So Sad! Top Writer Tom Kuegler Will Leave Medium
Apparently, that’s an unpopular opinion I have. But he was the one who inspired me as a newbie.
Note: I started writing this story a few weeks back.
This weekend, I wanted to finalize it.
To my surprise, I’ve found more than 10 stories about Tom leaving Medium.
All of them were negative. I didn’t find a tribute to this writer who helped so many new writers grow on this platform.
Okay, there’s one exception from a fellow writer friend Patricia Rosa, who helps him with his LinkedIn Sprints, she said:
He’s also a friend, (…) And when I see a friend attacked, I come to their side.
I hope this story is an inspiration to always try to look at the whole story and make a decision for yourself when you see writers slamming other writers.
When I joined Medium in December 2020, I found Top Writer Tom Kuegler.
He was a lighthouse on this platform.
He gave newbies helpful advice and shared information about Top Writers, Top Writer lists, and publications to submit your stories.
Additionally, I took part in some of his live sessions about how to master the art of writing on Medium.
- 💗My marketing heart wanted to learn EVERYTHING about Medium’s business model.
- 💗My writing heart was so happy to finally put pen to paper again, find and share my voice as a non-native speaker and connect with people around the world.
Tom was the one who inspired me to keep on and try different things in order to be successful.
Within a few months, I’ve learned everything I could about blogging and publishing on Medium.
Once in a while, I still read Tom’s stories.
Then, in the late summer of 2021, I found out that he shut down his Top publication The Post-Grad Survival Guide for new submissions.
He was in good company. Big pubs such as PS I Love You and The Ascent also shut their doors.
Back in autumn 2021, I was hand-picked by Niharikaa Kaur Sodhi for her Summit 21.
Tom was part of her cohort. He said hello in the chat and started following me on Twitter:
Is any Top Writer following you on any social media platform?
I also loved this tweet about self-improvement:
Tom wants to end his time on Medium with a massive BANG!
In February 2022, Tom announced I Want To Publish 150 Writing Lessons This Year Then Quit Medium.
To save you time and energy, let’s wrap it up:
- The plan was to publish 150 writing tips at roughly 300 words each published in “150 Days To Writing Mastery”
It’s just time. Come 2023 I’ll have been writing here for a whopping seven years. That’s 25% of my life.
I want to conquer new platforms and chase new horizons. (…)
I can’t wait to go on this big journey with you and end my time on Medium with a massive bang.
Why Tom Kuegler will leave Medium
In June 2022, he explained why he almost stopped writing on Medium though:
January: 17 articles (…) June: 1 article
I’m not the only one who’s taken a major step back.
In his article, he, for instance, referred to Top Writer Michael Thompson who apparently stopped writing in April 2022.
Additionally, he explained why he writes much less than he thought he would and why he’ll leave Medium:
Medium turned into Reddit.
(…)
It’s dead.
I’m tired of pretending it’s not dead.
What’s your reaction to this?
When you read these lines you might think:
He’s just a frustrated guy who doesn’t earn the big bucks he used to earn in the “goldrush” time.
or
Don’t be so dramatic! Just shut up about leaving Medium. If you want to leave, just go.
or
I’ve never heard about Tom Kuegler before… doesn’t matter…
If any of this sounds familiar to you, keep on reading because this is relevant to any Medium writer.
So, let me come back to…
- Medium= Reddit
- Medium= dead
…because this is important for ALL of us.
Medium = Reddit
To be honest, I can relate to Tom’s association with Reddit.
Lately, Medium really somehow has become a dark hole.
Why?
- nasty comments
- impersonation spam attacks
- Top Writers blocking you
- people reporting you for writing about specific topics they don’t like
- people complaining about you not helping them enough
- people feeling offended by xyz (you name it!)
- …
the list goes on and on.
When I started my Medium writing journey in December 2020, Medium in general was a different place with a wonderful heart and soul.💗
Fast forward to today, I really try to motivate myself with all the positive comments and the feedback I get.
However, there are some days I feel really sad about the current situation.
Medium = dead
I think for Tom it’s dead.
It might not anymore be the platform he loved writing for.
The platform where he used to get tons of views and earned big bucks.
So I, as a part-time online entrepreneur myself, feel with him
However, for me and us, Medium is not doomed.
In general, it’s a wonderful community of inspiring writers.
I’ve connected with people around the world and as Tom did at the beginning of his career, I love to document my journey and help others to see sexy results.
Additionally, as a relatively new writer, you can get published in Medium’s biggest publications as my WOW-worthy students and friends Trisha Dunbar (She/Her) (Better Humans) and June Kirri (Mind Cafe) show.
Plus, you can earn decent money. Some of my students are in the process of making four figures, as I am doing with my Medium writing business.
The truth is: Medium is constantly changing. That’s just part of the game.
So with Coach Tony as the new CEO, we’ll definitely see some changes — hopefully for the better.
For instance, the write and edit feature in the app will come back.
Additionally, in an interview with Sinem Guenel, Tony emphasized the importance of publications and talked about tipping others.
The latter has already been implemented!
Final Thank You Note
Thank you, dear reader, for reading this story.
I hope it’s an inspiration to always try to look at the whole story and make a decision for yourself when you see writers badmouthing other writers.
Calling out other writers or criticizing them is pretty easy — especially on the internet.
Think twice before wasting your time with negative stories or rants. These types of stories generate a lot of clicks (and money) but are also spreading negative writing karma.
🧡Let’s revive the wonderful heart and soul of Medium together!🧡
And, Tom, if you are reading this, THANK YOU for all you have done.
I wish you all the best on LinkedIn, Twitter, and Co.
I’m sure you’ll also master all the other platforms you want to master.
Take care!
What do you think about Tom Kuegler and the future of Medium?
Kristina God is a 25x Top Writer on Medium. She’s a professional Marketing expert who studied journalism and online marketing.👉Join Kristina's 'Online Writing 101' newsletter 📨!👉New to Medium? Become a Medium member and support Kristina!
