Reading, Writing, and Building an Authentic Audience
Of All the Strategies I Tried to Repeat Virality, One Set of Things Worked
I Haven’t Discovered a Shortcut. Write, Reply, Engage = Audience
There are literally thousands of articles on the platform boasting about how they gained 30,000 followers in three articles or the other crazy clickbait out there.
Do those headlines attract new writers to click on their articles and spend time reading them? Sure. But what I have found in those articles was just rehashed tidbits from somewhere else. No original content, no new ideas, just something someone else has already written.
I’m creating this article because new writers are still coming onto this platform. They are in search of secrets, clues, and direction, just like I was.
I remember when I first started writing on Medium. I was wide-eyed and bushy-tailed. The writing wasn’t the issue. It was the platform. I knew nothing and to learn what to do, I had to read. So, I went searching for the clues and secrets of how to be successful on here.
New Medium writers, You’ve got to read the starter kits. You’ve got to read the articles I mentioned earlier. If you stopped by here thinking you will gain knowledge — and you will — thank you, because it’s your virgin eyes that make all the difference.
I am a moderately successful writer on Medium. I approach this advocation with true passion. When I started writing this article, it was 6:24 a.m. and I had six minutes before my morning alarm went off. Once it did, I wouldn’t be able to return to Medium until after 5 p.m. So, I use my off work and off sleep time to create content here. That, my friends, is passion.
You’ll find that many writers schedule their time to create content around their major daily activities. But scheduling time to write is one of those secrets. To be successful, you must be intentional. And sometimes, that doesn’t crack the case either.
One writer I spoke with today expressed his frustration. I won’t mention names, but he said to me, “I write three articles per day, yet, my stats aren’t improving.” I wanted to encourage him to keep the faith.
I had one article that started out with 234 views. Then, it shot up to 23,000 views and then after being published on Yahoo news, it jumped up to 34,000 views and 13,000 reads. I had no clue that would happen. From that, I wrote three additional articles that did moderately well. You just never know what will be a hit.
So, in my humble opinion, one tried and true way to build an audience is over time. Over that time, you should write consistently. Measure your days. Since there are seven days in a week, try to write three to four times per week. Initially, you are going to write daily. Go for it. But you’ve got other things to do on the platform as well.
Read other people’s material. When I search for interesting articles to read the first things that catch my eye are the kicker, the title, and the subtitle. Then, the next most important thing to me is the length of time it will take me to read the article.
I’ve incorporated the reader thingy (click on the listen button at the top of the article) and I crake up the speed. That allows me to pay attention to more quality content. When I want to comment. I pause the reader, make my comments and then click start again.
That’s the other thing. You should reply to the reader’s material. If you like one of my articles, please tell me why. What about it did you like? Did I remind you of a time in your life? Is there something that resonates with you from my story? Please tell me. I don’t mind long replies. In fact, I prefer long replies.
If you like the article, see those little green hands on the bottom left of the page on the article you just finished reading? That’s the clap icon. Click on it and hold it down until it reaches 50. You can actually leave 1–50 claps, depending on the level of your enjoyment. This shows the writer that you enjoyed his or her article and it also makes you a fan. Only you and the author will know how many times you clapped. Other readers will only see that you clapped, but they will not see the number — if that is important to you.
That’s it.
- Write — you have to create content consistently.
- Read — you have to read other writer’s content.
- Reply — leave thoughtful comments, more so than ‘I liked your article.’ Yes, sometimes that will be your reply. Sometimes, you will have other things to do, but try to leave meaningful replies.
- Clap — No one will know how many times you clapped except you and the author. This also makes you a fan of that writer.
- Schedule time to write — with a schedule, you will always know you have a personal commitment to yourself to accomplish your goal.
- Be patient — it takes time to build an audience. Do not get discouraged. Ignore the background noise and just write.
About the Author
Julius Evans is a 2X Top Writer on Medium in Writing and Music. He has a Master of Arts degree in National Security and Strategic Studies from the U.S. Naval War College, Newport, RI; a Master of Arts degree in Strategic Communication and Leadership from Seton Hall University, South Orange, NJ; a Bachelor of Science degree in Mass Communication and Journalism from City University, Bellevue, WA, and an Associate of Arts Degree in Liberal Studies from Central Texas College, Killeen, Texas. He is a 1985 graduate of the Defense Information School (DINFOS) of Print and Electronic Journalism and Advanced Public Affairs. DINFOS was relocated from Fort Benjamin Harrison, Indianapolis, IN, to its current location at Fort George Meade, MD.
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