Heather, you have just posted a rant with several out of context snippets of private conversation which took place over a month ago. I am asking you to take it down now. If you don’t, I am making a complaint to Medium.

Secondly, earlier in the day you had written then deleted a post inquiring about the Medium publication policy, and in doing so inferred several inaccurate things about myself and CG. I did not publish a response, but instead made my response unlisted so as to avoid doing this in a public forum. This latest post leaves me no choice.

Here is my response:

I had assumed this issue was long since put to rest. Clearly I was wrong. So, let’s deal with the main question in your post first. From the Medium help pages, word for word …

Stories can only live in one publication.

I don’t see how that is particularly difficult to understand.

It then goes on to say …

You can remove yourself as a writer by leaving the publication. Leaving a publication as a writer does not automatically remove your stories from that publication. Stories must be removed individually.

And while Medium may be vague regarding what your options are post removal, your agreement with CG when you published there was not. From Writing For Crossing Genres …

We are not accepting work that is currently appearing, or has previously appeared in a Medium publication. As is the policy with the majority of publications on Medium, publishing with CG then removing work and attempting to showcase it in another publication will result in permanent removal as a CG writer.

Again, there is not a lot of nuance here. That was and is our policy, and that is what you agreed to when you signed on. The intent behind it is to prevent an author from publication shopping (a disingenuous interest in a publication simply to gain exposure then move on to another) You were well aware of this policy during your tenure as editor since we had extensive discussion over it when a CG writer removed her work and published elsewhere without informing the publication of the work appearing in CG. You will recall her piece was removed from both CG and the publication she shopped it to. This is a widely accepted industry standard as far as online publication agreements.

So I find your description of what occurred both untrue and excessively hyperbolic.

It felt like I was being held hostage. Except I don’t suffer from Stockholm Symdrome: I won’t remain where I’m not wanted nor respected.

I finally removed the remaining posts yesterday; if I’m not a writer there? I don’t want my posts hanging there. That seems disingenuous to me.

And to me, my pieces are my children. They must come with me, wherever I go. So no. I have no shame or guilt or nonsense about pulling MY stories from a publication that doesn’t want me, and posting them Femmes Unafrai

Heather, let’s be clear. One of the main reasons I removed you as editor was for taking posts from CG and posting them to FU. When I was made aware of that I contacted you privately several times with no response. I then asked you in a public response to your post what you were doing. Curiously, in the same post where you were advising your writers to not remove work from publications so they could post in yours! Also interesting to note, we had talked at length earlier that evening about your future at CG, and we had decided to talk in a day or two. Nothing had been finalized regarding a decision to let you go. That decision was solidified when you began removing posts.

Given those events, your status as writer was then terminated. I immediately began to take your posts out of CG (apologies if I overlooked a few pieces) and stated more than once in a public post that moving forward I did not care what you did with your content. In effect, you were released from the publication contract you had agreed to. As to the greater question of Medium allowing it, as I said, not my concern.

So to now suggest, a month later, that CG has somehow been “holding your work hostage” is unfair, untrue, and unappreciated. I have gone out of my way to avoid you in the past month. Your behaviour has been erratic and impulsive. You blocked me on Twitter, only to continue to tweet me on the CG handle, and would recommend and highlight my work on CG. You have also sent unsolicited and unwanted email to my personal address. Now, you post this in a public forum, something that I assumed we had moved on from over a month ago. All of which is completely unnecessary.

Heather, for the last time, where you do or not publish is of no interest or concern to me. That should not be in way unclear.