To Err Is Human, To Maintain Divine
Disclaimer: This month has been a rollercoaster ride — 20 days of highs, lows, and hard work. I wrote this story some days ago but was too overburdened to publish it till now. Things on Medium might be clearer — or not. This article may not fully reflect my current perspective, rage, and critical view, but here’s my takeaway: Medium is in maintenance mode. Feel free to read, clap, and throw some tomatoes, but I may not respond — I’m still balancing it all in my chaotic and stressful real life. Hopefully, things will be resolved before the end of the month. At least, on Medium.
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Dear Followers and Writers of the New Literary Society,
I’d like to take the time to inform you on a few important topics, including Medium, our writers, our Winter Trabble Contest, and some upcoming projects. Additionally, I’ve linked a recently published article that might help explain some of the issues we’ve been experiencing, so please read to the end. If you prefer not to be tagged in these articles, please let us know. And if you haven’t already, please follow our publication.
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❕The State of Medium: My Perspective
Everyone seems to have a theory regarding the state of Medium.
So, I will share mine.
Last year, the platform had a tough stretch.
You remember the glitches, right?
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❕The Main Cause
Well, in my opinion, the main cause was simple: a quick increase in users.
More people started using the platform, and some of them created multiple profiles.
Medium was overflowing, and the system simply couldn’t keep up.
Consider the following: a phone line on New Year’s Eve, congested streets during a storm, or an overflowing coffee cup.
That’s what happened with Medium.
Sure, there were rumors — some even suspected a hacker attack.
But as far as I can determine, this was not the case.
I feel the main issue is with the system and the software that manages user accounts.
Consider the much-discussed AI detection algorithm and spam detectors as stretched and deformed under pressure.
And hey, I’m hopeful the team will sort this out asap — that is in the first semester of this year.
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❓So, how can we fix this?
- Change your perspective. More love, less hate (Don’t laugh, I’ll explain later.)
- More specialists are needed. I observed in a (supposedly official) post that they’re looking for backend engineers. Maybe… they might also need some Cyber-Security experts — just saying, I know one 😉.
- The platform requires time to cool down. In a month or two, the spammers, clappers, and freeloaders will have moved on.
- Finally, system updates. This is all part of the process. And, yeah, we know they’ll need money to do this. Maintenance is not free.
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❗Maintenance
Maintenance is normal.
It happens everywhere — both online and offline.
In September of last year, I told our writers that we would refresh our publication… but there was never enough time for it.
Also… keep in mind that… since 2023, I’ve promised myself to update my WordPress blog… but I was just too busy.
I hope Medium will find the funds and time to keep the platform working properly.
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❗Evidence of Maintenance
1. Current Balance (remember?)
On certain platforms, if real-time amounts are not tracked or measured, the current balance might display the user’s earnings or payments from the same date in the past year.
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2. New Badge
Evidence of ongoing maintenance work might be the recent appearance of the “Feature Story” badge in the story stats. Only a few stories are featured, so many of you may not know what that means.
(If you’re not familiar, “featuring stories” allows publication editors to promote select articles, boosting their visibility to a larger Medium audience.)
This feature is relatively new and shows that Medium is actively introducing updates, even amidst challenges.
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3. Slow Updates in Stats
Another indication of maintenance or system strain is… for instance when the follower count appears delayed or shows as “0 followers” and “0 followings.”
This is often due to slow data synchronization, which can occur during platform updates or when the system is under heavy load.
It’s a temporary issue, and once the system catches up, everything should display correctly again.
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4. More
For additional evidence, talk to an IT specialist.
But… don’t expect to hear any encouraging explanations.
I did and the response was… this platform should have crumbled a long time ago.
It is a wonder that it resisted for so long.
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5. Additional Insight: Earnings and System Disruption
While formatting this article, I came across a story titled “Finally, Some Good News About Earnings” by Markus Musick, that might support my theory.
It was published three hours ago, making it very fresh, and it even includes a video that I’m eager to watch as soon as possible.
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❓How Long Can This Take
From a few days to a few weeks.
Or… even more?
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🏆About Medium Team🏆
The Medium team might be currently under a lot of stress, but they are the good guys.
They’ve helped us form a community, make new friends, and connect with our target audience.
They’ve given us the opportunity to create online magazines and, for many of us, to become professional writers who make money from our writing.
Let’s not forget that.
They’ve continually worked to improve — remember when they expanded the platform to 77 more countries?
And, in December, they launched the aforementioned option to feature stories.
This was an excellent idea.
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❗The Takeaway
So, what’s the takeaway here?
The platform is suffering growing pains.
Heavy traffic has increased the system’s load.
Suspensions may have contributed to the disruption.
What was the result?
It’s a little bit suffocating right now.
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💖The Human Side of the Issue: Understanding Medium’s Struggles
First, we must address the growing tide of criticism directed toward Medium.
The hostility began in 2024, possibly 2023.
