What It Takes to Make over 6k+ per Month from Writing
And what to do when the algorithm changes, again.
You may have heard views are down on this platform. Algorithm change. Again. I recently watched a video of a writer who’s been writing on Medium for years saying he didn’t know it was worth his time anymore since his views have plummeted drastically.
He’s not sure if the platform is worth the effort. It wasn’t disingenuous either. He is a good writer with a large audience, and all around sweetheart of a guy.
It is hard to make a lot of money, or then not.
Or worse, never make any money and decide writing isn’t worth it.
I get bummed about deflating views too. My views are on the sliding downward trajectory.
I then take a breath and realize I can’t think about only money — in the context of what I’m not making, I have to focus on the larger scheme of things. When I frame it in the context of the bigger picture, I’m motivated to keep going. And when I write with this attitude, I see an increase in earnings.
But I understand well the fatigue that comes from an unstable income. It isn’t easy. I’ve been a writer here for almost two years. There is a high burnout rate because of the many highs and lows that come from being a creative, and putting your energy and best writing on Medium.
Don’t get me wrong, I want to make plenty of the green stuff, but I won’t allow not earning as much as I want to discourage me. With this attitude, I keep attracting abundance. My earnings are pretty good. Not every month, but for the most part.
If you’re writing on Medium just for the money, there are more efficient ways to earn a stable income than churning out content. Although, many of them don’t include being your own boss, waking when you want, and working from home or a local coffee shop.
The larger picture for me is using writing platforms as my accountability partners, to gain an audience, an avenue to meet and communicate with great writers, increase name recognition, sharpen my voice, use it as a launching pad for other opportunities; a podcast, a subscription-based model for my audience, a WordPress blog, an email list, a YouTube channel.
Medium is a community of writers and readers seeking to learn from one another and engage. It delivers on that mission. It promises great stories and a place for creators to share their ideas. I truly appreciate it for what it is.
And it gives the opportunity to make some dough.
Below, some thoughts to keep you in a healthy mindset regarding platforms for writers.
Block out the noise and just write
A great way to curve complaining is to surround yourself with people who don’t complain.
The chatter around, you can or can’t you make money here, and, Oh my god, the algorithm is feeding me the same stories! is getting you farther away from your goal of making money. You can’t control the algorithm. Focus on what you can control.
- Quality writing
- Being part of a larger community of writers
- Investigating different ways to monetize your following: online products, subscription-based model, blog, create content for a Substack newsletter.
When we put time and energy into the negative, it takes away from the time and energy we put into making things happen.
Don’t pay attention to the homepage if it bothers you
I have a confession. I don’t read a ton of Medium stories. The reason: lack of time. I fit in as many as I can.
I have a couple of favorite writers, but for the most part, the stories I read come in my daily digest or in a weekly email from the pubs I follow like Better Marketing, Human Parts, PS I Love You, etc.
Rarely do I click on the circles Medium offers me on the homepage of writers I follow. I occasionally do. Maybe once a month, I’ll look at the stories that are trending. I click on a few that will give me information on topics I want to learn more about, mostly anything about, how to make money from blogging, side hustles or cryptocurrency.
Some complain about seeing the same writers too often. But I’m served new writers often for some reason, and I read them.
Full disclosure: I read books, like the kind you hold in your hand. And while I try to read a few Medium stories a week, my reading time usually consists of reading books.
Change it up
If you’ve been on this platform and haven’t broken into the $100 threshold made by 9% of writers, you need to change things up.
This can look different for different people. We all have different strategies and journeys. Maybe try something new, take a class, hire an editor, try a different publication, start your own.
The best writers don’t always make 10K a month
Remember, the best writers aren’t necessarily the ones that make money. Just like the best, most qualified candidate usually doesn’t win the Presidency.
Just because someone does well financially on Medium doesn’t mean they’re the best writer. There is so much more to making it monetarily here. Yes, while quality writing stands out, it has a lot more to do with quantity, consistency, headline choice, name recognition, your relationship with certain publications, and a ton of luck.
