In the past, I have tinkered with paid posts using Patreon, and if I’m honest it turned a hobby into a stressful business.

CabbieBlog is free, despite having many ‘Protected’ posts, these, as I wrote recently, are to stop copyright trolls targeting the site, rather than charging per view.

But back to the pros and cons of charging to read my missives.

This ‘no paywall’ strategy is fairly unusual, especially among more established blogs, and it’s certainly not for everyone. But these days it works well enough for me. So I thought I’d share a few thoughts about this option, and why it can be a good choice for most hobbyists.

Less stress

My peers who paywall have excellent reasons for doing so. But they all grapple with a difficult issue, what to offer their paying subscribers? Many produce ‘bonus’ content in the form of additional posts, which means extra work. Others paywall a portion of each post, reducing their audience from thousands to hundreds.

When you dispense with paywalls, publishing is straightforward. Everyone gets everything! You can focus your creative efforts on your writing rather than your monetisation strategy.

More freedom

The minute you paywall, you turn your readers into customers. You’re creating an expectation that they will get something specific for their money. And you know what they say: ‘The customer is always right.’

Having customers can be a little like having a boss. And frankly, the main reason I decided to write on WordPress was to gain more independence. In a no-paywall zone, I can write about whatever I want, however, I want, as often or as little as I want.

The write way

Since I don’t charge at all for my writing, I view the blog as a little gift available to all, and gifting is more fun than selling.

So here’s the obvious question: By forgoing a paywall, am I missing a valuable income stream? Probably! But would that additional income be worth the extra work and stress? Doubtful.

So yes, I’d love to have paying subscribers, not just for the money but for the bragging rights. I’d love to tell people about my thousands of paying subscribers and how my blog earns me a good living.

But it’s hard enough to upload something, anything daily, without worrying if my supporters approve.

Assuming WordPress doesn’t tinker more to the detriment of the hobbyist (as I’ve often written it’s doubtful in my opinion), I’m in this for the long haul, and I’m enjoying the paywall-free ride enough to justify the slower pace.