As of today, I’m turning on the paid subscription option here at Crossroads Astrology.
But first, I want to share a little about why I haven’t offered them in the past – and why I’m deciding to do so now.
Why I’ve avoided offering paid subscriptions.
I’m going to be honest here and say this: paywalls make me feel uncomfortable.
I don’t know how many times I’ve clicked on an article or a link in an e-mail only to find out the content I was interested in reading is only available to paid subscribers.
I get it.
Paywalls help media be less dependent on the predatory clickbait digital advertising of yore. In places like Substack they make even more sense, because they give you a chance to directly support great writers and creators.
However, it still always makes me feel like someone is saying no.
It’s also not really financially feasible for me right now to pay the subscription fee for everything I’d like to read – if a publication or writer doesn’t offer at least some free content I’m even less likely to do so.
I wouldn’t want to give anyone who stumbles onto my newsletter this kind of feeling.
So, that’s one of the main reasons why I’ve decided against offering paid content.
Here’s another reason:
I started Crossroads Astrology on December 20, 2020, and it’s evolved a lot since then. I moved from writing about tarot and traditional Western astrology to Western astrology compared to Vedic astrology to Vedic astrology on its own.
I feel good about where it is now: a place that seeks to present the beautifully complex and technical science of Vedic astrology in content that even those with no prior knowledge can understand.
Until I got to this point, it didn’t really make sense for me to offer paid subscriptions, which may have blocked the organic development of what I want to do here.
I’m eternally grateful to my Jyotish teachers, Freedom Cole, Dr. Eric Rosenbush and Pandit Sanjay Rath. Without their guidance, knowledge and wisdom I would not be able to share any of the content I do here, let alone use my skills in Jyotish to help better people’s lives as well as my own. And each of them is very generous with their knowledge, a spirit I would like to follow.
Many of my fellow Vedic astrology students either come from India or work in related fields, like yoga or Ayurveda. This wasn’t the case for me when I first started studying Jyotish. One of my goals here is to make Crossroads Astrology a place where people can discover the richness of Vedic astrology who might otherwise never be exposed to it.
Putting my content behind a paywall would therefore defeat the purpose of attracting such an audience.
Three valid reasons to opt out of paid subscriptions. A conundrum indeed.
Why I’ve decided to offer paid subscriptions (and how I plan to go about it)
I’m going to be honest with you here again: I’m a very busy person.
I have a regular full-time job, a family, a growing Vedic astrology consultation practice and several hobbies I’m passionate about. I’m also continuing my studies in Jyotish, which will be a life-long learning path in itself.
Writing and publishing content here is time consuming, and time is one thing I’m definitely short on.
The support paid subscriptions offer would help give me the financial cushion to reduce my hours at work, concentrate on building my Jyotish practice and sharing my knowledge. If things continue to grow, it could someday even allow me to make my living as a full-time professional astrologer, which would be a dream come true.
Therefore, keeping in mind the points I mentioned above, I’m now offering the following subscription tiers:
Free subscription
Free access to posts for the first six months after publication.
Paid subscription ($8.00 monthly or $80.00 per year)
Access to all published posts, including archive material
a 10% discount on any Vedic consultation
Founding member ($260 per year)
Same benefits as the paid subscription
This is for those rock stars who would like to give a little more
As a special thanks, this tier gets one free one-hour Vedic consultation per year of membership.
What you can do now
Not sure you would like to commit to a paid subscription or struggling financially?
No worries!
Feel free to enjoy each post, which will be free to read for six months after the publication date.
Ready to sign up for a paid subscription or upgrade your current free subscription?
Great!
You can do so here:
Know someone who would dig a gift subscription? You can sign them up here:
Please also feel free to share Crossroads Astrology with anyone you know who might be interested in either a free or paid subscription.
Thanks so much.
I appreciate your support, both monetary and otherwise!
XOXO
Rebeccah