How Many Claps Do You Need to Be Happy?

It’s more than you think

When I started writing online, one clap would make my day.

My week, even.

So many of my stories remained unviewed, unread, and unclapped at the beginning. Some rightfully so. Let’s be honest. But some deserved better.

I remember when I got my first clap!

I invited my partner to our favorite restaurant, and we duly celebrated.

It was the first positive feedback I had ever received on my writings. Technically, my partner and grandma had told me how great my stories were. But a clap from a stranger, that was something different.

That was something worthy of celebration.

As it happened, the stranger was fishing for views on their stories. Still, it was my first clap, and it remains dear to my heart, even today.

Then I got used to getting at least a few claps.

It still felt good, but I started complaining and talking to myself. “Why only one clap? You could have given fifty, and you gave only two? Why would you do that?! Is this the devil disguised as a Medium member?”

Although my partner and grandma were still excited at the news of any number of claps, I wasn’t celebrating a few claps anymore.

I had become picky.

Nothing short of fifty-one would make my day, but not my week. To make my week, a story would need to have one hundred and one claps at least. And soon, that number also became boring.

Now I don’t care for the claps anymore.

I’m only interested in the number of views. To be honest, I’m obsessed. You could even say that I masturbate over my stats.

My former self would be ecstatic to get one hundred views on any article.

I’m not. Not anymore. Although I’m far from getting 100 views on each of my articles, I’m blasé. I want 500 views. I want 1,000 views. Will it ever stop?

I guess not. But one can hope.

A reminder

So here I am, trying to remember the pleasure of writing, the simple joy of being read, even if only by one stranger.

Thank you for reading.

Smillew is a writer, a tweeter, and a dreamer of Keanu Reeves. He also enjoys tagging Holly J See in his stories. Some he does well, some not so well, but he still tries them all.