Quality Over Quantity: A Creed
Sometimes, I wonder how demanding Medium readers are…
I wonder because some of the very best writers on here have fewer followers than those writers who publish with a utilitarian bent or, shall we say, an uneven level of quality.
This puzzled me initially. My instinct contended that an open platform like Medium should reward the best writing, that the finest work should outperform the rest.
And in the same millisecond that this thought occurred to me, two other realizations slammed home with a familiar thud.
1. Quality does not guarantee popularity.
This is true in every single art form. People don’t always seek out the finest execution or the most rigorous technique. The masses often prefer fluff or pulp or shlock — or simply how-to’s and listicles — to work that challenges and inspires and illuminates. And I’m not judging that! Far from it. Life is hard. Most people do not have the time or desire to make thoughtful art consumption a regular discipline, and thus, they might prefer more practical and accessible pieces, whatever the the flaws. It’s a rare thing for the crowd to embrace something brilliant and nuanced and layered. It does happen, but not often.
2. Medium’s algorithms are the gatekeepers, and they can’t read.
The mechanism behind an article’s spread or a writer’s reach is not directly tied to the quality of their work. Up to a certain level of popularity, the algorithm “decides” what gets seen and fed the widest, thus giving the writer’s audience a better chance to grow. (Am I wrong about this,
?) Some may argue that high-quality writing has the best chance to crack that algorithm, but as I said, this is not guaranteed. The algorithm’s work is done in secret, and we cannot know how exactly it is helping us.In spite of these two demoralizing certainties, I’ve come to a resolution about my Medium writing for 2023. It’s a bit of an experiment, and a honing of my own process, but mostly, it’s just what I want to do, regardless of whether it grows my audience or not.
I’m lowering my output to one story every two to three weeks so that, rather than rushing (as, alas, I have been doing), I can write the ever-loving guts out of every story. I want to focus on quality over quantity. I’d like to find highly-demanding readers who don’t give you a follow unless you impress them, who will ignore you if your work is tepid, but who, if you make them feel, or rage, or gape, or think, or laugh out loud, will actually subscribe to your email list and read everything you write, because they know it will be worth their short and precious time.
Because my time is short and precious, too. If attention is currency, I want to invest mine well.
I fully realize that this approach may not bring success on Medium. But it’s what I want to do. It’s what excites me. It’s how I want to use this platform, and after all, isn’t that the best part of the democratization of publishing: to do it your own way, because you are your own boss?
I also realize this may mean that I’m a bit of a snob, and perhaps I’m writing in the wrong place. If this turns out to be true, no hard feelings. You won’t find me kvetching. I’ll gracefully bow out and make room for those who embrace Medium for what it does best.
But not before giving it a go in the way I want to. We’ll see what happens. Hope you’ll come along.
