First Month on Medium: Gains, Fails & Regrets

What you should expect from your first month of writing on Medium?

Introduction

In December 2020, one of the few goals that I set for the new year was to start writing on Medium. I already had a small experience as a journalist and I always used to like writing about the things that I love.

So, on January 2nd I paid the yearly subscription which costs $50 and thus became a Medium member. It was probably the most mature decision that I ever took in my adult life till now!

Although, it was not an overnight decision. I had previously read hundreds of articles before I finally decided that this platform is worthy for any freelance writer out there, who doesn't know how or where to start from.

I was exactly in the same place a few months ago, when I got fired from my 9–5 job, and I had no idea which would be my next step.

Content Strategy

Before I started writing, I used to read Medium’s Daily Digest for the previous six months, because I wanted to be prepared for what to expect from this platform.

Why?

I thought this was the only way to plan a doable content strategy for my stories and thus become a successful writer. Also, creating a strategy always helps in turning your passion into a habit.

Yes, I do love writing, but for me, it was not just a hobby. My goal was to publish two stories per week and a total of 8–10 per month.

Do you really wanna know how many of them finally found their online home and got published?

Only 3!

Yes, I was not consistent at all with my content strategy and that’s because I’m also doing a Master's this year, which takes a lot of my time. I know this may sound like an excuse, but I don’t like to churn out content just to be consistent.

Needless to say that none of my stories got curated but that’s something absolutely normal for newcomers on writing.

One of the main “trends” that you’ll see on Google about “how to succeed fast on Medium” is daily writing. Ok, this may work for some writers, but for how long?

I’m a high supporter of the slow-growth movement since I’ve realized that’s how you truly level up (personally, professionally, financially, etc.) in the long-term. And this type of growth always lasts.

Views

Medium is kind of weird in terms of views.

I mean that when I started writing, I thought that it was like YouTube. You get paid an X amount of money per 1,000 views. But it’s not like this!

Views are divided into two main categories: internal and external. The internal views obviously come from readers that found your stories on Medium, whereas the external derive from any possible corner of the Internet (social media, Google search, emails, newsletters, etc).

I totally got 78 views from my stories in January and my most successful article (“How Not To Fail Building Your First Webpage”) gave me 41 of them.

One of the things that I regretted not doing my first month was that I never posted my stories on social media. I actually don’t like to spam people on the Internet with my work, but I’m sure that I’ll change this tactic this month.

Followers

Followers are generally a vanity metric — not only on Medium but in every social media platform.

I know a lot of writers who have less than 1,000 or 500 followers but they write good, quality content, and their stories go viral. This means that you don’t need to have thousands of followers to write good stuff for the readers.

This month I gained my first 24 followers and I believe that’s a pretty decent number for the stories that I finally published.

But one of the things that I never expected seeing on Medium — and happened to me — was the “follow for following back” strategy. It’s the most juvenile and useless tactic that you can do when you are desperate for Internet clout.

Never try it out. It just doesn’t work!

Earnings

Let’s dive into the spiciest part of this story.

Before I started writing, the only goal that I set for my earnings was to gain $1. It’s not as discouraging as it seems and I was not totally desperate.

But…

Setting a big target from the beginning is not the appropriate way to stick to a habit. Writing is a process that needs time and I personally don’t believe in overnight success.

I’ve also read a lot of stories from people that earned more than $1,000 or at least $100 from their first month of writing and I thought that it would be easy-peasy for me too. Well, I was completely wrong!

I finally earned only $0.96 but I still feel proud of that. Of course, I would be super excited if I could pass the threshold of $100 from the very first month, but I knew that it was unachievable, given that I published only three stories.

Tips for new writers

I’m not a veteran on Medium, but I have some useful tips to share with newbies who feel lost or are afraid to hit the publish button:

Don’t focus on stats: I actually wrote this to convince myself that I shouldn’t look at these numbers every single minute. They have nothing to offer you when you are a beginner. Stay focused on your stories.
Engage with other writers: Medium is, in fact, a huge platform and you can find many writers with the same interests, worries, and ideas as yours. Comment on their articles or even reach out to them on social media.
Be prepared for the rejections: My first story got rejected from four different publications, so I absolutely understand how difficult it is to overcome this stigma. But it’s part of the process. It doesn’t mean that your stories are garbage or that you’re not a good writer. Try harder the next time!
Experiment with different niches: Although niching down is a very common practice on YouTube, it’s not the same for Medium. Try to experiment with as many topics and publications as you feel comfortable with.
Be patient!: You won’t be a millionaire just by writing 10 or 20 stories on Medium. Building an online audience and monetizing your knowledge or expertise is a continuous procedure. Don’t expect to see outstanding results too soon.

Final Thoughts

If you are in doubt whether or not Medium is a good place for writing, then my one-month experience says that it’s an amazing online community of aspiring writers who support each other.

I would be a big liar if I’d tell you that you can become a full-time writer on the platform from the first month, despite if you have prior experience or not. It’s just undoable!

But if you’re in search of a freelance gig in 2021, Medium is there for you.

Don’t miss this opportunity. Start writing today!

Thanks for reading! ❤️

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