Look What Aiden Found Today — Episode #23

Favorite stories I read plus community-nominated pieces tailored for avid readers of ILLUMINATION Publications on Medium

Thinking about my recent 4-cent victory, I did a small experiment to try the power of Medium Friendship yesterday. Guess what? After asking six Medium friendship members to read my full story about Counter-Strike (which the Medium algorithm seems to dislike), the earnings increased by 825%.

Yes, you heard it right. 825%, Yayyyyy!!! No wonder Dr Y keeps encouraging all readers to become Medium Friendship members.

I explained it in a new story. I hope you enjoy it

Psst! Calling all South Park fans — guess what? There’s a new version of the South Park game on the horizon! All the juicy details are in my latest story, dished out in classic ‘Mike’ style. Don’t miss out on the scoop.

That’s a wrap for my a bit ridiculous and personal daily updates! Now, onto the slightly less thrilling but oh-so-crucial bits that writers (and even some readers) will find essential

Quick Updates for Highlights of Our Pubs

ILLUMINATION-Curators introduced some recently boosted stories. I believe you will find some great stories in that collection. Collection of Boosted Stories from ILLUMINATION Publications — V2

By upgrading his main profile, Dr Yildiz inspired our readers to become Medium Friends. I hope many readers join this inspiring journey. Celebrating My Reading Anniversary with My Upgraded Subscription to New Medium Friendship

Boost Education:

I’ve launched a new series to help writers hit the literary stratosphere. Dr. Yildiz got the grand opening gig because I’ve got the scoop on his stellar stories. Now that I’m peeking behind the scenes as an editor and boost nominator, I’m trying to put as many writers in the spotlight as possible. Your thoughts on the story would be cosmic — let’s team up and make these tales shine like stars! I will do it for every boosted writer as soon as I get a chance. Here is Episode 2 introducing boosted stories of Matt Williams-Spooner, Ph.D. Lessons Learned from Boosted Stories — Episode #2 and Lessons Learned from Boosted Stories — Episode #1. You can learn more about Matt’s background from this interview. An Interview with Matt Williams-Spooner, Ph.D.

Recently, I added several new writers. I look forward to seeing their stories in these collections soon. You can meet them from the attached post. I also added their profiles at the end of this post so you can follow them easily if you want to. I will add more writers later today. There are many applicants. Announcement of New Writers for ILLUMINATION #28 and #27

For new readers and writers, I have also joined the ranks as a Friend of Medium (FoM). From now on, stories I read from other writers will earn them four times the previous ones. Details are in the attached story. I Took the Plunge and Became a Friend of Medium (FoM) Yesterday.

Dr Yildiz also wrote about it to invite our readers to become Medium Friends and support our writers. The more FoMs the merrier. Importance and Value of Medium Friendship for Writers and Readers

But scammers spammed his beautiful story and tried to deceive our readers. Here’s his sad and important story: every writer and reader needs to understand and act cautiously. They act too realistically! Scam and Spam Accounts on Medium Are As Bad As Hate Speech and Defamation for Writers

They did the same thing to me. For those who missed the excitement, two days ago, I was happy the scary scam account that emulated my profile and tried to deceive my readers was removed. Those who missed the drama can read it from this link. Breaking News: My Clone Kicked the Bucket, and I’m Gleefully Celebrating It🎉

How to Identify Them? These fraudulent accounts typically lack followers and haven’t authored any stories themselves. They are non-members with no star or heart icons in their profile names. Urgent Notice: Beware of Fake Accounts Impersonating Influential Writers

If you are into gaming, I also wrote about winners of 2023 for popular games. I will introduce some of those games in my forthcoming stories for game lovers. The Winners of The Game Awards 2023 Have Been Announced

Talking of gaming, if you plan to craft stories about these remarkable games, consider submitting them to my publication, ILLUMINATION-Gaming. I’m here to elevate your narratives, ensuring they stand out and increasing their chances of a boost. I wrote about my goals and how I can help our writers in a story titled ILLUMINATION Gaming Is Part of the Boost Program Now.

