How to Use the Substack Editor

Version: 4 (current) | Updated: 11/12/2025, 8:25:12 PM

Added description

Description

How to Use the Substack Editor

Overview

This archived item is a text‑based tutorial titled “How to Use the Substack Editor.” It was created in 2023 by the company Substack and is stored in the archive as a JSON metadata record (file name: pinax.json). The document is written in English and is intended as a practical guide for users of Substack’s publishing platform.

Background

Substack is a newsletter and content‑creation platform that allows writers to publish directly to subscribers. The tutorial was produced by Substack’s own documentation team as part of its user‑support resources. The archival record originates from the PINAX system, a digital repository used to capture and preserve web‑based instructional content. The record’s provenance indicates that it was captured in 2023 and is associated with an institutional placeholder labeled “test.”

Contents

The tutorial covers the core features of the Substack editor, including:
  • Formatting options (bold, italics, lists, blockquotes, etc.)
  • Heading styles and document structure
  • Embedding content such as images, videos, and external links
  • Basic publishing workflow (drafting, previewing, and sending newsletters)

The document is concise, focusing on step‑by‑step instructions for new users. It includes screenshots (in the original format) and tips for maintaining a clean, readable layout. The metadata lists the subjects “editor tutorials,” “formatting options,” “content creation,” and “Substack,” underscoring its instructional nature.

Scope

The tutorial is limited to the Substack editor as of its 2023 release. It does not cover advanced features such as custom CSS, API integration, or analytics. Geographically, it is intended for a global audience, though it is tailored to English‑speaking users. The archive entry does not specify copyright restrictions, indicating that the rights status is either public domain or not recorded. The material is suitable for anyone needing a quick reference to the basic functions of Substack’s writing interface.

Entities

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Entity Relationships

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Raw Cheimarros Data

@file_pinax:document {title: "How to Use the Substack Editor", creator: @substack, created: @date_2023, language: "en", subjects: ["editor tutorials", "formatting options", "content creation", "Substack"], description: "A tutorial on how to use the Substack editor, including formatting options, headings, and embedding content."}
@file_125962877_how_to_use_the_substack_editor:document {format: "HTML", title: "How to Use the Substack Editor (HTML)", created: @date_2023}
@substack_editor_tutorial:document {title: "How to Use the Substack Editor", format: "HTML", created: @date_2023, language: "en"}

@file_pinax -> describes -> @substack_editor_tutorial
@file_125962877_how_to_use_the_substack_editor -> contains -> @substack_editor_tutorial

@block_quotes:concept {description: "Formatting element to display quoted text"}
@bold:concept {description: "Text style for strong emphasis"}
@italic:concept {description: "Text style for emphasis"}
@link:concept {description: "Hyperlink to external URL"}
@heading:concept {description: "Section title with hierarchical level"}
@image_embedding:concept {description: "Embedding an image within a post"}
@tweet_embed:concept {description: "Embedding a tweet via its URL"}
@youtube_embed:concept {description: "Embedding a YouTube video"}
@vimeo_embed:concept {description: "Embedding a Vimeo video"}
@spotify_embed:concept {description: "Embedding a Spotify album or track"}
@soundcloud_embed:concept {description: "Embedding a SoundCloud track"}
@settings_button:concept {description: "Button in Substack UI to access post settings"}
@publish_option:concept {description: "Publishing post to the web"}
@publish_and_send_option:concept {description: "Publishing post to the web and sending email to subscribers"}
@help_center:concept {description: "Substack support resource"}
@support_contact:concept {description: "Contact form for Substack support"}

@hamish_mckenzie:person {full_name: "Hamish McKenzie"}
@andrew_yang:person {full_name: "Andrew Yang"}
@azeem_azhar:person {full_name: "Azeem Azhar"}
@exponential_view:organization {name: "Exponential View"}

@tweet:document {author: @hamish_mckenzie, content: "Twitter is an amazing tool and an awful place.", date: @date_2017_12_15, platform: @twitter}
@youtube_video:document {video_id: "ZoEUu1XHL7U", platform: @youtube}
@vimeo_video:document {video_id: "288003645", platform: @vimeo}
@spotify_album:document {title: "LOVE. FEAT. ZACARI.", artists: ["Kendrick Lamar", "Zacari"], url: "https://open.spotify.com/album/4eLPsYPBmXABThSJ821sqY", platform: @spotify}
@soundcloud_track:document {title: "UBI, Automation & Society in the US: Andrew Yang & Azeem Azhar in Conversation by Exponential View", url: "https://api.soundcloud.com/tracks/522545169", platform: @soundcloud, description: "Discussion on universal basic income with Andrew Yang and Azeem Azhar"}

