My Top 10 Stories of 2020
From satire to nature to writing to poems — by number of fans
Happy almost 2021, Readers! I want to share with you my top ten articles that were most fan-boyed and fan-girled on. Along with that, I want to share some insights for you if you’re also a writer — especially on the subject of distribution.
As you read through my list, you’ll see that four of these articles were distributed while six were not. Perhaps distribution really isn’t everything? As I’ve been writing on Medium for under a year, it’ll be interesting to see how these stats change as I continue to write. I’ve heard distributed stories have more longevity. We’ll see.
It’s common advice to “niche down” on the platform. From April 2020 to December 2020, I have gained 1,649 followers. I’ve written across multiple subjects, publishing almost 350 articles to date. In this top ten, subjects vary from satire to writing to poems to lyric essay/memoir and more. This gives me hope that readers are resonating with the variety I write.
Thank you for supporting my work this year. Your claps, comments, and support have often kept my chin up during a difficult year. I appreciate you!
10. Who knew my table of contents would make the list? I put a lot of back-end work into this in 2020. I hope it’s fun and easy for readers to navigate. Not distributed. 71 Fans. 1.91k claps
9. Although I’ve eased up on my judgment of the listicle — and started writing more of them — the message to share your authentic voice resonates with fans time and time again. Not distributed. 71 fans. 2.5k claps
8. I wrote and self-published this lyric essay in December 2020. It’s based on the experience of writing my memoir. I’m ecstatic that it has had such a welcoming reception. It reassures me that I’m on the right track when encouraging writers to hone in on our unique voices. Readers know when we do that. Distributed. 72 fans. 2.9 k claps
7. I’m happy to see poems have made my top-ten fan favorites this year. This poem was inspired by a moment of envy that washed over me during a Zoom writer’s group meeting. It resonates with people. Writing the poem and sharing it turned out to be incredibly cathartic. Distributed. 73 fans. 2.4k claps.
6. I found out this year that I have a knack for humor — especially satire. Although this is the only satire piece on the list, I’ve gotten pretty great reception in the MuddyUm publication my humor and satire stories. Not distributed. 75 fans. 2.4k claps
5. I’ve had two stories published in The Ascent this year. The pressure on children and young adults to have their lives planned out is unreasonable, unrealistic, and unhelpful. Distributed. 79 fans. 2.5k claps.
4. Yep. I did what we all seem to do and wrote about my Medium progress at 3 months, and then again at 6 months. This piece in particular seemed to resonate. As much as I enjoy reading some of these articles, I feel that it’s an oversaturated area of the platform that isn’t applicable to readers who aren’t writers. I won’t be writing any more of these. Okay, this is a kind of exception. Never say never. Not distributed. 91 fans. 2.3k claps.
3. I wrote this as a pep talk to writers — and, myself. It hit home with a lot of folx. I was disappointed this one wasn’t distributed. This article addresses the self-doubt so many creatives — in particular writers — have and a way of reframing those doubts and finding self-confidence. Not distributed. 98 fans. 3.5k claps
2. I wrote this poem after searching through free-use images. I noticed that women tend to be underrepresented in the variety of our body shapes and skin color. I wrote this poem and it struck a chord. Distributed. 106 fans. 3.1k claps
- My writing is often driven by lyrical verse and reflections of nature. This is the first personal essay I wrote for Medium. I’m partly tickled and partly stunned that this first effort has climbed to the number one fan-favorite spot in 2020. Not distributed. 116 fans. 3.9k claps.