To inform new writers, our special publication, ILLUMINATION-Curated, now is a boost nominating pub You may learn about How ILLUMINATION Publications Support the BOOST Program.

I’ve bundled up all my lists into one tidy little story. It is a treasure trove of fantastic reads waiting for you. Please consider sharing the love on your socials and dive into these gems! You won’t regret it.

Shareable List Links for Curated Collections on ILLUMINATION

Dr Mehmet Yildiz introduced a writing duo known as Pernoste & Dahl. You will love this introduction as he reveals the mystery behind these interesting writers who writes inspiring and engaing content on Medium.

Meet Pernoste and Dahl: A Writing Duo of a Neuroscientist and an Artist

ILLUMINATION editors introduced a great writer, Somil Gupta. I hope you check his profile and explore his delicious stories.

Meet Somil Gupta on Medium

Our team of volunteers is working through the influx of stories, aiming to review and publish each piece while welcoming new writers into our fold. It’s a labor of love that demands time and effort. Please remember that we support 25K+ writers, as mentioned in our Monthly Updates.

If you missed this recent interview featuring Luay Rahil, here is a link for you. His stories can nicely surprise you. An Interview with Luay Rahil, MBA

For those who missed my Vocal saga, here is the link. I hope new writers don’t make the same mistake I made for 18 months. Here’s How I Miserably Failed Vocal Media But Have No Regrets

ILLUMINATION-Curators compiled boosted stories in December, so you might find some fascinating stories from this collection. I also chose to publish this collection on ILLUMINATION-Curated as our readers enjoy curated collections. Here is their treasure trove: Collection of Boosted Stories from ILLUMINATION-Curated

ILLUMINATION-Curators wrote about that exceptional story. I hope you will get a chance to read it and pay attention to your privacy. An Exceptional Story on Privacy Every Reader May Find Helpful

Our chief editor Dr Mehmet Yildiz, upgraded our publication accounts ILLUMINATION and ILLUMINATION-Curators, as well as his tech account Dr Mehmet Yildiz (Tech), making them Friends of Medium. Reading from these accounts will allow writers to earn four times more. While curating stories, we read many stories from these accounts, so it will be great for writers. Details are in his story by Dr Mehmet Yildiz (Tech): Why I Became a Friend of Medium

Our senior editor Mike Broadly, DHSc joined the curation team and created new collections from his favorite stories that you may adore. He has amazing taste as an avid reader and has already created seven collections in such a short time. I loved his new collection earlier today.

Mike’s Favorite Stories on ILLUMINATION Publications — #17 Mike Broadly, DHSc

Please find his collections with the associated lists and share them on your socials so we can bring more readers to Medium. Here are links to Mike’s collections: #1, #2, #3, #4, #5, #6, #7, #8, #9, #10, #11, #12, #13, #14, #15, #16

Our supportive editor, famous nutritionist, Elin Melaas, created her second collection earlier. Elin also created the Invisible Series. Elin’s Chosen ILLUMINATION Stories — #2

And our lovely editor Surekha Chandrasekhar also created a collection of her delicious pub ILLUMINATION’s Nutrition which is also our virtual kitchen. 20 Curated Stories From Illumination’s Nutrition -2023

ILLUMINATION editors introduced some great writers. You may check out their profiles and explore their fabulous stories.

Meet Seda Anbarcı, Meet Dr Emmanuel Ogamdi, Meet Jozsef Kovacs, Meet Davor Katusic. Meet Thomas Allen Moon, Meet Sneha Nagre, Meet Zondra Dos Anjos, Meet Ani Vals Meet Ammara Hassan. Meet Sridhar Pai Tonse — Leadgen Coach- Tech Startups Chosen Stories from Omni Essence, Editorial Profile of InYah

Our editors enjoy stories and nominate them for these curated collections. You may check editor profiles in this collection.

