Writing Community

What ILLUMINATION Means to Me

Let’s rock, dear writer friends! Let’s unleash abundance!

Illumination is back. We’ve had our shot of toxins so our writers and readers community can better withstand the rocky times we are living in. This is what Dr Mehmet Yildiz wrote about it.

Illumination 2.0. I like it!

And it makes me want to share about what having a real social circle for writers here on Medium means to me personally.

As I wrote in my biographical article (inspired by a request from Illumination), I’ve been a writer all my life.

But it’s been at the sidelines. I was never motivated and daring enough to really shine with my words.

Then I found my passion: I write about aligning the economy, ecology, and the human spirit. I write about humanity 2.0. I write about restoring ecosystems and about living a simple and beautiful life on a healthy planet. That’s what I want for my grandchildren!

Medium was the treasure trove I found next. Medium gives me a platform, a beautiful template, and the impulse to write as best as I can.

But it’s also big. It’s vast! I’ve been active on Medium now for one year and I must say: I’ve never found real mates, real friends until recently.

I read the popular writers. The Golden Oldies that made their names here. But I was bored immediately with the many, many, many listicles you find about how to become rich quick and how to join email lists and do courses no one needs.

The algorithms of Medium are still not working for me after one year.

I read a lot about the environment, but my homepage still thinks I’m into hardcore-commercial business, 7 reasons to do whatever, and American politics.

No way, folks. I want a heart behind the writing. Can you please make algorithms for that?

Illumination has an algorithm that works for me. It’s called tribe.

In one month's time, Illumination has made me feel at home on Medium. I would never have met the people that inspire me now if it wasn’t for Illumination.

Thanks from the bottom of my heart, Dr Mehmet Yildiz for finding me, approaching me, and encouraging me to shine!

I read the poetry of Gurpreet Dhariwal, Selma and Kevin Buddaeus and I’m touched. I laugh out loud when Chuck Roast writes about making haiku and I’m inspired to make some funny ones myself.

I read the permaculture wisdom of Eliot Kersgaard and I’m inspired to write about my own permaculture adventures.

Amy Marley inspires me to write about the wisdom of Pooh bear.

I have discussions with Kathryn A. LeRoy, Ph.D. about ethical ways of promotion. And behind the scenes, I learn a lot about the technology and entrepreneurship of being a writer from 🦄 Chris Hedges.

And the comments really do it for me.

I received encouraging words from Henery X (long), from Misa Ferreira de Rezende, from Lilycelle Belarmino Ausa, from Tom Ellis, from Simona, from Elisabeth Khan, from Marlane Ainsworth, from Francesca Brandani, from Ksenia Sein, from Jill Ebstein, from Michael Ritoch, from Salam Khan, from Tree Langdon ♾️, from Daniella Mini, from Robert Nelson, from Lizzy013, from Sylvia Love Johnson, from Lets Save Earth, from Livia Dabs, and many others.

You make my day, folks! All of you! You have told my sometimes insecure writer’s heart that it can touch someone’s soul. Even if it’s been for a minute. It’s worth it!

Thanks to Illumination I want to shout it out now.

I’m a writer! And my writing matters to people.

I’m part of a community of flesh-and-blood people who care.

This is what Illumination has done for me. Thanks to you all!

So what’s next in Illumination 2.0?

I’ll just be doing what I’ve been doing so far. Encouraging you all to shine your light, to read with attention, and to write your best words! In short, I’ll be cross-pollinating.

Let’s unleash our quality writing, dear friends! Let’s give our readers an experience they will not forget. Let’s touch hearts and souls and share knowledge and rants on every topic possible. But let it have quality!

Let’s use our excellent writing skills to make our words stand out!

We need to restore nature’s biodiversity to have a healthy living environment, let us unleash our human diversity to create a writing-and-reading-home for us all.

I will not promise I read it all. Illumination has become too big for that and can only be growing now that we’ve been immunized…

But I’ll randomly pick out writers with unknown names every week. And I’ll read carefully, comment upon their work in a supportive way, and clap until my finger stops holding the button.

If we all do that, there’s enough light, support, and attention going round for all of us writers to build our skills upon. We’ll become better writers.

We’ll write what makes people wiser, what makes them laugh, or what makes them think out of their comfort zones.

Happy writing, my friends. I’m glad we’re up again. Immunized and all.

And if you want to connect, you can always find me on LinkedIn, on Facebook or somewhere under the sun. Enjoying the illumination…