Becoming a Verified Author on Medium: A Dilemma for Pen Name Writers

How I, a published author in Portugal under a pen name, struggle with the verification process on Medium

As a published author of Portuguese poetry books under a pen name, I value my privacy and the ability to separate my personal and professional writing journeys.

However, when it comes to becoming a verified author on Medium, I have been facing a dilemma.

While the benefits of being verified are tempting, revealing my true identity would mean breaking the veil of lyrical alchemy I have been carefully weaving over the years.

Last week, I stumbled upon an article on Medium’s official blog, which explained how to become a verified book author.

The idea immediately caught my attention. But as I read on, I realized that the “book author”, verification process was not as straightforward as I thought, especially for writers like me who use a pen name for publishing books.

I am using my real name on Medium, but I write under a pen name in the real world.

Thus, for writers who are in the same situation, the verification process poses some questions that need to be addressed.

Let’s dig into it.

From what I read, Medium requires you to provide your published book information, including the ISBN, title, description, and publisher info among some other details (I’ll share a step-by-step description below).

Hélas, the information I would have to submit for author verification would not match the information linked to my Medium handle, because all my books were written under a pen name.

In the end, this leads to seemingly prejudicial scenarios: the rejection of the verification request or the exposure of my books’ authorship to the rest of the world.

From my perspective, this could be particularly problematic for writers who use a pen name as a way to separate their professional and personal lives or maintain anonymity for personal or safety reasons.

The verification process for authors on Medium

As I mentioned earlier, the road to becoming a verified author on Medium is fairly straightforward if you write your books under the same name you use on Medium:

• You can apply for verification via this form on Medium’s website.
• The first step requires you to provide an email.
• Then you’ll be asked to type your Medium username.
• In the next step, you fill in your featured book title.
• Afterward, your featured book’s ISBN.
• You’re asked to disclose any co-authors.
• You’ll also have to upload your book cover.
• Then it’s time to fill in your book description (25-word limit).
• You’re asked to provide a link to your book.
• Add your book’s publisher’s contact info.
• Finally, you can write any additional notes you have for our review.

Once the form is submitted, Medium will review the information and contact the author in a few weeks to confirm their verification status.

Afterward, if the book submission is validated, the author’s profile will include the official Medium author badge and feature their book.

Benefits of verification on Medium

If you are a writer looking for more exposure and focusing on readership outreach, becoming a verified book author on Medium can be an excellent way to reach new readers and establish yourself as an authority in your field.

With more than 200 million visits in January 2023 and a 92 Authority Score, Medium is one of the most popular blogging platforms out there.

Here are two key benefits, I can immediately point out about becoming a verified book author on Medium:

1. Increased visibility and credibility: The official Medium author badge can lend credibility to an author’s profile and make their work more visible to readers and followers.
2. Strengthened authorship: Becoming a verified author on Medium can help establish and strengthen an author’s brand and authorship, which can lead to more opportunities and exposure.

My downward spiral into the verified author dilemma

As a poet, I write deeply emotional and personal pieces that are often inspired by my own experiences and struggles.

Writing under a pen name allows me to maintain a level of anonymity and privacy that I value in the real world.

This is particularly important when dealing with sensitive subject matters that could potentially impact my personal life or relationships.

However, on Medium, I feel more at ease so I use my real name.

The platform allows me to share my work with a larger audience and connect with other writers and readers who share my interests and passions.

It gives me the freedom to express myself without fear of judgment or backlash from those who know me personally.

If I were to apply for author verification on Medium using my real name, I would risk exposing my pen name.

This could also impact my ability to write under a pen name in the future, as it may be difficult to maintain separate my various writing personae on and off the platform.

In essence, while writing under a pen name in the real world allows me the freedom to explore personal and sensitive topics, writing under my real name on Medium provides a sense of community and support that I value.

Mixing the two could potentially confuse and undermine the purpose of using a pen name in the first place.

Revealing my true identity would mean breaking the cover I have carefully crafted over the years.

On the other hand, being a verified author on Medium could open doors to new writing opportunities and a wider audience for my work.

So, what should I do? Should I risk losing the privacy I value to become a verified author on Medium, or should I continue writing under a pen name and forego the benefits of verification?

These are the questions I’ve been struggling with since learning about the verification process on Medium.

Challenges for authors with pen names

Overall, the verification process on Medium seems quite simple if you are a writer living and working with a U.S. publisher.

On the other hand, writing books for genres or topics that stray from your usual blogosphere niches and in languages other than English under a real-life pseudonym might provide particular challenges for authors who are non-US residents.

Hence, the decision to pursue verification must be weighed carefully against the potential risks and benefits.

As a writer who values my privacy and has worked hard to maintain my pen name, I’m hesitant to reveal my true identity just to become a verified author on Medium.

However, as I stated earlier, being a verified author on the platform could open doors to new writing opportunities and a wider audience for my work.

You will also get the “book author badge,” which may one day become more than just a self-validation feature, and eventually create a schism between authors and non-authors on Medium.

I want to thank Buster Benson for pointing out the unmistakable solution to obviate any schism, which is to broaden the validation process to include other criteria besides just book authorship.

Will you open up verification to more categories over time? Maybe! — Buster Benson

Still, I was hoping for a more definitive stance rather than a tentative “maybe.”

I would suggest confirming the writer’s background in technical writing that comes from both educational institutions such as universities and online education programs that award certifications.

I know a few amazing chefs who have earned Michelin stars, but surprisingly, they’ve never written a cookbook.

Don’t you think a chef who shares culinary stories in a book deserves to be recognized as an authority?

I am sure Breana Jones has thought about some cool new features, and we’ll hear from the product team in due time.

And while I’m at it, I wanted to take a moment to recognize Breana for her hard work on Medium’s product team. Her dedication to brainstorming cool new features is just one example of the team’s commitment to listening to user feedback.

Thanks, Breana, and keep up the great work!

Takeaways:

Becoming a verified author on Medium can be a valuable tool for writers looking to establish their authorship and gain access to exclusive features on the platform.

While the verification process may be more challenging for authors with pen names, maybe in the future Medium will come up with ways to navigate the process without compromising anonymity.

Overall, I believe that becoming a verified author on Medium is worth considering for writers who are serious about establishing themselves as professional authors.

Author’s note:

Despite having formed an opinion while working on this article, I’m curious to know what you think on this subject. I would enjoy hearing your thoughts and perspectives regarding the issue at hand.

I would also like to express my gratitude for the invaluable insights and editing work that was done on this story by Engage’s editor Margie Pearl.

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This story was written from the author’s perspective and is based on personal experience and knowledge. Any assistive AI occurrence may be linked to the editing process via proofreading tools.