A PRACTICAL GUIDE TO WRITING ON MEDIUM, PART 5

Which is the Best Way to Curate Your Own Writing?

Best practices for index stories, publications, and tags

This is part of an occasional series giving you the inside scoop on Medium. Here are all the guides: Part 1, Part 2, Part 3, Part 4, Part 5, Part 6, and Part 7.

“To publication or not to publication?” That is the question.

Well, that’s not exactly the way she phrased it, but my spiritual sister, Roz Warren, did pose a question yesterday.

I decided not to post a response in the comment section that nobody will read except her. Instead, I wrote a separate story that nobody will read except her.

[Update: how wrong I was. She didn’t read it]

#1: Welcome back to the dark ages.

People complained about their profiles because it was impossible to find older articles. So we created index articles and featured them at the top.

With their sparkly new software interface, you can now do the same thing!

I love what Mark Starlin did with his, creating a group of index links where each button goes to an index containing all the stories in that category. Here’s a screenshot of what he did.

What do I do if I can’t find an old story?

As long as you create an index and update it, Method #1 works fine. But that is a big if.

For people who write often, the updating issue can become a big problem in short order. I can’t tell you how many times I remember a line I wrote and think, “where the hell did I write that?” (Of course, readers may think, “why the hell did he write that?”)

If a story is not in your index, try searching Medium with your name and a word or two you think are in the title.

That’s what I had to do to find my satire on writing headlines and the online tools you can use to analyze their effectiveness. For me, this was easy because I could type in “Brad Pitt,” “Chicken Suit,” or “Coca-Cola.”

Warning: the last thing on earth you want to do is scroll down through your profile looking for a story you wrote three years ago.

That method is so slow, it might actually be the last thing you do on earth.

If a search doesn’t work, the best way to look for a past story is by going to your stats page. It took less than 30 seconds to go all the way back to my first article in November 2015 and get depressed all at the same time.

Now that’s what I call multi-tasking!

For more specific searches, go to the YOUR STORIES page. Here’s a screenshot of that page.

Here, you can search for drafts, published stories, responses, or the mysterious unlisted. Using this method, it took about 90 seconds to return to November 2015.

As you can see, I have wasted far too much time on this site.

#2. Create a publication

I’m going to assume you have figured out how to use publications. If you haven’t, here’s an old guide I wrote.

Publications create an archive of all your stories by adding a tag to identify the subject. Or you can choose to feature your best articles, so they show up at the top of the page instead of getting lost in the feed.

As a graphic designer, the ability to customize the look of my message appeals to me. As a lazy, forgetful procrastinator, the ability to have an article go where I can find it appeals to me far more.

I still think it’s a good idea to do a profile index story because people will look at your profile. But publications offer other advantages.

You can send out a newsletter without the need to go through the hassle of setting up an account with an email company to send out your newsletters. With publications, you click a link.

I love the speed and ease of clicking one button to write a newsletter no one will read. Time management, baby!

#3. Use tags

Tags can be practical, helpful, or even subversive, depending on how you use them.

Their original function was to help the algorithm determine the topic. This use to help determine Top Writer status and figure out where to find your distributed article.

Now it doesn’t seem to matter.

I have found more entertaining uses for tags, creating ridiculous fake topics such as “Fatal Method Acting.”

On a more serious note, tags can help you find your writing if you have an ongoing series of articles. Add the title as a tag, and you can find everything, including a collaborative effort like A Stark Mystery.

You could also tag all your articles with your publication name.

Use these methods to curate your writing because the algorithm isn’t going to do jack shit for you.

This place is like Costco, except Costco treats its employees well. Of course, considering how much most of us make, indentured servants would be the correct term.

Costco changes item locations every few months to force you to walk up and down every aisle in the store to search for what you want. There is a method to their madness because Costco changes product offerings, so shaking things up gives those new items more exposure.

With Medium, madness is their method. The only reason to keep changing the rules is to keep people addicted to the game.

Roz likes to say Medium “is building the airplane as it flies the airplane.” I would say that Medium is more like a factory that launches each glorious model into the air, watches it crash, and then builds another plane.

That is why self-help gruel, tech bro humble brags, and snake oil salesmen get-rich-quick schemes have and always will dominate.

The site may claim to be for writers, but the business model is pure yellow journalism.

NOTES:

#1. This article earned a 100% score from Grammarly. At least one algorithm appreciates me.

#2. I beat the Hemingway editor. Grade 5 readability. Good. Impossible to get a better compliment. Fuck him.