Why Medium Loves These 32 Stories

And how you can tell one.

The year is fast approaching its end, and so is everyone’s journey in some shape or form. Many are eager to share their year recap of 2023, and many more probably already planned their New Year resolution.

Medium already has its share in this recap thing, posting “32 of our favorite Medium stories of 2023”. By the time I was writing this, I’d been reading some of the stories, and I genuinely enjoyed them.

Then, I wonder, “What makes these stories appealing to Medium?” When it comes to what your favorite reading is, many factors are playing together, such as how it touches you as a human being.

For such a big publication like Medium, the same thing can be said for the reason why it has a “staff pick” section dedicated to its favorite articles. But, a large part of the publication is its body of writers and readers, each is an individual human being who has a world of their own.

So, how exactly do Medium staff pick their favorite articles that would resonate with their immense number of readers? Are there the basics of writing that constitute most types of writing here?

Given the magnitude of the many types of writing out there, these basics turn out to be not many, but they do exist. These slogan-kind-of things that get mentioned everywhere on Medium blogs might give you a clue as to what these basics are:

Our goal is to maintain a high standard for stories that are constructive, original, written from relevant experience, well-crafted, and memorable.

and

Medium is for human storytelling, not AI-generated writing.

“Human storytelling” it is. But can it get more specific than that?

I have never made my voice to the “staff pick” list, but I did manage to get one of my stories boosted. The reason I mentioned this is not to brag about it, but because I was intrigued by the Boost nominator’s decision to gaze pathetically upon me and give my pitiful earnings a little boost.

Perhaps it has nothing to do with me, but my story (apparently). The same thing can be said for the 32 stories of the year. They have something to them that resonates with Medium readers, and I tell you there is no secret sauce.

All it takes is concentration, patience, and a combination of these factors in your stories.

Emotional Content and Multi-layered Storytelling

Emotional content is defined as ‘serious issues that come alive in a personal and powerful way and [connect] the audience to the story.’

There is no human story that does not have emotional content. No matter what kind of story you are telling, there are strong emotions hidden behind the story told, and your words, as from a human, guide these emotions to come to readers.

But our ability to show these emotions through words is not created equal. As far as you know, you are a human who has unique experiences and looks on life, and each of your stories, though seemingly different from other people’s, has something that connects all human beings together.

Your task, however, is to lead readers through your stories, utilizing tools such as rhetorical context and conflicts to make this ‘something’ alive in them.

That ‘something’ is what many professional Medium writers know in their stories, and they know to make it extra profound in an emotional way using multi-layered storytelling, which is the weaving of serious issues/conflict, a theme, and plots that contribute to the depth of the story.

The narrative technique is where the introduction of a story provides context and conflict first to connect the audience to a serious issue. Such an issue, in turn, connects to the overall theme of the story, aiding in its coherence and direction.

These professional writers lead their readers through the moments the characters interact with each other and their world, showing how they deal with conflicts and grow concerning the issues.

Author’s Authority

Who would tell a better story than the one who experienced it? When you are part of a story and have the opportunity to interact with it first-hand from your unique perspective, people will listen to you.

A memoir I read recently talked about the narrator, a veteran who joined the military in the aftermath of the 9/11 attacks. This established the author's authority to recount their experience and offer a fresh perspective on the event at hand.

We as humans have a common sense for war, and many of us share our feelings regarding the tragic event in the story. But what makes this story so impactful, is the author’s first-hand experience.

For instance, when other doors closed on her life, she decided to enlist in the army out of “a sense of duty and [desperation]”. She took the readers through their journey, from being a kid “without a clear plan for their future” to getting a non-combat position on an aircraft carrier.

They led readers through the moments that highlighted their internal struggle to reconcile personal values with military duty and the harsh realities of war through distractions such as alcohol.

Coupled with their storytelling skills, we readers can sense the emotions and raw feelings of the narrator, as well as watch them grow as the story progresses.

We love to hear fresh perspectives, and who better they can hear from than the one experiencing the issue? By being there reading the author’s voice directly, they can convey their emotions directly to the reader.

Basics Of Storytelling

A great story can come from anywhere, but not everyone can tell a great story. Thus, even though we all have stories worth telling, not every story is worth listening to. And most of the time, it is not because of what is in the story, but how the author presents it.

In order for a piece of writing to be called ‘a story’ at the very least, it should have a central character, a logical sequence, and a conflict/issue. These three fundamentals are vital for an experience that engages and inspires readers on an emotional level.

• A central character: Events only make up half of a memorable story; characters make up the other half. There must be at least one character who faces challenges, learns, and/or grows to drive the narrative forward.
• Conflict: Whether it’s internal or external, a conflict propels the story forward by showing the audience the character’s development through their worded feelings, dialogues, actions, and thoughts.

When presented correctly, the conflict connects the audience to an overarching theme and reinforces its impact, establishing a memorable appreciation for the narrative.

• Logical sequence: Even if non-linear storytelling is used, events should unfold in a logical sequence. A logical sequence ensures consistency of the actions, evolution, and internal conflicts of the character.

Structure-wise, a logical chain of events establishes a clear cause-and-effect relationship that demonstrates the consequence of the characters’ actions/decisions. This helps build up any tension and effectively execute a resolution, keeping the audience engaged until the end.

Of course, these three factors don’t necessarily describe all 32 of Medium’s favorite readings. Some have their own unique take on telling a story, such as “Rainy Day Drawing” by Liza Donnelly, which inclines more toward meditative reading kind of type.

But ensuring a combination of these factors will, effectively and efficiently, guide you through crafting an original, constructive, engaging, well-crafted, immersive, and memorable.