Can We All Please Come Together to Call for A Change?
The Medium Partner Program should be all around the globe!
I knew since a very early age — as confirmed by the people around me — that I had a knack for words. I could shape sentences like soft mouldable clay in my hands. In language classes at school, words were more play than work. I was better off at essays, though, than any kind of fiction or poetry.
But it was 2020 when I finally realized I had to start writing, and then actually dared to.
The beginning of my writing journey
I started by writing for a friend’s newfound company — a software house, for which I began writing first their Facebook posts, and then as well as for their website. The list increased as some more acquaintances needed the work done. (I never tried platforms like Fiverr, Upwork, etc. because I couldn’t put in the extensive amounts of time and effort required). Along the way, I figured I wrote well even on topics that weren’t my niche, such as tech.
But all along, I knew this was not my work, what I really wanted to do. When I started to think over what I could do instead, or at least alongside what I was already doing, I remembered I enjoyed writing most in college when we were supposed to write up to 1000 words-long essays on our topics of choice from a given list. I experimented with a personal blog, but then didn’t continue once regular studies resumed after the pandemic. It was too much work to do starting something completely new — that was not part of my daily routine — without a supportive community. It felt like writing to ghosts, putting out my work in a vacuum.
The ‘path’ to Medium
But more than a year of writing for others for a side income, about topics I was not passionate about, pushed me slowly towards making the decision to write on Medium. In the beginning, I had begun searching for local and international publications and magazines. I started writing for one of them too — Tales from Karachi. Then, in the latter half of 2021, I came across Medium. I had heard about it earlier as well, but just did not have the guts to start then. I had also felt I could not write myself — that is, without being told what to write about.
The only thing that stood in my way then was the time needed to invest in interaction — a factor that daunts me every time I think of starting something on any form of social media. I don’t wish to comply with the unspoken rules that each platform implies — rules that revolve around, for example, Instagram posts’ and stories’ engagement, etc.
I took my sweet time to decide; I am not fond of jumping into things unprepared, and without giving them thorough thought. Finally, I signed up. But exams were looming over, so I made do with posting my few previously unpublished pieces. I utilized the rest of the sparse time available to browse through, figuring out how the platform worked. I still thought I wasn’t capable of producing full-length articles, even though a lot went through my mind in a single day.
Reaping Medium’s and the community’s benefits
You see, I had yet to figure out the potential of the Medium community. I discovered features on Medium like Highlighting, responding, and clapping. Highlighting and responding to specific parts gave me the tool to do something I had always loved — to hold on to the parts of a piece I liked, tell the writer about it, and add my own thoughts. I loved the idea that I could clap similar to how it works in the real world — the greater your liking, the more the claps — although it took me some time to discover this. Earlier, I had taken it as a substitute to the ‘like’ or ‘heart’ on most social platforms and clapped just once. It was this article by Susie Pinon that clarified this. Thank you, Susie!
I was slowly being encouraged to grow to 100 followers, gradually. I stuck to my resolve not to fall for the Follow-for-Follow strategy. I had decided I would use the time it takes to make myself familiar, genuinely engage with others, and make up my own sustainable writing routine. For me, Medium is a side hustle — full-time, I am a student. Reading some really good work, joining some really supportive Facebook groups, and seeing prompts and stories delivered to my inbox gradually made me feel I could finally write. I can confidently say the Medium community actually pushed me to begin writing new content! I genuinely began enjoying the time spent here reading, and occasionally writing.
Some writing advice…but not so much perhaps?
There were also times when an overload of articles telling how to succeed on Medium, why your writing sucks, how to write better, etc. pushed me back into the belief I wouldn’t be able to do it — that set of unspoken rules again that so daunted me. But in time, I learnt to press ‘Back’ when these got overwhelming. To all those who go through the same, as well as a reminder to myself, I can only say this. Do your thing. Stop thinking, and start acting.
I’m not at all saying writing advice isn’t good. But there’s a balance to achieve between only thinking to only acting purposelessly.
The sad reality about MPP hits
But then, I was demotivated once again when I came to know the Partner Program wasn’t available in our region (Pakistan). It was a serious disappointment. The claim that Medium fostered diverse ideas from around the world began seeming shallow. If the Partner Program is an opportunity available to half the world, it should be available to the rest of the world too.
I don’t call it discrimination, because I understand there are a lot of legal issues involved. But the truth is, it does discourage writers from unsupported regions who need a source of income when Medium can’t be the source.
I have hopes, though, whether it is by partnering with Payoneer or some other method. And so, I won’t quit Medium. I hope I can stick to my resolve, and not get overwhelmed by time constraints and the need to secure a stable income.
I appeal to all writers here who read this, whether from supported or unsupported countries, to support this cause, in however way they can. It might help accelerate the process, just maybe.
