Publishing From the Medium App

Is it as difficult to get right as I think?

If I’m going to take Medium more seriously, I need to write more. I know this. More importantly, I need to publish more.

And I get the feeling that the Medium app could be essential in achieving the sort of routine I need to make my mark here. By definition, you’re able to use apps on the go — anytime, anywhere.

I know there are those of you out there who often publish from the app — maybe even exclusively. To you, I take my metaphorical hat off.

But I’ve never really seen it as a valid option.

My brief ‘history' with the app

I first joined Medium shortly after my laptop broke down, and it was a while before I was able to afford a replacement. This means the first few stories I published were written on the app.

Anyone curious enough to scroll all of the way back to my early days would notice the weird formatting.

Paragraphs look weird, and it kept deciding I wanted new lines (not paragraphs) randomly throughout. These stories are peppered with strange half-lines which I subsequently failed to fix even on the desktop.

I didn’t credit my images properly either — I had to add a note at the end because it doesn’t appear to be possible to include a caption (I’ve done the same here).

Unless I’m mistaken, it doesn’t look like you can submit to publications directly from the app, so if you want to publish on the go, it’ll only be to your followers.

I’ve written before about how I don’t trust the app to save my work. I used to cut and paste into a different app to be safe, but it looks like we now have to do that one paragraph at a time — that’s hardly a useful way to spend time.

So why bother?

However, there are plenty of situations where the app is a great use of your time. Travelling, lunch breaks — basically any form of down time where you can’t access the desktop — become situations where you can publish.

So often I’ve gone about my day overflowing with ideas, only to get home, turn on the computer, and be completely devoid of inspiration. I have that terrible habit of misplacing my muse when they’re needed the most.

But if I can get over the limitations and my personal hangups, the app could be my key to publishing far more frequently.

So here it is: my first story published entirely on the app for a very long time! Feel free to let me know your thoughts in the comments!

Featured image from Pexels