Writing | Relationships | Passion Project

Create a Passion Project

Join the Conversation

I’m writing a series of feature articles to discuss and illustrate the innovative ways we are collaborating.

To keep it interesting, I’ll shine a light on solutions to some of your difficulties and answer any questions that come to me each day.

I’ll also share one of the many ways I have discovered to connect with fellow writers and readers.

Well hello there.

In case we’ve never met, I’m Tree Langdon, an editor on Medium. I’m continuously inspired by the talented writers I’ve met here. I’d really like to get to know you too.

Writers Can Make Meaningful Change!

There are some trail-blazing, collaborative projects being developed.

Creating a Project can Attract Like Minded People

How to begin?

• Settle on an idea.
• Come up with a Project Name. Use this name in the kicker. By keeping the same kicker name, you can create multiple stories related to your chosen topic
• Write an introduction. Tell us who you are and why you are passionate about this Project.
• What are the benefits of this Project? Is there something concrete as a result or are you hoping to shine a light on a cause?
• What action you are asking readers to take? Are you inviting them to comment on your post, write an article about your topic or connect on another site?
• Include links to relevant articles or sites.
• Add some tags.
• Choose an eye-catching image.
• Add your post to Illumination and our editors will review and publish it.

Tag me in your post and I’ll be happy to feature your project in an upcoming bulletin.

Another tip: Join Slack and post your idea in the #project channel.

You will also benefit from meeting a diverse group of like-minded individuals and you’ll be building your network.

How does Curation Work?

In a nutshell, write quality articles and pay attention to tags, kickers, format, and Medium curation rules.

Here’s my take on curation from when I was a new writer.

Our team of editors and writers is ready and willing to assist you with any questions or problems you may be experiencing.

The key to a meaningful conversation includes both speaking and listening.

A meaningful conversation between writers includes reading, responding, sharing and appreciation.

Keep on reading to see how you can have that conversation, but first, let’s explore your questions about writing.

Answers to your Burning How-to Questions

Do you have any questions about writing or formatting?

This is your opportunity. Add your question as a comment here and I’ll be happy to answer it. Do you have a terrific tip for our writers? Add it in the comments!

Here’s a question I hear a lot.

How Do I Find My Community on Medium?

Otherwise known as “Where are all my peeps”?

Back in 2019 when I joined Medium I was disappointed. Sure, I made a few connections. Several people followed me and I followed them back. We shared comments on each other's posts all the time. But there wasn’t a way to have a longer conversation.

Then I found Illumination and joined Slack.

Slack is a platform designed for communications. It’s used widely in business and groups where getting together in person may not be convenient.

That’s where all the conversations are.

We collaborate with published authors, bloggers, and other service providers to extend our network. We also encourage each other and have some fun.

Slack is our main communication tool.

It’s a great place to ask questions and get help. There’s always someone online, because our members live all around the globe.

Let’s share our successes and learn from each other.

Stand out From the Crowd!

They say a picture is worth 1000 words. I believe that’s true.

Image recognition makes up a large part of our brain. Humans are very visual creatures and can recognize objects in an image in 100 milliseconds.

A well-chosen image attracts the eye and encourages someone to read your post. Once they’re a reader they might become a fan, so choose your images carefully.

There’s one thing that really bugs me:

It makes me cringe when I see another writer using an image that I’ve used before. I want my images to be unique. It happens all the time.

If you scroll through Medium posts, inevitably you will see some duplicates.

How do I find an image that I won’t see used in other posts?

One big mistake I’ve noticed (and made) is to choose an image too quickly. I open a free image source — Unsplash is a great example — and select the first image that seems to suit my topic.

Unsplash is a great tool. It’s quick and easy and the images come with a caption and a source, and you know you have permission to use it.

There’s one problem. There are over 30,000 other writers on Medium who are using it too. There’s a pretty good chance someone else will choose the same one.

Here are my tips for finding unique images to use on posts.

• Don’t always use Unsplash. It’s the easy way out so most writers use it.
• If you use it, don’t select the first photo that comes up, as many writers will do the same. Look through several pages before you choose.
• Use a variety of search terms — instead of love, search for passion, heat or romance. You may find something perfect for your unique story.
• I use Pixabay and there are or other free image options, but be careful there too. Use several search terms and find an image that isn’t the first one to come up.
• Don’t choose from the selection of ‘most popular images’.
• Here are some examples of images that I’m embarrassed to say I’ve used in stories, only to recognize them later in another writer’s story.

Do any of these images look familiar to you?

Your writing is unique, so your image should be too.

For more ideas:

We’re here to support you and want you to be successful.

All we ask in return, is that you do the same.

Today’s Challenge- Join the Conversation:

Join us on Slack and write about your experience.

Your article should have the kicker “ILLUMINATION” and mention Slack as part of the title. I’d love it if you tag me @treelangdon as well.

It’s a win win — you support us by participating, and we support you.

If you want to catch up on past posts, have a look here:

Greetings to a few of our newer writers and some who have been here for a bit longer. I hope you found something interesting in this article. Jump in and start a conversation.

It’s the best way to connect and connection is how you increase engagement.

Rishikesh Nayar, Ramanathan S Manavasi, Journey, Justin Cole Adams, Lulu deCarron, Lucas C. Beck, EP McKnight, Luke Durac McGowan, Michelle Gettingwise, Callie James, Wasif Akber, Lady_Go, Debbie Miller, Whitney Rose, Preeti Chandak, Sandeep Warhadkar, Don Feazelle, Nancy Wise MSc., Bernard Wayne, Curiosity Corner, Zahin Roja, Kainatgul, Rusali Adhikari, Jennifer Haubrich, Ibukun Faleye, Anam Khan, Japjit Singh, Alex Bird, Eli Snow , Daniel G. Clark , , Eashan Reddy Kotha, Paroma Sen, Keno Ogbo, James G Brennan Uchechi Obasi, Timothy Key, Holly Jahangiri, Alison Tennent, Dr John Rose, Joe Luca, Charlotte Zobeir Ali, Infiniti, Kathryn A. LeRoy, Ph.D.

Collaboration is a two way street. Join the conversation and be a part of this meaningful change.

I hope you found something useful in this article. If you’re not already a Medium member, Join us here.

If you are a member, please share this story so more people can benefit from these wise words.