@substack_editor_tutorial -> includes -> [@block_quotes, @bold, @italic, @link, @heading, @image_embedding, @tweet_embed, @youtube_embed, @vimeo_embed, @spotify_embed, @soundcloud_embed, @settings_button, @publish_option, @publish_and_send_option, @help_center, @support_contact]
@substack_editor_tutorial -> embeds -> [@tweet, @youtube_video, @vimeo_video, @spotify_album, @soundcloud_track]
@substack_editor_tutorial -> mentions -> @hamish_mckenzie
@substack_editor_tutorial -> mentions -> @andrew_yang
@substack_editor_tutorial -> mentions -> @azeem_azhar
@substack_editor_tutorial -> mentions -> @exponential_view
@substack_editor_tutorial -> references -> @substack

Metadata

Version History (4 versions)

  • ✓ v4 (current) · 11/12/2025, 8:25:12 PM
    "Added description"
  • v3 · 11/12/2025, 8:24:37 PM · View this version
    "Added knowledge graph extraction"
  • v2 · 11/12/2025, 8:23:54 PM · View this version
    "Added PINAX metadata"
  • v1 · 11/12/2025, 8:23:43 PM · View this version
    "Reorganization group: substack_editor_tutorials"

Additional Components

125962877.how-to-use-the-substack-editor.html
<p>Hi! This is a draft post. Did you know that there are a bunch of nice formatting options in this editor? For example:</p><blockquote><p>Block quotes are a nice way to put a quote or excerpt from a source. They make it clear that it is a quote.</p></blockquote><p>Of course, you can also do <strong>bold, </strong><em>italic</em>, <a href="https://www.substack.com">links</a>,<strong> </strong>and all that good stuff.</p><h3>Headings and Embeddings</h3><p>You can have headings in posts. Just use the “Style”<em> </em>list in the toolbar. You can also embed different types of content. To add an image, just drag it in here or use the image selector tool in the toolbar.</p><div class="captioned-image-container"><figure><a class="image-link image2" target="_blank" href="https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!2WtI!,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fbucketeer-e05bbc84-baa3-437e-9518-adb32be77984.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2Ffec21723-9bb2-4ea6-8fc2-09d17ba3bd1a_4032x3024" data-component-name="Image2ToDOM"><div class="image2-inset"><picture><source type="image/webp" srcset="https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!2WtI!,w_424,c_limit,f_webp,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fbucketeer-e05bbc84-baa3-437e-9518-adb32be77984.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2Ffec21723-9bb2-4ea6-8fc2-09d17ba3bd1a_4032x3024 424w, https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!2WtI!,w_848,c_limit,f_webp,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fbucketeer-e05bbc84-baa3-437e-9518-adb32be77984.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2Ffec21723-9bb2-4ea6-8fc2-09d17ba3bd1a_4032x3024 848w, https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!2WtI!,w_1272,c_limit,f_webp,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fbucketeer-e05bbc84-baa3-437e-9518-adb32be77984.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2Ffec21723-9bb2-4ea6-8fc2-09d17ba3bd1a_4032x3024 1272w, https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!2WtI!,w_1456,c_limit,f_webp,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fbucketeer-e05bbc84-baa3-437e-9518-adb32be77984.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2Ffec21723-9bb2-4ea6-8fc2-09d17ba3bd1a_4032x3024 1456w" sizes="100vw"><img src="https://bucketeer-e05bbc84-baa3-437e-9518-adb32be77984.s3.amazonaws.com/public/images/fec21723-9bb2-4ea6-8fc2-09d17ba3bd1a_4032x3024" data-attrs="{&quot;src&quot;:&quot;https://bucketeer-e05bbc84-baa3-437e-9518-adb32be77984.s3.amazonaws.com/public/images/fec21723-9bb2-4ea6-8fc2-09d17ba3bd1a_4032x3024&quot;,&quot;srcNoWatermark&quot;:null,&quot;fullscreen&quot;:null,&quot;imageSize&quot;:null,&quot;height&quot;:null,&quot;width&quot;:null,&quot;resizeWidth&quot;:null,&quot;bytes&quot;:null,&quot;alt&quot;:null,&quot;title&quot;:null,&quot;type&quot;:null,&quot;href&quot;:null,&quot;belowTheFold&quot;:false,&quot;topImage&quot;:true,&quot;internalRedirect&quot;:null,&quot;isProcessing&quot;:false,&quot;align&quot;:null,&quot;offset&quot;:false}" class="sizing-normal" alt="" srcset="https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!2WtI!,w_424,c_limit,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fbucketeer-e05bbc84-baa3-437e-9518-adb32be77984.