Why I’m No Longer Submitting To Most Publications

I recently came to a major realization about Medium. Submitting to most large publications is flat out a waste of time. Why? Well, everyone is going to the same handful of publications to publish their work. The Ascent. The Writer’s Cooperative. The Start Up. Post-Grad Survival Guide. You know, those really popular publications.

But as Medium gets bigger, this is a very serious problem.

Why? The editors are always overwhelmed with submissions, so if you get a response, you’re already ahead of the game. But even that doesn’t mean much.

There are a few more things to consider:

Each publication can change (and often does change) the rules at any point in time.

All posts must be 700 words long now. All posts must be formatted this specific way. And the rules go on and on. It becomes a slippery slope. This pub only features this kind of content. Oh wait, now it doesn’t. It makes me wonder… when the rules keep changing, are there really any rules?

Big Publications Often Play Favorites

I’m not expecting things to be fair. I know that’s not how the world works. But I’ve seen over and over that if you have a big name as a writer, if you have some pull — or maybe even if your book publisher submits your content to the publication directly something I’ve seen with a past client— those submissions are often posted without a hitch in major publications. It doesn’t matter if the content is off topic or has a different structure. That’s how it works with some major publications. And you’re trying to compete with that? Good luck. It’s like trying to hit a moving target.

A Publication Can Simply Go Away

Publications can just lose momentum and go away altogether. You publish there, and then the pub just stays stagnant. When this happens, I recommend remove it from the pub and let it remain as self-published. A dead pub is a lot like a pub that doesn’t exist. This really is even more of a reason to have your own publication that you control.

Your post can be one of 50 posts released on the same day.

This is a serious issue for really large pubs. When the post is published, you’re already buried in the mix. That takes away from even publishing in a larger publication altogether. Your only hope is that Medium will recognize it and then distribute the posts to readers.

A Recent Example

I recently wrote a post and submitted it to a publication. Nothing. Crickets. I’ve submitted to this publication probably 20 times and never heard back once. I’m sure some pubs get many submissions, but when I know an article is a good fit and it still never gets any response… well, screw that. I’m moving on.

Okay, I submit this same article to another publication. A day later, they said, this is good, but we want to back it up with data (new rules). I replied and said I think that’s not needed and would only bog down the post.

Then I sent the post to another publication who gave me the “we have to be selective in what we publish” response. I don’t really know what that means, do you? If it was an actually helpful response, I would have been happy for the feedback. But this kind of response is useless.

In all, I wasted at least 4 days in pitching a post that I knew was good and had absolutely nothing to show for it. I know, I sound a little cranky about it. I am. Why? Because time spent pitching to the many publications on Medium has an opportunity cost. You’re wasting time and valuable mental energy doing it.

But, at the same time, you absolutely need to publish your writing within publication to get any traction with your content. I wrote about this more in the following post.

So what on Earth can we do?

The answer is surprisingly simple. Publish more content with the publications that let you control the publishing.

You might have to start a few new publications from scratch. Or even come together with a group of other writers you know here on Medium.

But that’s much better than the alternative of doing what we’ve always done. The internet is a really big place. If you want to reach an audience, don’t assume there is just one way to do it.

The popular traditional publications on Medium might be a good fit for you. But I now realize that they are no longer a good fit for me. If you want to stand out, you’ve got to do something different.

Everyone on Medium is doing the exact same things. And even writing about the exact same things. That’s not a good thing. It’s becoming an echo chamber of sorts.

Enter Blue Ocean Strategy

Blue Ocean Strategy a term that comes from the authors of the book with the same name, Chan Kim and Renée Mauborgne. The strategy is simple. To succeed, you must move to the blue ocean where no one else is.

If you compete with everyone else in the same space, you’re only going to fight for scraps in the “red ocean.” It’s crowded and people compete on things like price and quantity (think Walmart).

A good example of Blue Ocean Strategy is Apple under Steve Jobs. He was never hesitant to go do something a bit wild or different that left most traditional computer makers scratching their heads. The Newton. The iPod. The iMac. The iPhone. The iPad.

If you want real success, you need to think a lot bigger than just publishing in one place. I know so many writers are infatuated with the idea of making money on the platform. But there are many, many, other blue oceans out there that await you. If you focus on the popular publications today that are crowded, that’s a red ocean approach.

Will it make a long-term difference for you as a writer — dare I even say as a business — if you just keep doing what everyone else is doing? Most likely it won’t.

Be brave and go do something completely different.

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Jim Woods is a writer who believes stories can change the world. He is the creator and founder of StoryCrafting. His work has been featured in Fast Company, Life Hacker, Goinswriter, The Write Practice, and other publications.