I love reading writer biographies and curating them. If you write any bio story please let me know so I can add them to my collection. Meet ILLUMINATION Writers from Their Personally Penned Biographies

Dr Mehmet Yildiz reviewed an interesting book of Dr Emmanuel Ogamdi. If you are a book author, you may contact Dr Yildiz as he really does great reviews. He even wrote the foreword of my gaming book. Here is his great review today. “Nobody Will Tell You This”

As mentioned a few weeks ago, I created a Discord server for our writers to collaborate and share their story links, so you are all welcome to join. We already have great fun there. It is not as big as our Slack, but it will be one day, as Discord is a lot of fun.

Daily List for Sharing — Volume 23

I volunteered to create a list of this collection. So you can easily share this collection on Twitter, Facebook, Pinterest, LinkedIn, Reddit, or Quora. You can find all our sharing platforms from this story link by Dr Yildiz.

Let’s all engage in this list and at least tweet it so that more readers can find these stories. It is the purpose of these curated lists. We appreciate your wonderful support for these writers who pour their hearts and souls into these stories to delight you. Here are the nominated stories from avid readers today.

Chosen Stories from ILLUMINATION Writers Today

As we mentioned before, “these stories are a combination of what I enjoyed and those which nominated by volunteering editors (also writers and readers) on this platform, so the stories in this collection reflect their collective tastes. As a publication, ILLUMINATION keeps a neutral position for all published stories, and it is impossible to feature over one million published stories. But we will do our best to amplify as many great stories as possible almost daily from now on based on the availability of our volunteers.”

Here are our wonderful and nominated stories today! I believe you will find something that will satisfy your reading needs.

Understanding the Nuances of 4 Types of Obesity Dr Mehmet Yildiz

Die Like A Hero Going Home Donn K. Harris [Boosted by my nomination today] Congratulations Donn, on writing this exceptional story, which our readers will adore.

6 Things Help Me Keep My Sanity and Zest After My 70s Mike Broadly — Healthier Lifestyle

5 Amazingly Simple Ways to Manipulate a Narcissist Melissa Kalt, MD

Esports For The Lovers Of Sports Dr. Preeti Singh

Harmonize Your Private and Public Selves Mark Sanford, Ph.D.

When Your Hot Button is Activated Cedric Johnson, PhD

Learn to Embrace Change and You’ll Turn Your Life Around Kristie Leong M.D.

I Burned Nearly 1,000 Calories the Other Day, Without Exercise. NEAT, huh? Michael R Esco, PhD, CSCS, CEP

Thoughts About SEO Dr. Deborah M. Vereen

Welcome to the Anthropocene Daniel McIntosh, PhD.

How To Create Story Collections on Medium Dr. Gabriella Korosi

Every One Sees Humanity Differently Dr. ADAM TABRIZ

Loyalty Dr. Casey Lawrence

Adam Smith Wanted You Free to Make Your Own Decisions Ellen Clardy, PhD

Sindhutai Sapkal; Mother of Over 1500 Orphans, children of lesser Gods Tara Desai PhD

Terrified of Change-You’re Not the Only One Dr. Fatima Imam

How to Make Your Wishes Come True? Nikola Ojdanić, Ph.M.

Use This Mindset Shift To Confidently Say “I Don’t Know” Dr. Sarah Lyall-Neal

What Color is Your Parachute Arlo Hennings, Ph.D.

You Will Not Look At Your Overthinking This Way Dr Ashish Juneja

Play, Healing, and Creativity Karen Chambre LCSW, PSY,D ca

Make This Week a Healing Week Soojin Jun, PharmD

How to Take More Risks by Losing Attachment to Outcomes Dr. Cort Dorn-Medeiros

We’re All Fat, But There Is More Than One Reason Christyl Rivers, Phd.

