10 Reasons to Edit After You Publish
It may drive your publisher crazy, but its the best way to increase your metrics
100 years ago, writers had to wait until they were dead to gain fame and fortune, and only ten years ago, the idea that your words could be read by thousands without even knowing the name of your editor was nonsense.
Oh how the world has changed.
Welcome to Medium, the Netflix of words, where you are the product and as a reward, you get to keep a few pennies of the profit.
If you don’t know what I’m talking about, read “Your Medium Ecosystem” and consider which level of the platform you currently can access, based on your successes here to date.
There are pros and cons to working as a writer on Medium. In order to enjoy the benefits of the platform, it’s essential that you understand what it is and how it works.
Before the digital age, writing was essentially an act of faith. I had faith in myself and my skill as a writer, and if a publisher chose to put their faith in my ability to sell books, then I’d have the chance to get my words into the hands of my readers. Once that happened, as a writer, all I’d be left with is the faith that my words would serve my reader well. But, I had no way of knowing.
Medium changes all of that.
Thanks to Medium, as a writer, I can know in real time how my words are impacting my readers. Some feedback mechanisms are obvious. But, it’s the less obvious ones that are more important.
Reader/Writer Feedback Loop
- Impressions
- Read Time
- Claps
- Comment
- Quoting and tagging my story
- Reposting the link to my story
I’m a Publisher’s Nightmare…
My heart goes out to Medium publishers, those altruistic folks who work tirelessly for no compensation, polishing the product that is their publication. Some set clear and strict style guides and all beg that we writers refrain from being generally hateful, and follow laws, of governments and Medium alike.
But, the platform has pit the poor fools at our mercy entirely, as we writers retain the rights to our work (yes, even with the new 2020 terms of service!), and the rights to edit our stories, even long after they’re published.
I’m a good girl. I don’t like being anyone’s nightmare, but here’s the thing…
If you’re not using the real-time feedback loop offered to you by Medium to improve your work after its published, you’re missing out on all of the benefits of the platform.
It’s only once you get your words out into the world that the real fun begins.
Medium is the Netflix of Publishing
How is it possible that Netflix went from being a service that mails you DVDs to one of the largest producers of original content, investing $17 billion in 2020, in such a short time-frame?
It goes back to faith. And big data.
Unlike the old world, where the only way to know what folks liked and disliked was to ask them and to track their spending habits, Netflix knows exactly what you binge watch in the middle of the night. They track your curiosities and cravings in real time, and translate that into dollars, used to produce original content that speaks directly to your interests.
Medium is no different, except that we writers are paid far less for our words than the folks hired by Netflix to produce the next blockbuster.
How To Use Your Stats
Though Medium pays fractions of pennies for seconds of read time, they let writers in on the fun of the feedback loop by sharing stats with us in real time.
If you don’t analyze your stats, you’re handicapping yourself and signaling that you’re content to be writing in an echo chamber.
(If you have less than 100 followers, the tips below only apply to those stories you publish with a big publication. Read “Your Medium Ecosystem” for details.)
How To Analyze Your Stats
Use these 10 metrics to improve your work
Views:
- High = Good image and headline!
- Low = Does your image depict something people want? Does your headline answer a burning questions?
Views vs Reads
- High = Good introductory paragraph!
- Low = Are you burying your lead? Say your most interesting idea in the most interesting way possible in your first paragraph.
Reads vs Read Ratio
- High = Good writing!
- Low = Is your story readable? Is it edited? Have you told reader’s (literally) that you are not an expert in your subject?
Fans
After 2019, tracking fans became a mixed bag because Medium has made it clear that claps do not impact compensation. Lazy users do not clap, and social media support group users (from your trusted FB community, and the like) do. But, if we exclude those two groups, claps can indicate that your message has really hit home.
- High = You have fan loyalty or have shared a powerful message!
- Low = Find the most concise and impactful sentence in your piece and turn it into a pull quote. If you can’t find one, add one ASAP.
Going Viral
- Viral = 1K reads in less than 24 hrs. Whoo Hoo!!
- Not Viral = Viral stories make use of lists, fear and sometimes humor. And luck. So, good luck!
The best time to consider these metrics is during the first 24 hours after you publish, when your story is displaying on the homepage of your selected publication and has just been pushed out to your readers.
By polishing my work in this way, I’ve succeeded in increasing Read Ratios from 25% to 66% within hours, transforming articles that may have flopped into profitable pieces.
The real-time feedback loop allows me to take my readers into account in my work, offering them content that is readable and compelling. It makes me a better writer and my work more worthwhile to my readers.
