What is Wrong: Why aren’t They Reading?

please tell me. I appreciate your readership

Oh! I am confused, and the above image is about confusion. (Not my image)

This is not a great way to get attention, as it is a bit negative, to say, or to show, that something is wrong, missing!

Oops, that you are not reading my work!

Don’t get me wrong, I’m not complaining about the lack of views, claps, and comments on my stories!

I have been very lucky, and I appreciate each and every one of my followers, and every reader, who even throws a glance at my page.

I had never thought that I will have these many followers!

And

I never thought I will have so many people read; and appreciate my stories.

And

I never expected to have such a circle of lights, a delightful group of fellow readers and writers, who support each other, and inspire one another!

So, what am I talking about?

Let me explain.

In the last year, on Medium, I have worked hard to put my work out, offering it to similar-minded, and similarly, inclined people, most of whom are writers, and a few may be who just like to read!

And I also enjoy reading, that is actually, how, I got in, to read!

And I leave comments, not just for the sake of commenting, I am usually in the habit of leaving engaged responses, figuring out what the writer is saying, or not saying, thinking, and appreciating their thoughts, adding to the stream of their thought, filling in the picture they are painting, and writing with them.

And, about my writing, I write poetry, and have tried my hand on writing stories too, mainly micro fiction, and some articles, and have received beautiful comments, plenty of claps, and views!

Recently I have started to publish extracts from my book on Higher education and Sustainability. I did it, as I believed, I had a readership, those who are interested in such a topic, and I have been rewarded.

Yes, I really had something great going on!!

So, what is the matter?

Is it because of something, I have done, or not done?

Or is it something that the new setup of Medium has done?

Yes, I am losing readers, even those, whose work, I still read, or at least till recently, had been reading!

Are they not receiving notifications about my new posts?

Yes, it happens.

I used to get pictures of the writers, and their latest posts, which I usually read, in the ribbon at the top of my home page, and thus, I had their latest work right there.

But that is not happening. Now, I get many writers at random, who show up in my feed, which has actually been good too, as I get to find out outside the circle, the familiarity.

I have started reading many new writers now, and, have more than doubled the writers I’m reading now, adding to those, whose names and styles of writing, I was familiar with.

And regarding those I used to read, I still read them, as, I, actually go looking for their posts, and sometimes, I get a notification in my email. And sometimes, I go through their comments on my posts to find what they have written. And if they haven’t, I write to them, send them a message, ask them to write, that I am waiting for their new post!

And sometimes, I’m afraid I miss their posts!!

And, recently, I am noticing, I am losing my readers!

As in my last few posts, a few of my regular readers have been missing, even though, many others have read, and left comments, I can see, even they are being selective, and not reading or commenting on everything that I am writing.

So, what is the reason?

I know, we are all overwhelmed with the inundated material produced each day, every hour of the day, on medium or even other platforms, that we are on, that we have to become selective in what we read!

However, if I am reading and responding to the posts of those writers, I would also like to have their readership, on a more regular basis!

Or,

Is it something, lacking in my writing?

Or something too much in my writing.

What is it? Is it, my choice of headings, images, or topics, that is discouraging them to read?

I really would like to know!

Writing, at least, I can’t give up, as I write daily, but yes, publishing, maybe that can be curtailed!

I am sure, many will read this post of mine, and would be thinking the same, what should we write, how should we present our work, and how should we reciprocate?

As this is the food for our soul, our creativity, the music to our ears, and without that, it is hard, if not impossible to get inspired to publish.

Thanks, Dr. Preeti Singh for encouraging us to read other writers, as recently, I read a few of those, whose work, I had not been familiar with, but now, I appreciate their beautiful work.

Similarly, Yana Bostongirl, who herself has thousands of views, still supports and makes efforts to respond to everyone in her circle of lights.

Sahil Patel’s brainchild, this publication, teaches us to reciprocate, and that’s what we do, it is a win-win situation, for both readers and writers!

I have recently discovered the following two writers, whose work I am enjoying a lot.

Mulan, and her articles like this,

Nothing Is Perfect. Life is about separation and reunion | by Mulan | Medium | Reciprocal

And,

Elder Taoist, and his work, such as,

Surviving Alone in the Alaska Wilderness | by Elder Taoist | Reciprocal | Sep, 2022 | Medium

Thanks for reading.