Shelly McIntosh
Nov 6 · 2 min read

I get what you are saying but don’t feel the same way… exactly. LOL. I wish we could somehow “tip” with our claps. I guess we do if it means our 50 claps may get the article seen more.

I am still not sure how that works for pieces that have less than, say, 1k claps. Do my 50 really make much difference? Something with Medium are always going to be unknowable.

However, if we start to read something, know it is not our thing, we can back out without finishing. That does affect read levels and money. They may get something, but as I am a bulk reader, even reading the whole thing isn’t going to give much anyway. I assume reading two paragraphs and bailing means they may not even get my penny for their thoughts.

By reading less, you are making each of your reads more important.

I can say that I am taking more time consciously to read. I read pretty fast and when I was focused on getting people their claps, I skimmed a lot more. I think that’s a plus, really. I am careful to bail now if the piece is a trainwreck or I realize it is anti-something I am for.

I give everyone 50 claps now if I keep reading. Screw it — I wish the best for everyone who wrote a piece that kept my attention to the end. I am not parsing claps between poetry and longer pieces. Just 50 claps, across the board.

I am getting paid (so far) about the same I think. I’m not positive but it looks like it is about the same. I am getting MUCH LESS claps. Some people just aren’t clapping I guess, even if they are careful to read to the end.

Since I read slower, I AM reading less pieces. I had to determine a set amount to read so I had time to write. That has been a struggle forever.

Anyway, the end line is — I sort of agree with you and I sort of don’t. LOL.

    Shelly McIntosh

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    Living my best life as an empty nester. I write of personal experiences, aging, curate my ongoing dialog with my cats, and cover other miscellaneous topics.