A few months ago my dear Medium friend Vishnu*s Virtues stated ‘We are in the golden time of blogging thanks to Medium.’

I couldn't agree more, Vishnu!

Once upon a time, I was a travel blogger. I had my own Instagram channel and blog.

Soon I realized writing online on your own is very hard and it can really be frustrating.

The cons:

you struggle …

• to monetize your blog
• with the technology
• to get the views you deserve and quality feedback
• to understand SEO

The pros🔥:

On Medium…

• you can practice your writing skills within a community and aren’t a lone wolf
• wider…

Recently, 20x Top Writer Nicolas Cole with 82k followers on Medium announced on Twitter:

There are some BIG upgrades happening in the creator economy for writers on: Medium (…) I can’t say too much yet (insider info) (…) $$$$$$$

I was intrigued.

Nicolas is huge. He’s an authority and inspiring voice in the online writing world. He turned his passionate side hustle into a real business.

Did you know that we’re writers and content creators at the same time?

Content creators on Medium, Facebook, or Twitter will get new and better rewards — $$$$💰.

Sneak peek into future changes:

• 👉 Medium will start the Creator…

Happiness, Resilience, Mindfulness.

With restrictions, financial difficulties, and other challenges during the pandemic, it’s good to practice self-care and think about ways to lift our moods. Here are a few ideas…

• Enjoy walks in the countryside — it’s calming and lifts your spirits!
• Write about your feelings for 10 minutes a day — it can be therapeutic.
• Try to focus on positives — many things have upsides if you look hard enough.
• Connect with friends and enjoy simple pleasures, like sunshine and the great outdoors.
• Eat lots of fruits and vegetables — they really are good for your mental health.
• …

Why some marketing approaches will fail.

I’ve tried and continue to experiment with different marketing approaches. There are lots out there, so I don’t think I’m close to exhausting them yet. There are also plenty of views from other authors and marketers about what works and what doesn’t.

In the spotlight here are the following tactics, all of which I have tried at some point:

• eBook Price Drops
• Social Media Ads
• Social Media Posts
• Blogging
• Goodreads

How many of these have you turned your hand to?

What this article suggests is they don’t work — but with one important caveat…

Rosy Gee, author of How to Break a Woman, was still reeling at the shock of her amazing success.

Winner of the Best New Novel from an Unpublished Author Award, Rosy confided that she had worked tirelessly to complete the manuscript on time.

A. Mister from Mister’s Literary Agency picked up the synopsis and first three chapters of her novel from the slush pile. His assistant, Miss A. Reader, had put the e-file in her ‘possibles’ folder. …

The Shortform Times

Studies and Polls Strongly Conclude That Extremism Doesn’t Work and Isn’t Wanted

And a vast majority of Americans are finally pushing back

Over the past 12 months, research has clearly demonstrated that extremism in politics and other important areas of our life is ineffective and, in fact, destructive. Americans have heard the message and are now finally pushing back on those who would divide us. Polls overwhelmingly indicate we are exhausted by the pointless, closed channel thinking of the past and committed to clear-thinking, rational, independent, and inclusive approaches to solving the problems we collectively face. No longer will extremism, intimidation, or cancel culture win the day.

This is unfortunately a fictional…