5 Little Lessons I’ve Learned on My 3rd Month on Medium

Earnings, stats, and upping my newbie game

Hey fellow writer.

It’s month #3 on Medium for me, and I’m making serious efforts to up my game this month. I plan on openly sharing my progress because I believe in transparency, passing on knowledge, and rooting for each other.

It also keeps me accountable and on track. Whatever embarrassments and further failures I experience on my journey, I’ll share those too.

Also, see this as a second episode to the previous “little lessons” post, in which I shared all kinds of things, from curation frustration to helpful resources.

Ready? Let’s dive in.

This month I wrote 9 posts, but only published 7 of them. The other two were in limbo for what seemed like an eternity. That was one annoying lesson to learn, but more on that later. I exceeded my goal of writing two articles a week, but I find that it’s not nearly enough to gain traction, and as a newbie, I quickly fall under the radar.

I had a lower rate of curation — 2 pieces out of 7 and an article from July that initially got rejected and then picked up again, which I found quite surprising. So I guess 3 curated pieces:

Once more, I got curated on very personal essays, with large paragraphs and less than typical headlines, so I guess that’s encouraging because it’s how I prefer to write anyway.

I’ve learned two other things from this month’s curation process. Some more significant publications seem to “guarantee” curation — like P.S. I Love You, where I always got curated instantly. Also, curation doesn’t necessarily ensure more views or earnings. We’ll see if it makes a difference in the long run.

To finish off this stats section, here are my earnings for August:

I’ve made the handsome sum of 20.21$ and tripled my income every month by putting in the same effort. Being consistent, even with 2 articles per week, leads to exponential progress.

So what are the 5 most important things I’ve learned this month? Let’s start with our mindsets:

1. Set bigger goals.

If you are under the impression that new writers only make pennies, you will definitely act like a new writer who only makes pennies. You will stare at the blank screen, procrastinate, spend time “networking,” and do anything but writing quality content. You simply won’t do the work.

But what if you set a ridiculous goal? Something you didn’t quite fully believe in, but in the corner of your mind, you saw a slight possibility, so you went for it.

This is my case for September. On September 1st, I decided I’m going to 10X my income this month. 3X just seemed like a natural progression, and I needed to push myself even further.

Now, I don’t know if I can pull this off, and even putting this out here in public makes it a little bit embarrassing, but thank God I don’t personally know any of you. I can tell you one thing, though: ever since deciding this, I’ve woken up hours before my alarm, sometimes as early as 4 AM, wondering — is it morning yet? Is it time to write?

That, my friends, is determination. And even if I don’t make it to 200$, I’ll be very grateful for my new-found ability to wake up early. I haven’t had super-early mornings in a very long time.

2. Arm yourself with patience and persistence and just submit to bigger pubs already.

Seriously, you need to stop playing it safe.

When I first started, I was lucky enough to be accepted in Invisible Illness with one of my first articles, then I got instantly curated and also got a shout out from the editor. I was on cloud nine.

But that was an exception, I couldn’t always generate content like that, and that piece took me days to write and rewrite.

So I took the easy route and submitted my articles to smaller publications, or pubs like “Illumination,” that are incredibly supportive of new writers but also don’t get you accustomed to being rejected (no offense, Illumination).

When I started getting rejected, I began having a hard time finding a home for my drafts again and again. But I’m happy that I persevered. To give you an example, when I wrote to be accepted as a writer for “P.S. I Love You,” they took a couple of days to accept me. Then, radio silence. For nearly two weeks, I waited for my previously reviewed piece to get published with them, although getting published wasn’t a guarantee.

Reaching out to an already busy editor is intimidating. You worry they may get upset or blacklist you. After all, they did say that they don’t have time to give feedback on rejected pieces. I’m glad I wrote back because my article was up and getting crazy views the very next day.

Larger publications can seriously boost your reads and followers, and regular posts mean you’ll make a name for yourself on there. So face your fears and send that draft, even if it takes you a dozen rejections to get into that pub.

3. Have a backlog of articles.

I get very impatient. I send an article out to editors and then sit and click refresh for a billion times. Patience is not my virtue, and this is something I still struggle with.

In order to win the rejection game, and not waste precious time while resubmitting, I try to act like those articles already found a home, and move on to the next one.

August could have been a lot more productive for me, had I not waited — sitting on my derriere — for almost a week for a couple of pieces to be accepted into publications.

Building a writing routine will save you from acting all antsy and insecure. It will give you a feeling of control, because you’re actually doing something to move further towards your goal, and not just leaving it up to faith, or the algorithms or those mean, slow editors. (JK, we love you, editors)

4. To act like a Pro, you need the tools of the Pros

Are you a non-native English speaker? If so, success is still entirely possible, but you have to practice and get over that awkwardness instantly picked up by English natives.

I’ve been using Grammarly for typos and misplaced commas, and it’s been great. But since switching to the Premium version, there’s so much to learn already. Grammarly Premium helps with proper syntax, better use of vocabulary, overuse of certain words, etc. They rate your text for clarity, engagement, and even rewrite your sentences entirely if they’re hard to understand.

I know their subscription isn’t cheap, but it’s totally worth it if you’re serious about the English language. And no, I am not an affiliate, just a satisfied customer.

5. Get mentors ASAP.

Why spend your time testing things for yourself, when there are so many other people before you who’ve accomplished what you’re trying to accomplish and can definitely help you out to not make the same mistakes they did.

In August, I’ve made significant investments in myself and my writing process: I signed up for Sinem Günel’s MWA: “Medium Writing Academy,” and I bought Tim Denning’s book — “How To Earn 6-Figures on Medium.com”.

I provide expensive services for a living and find it normal to be paid for my knowledge and expertise. Even though courses can be on the pricey side, if you have a mentor to guide you and accelerate your growth, they’re worth every penny. You need to put in the work, though, and that’s where most people fail.

Finding mentors can also mean making friends on the platform while networking. I found many kindred spirits in my short journey on Medium, and I’m sure you have too: the kind of people that cheer for you and support every single post.

Here’s a big shout out to Aimée Gramblin and her stellar rise on Medium. She’s a role model for me. Also, Vishnu*s Virtues is a fantastic writer I deeply resonate with, and his journey to authenticity fills me up with hope for my own struggles.

Takeaway

Writing on Medium is fun and energizing. Getting paid for it is even better and is a big motivation booster.

These past 3 months, I’ve been literally obsessed. That’s how I get when I discover a new passion, and that’s how I achieved all progress in my life: in leaps and bounds.

I hope that you find value in my experience and that you don’t get discouraged by how small you feel when the journey begins.

Like a patient tortoise, we’ll get to the finish line we desire. Take those tiny slow steps and be patient, my little friends!