Summary

The article emphasizes the importance of feedback, particularly from top writers like Tim Denning, in improving one's writing on Medium through the use of reader highlights and active engagement in the writing community.

Abstract

The article discusses the significance of feedback in the writing process, drawing on a personal experience with top Medium writer Tim Denning. It highlights three key lessons for writers: the value of paying close attention to feedback from respected peers, the utility of Medium's highlighting feature as a tool for understanding reader interest, and the necessity for writers to actively support others, stay aware of trending topics, and engage with the platform to achieve success. The author reflects on their own journey of learning to apply knowledge into action, stressing that feedback is crucial for growth and that writers must act on the insights they gain to truly advance their craft.

Opinions

Feedback, especially from successful writers, is an essential component for a writer's development.
Medium's highlighting feature provides writers with direct reader feedback, indicating which content resonates most.
Writers should not only create great content but also actively engage with other writers and the broader writing community.
It is important for writers to observe which stories gain traction and to be aware of diverse writing styles and presentations online.
The author acknowledges the importance of implementing learned knowledge into actionable steps to progress as a writer.
The article suggests that success on writing platforms like Medium involves a multifaceted approach beyond just writing.
The author endorses Tim Denning's Badass Academy writers course, noting that Denning practices the principles he teaches.

Inspiring writers to achieve

Top Writer Tim Denning Says, “It’s The Feature I Love Most on Medium”

If you’re looking for ways to get more reader attention on Medium this is a feature you should be using — 3 important lessons for writers.

I recall reading these words some time ago in one of Tony Robbins’s books, I think it was Awaken The Giant Within:

“Feedback is the breakfast of champions.”

The words resonated with me very strongly. I repeated them time and again to many of the clients I was coaching. I wanted to encourage them to seek and pay attention to feedback. But, somewhat bizarrely, I didn’t practice what I was preaching.

I understood the principle of feedback at an intellectual level, but I didn’t understand that I, who was perhaps thinking of myself as a very important person, needed to actually listen to and practice acting on the feedback advice I was receiving.

First important writing lesson

When a top writer like Tim Denning responds to your story it pays to give their words close attention.

The fact that a writer who has 266,000 followers is taking the time to respond to one of your stories tells you that you have said something of real value. But, whilst it’s flattering to know that important people are reading your stories, what is actually more important is that you, the author, are paying attention to the feedback the responder is giving you.

It is all too easy to content yourself with the nice warm feeling that someone has read the words you slaved to produce without taking the trouble to ask yourself, “What is important about this feedback? What can I learn from it? What can I do with it to make my work better?”

Second important writing lesson

Tim’s response to my story actually read: “Yep, this works. Been doing it for years. It’s the feature I love most on this platform.”

He is referring to Highlighting. The Medium tool that readers can use to stress the importance of a few words in a story that they have found particularly meaningful.

The point I made in the story to which Tim was referring was that highlights give writers strong clues as to what they need to write more about. If a reader tells you, “I found this interesting and valuable,” why would you not want to say more about the topic?

I read my highlights on my iPhone Medium app because the highlights show up more fully in green there under Responses (the little bell at the top right of your page). On my desktop, the highlights under Responses only appear in abbreviated form and you have to click on the story link and read the whole story to find what the reader has highlighted.

I keep notes of highlighted sentences so that I can use the thoughts again. I also use highlighted sentences and thoughts as topics for future stories.

Third important writing lesson

The very fact that a top writer has responded to someone else’s story matters.

Tim’s response tells me that even top writers recognize that they need to be active in many different areas. Success online is not just about writing great content. We writers also need to:

support other writers.
Be aware of what readers are reading by noticing the type of stories that gain traction.
Make ourselves aware of different styles of writing and presentation that are being used on the internet.
Make ourselves known as active players on the platforms that we use.

These are all lessons that Tim advocates in his Badass Academy writers course that I completed last year. It’s good to know that he practices what he preaches.

Where your dreams of being a writer become your reality

For many years I was an expert at failing to learn properly.

It wasn’t that I was stupid or that I lacked the desire to benefit from what I was reading. No, it was more fundamental than that. You might even say it was more simple.

The fact was that I didn’t make use of what I was learning. I would say to myself, “Oh, I see, that’s how it works. How interesting.” And that was the end.

It was kind of like at the end of the learning period there was a full stop.

I didn’t see the need to take action. I didn’t understand that I needed to implement what I had learned in order to get the full benefit of the knowledge.

To some degree, I am still like that today. But I have got a lot better over the years at making myself:

turn knowledge into action that moves life forward.