Developer Letter: AfterHouse’s First Month
Behind the scenes
We closed out the first month. I’m not writing a report — I just wanted to talk for a bit.
We closed out the first month. I’m not writing a report. I just wanted to talk for a bit.
In that time we shipped articles, the mural, reviews going to stories, albums with their own look…
A few things from this month I want to name with care:
- the mural (welcome back, old internet)
- articles — our house needs a library too; the different designs for stories;
- and Android — opening the door to the other half of the crowd changed the size of the conversation.
There’s a small detail that makes me happy too: the review draft. If you love writing long reviews and need to leave midway, your text will still be there when you come back. It sounds small, but it isn’t.
But what stayed with me most wasn’t the list of things we shipped. It was hearing that the app felt like the people behind it. That matters more to me than any metric.
The other day, in a Discord group, we were rating an album while playing a game. In another, we laughed for minutes reading comments on a low-scored record. I can’t quite explain the feeling, but building something and watching people genuinely love it is magic. I feel like we’re making a safe harbor. A fun space — and we’re creating life together. That’s priceless.
And the future?
We’re paving the way for you to create posts. Like this one you’re reading. Want to open a thread about an album? Talk about how much it matters to you? Write about why Electra Heart is brilliant? That’s what it’s for.
There’s also more profile customization coming — and ways to share who you are beyond the top 5 (which you can already do today).
Thank you for being here at the beginning. Truly.
See you next time. — Nando