The Benefits of New Year’s Resolutions Lorwen Harris Nagle, PhD

Here’s Why and How Type II Diabetes Is Preventable and Reversible Dr Mehmet Yildiz

Mindfulness and Interacting Ideas. Dr John Frederick Rose

My Grandma’s 13 Uncommon (Healthy) Habits For A Longer Life Livia Dabs RN,MSc

6 Signs You’re Sadder Than You Admit Gabe Araujo, M.Sc.

My Understanding of God, Life, Death, and the Between Lives We Experience with Our Many Soulmates… Marcus aka Gregory Maidman

Any Day in Ground Hog Years, Something Good Can Happen Melinda Blau

Don’t Let a Hungry Ghost Eat at Your Table Rebecca Romanelli

The №1 Reason You Feel Frustrated At Your Work And How To Fix It Adarsh Tiwari

Stimulate Your Mind, Get your Creative Spirits Flowing Josh Balerite Acol

School Should Teach Us These Eight Simple Things (Yet It Doesn’t) Tim Denning

I Kept Dyeing My Hair Lighter Even if I Knew It Sometimes Wasn’t a Good Fit The Sturg

Ever Wonder Why We All Think So Many Useless, Involuntary Thoughts? David Gerken

Avoid These Types of Emotional Vampires Are Guaranteed to Drain Your Energy Ayodeji Awosika

5 (Mostly) Healthy Attitudes I Found in England but Not in The U.S. Anastasia Frugaard

You Won’t Succeed on Medium (and Life) If You Keep Doing These 3 Things Sinem Günel

Expertise in the AI Era: Navigating the Pro Path on enquire.ai Alexander Simon

Gizem “Luie” Harmankaya: A Female Gaming Legend We Lost Seda Anbarcı

Monster Managers: Reader Reactions Run the Gamut (Part 5) David B. Grinberg 🇺🇸

Harmonise Your Home Aline S.

My Letter For the New Year, 2024 Andrea O'Ferrall

The Alchemist by Paul Coelho | by Ann Leach Ann Leach

Dear T.J. Holmes, ASUS BUTTERFLY

Feral Ayushi Jain

History of Childermas Bill Petro

What Does “Success” Mean To You in Our Contemporary World? Blues & Blues Rock

Dude, Just Increase Your Luck Surface Area. Boysie Gordon

Ghosts of Christmases Past: Be Selfishly Grateful Chet Chung

Is Food the Anchor That Keeps Us From Breaking Away From the Destinies of Our Parents? Chloe Gordon

Are You Pro-Life? JD Adams ~ Stories From the Mountain

I Went Against My Will This Time II Depride

Try Asking These 3 Powerful Questions Before the End of the Year Diana Leotta

I Made a Deal with THE DEVIL Thomas (Don’t look for Meaning, Create Meaning)

Helping Others: Does it even Matter why? Ed Chunski

2024 Will Be The Year Of The Dragon Floyd Mori

Why do the British have an issue with success? Graeme Fowler

The Concept Of “Non-Zero Days” Cured My Lack Of Discipline J.R Esnard

Gregory Porter and His Lion Song Jennifer Pierce

Flood of the Century-South Fork Dam. Disaster At Every Bend. Jo Ann Harris, Writer of Daily Musings

So This Is Christmas John Whye

The 366 Best Topics for 2024 Jorgen Winther

Create Change In 2024 With Intention Karen Humphries

What My Top 3 Podcasts of Taught Me Karina

To Capture a Man’s Heart, You Need to Understand These Two “Scheming Tricks”! Karl Walker

Becoming a Military Family Kelly Crawford

10 Positive Ways to Start Your Day Kristen Kay Brady

Help! My Wife Is Not a Gamer Lucian Ioan Chirilă.

