That was the month that was

Medium: A Nice Little Earner in July

Some good news, some bad news

I’ll begin with the good news. I made over $450 on Medium in July. Not quite as much as June ($496, if you are curious), but still a lot more than I’ve made any other month. Like ten times as much as my best month previously, which was March ($47).

The lion’s share of this came from one story, which has so far earned well over $800. More on that later.

Other stories did okay. I published 25 stories total in July, which is less than half what I did in June.

Then again, I returned to work in July as Australia collectively all but nailed shut the Covid-19 box. More on that later on as well.

I put more effort into being a part of the ILLUMINATION community, by responding to other writers, accepting the odd writer challenge, and doing a lot more reading.

I’ve followed the advice of the ever-energetic Dr Mehmet Yildiz and written a few stories aimed squarely at boosting the image of the publication.

ILLUMINATION is — as I have mentioned before — like attending an ongoing writers’ convention, full of great advice, enthusiasm, and encouragement. For free!

My only regret is that there is so much of it that I cannot read everything and do everything. Much like a real convention where there is never enough time to sit in on every session I’d like to, nor meet every attendee. Still, it’s fun trying!

I dabbled in poetry, trying the haiku form, and while I’m not very good at it, I love the Japanese elegance of art so much that I’ll come back. My very first one linked to a Japanese-themed short with a twist in the tail which I think will tickle anybody who has been to that magic land.

My winning entry

Not that I was doing the entering, but I like my little sex and travel story. It’s been a winner for me, and I had a lot of fun writing it.

I even wrote another haiku to tease readers towards it.

It’s still drawing eyeballs and kind comments, but obviously winding down.

Trying to find another to top it is going to be a big ask. Perhaps I should write one and call it My Good Sex, Bad Travel Story?

I do have one, but I’m not sure how much sex I can publish here, and if I promise good sex, I better deliver it, not shut the door in the reader’s face, fob them off with a few moans and cheers coming through the keyhole, and emerge afterward all sweaty saying, “Oh my god, that was amazing; I wish you could have come inside with me.”

And now, the circus clown

I actually read a book about the circus, and wrote a review of it because I loved it so much:

But it’s the other clown that concerns me. Putting this clown in charge of a nuclear superpower was a huge mistake, and at time of speaking over 150 000 Americans have paid for it with their lives, not to mention the chaotic impact on every other aspect of existence.

American Carnage? When they write the history of the Trump presidency, that will be the title.

Or it will be something completely different, divorced from reality, ghostwritten and required reading at grade school level: How I Became the Most Unbelievable President in the World Ever.

I worry about America. Don Trump is going to do anything to cling to power, and his mates in Russia will be right behind him. Another teaser from me:

The success turns sour

Australia was doing well kicking the pandemic’s bum. We closed borders, went into isolation, wore masks like mad, and our figures went down down down.

Everybody coming in from overseas — it’s all overseas here; we’re an island continent and controlling our border is a bit easier than for most — had to go into isolation for two weeks and not poke their noses out before then, and be clean when they did it.

A few people returning have tested positive, and if we catch them all, that means we can relax the restrictions.

As it happened, the people guarding the quarantine were the real problem. They weren’t trained or supervised or given protective equipment. Honestly, if you have sex with the people in quarantine and then go next door and get drunk with the other guards after your shift ends and they all go home and be good family men and neighbours to everyone else in the government housing complex where you all live, then things aren’t going to go well.

And they didn’t. Victoria went from being free from the virus apart from a few people in quarantine, to a cluster of hotspots, to hundreds of new cases every day, to closing the state borders, imposing a severe lockdown, and having a curfew with police and military patrolling the streets.

We’re now in an official state of disaster; our second this year. At least we don’t have Don Trump making things worse.

Worse, the virus spread over the state borders before they were locked down again and clusters are popping up across Australia.

Right now, I’m back to working from home, only able to leave the house during daylight hours, and only for emergencies, solo exercise, or essential shopping. And I must wear a mask.

Ah, it’s not just me. It’s everyone in Melbourne!

Britni

Last month’s overview: