July Thank You Note to Readers
Thank you, thank you, thank you!
June was a banner month. And, thanks to you, dear readers, July was even a little better.
For July, I counted
11607 Claps
122 Responses
And a ton of highlights
For my top stories.
I’m truly humbled by the attention you gave my work.
My deep dive showed:
130 people interacted (clapped or responded) to my top-earning stories 302 times during the month.
64 of you read and interacted with two or more stories for a total of 236 interactions.
And 15 of you did me the kindness of reading and interacting with 5 or more stories.
As a new writer, I couldn’t ask for more than that. That medium pays me a few pennies for your time and effort doesn’t seem quite right. They should be paying you! I can only hope that you got enough value out of my words to make it worthwhile.
I always write with the hope that my words will find a home in your heart and perhaps stimulate you to think or act differently. My life is no sterling example, but I usually write from the heart about things I’ve experienced or thought about. That you find them interesting enough to read and interact with is a real bonus for me. I’d probably write anyway, but not as much. And it certainly wouldn’t be as much fun. Feedback is always encouraging, and when you highlight, clap, and respond, you put me in writer’s heaven. I bet you feel the same way when you get a supportive response to your writing efforts.
I love Medium and especially the Illumination pub that Dr Mehmet Yildiz has produced. Though I’ve published in a few other pubs, Illumination is my home. Most of you have found me there.
I’m glad we are on this journey together. I value few things more than I value you and your readership. It has turned many potentially dull days into joyous occasions. Writing for Illumination has been especially rewarding during this time of COVID-19.
To write and get feedback keeps me sane and filled with hope for tomorrow. I bet many of you feel the same.
Those honoring me with (5) or more interactions and their featured stories or a recent story they wrote are listed below. If you haven’t done so already, I hope you’ll take a a few minutes to read their stories and poems:
Amy Marley (7)
Ayasha Khan (7)
Charlene Fate (5)
Dr Mehmet Yildiz (9)
Eli Snow (5)
Harley King (8)
Holly Jahangiri (5)
Lauren Shepley (6)
Manasi Diwakar (9)
Rasheed Hooda (12) If you haven’t read all of Rasheed’s Walking Route 66 stories, you must. Treat yourself!
Saloni Joshi (5)
Timothy Key (6)
Total Interactions 100
As you can see, Rasheed Hooda took first place with a total of 12 interactions with Dr Mehmet Yildiz and Manasi Diwakar close behind with 9 each. My friend @Harley King came in third with 8. My heartfelt thanks to each of you.
Yesterday, I took the day off from reading and writing and spent it analyzing my July results and making sure I had responded to each of you in some way.
I found quite a few I had missed and so I rectified that situation, so you may have gotten a way-past-due reply in the form of claps or a response. I do try to keep up with notifications, but I get so many that some inevitably fall by the wayside. I hope I did not miss anyone, but if I did, please consider this my note of appreciation to you.
A complete list of the 130 who read and interacted with my top stories (those earning more than $0.10) is shown below. I hope you’ll pay some of them a visit and appreciate their work as you have mine.
