finance, and personal essays that do not form one coherent reading list.[1][2]
What changes: The publications are regrouped by pricing, macroeconomics, public policy, and operating practice, with companions approved only inside a real reader question.[1][2]
What you get: The catalog remains navigable without pretending every business publication belongs in the same brief.[1][2]
What to watch for
Sources worth keeping
How Scottie helps
Scottie uses manually approved companion sets for multi-publication examples and can process subscribed issues through a separate Scottie address.[3]