5 Ways Writing for Medium Leads You To Being A Better Writer

I have been a professional writer for more than 20 years — as a journalist and public affairs officer, to name a few roles that require editorial skills. In my current job I’m the gatekeeper who reviews articles before they go on my agency’s website and who verifies that tweets and other social media posts are on message.
Because I’m well-versed in writing styles (i.e., Associated Press), I’m often asked to be a resource for questions like “Is a comma required here?”
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As a writer for Medium, however, I’ve found that the shoe is on the other foot. It is rare that I “self-publish” a Medium piece I write — that is to say, that I typically submit my articles to publications that are owned by other Medium members.
This means that instead of judging whether my employees’ articles pass muster for publication on public-facing digital properties, the editors of various Medium publications are judging my articles to see whether they pass muster for their public-facing digital properties.
Working with these Medium editors has improved my skill as a writer, to the nth degree. Below, I’ve written five ways that collaborating with these editors can likewise help you grow as a writer:
Adhere to proscribed formatting guidance
This may seem like a no-brainer — but surprisingly, many publications’ styles don’t dove-tail 100 percent with Medium’s guidance for formatting articles. For example, some publications are very specific about how they want you to source images, while others are a bit more ‘loosey-goosey’ on their formatting requirements. Most Medium publications that have traction also have strict editorial review processes. If you have aspirations to write for a literary magazine you will likewise be faced with guidance on how you should submit your articles. If you don’t follow these publications’ rules to a “T,” your submissions will be discarded. This lesson came in handy when I had a job interview with a writing test. The instructions stated that my writing sample must be submitted in Times New Roman, font size 10. I made sure that my writing sample followed that guidance.
Take submission request guidelines to heart
Most member-owned Medium publications are clear about what types of submissions they accept, and what they don’t accept. Don’t assume that just because a publication seeks poem submissions that they accept all types of poems. One Medium publication only prints poems that rhyme, while another only accept three-line poems. Make sure you are familiar with the specific types of submissions the publication accepts, and what themes it covers before you submit your article. Better yet, you should decide what publication you’d like to write for, based on its submission guidelines, before you write anything. This is no different from submitting an article to a literary magazine. In a similar vein, early in my career as a journalist, I covered corporate foundation grants for community service projects. Frequently the staff at the foundations I spoke to told me that grant-seekers often submitted great proposals for grants that were out of scope of the foundation’s mission. (i.e., seeking a health care grant from a foundation that only provides funds for after-school programs)
Get feedback on usage of cultural terms.
A while back I wrote an article about what I learned about race by dating a Black woman. (I’m white). In writing this article, I was breaking new ground for myself, and wading into uncharted territory. The editors of the publication patiently worked with me to make sure that I correctly cited cultural references — reviewing my changes, and nudging me to make additional changes so that the article made sense to both people who have a wealth of experience in race relations, as well as those who did not. They also reviewed potential land-mines and encouraged me to address questions about Jewish People of Color who face both antisemitism and racism.
Take stock of why your readers should care
When I drafted the same article I noted above (about what I learned about race by dating a Black woman), I failed to say what I wanted my readers to walk away from the article feeling, thinking and doing. The editors of the publication implored me to put some thought into what I wanted the takeaways of my article to be. After all, not everyone has had the experience of dating a Person of Color who will coach them on racial issues.
With that coaching in mind, I added several paragraphs that laid out what I expected of my readers, including the following:
“But the best way to learn about race is to surround yourself with a racially diverse group of friends. As you begin to develop friendships with people with different racial and ethnic backgrounds, race and ethnicity will naturally come up in your conversations. They might even show up when you go out to dinner with them, because of how the people around you treat you, and it might sometimes be uncomfortable.”
The addition of that passage, in particular, fundamentally changed the tone of my article — it gave it a purpose. But neither of these additions would have made into my article, if not for the suggestions of the publication’s editors.
Consider a more descriptive title
In early November I submitted an article entitled “7 Tips That Will Make You A Better Writer: You Won’t Find Them On Google.” But the editors of the publication asked me to write a title that was more descriptive of the article, so I came with the title: “7 Ways To Become A Better Writer Without Using Google: Use these 7 tips to tap into your creative imagination,” which more accurately reflects the drive of the article.
Try listening to the suggestions of your editors, not only because it will increase your likelihood of getting your articles published, but also because it will improve your skills as a writer.
For my part, I know that the two articles I cited in this publication are among the best pieces I’ve written for Medium — because of the input I’ve gotten from my editors — and I have proof to show it. The view rates, read-rates and other metrics for these two articles are, by far, the best I’ve had for any pieces I’ve written for this platform.
And these metrics tell me that I’m a better writer than I was, even a month ago.
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