I Wrote Thirty Articles in Thirty Days

This is what I’ve discovered.

Image by Helen Redfern.

I don’t want to fall into the trap of writing about writing on Medium but I know there is a lot of interest out there for beginners as you grapple with an unfamiliar, and perhaps intimidating platform. I was inspired and encouraged by articles like these in the beginning so this is my attempt to pass it on and hopefully inspire another group of newbies.

My Medium journey started properly in March 2022. In April I decided to write thirty articles in thirty days as I was so intimidated and unconfident on this platform.

What I learned and discovered:

1. My intimidation on this platform has now decreased. Dramatically so. My confidence is also up a little and I don’t get nervous when I’m publishing my article. As I said in my update article I’ve concluded that this is my space on the internet and I can write whatever I want.
2. I enjoy writing a large number of articles and would like this to continue. I enjoy being challenged to come up with ideas and it gives me a sense of achievement when pressing that publish button. Something that is missing from my book writing because it’s a much longer process.
3. Writing about topics I wouldn’t normally write about is a wonderful feeling. It is freeing because it helps with that uncomfortable sense of being an imposter. Instead of feeling like a fraud, I write about subjects (such as HRT) from my own perspective. I’m not professing to be an expert I’m simply sharing my experiences.
4. If you want readers to know you exist you need to comment and clap on other writers’ articles. You need to promote your article outside of Medium — don’t depend on the algorithm (even better — just ignore it altogether). Make yourself seen
5. I’m still scared of rejection. I’ve only submitted to one publication (twice) at the moment (called Modern Woman). During May I’d like to increase this to at least three. But I deliberately promised myself I didn’t have to submit to publications in my first month. I didn’t want to scare myself. It’s all about tiny steps.
6. The article I made the most money on (and I’m talking a couple of dollars) is not my most read BUT is the one I enjoyed researching and writing the…