Where Has The Love Gone? Lewiscoaches

Unlocking Your Superpower: The Revolutionary Art of Deep Work in a Distracted World Liza Knorr

Mastering the Art of Balance: Life-Changing Lessons from ‘Dopamine Nation’ Liza Knorr

Content Creation with Speed Of Light: Blink and You’ll Miss It Manish Dangi

5 Tips To Make A Community On Medium Memoona Bilal

Compassion For Cowards Mhstuart

Making Sense Of Her Dreams And Everything Else Michael Holford

Should We Be The Renegades? Midnight Young

What You Should Know About Gold Pierre. Climate change & solutions.

Practise Gratitude, Experience Happiness Vivian Robert

Strike on Your Ideas While They’re Hot Pragya Pradhan

It’s Not About The Amount Of Money You Need, But The Source Where It Will Come From Roberto Hernandez

The Winner Is The One — Who Sells His World For His Hereafter: S.a.n.a.h

Only a Few People Will Achieve Their Goals in 2024; How To Be One of Them Sabin Rai

Influence of the Janissary Band: Ottoman Traces in Mozart’s ‘Turkish March’ Semra kurt

Lessons Learned in 2023 Shlee

A Vengeance for Success Sohail

The Lies of Doing Good Teisha LeShea

What the World Didn’t Tell You About Michelangelo’s David The One Alternative View

10-Year-Old Me’s Definition Of Life This Writer

You are Losing Big If You are Not Using ChatGPT at Work Vishnu Vijayan

The Desert needs the Rain Warren Brown

Finding True Love in the Real World: Beyond Disney Dreams “Happily Ever After” Zion

I No Longer Drink Coffee But Still Benefit from the Cognitive Power of Caffeine Dr Mehmet Yildiz

In A World Of Fear And Vulnerability Michael Patanella

Defamation Law Primer For The AI + Chat GPT + LLM Enthusiast Adam Ross Nelson

New and Juicy Information Regarding the PS5 Access Controller Aiden (Illumination Gaming)

Cyber Security: The Impact of Cyber Security on Your Business Alain Saamego

Declutter Your Life Aline Henda

San Francisco is Really Weird. But Not Only the Way You Think. Andrew Nelson

Dopesick: Overcoming Addiction and Mental Health Issues Andrea Duran

Are we worthy of the kindness nature has shown us? Aswathi Ashok

Forgiveness Is A Journey Author, D. Denise Dianaty

American Authors In Exile — Morning Papers IV Joanie Adams - Sightseer; Conjurer Of Words

A Mother’s Child Is Missing Araci Almeida

You Only Control The Effort, Not The Results Biliz Maharjan

Sleep & Relax 4 Real YouTube Channel Bogdan Mtn

My Story Received 4.6K Views, 1.6K Reads and Made $1.16 Brenda Mahler

The Joy of Sobriety Bridget Stella Ruxton Wilson

New Jersey Plastic Bag Ban Brooklyn Muse

Here’s How To Get Rewarded by the Medium Algorithm Caleb Naysmith

The Power of Connection Charlene Erazo

50 Claps Are Easier Than You Think Chris Freyler

Why We Should Have Gratitude Chasing Dreams

Warning: How a Balanced and Reasonable Friend Became Psychotic Christina Sponias

Think You’re Too Old To Try Something New? Cynthia C Farley

How Removing The Phone Draft Feature Prevents Me From Writing Dominika Antonas

Challenges of the Startup Yesterday Don Martin, real-life writer

What’s Stopping You from Starting Again? Elaine Hilides

Resurrection Elizabeth Emerald

Keys To Awaken Your Unlimited Creative Potential And Power Elle Sommer

Three Business Concepts to Help You Manage Your Career Etienne Yuan

Hack your body — serotonin, the happiness hormone Eric Kulbiej

Emergency’s Politruck helps those fleeing the war in Ukraine Francesco Carrubba

Writing About Technology: The Reporter’s View Geri Spieler

5 Important E-Mail Mistakes Successful People Never Do Gökhan Yalcuk

The Sudden Gout Sprout! Harry Hogg

The Things Water Can Teach Us Thesilkroads

A Live-Action Minecraft Movie Is in the Works Aiden (Illumination Gaming)

