Substack Integration
iContentForge integrates directly with Substack's API, allowing you to automatically publish your AI-generated articles as posts in your Substack newsletter. This guide explains how to connect your project and configure the publishing settings.
Prerequisites
Before you begin, ensure you have:
- An active iContentForge project with articles in the Ready status.
- A Substack publication where you are an owner or have publishing permissions.
- Your Substack login credentials.
How to Connect
- Navigate to your iContentForge Project Dashboard.
- Click on "CMS Settings" or "Connect CMS".
- From the list of available CMS platforms, select Substack.
- You will be prompted to enter your Substack API credentials.
iContentForge CMS connection screen with Substack selected
Obtaining Substack API Credentials
Substack does not provide a traditional API key in its settings. iContentForge connects using your email and a special application password.
- Log in to your Substack publication's dashboard.
- Go to Settings > Account.
- Scroll down to the "Advanced" section.
- Click on "Manage application passwords".
- Click "Create a new application password". Give it a descriptive name like "iContentForge".
- Substack will generate a password. Copy this password immediately, as it will not be shown again.
- In iContentForge, use your Substack account email and this application password to establish the connection.
Store your Substack application password securely. You will need to re-generate it in Substack's settings if you lose it.
Article Field Mapping
When iContentForge publishes an article to Substack, it maps the generated content to Substack's post fields as follows:
| iContentForge Field | Substack Field | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Article Title | Title | The main headline of the post. |
| Article Body (HTML) | Body | The full article content, sent as clean HTML. |
| Meta Description | Subtitle | Used as the post subtitle or excerpt. |
| Featured Image | Featured Image | The first image from the article body is set as the featured image. |
| — | Slug | Not customizable. Substack automatically generates the URL. |
Publishing Options
You can control how articles are sent to Substack from your project's CMS Settings or via the Drip Feed scheduler.
- Publish as Draft: The article is created in your Substack dashboard but not published or sent to subscribers. Status in iContentForge will show as Published.
- Publish Immediately: The article is published live on your Substack site. Status in iContentForge will show as Published.
We recommend using "Publish as Draft" for initial testing. This allows you to review the formatted article in Substack's editor before sending it to your audience.
Important Notes & Limitations
- URL Slugs: Substack does not allow custom slugs via its API. The final URL for your post (e.g.,
yourpublication.substack.com/p/auto-generated-title) is determined by Substack after publishing. - Post Types: The integration currently publishes standard posts. Newsletters (email-specific sends) must be configured within Substack after the post is created.
- Scheduling: For precise scheduling (e.g., "publish next Tuesday at 9 AM"), use Substack's native scheduling feature after the draft is created. iContentForge's Drip Feed will place articles in your queue approximately every 5 minutes.
Troubleshooting
"Authentication Failed" Error
- Double-check your Substack account email and application password.
- Ensure you are using an application password, not your regular account password.
- Regenerate the application password in Substack and update the credentials in iContentForge.
Article Stuck in "Generating" or "Error" Status
- Check that your article body contains valid HTML.
- Verify your iContentForge project has sufficient quota for the publishing operation.
- Review the project's Activity Log for specific error messages from the Substack API.
Next Steps
- Learn how to automate publishing with Drip Feed Scheduling.
- Understand the different Article Statuses in your workflow.
- Explore other available CMS Integrations.