My Four Cents
The moment I stopped writing for others and started writing for myself
This week marks a huge professional milestone for me. I got my first payout from the Medium Partner Program and feel an overwhelming sense of pride.
My June earnings have arrived and it’s a whopping $.04.
Spoiler alert, this is the polar opposite of those articles bragging about earning six-figure salaries on side gigs, like blogging on Medium. But it’s no less brag-worthy.
See, I’ve been a writer my entire life. I wrote my first story in kindergarten and still remember the teacher comments about my “remarkable” understanding of words and language, even at the age of 5. I’ve also kept journals my entire life, long before they were the go-to bit of advice in self-care and productivity circles. But none of this work has ever been for public consumption.
In my professional life, I’ve made a living arranging words in an informative and entertaining fashion. But I’ve never used the first person. As a print journalist, I told other people’s stories. As a copy editor, I spell-checked and tightened other people’s copy. In TV I wrote news scripts for anchors. And for a solid decade I produced a lifestyle show that was tailored to ideas and interests of a titular host.
I did it well and overall I’m happy with the work I’ve done. But when I lost my job in February, my creative calendar suddenly had a clear slate. I was no longer getting paid to write for other people. So who was I going to write for?
Even while I looked for work (ie people to write for) I found the time, energy and resources to learn how to write for myself. I started with the traditional blog sites, but those still felt like I was writing in isolation. And after a year of lockdowns, I was pretty full on isolation already.
When I came upon Medium, I was instantly drawn to the community of other writers, of all skill levels. This platform combined the two things I enjoyed most during my unemployment: reading newsletters and writing out my ideas. It became my daily habit.
My first post got a like. Then a follow. And the pattern continues. I keep playing around with subject matter. Things I think I’m an expert in and things I’m actually an expert in. And some of the essays have been deeply personal.
For the longest time I kept my writing to myself out of fear and negative self-talk.
No one is interested in what I have to say.
No one is going to read this whole article.
I don’t have the celebrity or following of the on-air talent I write for, so why bother?
But with each article I post, these thoughts get quieter and quieter. I no longer agonize or spending endless hours rewriting a simple post. I just write it out, post it and see what happens.
The positive feedback I get from strangers here has given me the confidence to share on other platforms. I started with friends and family (Facebook) and then LinkedIn. Now I’m getting into Twitter. With each post and share, my confidence grows.
Am I going to retire early with these earnings? No. But that’s not why I started writing on this platform.
Getting paid any amount of money brings this writing into my professional portfolio. These aren’t the stream-of-consciousness entries of my hardback journals. That’s the difference this payout means.
Medium earnings to date: $.04
Writing in my own voice: priceless
