Member-only story
Protect Yourself at All Costs
Even if it means using your block button
I rarely write about my rants, but I feel like this minor issue can progressively become more significant if not addressed with care. Most of us dream about having an audience to love and support us for our work and talent. The writer/audience relationship should be authentic.
Nobody should feel forced to follow, clap, or tip each other. There was an incident where a Vocal member wanted a five-dollar tip. The convo started in the Facebook group threads, and it slowly moved into people’s inboxes. Many people felt uncomfortable, and many argued that just reading his work was enough. But he had other plans. That shouldn’t be tolerated.
Since every writer has free will to self-promote their own stories with the hopes of getting a follow. I got called “stuck up” and a “dictator” because I fight for fairness. It’s funny how people on the internet can talk about you and don’t know you, but that’s the world we’re in, and I don’t want to give those individuals any more attention.
I’ve read too many articles on Medium that discuss the follow-for-follow or beg readers to tip them. I understand that times are hard right now, but constantly begging to be followed or being tipped screams tacky to me, and it automatically gets you blocked. I hate to remind people that Medium is a writing platform for all genres and levels of writers. From the most experienced to those starting five seconds ago, Medium welcomes everyone.
The mediums process for the partner program has created savages, and I find it annoying. I post my work to enlighten, provide perspective and talk about my everyday struggles. If you take the time to read something out of those categories, I thank you. I will do my part by finding something on your page interesting enough to follow you back. Most of the time, the initial story I read was my favorite. I will clap, read, and leave a comment, but I won’t follow. The math to this seems simple. I hope you’re following me because you’ve enjoyed what you’ve read, not with the hopes of me following you back to help boost you in being a part of the partner program.
Just write good stuff.
I’ve never gone inside a shoe store and bought a pair of shoes without trying them on first. I won’t follow you until I read a few of your pieces to make sure your material is something I would…
