500-WORD RANT #7

The Secret Power of the Scam Artist is Word Control.

“Quality” is a word roared by people to justify their BS, but they never dare to define it. I wonder why.

For a while, I was trying to be positive, even in my rants.

Today, I’ve got a real rant after receiving a writing prompt.

That is, if you consider poking me in the eye with a stick or shoving a gas-powered leaf-blower up the ass of a hibernating bear a “prompt.”

I read a few articles by content marketers that made the following claims:

1. Medium lacks quality writing, so they changed the curation system and established Medium-owned publications.
2. 7.9% of Medium’s writers earned over $100 in a month, and that’s the true indicator of quality.
3. Writers must choose between quantity and quality.

I don’t think a herd of Texas Longhorns stampeding through my living room could produce a bigger mound of shit… unless we replaced the football players with cattle.

I’m tired of idiots who use money as a proxy for quality in writing, or anything else — just look at Agent Orange.

I’ve already done the research to show you fine readers that making money on Medium is based on three things:

1. Having a huge social media following.
2. Appearing in Medium-owned publications.
3. Selling people hope and inspiration that they, too, can succeed.

None of those factors have any connection to writing quality.

I am proud to be part of the “low quality” 92.1%.

To all you dull data-swinging content marketing clones, here are my writing credentials:

1. As a former professional player and coach, my tennis writing has attracted over 2,000,000 views and thousands of up-votes on Quora.
2. Strangers have commented that I should be doing TV commentary or writing for ESPN.
3. Take your niche and shove it — I’m sure it will fit. I write about any subject I want if I have a real idea to share.
4. When I write for laughs, a lot of top humor writers love my stuff and we riff back and forth making jokes.
5. My career in advertising trained me to come up with a lot of good ideas quickly, even if they don’t all get bought. I could write multiple pieces each day if I had enough time to craft each post to my liking.
6. Did I mention “fuck you?” I guess I didn’t.

Fuck you and the algorithm you rode in on.

Even writing coaches whom I respect are misinformed when it comes to curation.

I published an article about Rafael Nadal the morning before the US Open finals, biggest day of the tennis calendar.

It might have been the best serious piece I’ve written and Medium ignored it.

I asked Support to take a second look and they curated my story three days later.

Not even curation is a true indicator of writing quality.

It’s time we define quality writing, instead of letting others use it as a weapon.

Here’s to better writing.