Scrub America Zed⚡

5 Micro Habits For Better Sleep Hygiene Surekha Chandrasekhar

The Intriguing Connection: Money Heist and Liquidity Injection Ethiraj Srinivasan

How to Tell If Your Parent Is Narcissistic J.C. Anne Brown

Why Outlining Will Make You A Better Writer J.R. Heimbigner

As I Continue My Virtual Journey Along The Salt Path, I Compare The Winn’s Risky Adventure To My… Janice Macdonald

Life Is Like A Horse Trying To Throw You Off So How Do You Get Back On And Ride Jason Morton

Deadly Mistake To Avoid On Your Business Start-up Jerry Pompilio

From Article to Podcast Interview Jeff the Content Profit Coach

5 Surprising Ways Lifting Weights Will Change Your Life Jessey Anthony

I’ll Tell You Everything, But First … K. Joseph

10 Books Recommended by the Dalai Lama on Tibetan and Buddhist Philosophy Jose Luis Ontanon Nunez

Leadership Secrets: Why High Standards Need Failure John McClymont

6 Essential Tips to Make it on Medium Rene Volpi Jr.

3 Tips for Coming Out of the Psychedelic Closet to Loved Ones Julia Blum

War is in Us Karlo Tasler

GRIP Book — Part 1, Grip & Your WEEK Kaushik Trivedi

The Oscars Weren’t Just About Will Smith Kay Valley

Wonderfully Good News That Helped Soothe And Brighten My Whole Future KL Simmons

Three Years Ago, I Had My Last Drink Lauren Hall

What Would Happen To You If You Had A Regular, Mandatory Psychologist’s Appointment At Work? kristin schuhknecht

Britney Griner Picked a Bad Time to Do Something Dumb Lawson Wallace

The Answer is Right in Front of Us but We are Often Afraid of It Warren Turner

Dating Online, But Don’t Want Kids? Len Morse

My First 100 Followers & Neon — Professor, Tao, Purple Love Alex Baidun — ESL Teacher

This Company Controls 250 Million Patients’ Medical Records Luay Rahil

The Monster of Jealousy Lone Brinkmann ✒️📖📚

This Is Us Was Too Real Tonight Mandy McElroy

Tesla Stock Is Still Worth a Much More Mark Hake

Simple Exercises to Raise Happiness Marianne O

The Uncivil War in the U.S. Mary Anne Hahn

Why Robinhood is the Best Stock Brokerage for Beginners Mike Toney-Hoffman

Admit It — You Don’t Care About Climate Change — No One Does Mike Lewis

Too Tall, Too Big Misty Rae

Thank you for reading these beautiful stories.

Now, let’s welcome the new writers who joined us recently. Please explore their stories and they resonate with you you may connect with them. This is a great opportunity for writers and readers to meet.

You may also check previously joined writers in the last two weeks from the attached onboarding packs. You never know who to meet.

Here is our onboarding pack covering everything you need to know.

New writers, when you need help please don’t hesitate to contact me on Slack workspace or Discord server. I introduce these services below.

I also enjoy introducing writers on YouTube. So if you are interested you may contact me on Slack or Discord.

Here is some info about Slack and Discords

About Me

I write articles in my field covering gaming, film-making, social media, and design. I am also a YouTuber. Thank you for subscribing to my account to get notifications when I post on Medium. I created a new website to share my content for free and promote stories of writers contributing to my publications on Medium. I also have a Substack newsletter. Let’s connect on Twitter and LinkedIn.

I own two publications on Medium. One for video gamers and another for YouTubers and Podcasters. I also support Illumination Integrated Publications as a volunteer editor and participate in collaborative activities in the Slack Workspace.

Writer applications for my publications can be sent via this weblink. Please add your Medium ID. I also enjoy email marketing using Cliqly, which is my affiliate link.