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2Ffec21723-9bb2-4ea6-8fc2-09d17ba3bd1a_4032x3024 424w, https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!2WtI!,w_848,c_limit,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fbucketeer-e05bbc84-baa3-437e-9518-adb32be77984.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2Ffec21723-9bb2-4ea6-8fc2-09d17ba3bd1a_4032x3024 848w, https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!2WtI!,w_1272,c_limit,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fbucketeer-e05bbc84-baa3-437e-9518-adb32be77984.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2Ffec21723-9bb2-4ea6-8fc2-09d17ba3bd1a_4032x3024 1272w, https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!2WtI!,w_1456,c_limit,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fbucketeer-e05bbc84-baa3-437e-9518-adb32be77984.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2Ffec21723-9bb2-4ea6-8fc2-09d17ba3bd1a_4032x3024 1456w" sizes="100vw" fetchpriority="high"></picture><div></div></div></a></figure></div><p>For a tweet, YouTube video, Vimeo video, Spotify track, or SoundCloud embed, just paste the relevant link on a new line (don’t grab the embed code; it won’t work).</p><div data-component-name="Twitter2ToDOM" class="tweet" data-attrs="{&quot;url&quot;:&quot;https://twitter.com/hamishmckenzie/status/941694455853101056&quot;,&quot;full_text&quot;:&quot;Twitter is an amazing tool and an awful place.&quot;,&quot;username&quot;:&quot;hamishmckenzie&quot;,&quot;name&quot;:&quot;Hamish McKenzie&quot;,&quot;date&quot;:&quot;Fri Dec 15 15:40:28 +0000 2017&quot;,&quot;photos&quot;:[],&quot;quoted_tweet&quot;:{},&quot;retweet_count&quot;:1,&quot;like_count&quot;:5,&quot;expanded_url&quot;:{},&quot;video_url&quot;:null,&quot;belowTheFold&quot;:false}"><a class="tweet-link-top" href="https://twitter.com/hamishmckenzie/status/941694455853101056" target="_blank"><div class="tweet-header"><img class="tweet-header-avatar" src="https://substackcdn.com/image/twitter_name/w_96/hamishmckenzie.jpg" alt="Twitter avatar for @hamishmckenzie"><div class="tweet-header-text"><span class="tweet-author-name">Hamish McKenzie </span><span class="tweet-author-handle">@hamishmckenzie</span></div></div><div class="tweet-text">Twitter is an amazing tool and an awful place.</div></a><a class="tweet-link-bottom" href="https://twitter.com/hamishmckenzie/status/941694455853101056" target="_blank"><div class="tweet-footer"><span class="tweet-date">3:40 PM ∙ Dec 15, 2017</span><hr><div class="tweet-ufi"><span href="https://twitter.com/hamishmckenzie/status/941694455853101056/likes" class="likes"><span class="like-count">5</span>Likes</span><span href="https://twitter.com/hamishmckenzie/status/941694455853101056/retweets" class="retweets"><span class="rt-count">1</span>Retweet</span></div></div></a></div><div id="youtube2-ZoEUu1XHL7U" class="youtube-wrap" data-attrs="{&quot;videoId&quot;:&quot;ZoEUu1XHL7U&quot;,&quot;startTime&quot;:null,&quot;endTime&quot;:null}" data-component-name="Youtube2ToDOM"><div class="youtube-inner"><iframe src="https://www.youtube-nocookie.com/embed/ZoEUu1XHL7U?rel=0&amp;autoplay=0&amp;showinfo=0&amp;enablejsapi=0" frameborder="0" loading="lazy" gesture="media" allow="autoplay; fullscreen" allowautoplay="true" allowfullscreen="true" width="728" height="409"></iframe></div></div><div