3 Tips From an Editor to Help Your Curation Chances

If you want to get an editor’s attention, write like a professional.

I don’t know the typical curation rate, but in my Medium support groups, many writers complain they never, or hardly ever get curated. I’ve published 72 articles since early May and of the eligible articles–curators won’t choose pieces about Medium, of which I have 17 — I’ve had 33 curated, beginning with my first.

It’s not 100% or even 50% like some writers. But it’s not nothin’.

Am I the best writer on Medium? Hardly. Have I unlocked the key to the algorithm? Please, I can barely balance my checking account. Do I bribe the editors? I don’t know their names (though don’t put it past me if I figure out who they are).

On the face of it, I’m an unlikely writer to have the curation success I’ve had. I’m seriously old and out of step with the important topics of the day. I don’t work in a happening industry; I’m not married or in a relationship; I don’t write about my insecurities or sex life (much); I don’t have young kids or pets. So if I don’t have compelling topics to write about, why do I get curated at a satisfying rate? I’m convinced it has something to do with my writing ability.

I’ve been writing for 50 years, and I’ve studied it with a passion bordering on obsession. They say it takes 10,000 hours to gain proficiency? I probably did that in my first year. Blindfolded with my hands tied behind my back.

With many books published, an editing and teaching career under my belt, and a lifelong literary reading habit, at this point, I know how to construct a simple declarative sentence. And I believe that’s the foot in the door to getting curated on Medium: a good grasp of the craft.

When a skilled writer sends an article to the editors, it is my guess they scan for readability. If the prose is clear; if it doesn’t have run-on sentences; if it doesn’t have obvious grammar and style glitches, an editor (or bot) will move it to the head of the pile. Regardless of the topic, you make the curation editor’s job easier when you make your piece easier for them to read.

I’ve read advice here on Medium that unpolished pieces by beginning writers offer a certain charm. Please. At last count, we have 57 gazillion mommy blogs written by amateurish writers. But they don’t expect to get paid in claps at the end of the month.

Medium is a platform for professional writers, meaning you have the chance to get paid for your work. So make your writing look professional. I understand many writers are starting out. I’m not saying you should shut down your computer and get a journalism degree before you write another post. But do put learning the craft at the top of your to-do list.

As an editor, I see three common errors new writers make. Check over your articles to avoid these pitfalls to spruce up your writing. You will increase your chances of catching the eye of readers and curators as well.

Don’t end a sentence with a preposition.

What’s a preposition? Look it up. Find a list of prepositions online. Go through your article and see if you have one of them just before a period.

For example: Where are you at? “At” is a preposition. In this case, just delete “at” and you’re good.

But suppose you write: “This is the one I’m proud of.”

A simple change to: “I’m proud of this one.” produces a more polished sentence with fewer words and gets the subject, “proud” at the beginning of the sentence where it belongs.

Check for excessive use of was/were.

Writers frequently use was/were constructions because that’s the way we speak. But we shouldn’t imitate speech, but make our prose sound natural. In writing, was/were constructions produce repetitive, dull sentences. Use spellcheck to see how often they pop up in your prose, and start reworking sentences to get rid of them. You’ll find your writing becoming much livelier and interesting.

For example, if you write: There were five people in the store.

Consider changing the sentence to: Five people congregated in the store. Or, I saw five people in the store. Or, The busy store had five people waiting on line.

Instead of: “There was a storm coming,” how about, “Storm clouds darkened the horizon.” Or, “The weather report warned of a storm this evening.”

Avoid long, compound sentences.

Don’t make “, and” your go-to trick for linking your thoughts. I’m talking about compound sentences, where you start with one complete thought, and you add a comma plus “and” then write another complete sentence, instead of ending the sentence with a period.

Whew. That was a mouthful, wasn’t it. However, with a period to the rescue, it looks like this:

I’m talking about compound sentences, where you start with one complete thought. Instead of ending the sentence with a period, you add a comma plus “and” then write another complete sentence.

A little punctuation and reorganization makes this long sentence easier to digest.

Compound sentences are a stylistic choice, not grammatically incorrect. But beginning writers tend to overuse them. They defeat the purpose of polished writing in two ways: they make a piece look difficult to read; and a reader on the go can lose track of the central idea when a sentence is too long.

Shorter sentences for the win every time, especially when an article shows up on a mobile device and a reader is scanning on the run.

I hope these three tips help you polish your prose and improve your curation rate as well as your read rate.

You might enjoy these other writing tips.

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