How to Get Started Writing on Medium — Medium FAQs [Updated Sept 2023]
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Table of Contents
· Table of Contents
Q: How do I start writing on Medium?
Q: Do I need to be a paying member to write and earn money on Medium?
Q: How do I earn money on Medium?
Q: My country is not eligible for joining the Medium Partner Program/Stripe. What should I do?
Q: What is curation/distribution, how do I get curated, and how long does it take to get curated?
Q: What are publications, why should I care about them, and how do I write for them?
Q: Is it possible to submit self-published stories to publications?
Q: My articles aren’t getting any views. What am I doing wrong?
Q: Can you take a look at my article or profile?
Q: Should I republish content from my blog on Medium?
Q: Should I republish my Medium articles on other platforms like Vocal or Newsbreak?
What is Zulie Rane’s real name?
· Thanks for reaching out to me!Q: How do I start writing on Medium?
A: First, make a free account. Then, to create a story, click on your profile picture in the top-right corner of the page, then “Write a Story.” Medium offers a ton of helpful information for beginners. This post has it all in one place. To master the Medium editor, check out this video.
Q: Do I need to be a paying member to write and earn money on Medium?
A: Yes and No. You can start writing and growing your blog completely for free. However, you need a membership to join the Medium Partner Program. This also allows you to read unlimited articles, which is crucial for becoming a better writer on Medium. It’s only $5 a month.
Q: How do I earn money on Medium?
A: Getting paid directly through Medium requires you to be a member of the Medium Partner Program. To enroll, you need to have 100 followers on Medium and have published at least one story on Medium. You can check out the full guidelines on Medium’s Help Center. Once you’re in, you can put all of your already published articles behind the paywall to start earning revenue with them.
Keep in mind it will take time to grow your blog. So it’s okay to take your time. Enjoy yourself and the writing process! Slow and steady wins the race.
Q: My country is not eligible for joining the Medium Partner Program/Stripe. What should I do?
A: I know it’s very frustrating that so many countries still aren’t eligible for the partner program. However, there is absolutely nothing stopping you from writing on Medium right now. You can totally sign up, start writing, build a portfolio and start getting followers now. You won’t be paid by Medium directly yet, and I know that is unfair. I really hope Medium/Stripe change their policy soon.
The good news is that there are other ways to earn money. You can use your Medium blog to drive people to your own blog or use affiliate links. I discuss these strategies in this video. And eventually, I hope, Medium/Stripe will monetize for additional countries. If that’s the case, you’ll be established on Medium when that happens.
Q: How do I get views?
A: Medium has an internal distribution system that promotes high-quality work on the platform. They refer to this process as a Boost. When your story is chosen for a Boost, Medium will show the story to readers who don’t follow you yet — that means more views for you! Here’s my interview with Medium staff about the Boost.
To give yourself the best chance of a Boost, I recommend you:
- Read Medium’s official Boost guidelines
- Use tags appropriately, since that’s how Boosters find your work.
- Consider publishing in a publication that has editors who are part of the Boost nomination program. Not all editors are “out” as Nominators, but some are. Search “boost program” to find publications that have announced their involvement in the program.
As an editor of Better Marketing, I put together a list of stories that have been Boosted. This should give you an idea of what to aim for!
Q: What are publications, why should I care about them, and how do I write for them?
A: Publications are like online magazines inside of Medium. They have their own following and carved out their little niche on the platform. Because of that, publications are one of the best and easiest ways to get your work in front of many eyeballs. You can piggyback off their readership, even if you still have zero followers.
- To find the best publications (for beginners) check out this video.
- And in this video, I tell you how to get added to publications and submit your work.
Q: Is it possible to submit self-published stories to publications?”
Yes, technically, it is possible to submit self-published stories to publications. However, most publications only accept fresh, unpublished drafts. If you’re unsure what applies in your case, check if you can find that information in the publication’s submission guidelines. Otherwise, you can leave a nice note the next time you submit a story.
That said, I’d still recommend submitting unpublished drafts directly to publications. And that’s because you’ll already piggyback off their audience right after you publish — which is usually when views are the highest.
Q: My articles aren’t getting any views. What am I doing wrong?
A: If you’re just starting out, you’re likely not doing anything wrong. Medium is a long game and it takes time and effort to grow on the platform, attract readers, and build your audience. I still remember shooting my first few articles into the void and receiving just a handful of views on them.
That said, there are four things you do to make sure you’re getting the views you deserve:
- Carefully review Medium’s distribution guidelines and check if your articles tick all the boxes.
- Publish in publications with an active audience. It needn’t have a huge following, just an engaged one. If you want to learn how to find these publications, check out this video.
- Write highly clickable titles. I discuss eight steps for crafting better titles in this video.
- Choose your topics with the golden intersection of value, interest, and knowledge. I also made a video about this, and you can find it here.
Q: Can you take a look at my article or profile?
A: I wish I could review every story or profile sent my way but unfortunately, I don’t have the capacity to do this in a fair way for everyone who asks. Most of the guidance I can give exists in the form of my YouTube videos or articles, so check my YouTube/Medium archives and see if there’s existing content that helps with your problem. Also, I’m happy to help you with specific questions via email or YouTube comments.
If you need in-depth coaching, check out the consulting services on my website.
Q: Should I republish content from my blog on Medium?
A: Absolutely! Reposting articles is a great way to boost your blog’s traffic because Medium has a very high domain authority. That means your blog can piggyback off Medium’s SEO ranking to get more organic visitors. Just make sure you use the canonical link tool to avoid multiple copies of your posts. This will indicate to search engines that your blog is the ultimate source of content.
I recommend you don’t try to post too much old content — Medium prefers recent content, which might impact your overall traffic.
Rather than importing posts, copy-paste the text. After republishing, then set the canonical link.
Q: Should I republish my Medium articles on other platforms like Vocal or Newsbreak?
A: Since you own the articles you publish on Medium, you’re free to republish them wherever you want, and you might even earn some extra money. That said, most sites prefer original work.
So, feel free to repurpose your writing as much as you want, but don’t expect them to perform equally well on every platform. Every site has its own type of readership and, thus, different content works on different platforms.
What is Zulie Rane’s real name?
If I told everyone who asked, it wouldn’t be much of a pen name!
Rest assured knowing that Zulie Rane is my real name when it comes to content creation, and that my Zulie Rane pen name is very close to my actual name in some respects.
Thanks for reaching out to me!
If the answer to your question isn’t listed above, I’ll be sure to answer it to the best of my abilities. Please keep in mind that I receive a lot of emails, so it might take a few days until I respond.
Happy writing,
Zulie
