First month Roadmap for New Writers — Followers, Publications and Being Curated
Step by step guide: What I did, how I did it, results, and what I wished I didn't do
Hello everyone :) Especially those new to this platform, I am a newbie writer who became active on Medium last Month.
Here are 3 things I'd like to share to guide you on your first month or so and to jumpstart your journey as a writer here, I hope you find them useful!
#1: 100 Follower Challenge
My first challenge was getting to 100 Followers.
Just like many other writers, Medium's new requirement to be part of the Member Partner Program (MPP — i.e. : To be able to earn when you post stories here) is that you need at least 100 followers.
At first, I was quite clueless, but I stumbled upon a few really helpful stories of other writers sharing their success and strategies, and I decided to give it a go.
Here is a story by Ayoub Bouamri which I found very helpful:
Here is one from Aaron L. Gravely
To help the algorithm point fellow writers with the Follower problem to me, I also posted a short article on "100 Followers" — and we all do a follow-for-follow, writers supporting writers. (P.S.: This is actually one of my most popular articles based on number of reads AND read ratio. So I encourage you to try it too :))
What's the outcome and how long did I take?
I've had a lot of luck to be supported by some of the top writers and editors here. And within a few days, I had surpassed that goal.
Two weeks later, I decided to write a very short story to thank all of my supporters, and also to provide an update — that their support had paid off :D
(Published in Illumination)
#2: Quick Guide to Publications
At the same time, (even before I embarked on the Follower seeking journey) I found that some stories are published in Publications…it seemed fun and an interesting challenge. In fact, the editor of Bootcamp left me a private note to invite me to be a writer for his publication. I think this was the first publication that accepted my stories.
(P.S.: If you've read some of my other stories, I currently work in Tech and am a part-time student in a Design Bootcamp, so I'll be looking forward to contributing to Bootcamp going forward :))
I guess after the 100 Follower Challenge, my next interest was about discovering Publications. There are so many amazing ones! The way I went about it is when I read a story from someone I follow, and I liked that story, if it is published in a Publication — I go check it out. And just like this, I have found many communities of amazing writers.
Publications that accepted my work:
- Illumination , and featuring my story in Curated Collection #83
- Coffee Times
- SYNERGY
- Reciprocal
- Change becomes you (part of The Good Men Project)
- Bootcamp
How to submit to publications:
Normally, you need to let the publication know that you are interested to write for them. The easiest place to start is on the homepage of the Publication.
How do you find this homepage?
I find that Medium's search engine is not that user friendly…so this is how I do it — in my search bar, I type in the name of the publication I'm looking for, in the drop-down menu, there will be a few categories with key words that corresponds to the search criteria you entered.
Select the publication, that should take you to the homepage.
In the publication, there is sometimes a tab for "Write for us" (as in the example above). If that's the case it is easier — click on the tab and you will find an article about how to become a writer.
Here is the one for Illumination:
Being added as a writer — Google Form, commenting, or some other way
The best way to find out how to be added as a writer is in the Submission Guideline article.
Submissions: Published or unpublished work?
READ CAREFULLY what is written in the submission guidelines of each publication.
Sometimes, "previously published" articles are accepted. What does "previously published" mean? If you notice, when you are writing your story, there is a green button with the word "Publish"
Most of the times, you will need to submit an unpublished draft. Before you freak out — all this means is that after you've written a story, while it is still in draft mode, DO NOT hit the "Publish button". Instead — click on the three dots on the right, and select "Add to Publication" and select the one you want to add to in the drop down menu.
#3: Being curated — What is it about? Does it make a difference?
Actually, surprisingly, one of my stories was selected for wider distribution by Medium. That was encouragement and motivation that perhaps my stories do provide value for my readers.
This is the article that was curated by Medium
However, it seems that it didn't have any material impact on views…
And not much impact on earnings either…
#4: What I wish I didn't do
The only thing I wish I didn't do was deleting my stories.
- The story I deleted was about my experience after testing positive with COVID-19 — the symptoms I experienced, the duration and the overall emotional experience. (I am fully vaccinated with 3 doses)
- Actually this story already had 4 views several hours after being published, and already had one comment and was already making positive earnings. Yet I deleted it.
Why did I delete it?
My boyfriend thought it was stupid. He asked me — why would people want to know about it? Everything is already in the reports. But I thought that it could be helpful for people to read first-hand encounters, and they would know that it is not so bad. And those going through the same experience will know that they will be ok soon.
My lesson learnt
Don't let one person's opinion decide your worth. Your stories will find its readers.
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