Why should I write at Medium.com?

I’ve been writing and sharing content online since 1998 but where should I write now?

I’m conflicted. I’ve been writing and sharing content online since 1998, back when dial-up was normal and a 14.4kbps external modem which was the size of a toaster graced my desk.

In the early years I did a lot of writing and reviewing for nvmax.com (now in internet heaven) and as time moved forward I set up my own ‘home’ in 2006 at gavinelliott.co.uk. Since then 255 posts have been written and 2028 comments left, by anyones standards it isn’t a lot but it has given me a place to write and share my thoughts throughout the years.

Transition or not?

I still write as often as I can on my own domain and also write quite heavily on the Obox blog. I write about WordPress themes, plugins and other businessy related things at Obox but my own domain consists of my own content specifically on the web design industry and my own personal thinkerings.

The rise of svbtle and Medium has been of interest to me, the quality of the content has been exceptional and I looked forward to getting my Medium publishing rights.

Now I have them, I’m conflicted as to whether I want to transition my writing and publish content here rather than on my own domain. Why would I want to upsticks and move home when I’m perfectly happy and settled where I am? Moreover, why is everyone else writing here when they have their own blogs?

What is it about these different places which is causing such a stir and ultimately great content? It reminds me of Quora, where people feel obliged to leave good answers as the quality of most questions is greater. Is it because it’s like a new-age writing club?

This is the first post I’ve written on my Medium account and I’m questioning whether I should be doing it at all but what I can say is that it’s a lovely writing experience. It’s unobtrusive and elegant just like iA Writer which I predominantly use to draft new articles.

The main reason I write on my own domain is to keep my content my own, we’ve seen other writing services (Posterous) close and I’m not about to let my content go the same way.

Imagine if you’ve been writing on Medium or Svbtle since they launched and tomorrow they both shutdown. That’s my confliction, my lack of trust in external services and my duty to write in that place I call home.

What do you think?