5 Ways to Help Medium Authors Out

Writing for Medium can be new and exciting, but at times, it can also be a challenge. Sometimes, we start worrying so much about how many views other people are getting or how much money they are making that we forget to reflect on our own work.

There are also times that we come across articles from other writers that are struggling in the same ways that we are, and knowing how emotionally draining this struggle can be, we might want to help them. However, the big question is how do you help another author? What can you say or do to make things easier? The answer is simple.

Read their articles.

They get paid for the time that you take reading their article, and so, if you have any extra time, why not read a few. Sometimes, you will learn something new. Other times, you may feel like you relate to the subject they are writing about. Reading articles on Medium is like the site’s way of providing a conversational opportunity, so why not read?

2. Leave them a clap.

I know. You don’t get paid for claps, but why not show some appreciation for the time and effort that the person put into the work? Sometimes, the ones that struggle the most are new writers, and instead of criticizing them for their writing style, why not give them encouragement instead. This may motivate them to write more, which in turn may teach them a new craft.

3. Highlight the important information in their articles.

By highlighting an article, not only are you showing the person that you actually read it, but you are showing them what portions stood out to you. This can help them understand if they reached their audience in the way that they intended to, and it may also give them ideas on what to write on in the future.

4. Leave a comment on their article.

Why not show some appreciation for the topic that the person is writing on to motivate them to keep writing? I read a lot of articles, so once in a while when I see someone that might be new and doesn’t have that many reads, I may leave a little comment. I feel like this will intrigue another reader to check out the article, and it gives good feedback to the author.

5. Share their article.

Now, this is something that I do once in a while when I find a read that I can’t put down, or sometimes I just do it when I know the author gives back to other authors. Either way, sharing the person’s article puts more eyes on it and potentially will give them more readers and therefore leave a more positive impact on their income. You can share an article by posting a snippet at the bottom of one of your posts with the link or even by tweeting the article. Also, by doing this, the writer will be able to share his or her thoughts with more people and possibly get more feedback on their thoughts.

Supporting another author doesn’t have to be something that takes a lot of energy or money. It just takes a couple minutes of your time. Therefore, next time you see someone struggling to get their stuff out there, maybe, you can give them a little clap or comment to help spur things along. We all know that when you see an article that already has claps, comments, or highlights then it has been read, and for whatever reason that makes more people want to read it.