I, personally, have never been here for the money. I’m here to write and read and share ideas. I’m here to learn from others who offer insightful comments. My biggest disappointment here isn’t about money. It’s about reach. I have nearly 2,500 followers and I feel certain that only a small percentage of them ever see my stories.

Also, at one point, I was suddenly suspended without explanation. I was told it was a mistake made by an aggressive algorithm and then restored.

But I lost my trust in the platform. I began de-emphasizing Medium and now publish much of my best work on my own blog first—a platform I control. And I’ve been building my own personal house list there.

I think we need to recognize that commercial platforms are not dependable. We need to utilize them as auxiliary tools, not the primary home for our writing. At least that’s my view.