The Best Articles in Creator Economy
The most useful articles and videos in Creator Economy from around the web—beginners to advanced—curated by thought leaders and our community. We focus on timeless pieces and update the list whenever we discover new, must-read articles or videos—make sure to bookmark and revisit this page.
Top 5 Creator Economy Articles
At a glance: these are the articles that have been most read, shared, and saved in Creator Economy by Refind users in 2023 so far.
- How to come up with good business ideas
- I Made $5M Self-Publishing Books Online—Here Are 7 Things I’d Do Differently if I Were Starting From…
- This 29-year-old makes $114,000 a month in passive income: ‘4 businesses you can start today for $99…
- The Rise of the Internet’s Creative Middle Class
- 8 creators reveal their #1 growth hack
Videos
Watch a video to get a quick overview.
How to come up with good business ideas
This was recorded on Monday, February 7th for Cohort #3 of The Minimalist Entrepreneur Course.You can learn more about the book this content is based on here...
How to Make $3k per Month - The Digital Nomad Playbook
Thanks to Shopify for sponsoring this video. Get a free trial on the platform with this link - https://shopify.com/alicreatorIf you want to download the list...
Gumroad's Pricing Disaster with Sahil Lavingia
Yesterday, the creator economy learned that Gumroad, a platform where creators have been building their businesses by selling their services and products, in...
How To Optimize Your Creator Business
Today my guest is Tatiana Figueiredo. Tatiana is a community business strategist and the founder of the Business of Community. She helps creators start and s...
How to build a $100K business
Mark Modesti heads up content marketing for an agency in Dallas, Texas. He and his two partners also create websites and offer branding for small SaaS and te...
What is ...?
New to Creator Economy? These articles make an excellent introduction.
NFTs 101: A Useful Beginner’s Guide for Content Creators
Creators must demystify NFTs if they want to control their intellectual property rights and build a business. - The Tilt
What is Good Data?
In this monthly series from Sounds Profitable, we mine the latest audio industry studies and spotlight valuable insights.
How to ...?
How to pick a side project strategically
Three important criteria for picking a side project are longevity, the monetization sweet spot, and the scope.
«identify the primary search keywords, find their search volume, and analyze the top ranking websites.»
How to Invest in Episodic Content that Promotes Itself
I've long been bullish on episodic content; in fact, I think it's likely the best kind of long-term content investment most online brands can make. The
How to Create a Niche Site That Earns 4 Figures a Month in 6 Easy Steps
Shared by 262, including Michael Kolade
How to create a newsletter to build a loyal community with consistent connection
Learn how to create a newsletter to build a consistent connection with your audience to develop a loyal following.
How to start your own podcast
Don’t worry about the equipment … the most important thing is the idea
Trending
These links are currently making the rounds in Creator Economy on Refind.
Memes & Monetization: Can You Make Money from Memes? by Liz Hagelthorn
This piece highlights the current landscape for viral organic content, maps the key players and describes the financial side of meme creation.
Matt Yglesias and the secret of blogging
How to be a successful content entrepreneur
For your next side project, make a browser extension
Reflections on the benefits of tweaking an existing app, instead of starting from scratch.
How to use LinkedIn creator mode effectively
Learn the features and benefits of LinkedIn creator mode and how it can help you improve your LinkedIn reach
Picking The Right Email Platform For Your Indie Newsletter
Let's dive into six email platforms: AWeber, Beehiiv, ConvertKit, Ghost, Mailchimp, and Substack. Which is right for your newsletter?
Short Articles
Short on time? Check out these useful short articles in Creator Economy—all under 10 minutes.
How 'Sharing In Public' Led Me To My First Customers [Zero Paid Advertising]
Hello! Who are you and what business did you start?Hey folks! My name is Dominik Sobe and I am the solo founder of multiple bootstrapped and profitable software products which are all run under my…
This 29-year-old makes $114,000 a month in passive income: ‘4 businesses you can start today for $99…
Charlie Chang started several of his passive income streams — which now gross an average of $114,000 per month — with $0 down. He shares four passive income businesses that anyone can start for "less…
The Rise of the Internet’s Creative Middle Class
Fourteen years ago, Kevin Kelly famously proposed that an artist could make a living online with a thousand true fans. Has time proved him correct?
«a dismissed prophecy about the potential of the Internet to support creative work might be making a triumphant return»
I Made $5M Self-Publishing Books Online—Here Are 7 Things I’d Do Differently if I Were Starting From…
Here’s a cliché pile of vomit to start your day 😉: “What would you do if you knew you could not fail?” Despite the fact that my eyeballs just got whiplash, I gotta tell you: I used to think this was…
5 ways you can copy successful business ideas and still be original
Too many people get hung up waiting for the right idea to start a business I reckon. But especially if you're just starting out in indie hacking/busines...
Long Articles
These are some of the most-read long-form articles in Creator Economy.
A Brief History of Digital Nomads
Excerpt from the new book Global Natives
SparkToro’s Year 2 Retrospective: Can Chill Work, Alternative Funding, and an Indie Approach Scale?
Two years ago today, at the nerve-wracking start of a global pandemic, we launched SparkToro. Since then, we've learned a lot, and uncovered plenty of
Blogging: The Ultimate Guide to Content That Works [2023]
If you want to start blogging, this systematic guide for content success will direct you to steps that make all the difference.
The Game Is Rigged: Rethinking The Creator Economy
Do you remember the internet before influencers? Before teenagers were regularly becoming millionaires on YouTube or TikTok? Before billions of us started sharing our lives online? The opening bit of…
Thought Leaders
We monitor hundreds of thought leaders, influencers, and newsletters in Creator Economy, including:
Li Jin
investing @VariantFund, writing http://li.substack.com
a16z
we invest in software eating the world http://a16z.com/portfolio/ http://a16z.com/podcasts/

Taylor Lorenz
Technology columnist @washingtonpost | SUBSCRIBE TO MY FREE NEWSLETTER!! 👇🏻👇🏻👇🏻 https://taylorlorenz.substack.com/subscribe
Starter Story
Discover business ideas that make money and learn how to start them with our real-life case studies

Newsletter Crew
Tips to help you grow, operate, and monetize your newsletter.
Publications
We monitor hundreds of publications, blogs, newsletters, and news sources in Creator Economy, including:
Social Media Today
Helping you make sense of the ever-evolving #SocialMedia and #DigitalMarketing landscape. Signup for our newsletter here: http://dive.pub/SMTtwitter
a16z
we invest in software eating the world http://a16z.com/portfolio/ http://a16z.com/podcasts/
Every 📧
We publish smart, thoughtful essays on business and personal development. Our mission is to feed the minds and hearts of the people who build the internet.
Eater
Where to eat and why it matters in the world's best food cities. Sign up for our newsletter ⬇️
Starter Story
Discover business ideas that make money and learn how to start them with our real-life case studies
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We monitor 10k+ content sources on hundreds of topics—publications, blogs, news sites, newsletters, Substack, Medium, Twitter, etc.
Which sources does Refind monitor in Creator Economy?
We monitor hundreds of sources in Creator Economy, including Social Media Today, a16z, Every 📧, Eater, Starter Story, and many more.
Who are the thought leaders in Creator Economy?
We follow dozens of thought leaders in Creator Economy, including Li Jin, a16z, Taylor Lorenz, Starter Story, Newsletter Crew.
Missing a thought leader? Submit them here
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