One of my favorite writers is Helen Cassidy Page. I actually don’t know how well this lovely lady does monetarily, but I know she is one of the better writers here.
Keep yourself interested
I get bored. Especially after I’ve had a little success at something. I’m never satisfied. I was on Twitter for less than a month when I wrote one tweet that went a little viral (over 3K), and I had no urge to tweet after that.
I probably have to have more therapy to figure out why this is.
I know that nothing you achieve or receive will make you happy if you’re not happy now. So, I’ve been working on being happy now. Making a choice to be satisfied, similar to choosing to stay in love with your partner.
Don’t wait to write a viral article and make 6K to be happy. If you’re miserable until you hit a goal, you won’t be magically happy when you hit it. And your unhappiness will be reflected in your writing.
On your journey to achieving your goals, you can’t resent them. What fun is that?
Write what interests you.
I’ve made money here quickly, seen dips and increases. I knew long ago that I would make my writing life a lot easier if I make earning money the secondary goal.
For the past few months, I write what I feel like writing on the topics that interest me, and I’m a much happier writer and person.
Readers are savvy. They can feel the struggle if a writer is having one — writing while resenting it (or writing just for the money). If you’re just churning out content to conquer the algorithm, your audience will feel it.
I want to enjoy what I am doing, and I firmly believe that if you don’t enjoy your writing, no one else will.
I’m really interested in where our political choices meet the current cultural reality, where the two often clash and coexist. I’m also very interested in film and celebrity culture, especially “normal” people becoming social media “stars.” I haven’t been able to find a publication suitable for these topics, so I started on.
I started a publication called The Rant, and it already has five (!) followers. I know that’s not much, but if I have five, it’s possible to get 500K if I choose to put in the effort. My other two pubs combined have well over 3K. I prefer to view that as a success, especially because I’m the only writer for all three.
Write what interests you. Your audience will be more interested too, your absorption in a topic will come through in your writing.
Luckily, I’m curious and interested in a lot of issues. I’m inner-directed, and I love learning on the page and passing that knowledge onto the reader.
There is a lot in a headline.
Don’t underestimate the headline. I know it seems like a little thing, but it is significant when it comes to copywriting.
A headline is the first thing readers see.
If you don’t get the reader to click the headline you’ve lost already, especially if you don’t have a “name” for yourself. Most people will click on a headline if it’s written by Stephen King or Michelle Obama, but if no one knows your name, you need to work a little harder.
Practice reworking one headline. Write five or more variations. Which one would you click?
If you’ve written a good piece that you know is good, and it just didn’t connect, look at the headline, rework it and publish the story again.
Look at the big earner’s headlines and see what type of headlines they write. Are there similarities between the headlines of the big earners? A reoccurring theme will stand out. They write headlines that attract readers. How? Figure it out.
The first sentence is the next important part after the headline. Then, the very first paragraph. It needs to be written well, with zero mistakes, no typos, compelling so that you hook the reader.
Diversify
Make money from different platforms. When you rely less on one and have several income streams, you won’t be scrambling when X platform’s algorithm changes. If platform X disappears tomorrow and you were making all of your income from platform X, you’ll have a huge problem — no more income.
I’ve been putting more effort into a blog. I don’t want to be reliant on other people’s platforms. I want control of my work and income. There are so many open-source creation websites that allow you to start a blog with little tech-savvyness, for no or low cost.
While it can take several years to be a profitable blogger, I’m in the process of making that happen. There are several ways to monetize a blog to create passive income streams. One is to create online products for the audience you find here, readers who resonate with your work. Use Medium to increase your overall bottom line, which has nothing to do with algorithm changes or curation.
Upshot
Keep in mind all these suggestions when writing for any platform. You’ll find success where you least expect it and start making money if you change your mindset from a limited one to looking at the larger picture.
Jessica is a writer, an online entrepreneur, and a recovering type-A personality. She lives in Los Angeles with her extrovert daughter, two dogs, and two cats
