We Made the Charts. Now What the Hell Do We Do Next?

Dear Beautiful Maniacs,

So… this happened.

Somehow, without a checkmark, without a PR team, and without so much as a single ad for online mattresses, Closer to the Edge cracked the charts. Real charts. We're now #19 on Substack’s “Rising in U.S. Politics” and #97 on the Bestsellers list, slotted between big names with bigger teams — legacy pundits, media machines, and a few writers who haven’t had an original thought since the Bush administration.

And then there’s us. Built on faxes, fury, and reader-fueled fire. No backing. No hedge fund. Just the truth, a reckless amount of coffee, and a refusal to shut the hell up.

You got us here. Every one of you. You subscribed. You shared. You screamed it from rooftops, libraries, and probably a few HR departments. You dragged this weird, honest, furious little publication onto the national stage. And now we’re asking: what the hell do we do next?

Do we throw a music festival? Something raw and joyful and pissed off? With protest bands, banned books, and a DJ spinning leaked congressional recordings over a dubstep beat?

Should we launch a Closer to the Edge merch line, with every dollar going to a worthy cause you help us choose? Would you wear a hoodie that says UNVERIFIED. UNCHECKED. UNFUCKWITHABLE. in a courtroom? We would. Probably twice.

Do we rent a billboard outside FOX News that simply says “Still Rising. Still No Checkmark.” or project our headlines onto the Capitol dome while blasting “Sabotage” through a Bluetooth speaker taped to a Roomba?

We don’t know. We’re wide open. And we want your ideas. Big ones. Small ones. Dangerous ones. The weirder, the better. You’ve already taken us this far. We’re not going back.

And, speaking of moving forward, we need to say a few things about Ann Coulter.

When we weren’t on the Bestsellers list, it didn’t bother us. We knew what we were building, and we weren’t rushing it. But now that we’re on the list — now that we’ve clawed our way into the room — it is deeply, profoundly, viscerally upsetting to be five spots behind Ann fucking Coulter.

It’s not about ego. It’s about decency. It’s about not letting someone who once suggested women shouldn’t vote rank above a publication run by people who actually read.

So here’s the deal: if you’re able and willing to become a paid subscriber — or upgrade your subscription — we won’t let it go to waste. We’ll use that support to grow faster, go harder, take more risks, and get this thing past Ann and into the stratosphere.

Thank you for getting us here. Thank you for giving a damn. Now tell us where to go next — and if you can, give us the fuel to get there.

— The Team at Closer to the Edge

Charted. Bothered. Coming for Ann.

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