And how you can too! — At some point, many writers hit a writing plateau. Or maybe it’s a 10-foot-high brick wall. And many times, we writers like to bang our heads against this wall. And we keep banging our heads until we give up or bust right through it. For me, that wall was 5,000…

If so, what gives? — It’s frustrating, to say the least. At my all-time high, I was making around $1,200 on Medium. All I had to do was write one article per day and publish it. Easy. Then my views slowly declined, as I watched my earnings fall to the $800-$900 per month range. I…

Even if it’s not the Next Great American Novel or an instant New York Times bestseller — Writing is hard. But writing a novel is far more difficult. I should know. I’m now in the midst of writing my debut novel, She Called Me Night. A New Adult Romance story. And I’m doing it… for the third time. You see, my novel has been a work-in-progress (WIP)…

When my views tanked, I knew I needed to take action — That’s when I called up Ev Williams on his cell phone. Being the founder and CEO of Medium.com, I knew if anyone had answers, he’d have them. “Ev, my views are down,” I said when he picked up the phone. …

Avoid these same pitfalls to maximize your online writing success — Are you struggling to make a name for yourself as an online writer? Maybe you feel you’re just one of many voices out there clamoring for a reader’s attention. If so, then I’ve got great news for you. This is the article for you. Dear writer, listen up! It’s time…

A self-published author’s guide to writing and publishing a book Now that I’ve written and self-published 5 books, I think I’m well-suited to tell aspiring authors about the difficulties of book writing, and how you can overcome them. In this article, I’ll describe the challenges of writing and getting your new book to market. But first, let me share my…

I love writing challenges. But this one was intense. — I have no idea how I got myself into the situation, but there I was. In a back alley, my legs were strapped to a metal chair. In front of me was a small wood table, a typewriter, and a fresh ribbon of ink in the spool. Oh, did I…

I don’t care what your English teacher says. They can meet me on the playground after school if they want to get down and dirty. — There’s no debate when it comes to the em dash. It is, unequivocally, the king of all punctuation marks. And Emily Dickinson is its queen. Why? Because the em dash has all the power and versatility of other punctuation marks — commas, semicolons, colons — plus a lot more.

Struggling to make money here? This strategy will help you make real passive income from the platform. — I remember the first time I published a story on this platform. It was several years ago, and at the time, I wasn’t here for the money. But a few years have passed and like it always does—life changes. Your needs and perspective change with it, too. That’s why I’ve…

A productivity routine doesn’t need to be mundane and boring—but it needs to work for you — This article is part of a series on the psychology of productivity. Start here. Productivity psychology is the study of how we can be our most productive selves. It’s a relatively new field that’s constantly evolving. It’s no secret. If you know how to leverage the principles of psychology and…

The best part? You don’t need to leave Medium to do it. — Do you want to write stories that get a higher read-through rate? Of course, you do! We’re writers, after all. And we want our words to be read. That’s why you should read your written content out loud. This is the same reminder I got when I took an online…

The 3 biggest lies that writing coaches sell online writers — The lure of riches and renown is a recurrent theme for us lonely writers wandering the road to online writing stardom. “Do this and you’ll make money,” writing coaches say. “Do that and you’ll go viral,” they tell us. “Quantity trumps quality,” they add. And they say these things with…

If I can write like a badass, so can you! — All my life, I’ve wanted to be a successful writer. You know, the type of writer who spits out words at record speed like Stephen King and David Eggers. Masters of the craft. But there was one problem — I was scared to publish my work. I mean, what if…

This Week’s Most Viewed Story (as of 5/20/22) — Hi, I’m Alex! Alex Bentley, that is. On my page, you’ll learn about crypto, NFTs, investing, and so much more. Take a moment to read “why I quit my job to pursue a full-time writing career”, “how I spent $140k last year and didn’t go broke”, and that I’m about to become a…

The Top 5 Reasons Self-published Authors Should Use an Imprint Name to Publish Their Next Book — Earlier this year, in 2017, when I set out to publish 4 books in 90 days, I didn’t have a publisher to print, distribute & sell the books for me. I was ready to go the self-publishing route but didn’t want to be labeled a self-published author. So, what did…

Hey there! Alexander here. I love using alliteration in my poems, prose & other writings. For those that are unfamiliar with alliteration, it is defined as: “Alliteration is […] a stylistic literary device which is identified by the repeated sound of the first or second letter in a series of…

Plus—A Medium Top Writer’s 3 Tips to Boost Your Earnings — Yesterday, I celebrated Valentine’s Day with my wife. So I took the day off from writing. And what I realized is that taking a break from writing is okay. We all need a break sometimes, don’t we? Since last November, I’ve been writing and publishing at least one new story…

Why you’ll see more square images at the top of stories in the future — Instagram popularized square images. That was back in 2010 when the photo-sharing app made its debut. So you’d think a lot would’ve changed since then. Nope. You’re wrong. Because square cover images will soon take over Medium. With the new launch of the new “Better Medium.com” design—the social writing platform…

With their newest design, Medium has transformed into a full-fledged social media site. — I don’t blame the Medium.com devs. “Stickiness” is what keeps users on a platform. And it doesn’t matter if that platform focuses on writing or something else. The goal for any website or app is usage and engagement. And what better way to increase stickiness than create a user interface…

Here’s why story curation doesn’t matter to me anymore — Each time I hit the ‘Publish’ button on a story, Medium curated it. And it happened consistently in December and January. Like magic. For writers that don’t know yet: When your story is curated or “chosen for further distribution” — as your story stats will show — it means Medium…