id="vimeo-288003645" class="vimeo-wrap" data-attrs="{&quot;videoId&quot;:&quot;288003645&quot;,&quot;videoKey&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;belowTheFold&quot;:true}" data-component-name="VimeoToDOM"><div class="vimeo-inner"><iframe src="https://player.vimeo.com/video/288003645?autoplay=0" frameborder="0" gesture="media" allow="autoplay; fullscreen" allowautoplay="true" allowfullscreen="true" loading="lazy"></iframe></div></div><p></p><iframe class="spotify-wrap album" data-attrs="{&quot;image&quot;:&quot;https://i.scdn.co/image/4988546859334f9a5a3fa4acedc5aea275929026&quot;,&quot;title&quot;:&quot;LOVE. FEAT. ZACARI.&quot;,&quot;subtitle&quot;:&quot;Kendrick Lamar, Zacari&quot;,&quot;description&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;url&quot;:&quot;https://open.spotify.com/album/4eLPsYPBmXABThSJ821sqY&quot;,&quot;belowTheFold&quot;:true,&quot;noScroll&quot;:false}" src="https://open.spotify.com/embed/album/4eLPsYPBmXABThSJ821sqY" frameborder="0" gesture="media" allowfullscreen="true" allow="encrypted-media" loading="lazy" data-component-name="Spotify2ToDOM"></iframe><div class="soundcloud-wrap" data-attrs="{&quot;url&quot;:&quot;https://api.soundcloud.com/tracks/522545169&quot;,&quot;title&quot;:&quot;UBI,  Automation &amp; Society in the US: Andrew Yang &amp; Azeem Azhar in Conversation by Exponential View&quot;,&quot;description&quot;:&quot;Azeem Azhar speaks with Andrew Yang, entrepreneur and author, who is standing for President in the 2020 U.S. elections. At the heart of Andrew's platform is the \&quot;freedom dividend\&quot;, a universal basic income of $1,000, payable to all Americans every month. Azeem and Andrew discuss core ideas behind Andrew's platform, why they are necessary, and how to get there. www.exponentialview.co&quot;,&quot;thumbnail_url&quot;:&quot;http://i1.sndcdn.com/artworks-000431458485-eu1ioh-t500x500.jpg&quot;,&quot;author_name&quot;:&quot;Exponential View&quot;,&quot;author_url&quot;:&quot;https://soundcloud.com/exponentialview&quot;,&quot;targetUrl&quot;:&quot;&quot;}" data-component-name="SoundcloudToDOM"><iframe src="https://w.soundcloud.com/player/?auto_play=false&amp;buying=false&amp;liking=false&amp;download=false&amp;sharing=false&amp;show_artwork=true&amp;show_comments=false&amp;show_playcount=false&amp;show_user=true&amp;hide_related=true&amp;visual=false&amp;start_track=0&amp;url=https%3A%2F%2Fapi.soundcloud.com%2Ftracks%2F522545169" frameborder="0" gesture="media" scrolling="no" allowfullscreen="true"></iframe></div><p>To delete a post, click on the <strong>Settings</strong> button (just to the left of Publish), and scroll down and find the delete button. </p><h4>Publishing Changes</h4><p>You have two publishing options: </p><ol><li><p><strong>Publish</strong> – this publishes your post only to the web. </p></li><li><p><strong>Publish &amp; Send</strong> – this publishes your post to the web and at the same time sends the post out by email. </p></li></ol><p>Note: Once you have sent an email out, the only way to send it again is to create an entirely new post. Any edits you make to a post that has already been published will only be reflected on the web. So, there’s no need to worry about accidentally spamming your subscribers with repeat emails. </p><p>Finally, if you import posts from some other site’s archives, you can backdate them so they are published in the correct order and associated with the correct publication dates. To do so, after you have published a post, go into that post’s Settings (just to the left of the Publish button) and select the desired date. </p><p>If you have any questions, you can check out our <a href="https://support.substack.com/hc/en-us">Help Center</a> or <a href="https://support.substack.com/hc/en-us/requests/new">contact support</a>!</p><p></p><p></p>

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