A 100% transparent look at my first Medium paycheck

They pay more than I expected.

The cash hit my bank account today. It’s official: Medium pays writers.

Before I break down what I made, here are some relevant links in case this is the first you’ve heard about Medium paying actual money to actual people.

• Partner Program FAQ. You’ll learn how Medium determines what to pay, how claps influence payment, and more good stuff.
• Want to get paid for writing on Medium? You can join the wait list here. I was lucky enough to receive an invite from Medium a month or two ago, so that’s when I enrolled.
• If you get consistent value from this place, if you love writing on the platform and reading great stories and making friends from all over the world, you need to become a member. Straight up. It’s $5 a month. Medium made a gusty call when they gave advertisers the finger and asked humans to pony up for a monthly subscription. If you like Medium, you should support it. Pretty simple.

Anyway, here it is. Paycheck #1.

See that “How your locked stories contributed” part? If and when you become a paid writer, you’ll have a couple options before you publish:

1. You can lock the story and make it readable for members only. This…