$4K in 4 Months on Medium
Here's what I've learned.
Every month, I like to check in about my progress here and my experience with the Medium Partner Program. If you've read my backstory in the past, you might recall that I first began writing with Medium on April 25 in the hopes to help make up for lost income when my full-time social media job became a part-time gig. I started at square one like most of you.
Today I'm paying my rent and utilities with my Medium pay, and I have 1.8K followers. I keep writing and working to grow a loyal base of readers.
Of course, money isn't the only reason I'm here. I decided to throw my hat into the Medium Partner Program also because I do want to become a successful writer. And after four months, writing here still feels right.
I cover a variety of topics, and I'm passionate about every one of them. Honestly, I wish I had the time to write Medium stories anytime I want. That's how much I've enjoyed this experiment so far.
But what have I learned?
For one thing, the fear never goes away. As much as I can recognize that I'm making progress here, I still have an awful lot of fears. Was that story too much? Am I going to lose readers? What if I quit seeing growth? Am I wasting my time? Am I writing too much or not enough?
My mind goes on and on with more questions and even the fear that I don't really belong here. But I write anyway--even when I'm scared and suspect a story will flop.
I keep hoping for more good luck. I have a lot of friends and readers who wish they were getting my results, but I've been lucky. Two of my stories were featured by Medium, and another was promoted by them on Facebook and Twitter.
I'm not naive. Sometimes I write about the more salacious aspects of my past, and those stories tend to gain traction. It seems like a given that those are also the stories of mine that the Medium editors notice most.
Still, I work hard. I continue to see the work I'm doing on Medium as an investment in myself. I put in a lot of hours, and I plan to keep at it. There are weeks that bum me out. Weeks where I'm depressed about reader engagement. Even so, the overall growth is happening for me. At first I was averaging $500 a month, and now I'm averaging more than $1,000.
Writing daily makes me a better person. I've always had a strong melancholy side. And I was not above vaguebooking at the height of my depression. Writing daily has given me a new, much more positive outlook on life. No vaguebooking necessary.
But now I get more trolls. It's pretty much always the same thing. "Men's rights activists" comment that I'm a selfish single mom. If I dare suggest that men step up when it comes to issues of consent and the #MeToo movement, they accuse me of emotional manipulation and having no sense of personal agency.
These days, I'm not afraid to block users if I need to when all they care about is getting in that last insult. I don't have time for that. I don't want to doubt myself and my writing just because some strangers are fixated on saying something cruel.
Medium is more than a platform to write. It's a whole community of readers and writers. Those boxes often overlap--and they should. And as much as I treat Medium like a job, I'm slowly getting to know some of my fellow writers on a more personal level and it's been great to connect with such wonderful people.
I can't keep up with all of the comments sections, but I try to set aside time everyday to read. And now I'm also setting aside time to text, email, and phone my fellow writers.
At the end of the day, I don't know of any shortcuts to success. Even a popular story will give you just a temporary boost of followers. Last month I gained more than 700. But followers aren't readers, and actual routine, engaged readers are what I care about gaining most.
Who knows what Medium will look like next month or even next year. All of us are a part of this big experiment in writing. Only time will tell if it's worth sticking around. But so far, it's worth the investment in my book.
So chin up, fellow writers! We are all in this together. If you've got a message to give, keep writing. Don't quit. Someone out there needs to hear from you.
In the meantime, I’d love to get connected. You can find me on Twitter as @singlemamacomma or catch me on Patreon if you’d like to support my work further.
Here are some of my more popular stories, in case you're curious:
