A Complete Guide to Submitting to Medium Publications in 2023
Including how to pitch 9 of the biggest and one smaller one
A great way to build your audience is to publish in large publications. The trouble is, finding out how to submit your story isn’t always easy!
I’m used to sneaky publications and their hidden submission guidelines, so I’ve gathered them together in one easy spot so you don’t have to spend hours hunting.
Best of luck!
Finding the right Medium Publication
Medium Publications are like individual magazines in a bookstore. They each have their own tone, style, and unique angle.
Before you send in your story, do some research. Then you won’t be wasting your time (or theirs).
- Read through some of their recently published stories.
- Notice how often they publish and when they last published. Sometimes publications die without notice!
- Read submission guidelines if they have any and make sure you are sending in the kind of story they like. Some even have specific formatting styles they want you to use.
I know this seems like a lot of work but it saves your energy in the long run. And you’ll get less rejections!
Is it a big or small publication? How can you tell?
Remember there are hundreds of Medium publications—anyone can set one up and run one, even you. There is a link to a huge list of ALL the publications on Medium at the end of this story.
If your story gets a rejection from one editor, keep sending your work to different publications until you find a home.
You can see the size of a publication by adding </latest> after it’s name like this:
https://medium.com/inspired-writer/latest
Self-publishing is always an option too, but you’ll usually find you get more reads in a publication. You borrow the publication’s established audience while you build your own fan base.
It depends on your goals.
If you want to get more eyes on your work, then sending your draft to one of the larger publications listed here might be the right choice for you.
Read as many featured stories as you can, to get a feel of what each publication likes to publish. If you become a member, you can read as many Medium stories as you like.
Ten places to pitch
Medium’s emphasis is changing in regards to publications. A “Boost” of views for your story may be more likely in certain publications.
- Self publishing works well for many writers.
- Other writers find 2 or 3 small- to mid-sized publications they love and are happy with that.
- Some writers like to challenge themselves and aim for large publications with big audiences.
Experiment and see what suits you best.
Many of the big publications are still worth a try, as they have large audiences and can propel your work into the spotlight:
1. Zora
Zora is looking for stories from women of color.
You can’t submit work to Zora directly, but you can tag your posts to get their attention.
In order to be considered, please post your story on your Medium profile. After you post, tag one or both of ZORA’s editors in the notes or the comments. (Editor Hoskin is here → https://medium.com/@mnhoskin25)
2. Human Parts
Human Parts publishes first person personal essays and perspectives. As of August 2023, they are now taking submissions!
Submit through Medium or by emailing: heyhumanparts@gmail.com
What isn’t for Human Parts? Things that aren’t first-person essays probably won’t work. Human Parts is not looking for reported features or for you to tell someone else’s story.
Want to tell personal stories readers and editors will love? I can help with that.
3. The Writing Cooperative
This publication has a large following and an active group of writers and editors. They publish around 4–5 stories a day.
To get a story accepted, you need to check and double check that you have met their requirements. They are tough and expect writers to follow their standards.
4. Better Humans
This publication has now been archived and is not taking new stories.
The “Better” group of publications is run by Medium’s Ceo Tony Stubblebine and includes: Better Humans, Better Programming, and Better Marketing.
All the Better publications have forms to use when you want to submit a draft.
Better Humans has 390K+ followers.
“We want articles with smart self-improvement advice. The advice has to be backed up by personal experience.”
Add a personal touch to your stories. Learn how.
5. Better Programming
This publication has been placed on hiatus for now and is not taking new work.
One for the tech writers. If you have great advice for programmers, they want to see your story.
Better Programming has 209K+ followers, they are “always looking for great content to help programmers get better at what we do everyday.”
6. Better Marketing
BM has 117K+ followers. You don’t need to be a marketing expert to write for BM though. They take a wide range of perspectives and stories.
They like to see “new and interesting articles about marketing, business, and creativity.”
7, 8, and 9. Start it Up (and Bonus pubs)
Start it Up has a huge following and covers a wide range of topics.
We will still accept stories that target technology startups, but they won’t be at the center of our focus anymore.
The bonus with Start it Up is they actually have three publications:
Find all their submission guidelines here plus tips on how to increase your chances of acceptance:
10. New-writer friendly: Inspired Writer
Want to hone your skills before submitting to the big ones, contact us here at Inspired Writer. We have over 4000 readers.
What are we looking for?
- Anyone can send us a personal essay. Personal experience is the future of writing now that AI is on the scene. We love hearing your real-life stories!
We even teach writers how to tell better personal stories. Take a look here.
2. Experienced writers are welcome to send in your best writing advice.
We aim to give new writers a start by helping them create better stories and get them out into the world. We still have standards of what we accept and what we don’t, so read our guidelines carefully.
Many experienced, top Medium writers also write with us.
Come take a look!
Get cozy with what editors want
If you want to know what editors are looking for, read what they’ve already published. It’s the best way to save time and increase your chances of a yes.
I know it can be scary sending work out into the world. Hopefully, this list helps you find the best place for your work and gets you started!
If you need to upskill, a personal essay course is a good start. Take a look.
Or get writing resources and weekly tips from me for free here.
Find even more publications:
Here is a huge list of ALL the publications on Medium currently taking submissions.
Did you know you can clap up to 50 times for a story? Claps and comments let writers know you appreciate their work and allow the story to be more widely distributed.
