How I Became A Top Writer On Medium

Summary

The author shares their journey of becoming a Top Writer on Medium by focusing on writing quality content, using appropriate tags, engaging with readers, and valuing feedback from experienced writers and editors.

Abstract

The article details the author's experience with writing on Medium, starting from their initial struggle to gain readership to eventually being recognized as a Top Writer in the "This Happened To Me" category. The author emphasizes the importance of selecting relevant tags for articles, which helped their work reach a broader audience. They also highlight the significance of publishing quality content consistently, engaging with readers, and appreciating the guidance provided by experienced writers and editors. The author acknowledges the role of feedback in their growth as a writer and expresses gratitude to those who have supported their writing journey.

Opinions

The author believes that using the right tags is crucial for an article's visibility and distribution on Medium.
Quality of content is deemed more important than the quantity of articles published.
Engaging with and building an audience is seen as a key factor in becoming a successful writer on Medium.
The author values the advice and feedback from experienced writers and editors, crediting them as instrumental in their development as a writer.
The author suggests that new writers should seek out experienced writers for guidance and support.
The author expresses appreciation for the editors who have provided constructive feedback, which has been essential for their growth.
The author encourages other writers by stating that achieving top writer status is possible through persistence and continuous improvement.

5 things that might have helped

I started writing on Medium around four months back and imagine my surprise when I received an email from Medium congratulating me on being a Top Writer in the topic of This Happened To Me. Though it was a totally unexpected honor, it made for a very pleasant surprise.

Screenshot by the Author

When I began my writing journey, my earliest articles had few readers and none were getting distributed. Checking my stats was not worth the bother because my articles weren’t getting views.

Based on the assumption that my articles didn’t have the secret sauce for getting chosen for further distribution, I stopped checking on that too. What I did do though, was focus on my writing, improving my author’s voice, experimenting with different genres and overall just enjoying what I do.

In May, I started noticing a change in the tide. As I tried out different publications, I was able to implement useful feedback I received from editors that helped my articles reach the right audience. My articles started to get chosen for distribution and there was a noticeable increase in views.

Shout out to Aimée Gramblin, editor at Age of Empathy who first brought my attention to the importance of using the right tag. To be honest, there is an art to using article appropriate tags which I haven’t quite mastered yet but thanks to Aimee for introducing me to the This Happened To Me tag!

I write mainly about life experiences hence I go with the This Happened To Me tag. Currently, there are 7.2K writers on the This Happened To Me topic page, out of which 50 made the top writer list.

The top writer lists are updated regularly so I just wanted to let all the wonderful writers out there know anything is possible and to keep doing what you do.

5 Things That Might Have Helped

1.) Using article appropriate tags: Do a little research on Medium to see what tags most suit your article. It helps in getting your articles to the right audience.

2.) Quality over quantity: I think this is pretty self explanatory. According to the medium blog “…we’ll list the top 50 writers whose stories are most influential on that topic. These lists update daily and always show writers who are publishing quality content about a specific topic on a regular basis.”

On average, I publish twice a week and mostly in small to medium pubs. Out of the 15 articles I published between May 3rd and June 15, 10 were chosen for further publication.

3.) Your readers matter: As you may have noticed, the pic of the Medium email I posted mentions that my writing is popular with readers. That makes me conclude that readers matter A LOT. Building an audience matters. I am deeply grateful to all my readers who take the time to read my articles and post comments.

4.) Having an experienced writer give you valuable tips and suggestions: New writers often have doubts about any number of things related to their article writing and publishing. It can be a great help if there is an experienced writer whom you could reach out to when in doubt or in need of guidance. In my case, I am fortunate to have as a friend & guide Vishnu*s Virtues who is a font of valuable advice. The same can be said of Samra and Alberto García 🚀🚀🚀.

5.) Pay attention to feedback of editors and peers: Personally, I have had good experiences with my editors and have found their suggestions useful. I do not have a background in writing. To be honest, I only started writing in February of this year and am still a WIP so I’m grateful to the editors who take the time to offer feedback.

Shout out to Trista Signe Ainsworth of Thank You Notes, Katie Michaelson of The Daily Cuppa and Austin Harvey over at Invisible Illness.

My article titled “I Experienced Unwelcome Attention From A Married Man,” recently published in Heart Affairs was not only a difficult write from an emotional standpoint but also I wasn’t quite sure about which tags to use. However, the editor at Heart Affairs, Michelle Brown, was gracious enough to help me out with that. I have also been fortunate to have many fellow writers provide valuable feedback which has helped me grow as a writer.