Dr.Gulnazmirza (2), Agnes Laurens (1), Aimée Gramblin (1), Alison Tennent (4), Amy Marley (7), Ana-Maria Schweitzer (1), Ann Venkataraman (1), Aurora Eliam, CMP (1), Ayasha Khan (7), B. A. Cumberlidge (2), Bebe Nicholson (2), Beth Stormont (3), Breanna Lowman (1), Britni Pepper (1), Caroline de Braganza (2), Caroline MacDonald (6), Carolyn Riker (2), Catherine Caruso (1), Catherine Delia (4), Charlene Fate (5), Charolette Zobeir Ali (3), Chowa Sekai (4), Chris Hedges (1), Christina M. Ward (1), Corrine Roberts (1), Dale E. Lehman (2), Dan Leicht (1), @Daniel G. Clark (2), Denise G (1), Desiree Driesenaar (5), Dew Langrial (4), Diksha (1), @Dionne Charlet (1), Dr Jeff Livingston (1), Dr Mehmet Yildiz (9), Dr Michael Heng (1), Dreamer’s Way (2), Earnest Painter (1), Eileen Vorbach Collins (1), Eli Snow (5), Erin King (1), Estrella Ramirez (2), FILZA CHAUDHRY (3), Francine Fallara (1), Gayle Kurtzer-Meyers (1), George J. Ziogas (2), Gillian Annie (1), Gurpreet Dhariwal (5), HardFreedomCom (1), Harley King (8), Helen Cassidy Page (2), Henery X (long) (3), Holly Jahangiri (5), Indra Raj Pathak (1), Isabela Vasiliu (1), Jacob Flanders (1), James G Brennan (3), Jane Tawel (1), Jeff Langley (1), JL Matthews (1), Joanne Troppello🌻 (2), Joe Luca (1), John Ross (3), Joseph Knecht (1), Julia E Hubbel (1), Karen 💛 (2), Kathryn A. LeRoy, Ph.D. (3), Keno Ogbo (3), Krissy Ruiz ☽✪☾ (1), LauraRaduenz (1), Lauren Shepley (6), Lisa Bolin (3), Lynette Clements (1), Manasi Diwakar (9), Margherita Gilley (1), Marilyn Flower (1), Marjorie J McDonald (1), Martin Rushton (1), Martine Weber (3), Mary Holden (4), Matthew Gliatto (1), Michael Ritoch (1), Michele Thill (4), Ming Qian (1), Misa Ferreira de Rezende (1), Neha Sandhir S (3), Nomanono Isaacs (1), Paroma Sen (3), Paul Myers MBA (2), Phil Truman (1), Priyanka Srivastava (1), R Tsambounieri Talarantas (1), Rasheed Hooda (12), Ravyne Hawke (1), Riku Arikiri 🕊️ (4), Robert Nelson (2), Rubaiyat Rahman (2), Saloni Joshi (5), Sandeep Warhadkar (1), Sara Taki (2), Sarah E Sturgis (3), Saurabh (3), Scott Ninneman (1), Selma (3), Sherry McGuinn (1), Simran Kankas (3), Sinem Günel (1), Sotiris Savvas (1), Srinath (1), Steph Rempe (1), Sumera Rizwan (1), Suntonu Bhadra (3), Suryansh Mansharamani (2), Susannah MacKinnie (1), Sydney Koel (1), Sylvia Love Johnson (2), T. Mark Mangum (1), Terry Mansfield (4), TheresAnn Sylvan (1), Thor Blomfield (1), Tim Maudlin (3), Timothy Key (6), Tree Langdon (1), Trista Ainsworth (4), True North (1), Vinitha Dileep (2), Willem-Jan Ageling (1), Wolfie Bain (2), Zul Bal (4)
Total Interactions 302
So, thank you once more for making this old man’s heart burst with joy. As usual, I said a little prayer of gratitude for each one of you. I wish you all the best in your reading and writing and connecting in this new month of August.
I hope my efforts have inched you toward your goals, whatever they may be.
When I saw my June results, which I reported in my June “Thank You Note,” I figured there was no way that I could top that. You proved me wrong. What August will bring is anyone’s guess, but whatever it is, I trust it will be the best for you and for me.
I read recently that the key to life is enjoying what you do. Thankfully, I can say I enjoy what I do every day. I hope you do, too. Of course, my being retired and getting to do what I want to do helps immensely. My only complaint: my old brain doesn’t work well enough or fast enough and I frequently forget things.
Someone asked me if I had a script that ran and collected this data for me. My answer: I’m not that smart. I do know how to use Excel, though, but the rest is done by me and my friend Manual Labor. But, it is a labor of love and forces me to pay attention to each person, each name, for a while. I hope you felt the good vibes coming your way in the last couple of days. If not, perhaps you’ll feel them now.
Happy Reading, Writing, and Connecting!