Is Your Writing Worth More Than Chump Change?
I recently intercepted a post on Medium that took my breath away. A writer was announcing with great delight that her monthly Medium earnings had shot up to $181! Okay, I thought. That’s nice — as long as she only posts a story every few weeks. Otherwise, it’s chump change. Alas, a few lines later, this writer revealed that she posts a story on Medium every day. My heart sank.
I debated whether to comment. Writers have to start somewhere, and most creative writers I know routinely submit to literary journals that pay $0 monthly, or ever. In other words, we’re accustomed to giving our words (and time and passion) away, so what’s wrong with $181?
It was this writer’s mention of Medium’s “$100 club,” as if it were a major benchmark of success, that finally got to me. So did all her readers’ mindless “Attagirl” congratulations. I felt like Cher in Moonstruck, compelled to tell her spellbound lover to snap out of it!
So I did the equivalent. I posted:
Not to rain on anyone's parade, but if you publish daily, that's a full-time job — for the equivalent of an uncertain "salary" of $181 a month. What's wrong with this picture? I love posting on Medium, and yet I think all these platforms, including…
