How to Be a Good Medium Noob
A guide to sucking a little bit less on Medium
When I first started using Medium back in June, I didn’t know that I would be writing consistently on this platform.
I started writing last month (August 2019) and try to at least write and publish once a day. I didn’t expect to gain as much income as I have had last month and the last few weeks this month but I certainly had the thought at the back of my mind, if I’m being honest.
There are so many articles that teach us how to be better on Medium. I’m no exception to the writers that write those:
and sometimes I wish when I was just starting out, someone had told me how to suck at writing on Medium before I was supposed to get better.
So here are a few tips on how to be a Medium noob:
Ask other writers for help
There are multiple Facebook groups for Medium writers where you can promote your articles and ask other writers for help.
Here’s a list of Facebook groups for Medium writers:
- Medium Partner Program Friends
- Medium Magic
- Medium Mastery
- Medium New Writers
- Medium Writers and Bloggers
People are generally friendly. I haven’t come across an assh*ole on those groups. Writers can ask questions and even ask people to check out their draft pieces to see if it can be improved.
Don’t be afraid to ask for help. It’s natural, everyone needs help one way or another. It doesn’t diminish your credibility as a writer, it just makes you human.
Read other people’s work
Like I stated, there are a lot of articles on how to be good at Medium, and that really helped me when I was just starting out — search and read them. It’ll save you time figuring out certain things when they’re right under your nose.
Also, read other people’s work to see what works best on Medium and maybe you can get an idea on how to proceed on your writing endeavors on this platform.
Experiment on your own
You can read all the “How to + Medium” articles ever written but you really won’t learn everything by just reading those. You have to do most of the work and learn by experimenting.
Those kinds of articles can definitely help but it won’t magically make you a great writer — you have to do that yourself.
It really comes down to how much effort and time you give to being a better Medium writer.
Don’t be afraid to branch out on niches or put too much sass on your work if that’s what you’re into. In other words, put yourself and your own writing style and voice on your pieces.
Truth be told, it’s more fun to write that way and can save you the early burn out from writing.
Write and publish consistently on Medium
I’ve said this before and I’ll say it again, writing and publishing consistently on Medium is a major factor in succeeding or sucking less on this platform.
Time and effort are needed in any job or skills you want to improve — Medium is no exception.
The only way you’ll grow as a writer is to write. There’s literally no other way. If you want to be a better writer then you have to have the discipline to set aside time and write.
Interact with the community
When you’re new to Medium, it’s important to get yourself out there. Publications are one way to have your works read without personal followers.
Visit publication profiles and see if they fit your piece, go over their guidelines and submit.
Also, having intellectual conversations on other people’s work and your own really creates a rapport with other Medium users.
Making friends on Medium is something that I feel is underrated. It has a lot of perks like you always have someone whom you can ask dumb questions to and quite frankly, it’s fun to celebrate Medium accomplishments with people whether it’s yours or theirs.
Be open to criticisms
You can ask other writers to give feedback to your piece on those Facebook groups for Medium listed above but there are other writers and readers that will just give them without you asking.
Now, I’ve received unwanted criticisms from other writers and readers and a couple are stated in offensive ways but that’s just how it is when you publish your work for literally hundreds of thousands of people to see.
Don’t take criticisms like that to heart, just see them objectively regardless of how they’re put together.
If the criticisms do have valid points, then be thankful and do your best to improve.
Sucking is the first step to being good and then being great. No one is the best at everything on their first try.
The only way you’ll fail at Medium is if you don’t start and put the time and effort into writing.
The problem with trying to start writing or any new skills is that most people are scared because they think they’re not good enough but when you look at some of the great minds in history, they didn’t worry about things like that — they just started and failed and then they tried again.
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