Medium Role Models and Friends
These writers gave me so many gifts
In the short time I’ve been on Medium I’ve come across some amazingly talented writers and I have been lucky enough to read and write for several publications with thriving communities. All this means I’ve felt my writing improve by leaps and bounds, in addition to getting a feel for what social media looks like when it’s writing-centric. One author, my favorite author thus far, that I keep coming back to is Jasmine Abriel.
Jasmine is my first mutual writer friend, and though she never proclaimed to have all the answers to how to be successful online as a writer, I’ve learned tons from her. I won’t soon forget that I, as a baby Medium writer, struggled to find good articles about doing well on Medium (before I was a member) because everything was behind paywalls. Jasmine’s article on this phenomenon helped break down for me a key aspect of Medium’s culture before I was confident in the decision to commit to growth on the platform.
Know that it gets better, even if it doesn’t seem like it right away. Don’t get tangled in why or how, just go through it. — Jasmine
Jasmine has proven time and time again that she is unafraid to fail during the process of achieving her goals. She’s candid about her struggles on Medium and the past experiences that have hurt her confidence in writing. Despite this, she has stayed true to herself and has maintained her love for writing. In her (relatively) short time on Medium she’s made significant progress; I expect that she’ll continue to grow regardless of what obstacles she may face.
I’ll try to be brief at the risk of turning this article into a mini-memoir…She may not be a top writer on Medium yet, but Jasmine is a solid role model. I see her success and I think it’s achievable. I see the ways she writes about herself and I can visualize ways to write about my own experiences. I look up to her for those reasons, and I think that’s enough.
Above all else, I know that I can count on her for support. I haven’t yet reached the coveted 100 followers yet, but I’m lucky to know that Jasmine is one of a few solid followers who’ll continue to support my efforts. For that, I’m so grateful. I’ll be rooting for both of us on our writing journeys!
My Other Faves
Of course, though I love Jasmine, I’ve come to enjoy both the high-quality work, charisma, and support of other writers on Medium. I’d like the highlight those writers here:
Adeline Dimond Allison Cecile Anabelle Weissinger Ananya Aparna Singh Ashley Tavares Danielle Loewen David Perlmutter Jan Sebastian Joshua Cartwright Joyce Reynolds-Ward Matt Hampton Mitch Glass Nathalie Clair Navin Chaudhary NearAndDistant Sam McGuire Sunayan Chakma
All of the writers here have left an impact on me in some way, whether that be in the comment section of an article or through sharing a very moving story. In little and big ways, I’ve felt some kind of connection (and benefit) from these writers. I can’t thank them enough for their insightful writings and attention.
I invite all these writers to write for Reciprocal, a publication on the rise by Sahil Patel! This post was actually inspired by a Reciprocal post by Sahil that encouraged people to talk about favorite writers on Medium for a Favourite Authors column. Reciprocal puts mutual support between writers first and, as a new writer, that’s a mission I can get behind!
Disclaimer: My Reciprocal family is not included in the above list and I’d like to honor them specifically in a separate post.
Also, my greatest apologies if I missed any mutual authors that have been ardent supporters (I promise I still love you!).
Of course, given this is for Reciprocal I’d like to highlight the following fellow writers:
Maria Rattray, who wrote this excellent piece about the significance of reciprocity;
KM Fullerton, who cannot pick favorites but does want to share writers that moved her,
and Norlisa 💜💜💜, who reminds us of the benefit of supporting others even when we are struggling ourselves.
That’s all for now. Thank you all for reading my article and showing your support! Feel free to share your favorite authors in the comments or on Reciprocal!
