According To Tim Denning, I Might Be A Prostitute Or A Beggar.
My milkshake brings all them Johns to my yard.
Guess who just made $5? That’s me!
I was filled with gratitude a few days back when I got an alert from Stripe that someone put $5 into my coffers.
Ps: Dearest Reader Tipper of mine, thank you so much. Thank you.
I was going to write this article anyway then I saw Tim Denning’s post. I was disheartened. As a new Medium writer, I put a lot into what I learn from Tim.
This time, Tim says my approach of using Ko-fi to ask for tips is “begging”
Tim also said “If you spend 4 minutes reading an article from me, you’ll notice I don’t instantly ask you for money. That’s one-night stand behavior”
Ever since joining Medium, I have followed Tim and he remains one of my favourite writers and this will not change except he becomes an apocalyptic AI that will destroy earth.
That SPECIFIC article however got me thinking that Tim wrote THAT SPECIFIC piece from part privilege and part incomplete information on the topic of asking for tips.
I also think if Tim sees this article and comes for me, I may have to move away from Medium.
But,
I stand by my point: Tim speaks from part privilege and part incomplete information. Does Tim know these?:
- I am qualified for Medium Partnership program but I am unqualified by virtue of being African.
- Medium through Stripe disqualifies me from directly profiting through my writing here.
- While I have written most of my life, I am new to most readers so I am building from scratch- building up readership, email list, selling courses. Everyday I diversify to achieve this.
- Before you say- affiliate marketing, again, I ask you to think beyond this very astonishing factor- AFRICANS ARE FIREWALLED from profiting from meaningful platforms. To do so, we are criminalized.
- Africans are ‘bodies’ for foreign stats and cash cows where we are able to subscribe to platforms like Medium but Medium puts up a firewall that prevents it from paying African writers their dues. They figure out one but cannot figure out the other.
- I cannot even be tipped directly on Medium because AGAIN- how will Medium pay me?
This is the privilege I think Tim Denning speaks from and I say that respectfully because I know he was once a beginner like I am.
I will go ahead too to say- he has paid his dues and maybe he look through my points above and say- cry me a river.
But,
While I might not even get a sarcastic response, what I know I have gotten is that $5, my reader tipped me.
Is it life changing money by any means? No. Not even for an African where in my country right now, there is NO MONEY (I will write on this tomorrow so stay tuned).
What then is $5 to me?
To me, $5 is appreciation. It is “I see you”. It is “you are doing great”. It is “I support you”.
A proverb from my place says:
Ogbu opi na eficha ọnụ: The trumpeter occasionally wipes his mouth
Meaning: The labourer deserves his wage.
Today my occasional wage comes from tips.
So today, I will encourage myself with the occasional $5 from a reader who sees me.
Maybe tomorrow Medium will get it right or Stripe will include Africa in their portfolio and we can earn what is due to us.
Maybe tomorrow, I will have gotten to the place of commanding thousands of dollars in “show up” fees.
Maybe.
But until then, I will beg and prostitute if it will get your attention to please-
Please turn on Email Notification for my next post.