But here’s the thing: Medium’s team consists of humans like us.
And… “To Err Is Human, To Forgive Divine.”
But… To Maintain Is Essential.
They are also entrepreneurs, and as with any other business, they require respect, understanding, and profit.
Do you honestly think they’re making a fortune from our articles?
I doubt any of us would believe it.
I also believe they might benefit from having a psychologist or public relations professional on their staff.
After all, their public image may use some improvement.
But I digress.
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Dear Friends,
This was meant to be a short introduction to a much larger article, but I ended up writing more than I intended.
My hope is that this helps us all better understand what Medium really needs from us right now: support, patience, love, and understanding.
Let’s keep doing what we do best — writing, sharing, and creating together.
Medium is here to stay, and if we stick together, we’ll come out of this stronger than ever.
So, please: “Don’t spit where you kissed!”
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🏆Our Winter Wonder Drabble Contest Continues🏆
Stay tuned for a post featuring all contest entries.
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🎤Author Interview Submissions🎤
Look out for our upcoming announcement on opening submissions.
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🎉More Surprises Coming Soon🎉
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And Now, Voila! Presenting Our Writers, Including the Newest Additions:
L. Jean Davis , AB Zar , Brian Throne , Chris Pinadella , Emma Vincent , Jane Evgeniia Dubrov , Jess Create , Ketul Panseriya , Luna@Latinx Bridges , Shizu Homes ✨ , Sophia Chanu , Taryn Ariel , The Naeth , Dr Paul Anderson , Valy Oltean , Zoran Rogic , Michael Thorn , Stephen P. Conrad , Arun Kumaar Khanda , Anchal , Ashley Noel , M Aslam Waheed , Amanda Weir-Gertzog , Bambboo Devi , Bernadette E Wallace , Braileigh Belair , Brenda Hukel, MBA , Cecília Santos , Charisse Tyson , Constance Williams , Cort Twitty , Nicole Cunha , Deirdre (“Writer in the Abyss” ) , Diana Raj Kumari , Real Life Topics Revealed , Donna Cowden , DW Davis , Effie Katrakazos , Edith Gallagher Boyd , Erdal Crane , Fleda.B , Frank Parker , Giuseppe Bartoli , HyaenaDad 🧨 , Bernard Ray , – The Dribbler — , WildBill , Ilana Estelle Author , Atmo Advait (pen name) BlissFlip , Sherry Atkinson , Jae Richards Media , Shadab Tufail , Janet Daniels-Thomas ,
Jan C. McLarty , Jeannie.Chambers , Jean Jacket 81 , John Herrin , J & J (Jessica & Joshua J. Lyon, QMHP, ACNP) , J. C. Smith , Jeff Turner , Kadishia I , Isa Karabocek , Kyishia Reed , K. M. Lang , Kenneth LaPensee , Ken Van Camp , KGMunro , Lacey Dearie , Laney Mills , Larry Nowicki , Lee Vaughan , Linda Rittenhouse , Littlelustlamb , The Soul Salon , The Original Human Content Journal , Margaret Gypsy , Mark Bodnarczuk , Martino Sacchi , Matthew Maniaci , M. Cole Grady , D M Basha India , Michael Burg, MD (Satire Sommelier) 😬 , Miguel Santiago , Monica Lunot Kuker , Bill Lindner , Suma Narayan , Nevena Pascaleva , Rachel Anderson , Nurul Huda Jamaluddin , Pervin Shaikh , Peter Last , Peter Sassi , Ute Luppertz ✨ , Rita H Rowe , Shabbir Ahmad Awan , Sharleez Safi , Shayla Renee 💖 ,
S ESOOF SIDDIQ , SINK OR SWIM , Mike Hickman , Stephen Dalton , The Stories That Shape Us , Stuart Aken , Susi Moore , Bethany Swick , James Edward Young , Trish Church , Aaron Waddell , The Momma Dom ~ Playing With Myself And Loving It! , Nayab Habib , Nicole Gillette , Veronica Llorca-Smith 🍋 , Mike Vinson , 🚀 Wayne Dragon King🚀 , Juliet Romeo , William P. Gerace , Hannah Andrews , Yasemin Yiğit Kuru , Zizi Majid
Dear Amazing Writers,
We sincerely apologize if we’ve missed any of your comments.
While your name may not appear in this bulletin just yet, we’ll be announcing and adding names very soon.
Also, rest assured we’ll continue upgrading our publication page and improving the design. 😉
Once again, a heartfelt welcome, and thank you so much for your understanding and patience!
We deeply appreciate your submissions, your stories, and most importantly, who you are.
Warm regards,
Julia
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Dear Cherished Writers, Followers, and Friends,
Please, clap, engage, and… stay tuned for the next story! But, most importantly, a profound thank you to each one of you. Your unwavering support has been invaluable.
If you’d like to support my projects, feel free to show some love here:
Julia Kalman 