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Just to piggyback on what Linda has said: One of the stated goals of this program is to surface great work readers might be missing. The meta posts, and "I made X dollars in Y days" stuff we all love to hate gets a lot of attention- this program is aimed at bringing the platform more into balance.

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Well said! :)

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Jun 16, 2023Liked by Linda Caroll

Joe Luca doesn't write for History of Women but he's marvelous - deserves much more attention than he receives.

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Thanks Jen. The nice part of Boost is that if we don't have enough nominations in our own publication, we can nominate outside of it. History of Women is still tiny and I have never yet used all my nominations in my own pub.

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I like Joe, too.

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Jun 16, 2023Liked by Linda Caroll

Thank you, Linda. Although I'm "done" with medium, I'd like to direct you to the work of Joe Varadi for a boost. He's a poet, a great writer, a translator of poetry from Hungarian to English, and a genuinely wonderful human. I used to assist with his publication, No Crime in Rhymin'.

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Thank you so much -- I will check out his work!

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We, the under-read can't thank you enough.

Great writers are part of the fascinating attractions to Medium & Substack. For me, quid pro quos has never been a motivation. I read, share, crosspost (on Substack) great writings from whoever on all my platforms - Facebook, Telegram, Twitter, Discord, Reddit, etc

If you're a great writer, you're a great writer. I can only learn from, and try to emulate you. Maybe, with persistence & luck, I might get near good some day. And that's OK for me.

While I do agree that no one is obliged to read low-effort posts from amateurs, some writers only want to promote their writings without any engagement with upcomers. The net result is we are set back in the long run.

I shared one of my posts on Linkedin, one great writer who mentors me on Medium praised my efforts. Just a statement from him set me soaring from the doldrums.

Here is the link to Substack story: https://open.substack.com/pub/muse2muse/p/through-the-infinite-mind-of-victor?utm_campaign=post&utm_medium=web

And also in my Medium publication: https://link.medium.com/CxgqldIqGAb

Again, nany many thanks. ❤️

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Thanks for the links, Christopher, I will check them out, too!

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Thank you for being the type of person who wants to help others. As a starting Substacker myself, it's hard to get actual eyes on your work. It's a slow process. Receiving help from a more experienced writer is priceless. Not everyone tries to help others. We all should pay it forward when we can!

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Thank you Kate. You're so right, it's really hard to get started. I was there once, too and I have not forgotten how hard it was. It's why I try to help. :)

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Jun 18, 2023Liked by Linda Caroll

Took me a while to find it, but here it is:

https://medium.com/@dailydoseofmama/driving-me-crazy-e8910e7c3c6

This author does not write often, but when she does...<3

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Oh, she is funny indeed. Darn shame she has not written on Medium for over a year.

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Jun 17, 2023Liked by Linda Caroll

Hi. Well, I'd like to nominate some I've written, and some from a lady I follow who is often also very good. Thing is: Are we boosting the writer or the writing. I ask, because not everything I chunk out is amazing. ;)

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That's true for all of us, for sure! Not everything I write is amazing, either. lol. I don't actually get to choose what gets boosted, I only get to nominate stories for the curators to have a look.

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'K. I'll be back. <3

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Jun 16, 2023Liked by Linda Caroll

Thank you, Linda. I’m not sure if short fiction can be boosted but I love the work of Nelli Veletyan: https://link.medium.com/icBVcS0OGAb.

I hope you don’t mind me sharing a story of my own. This is a fiction piece I loved writing, so I hope you like it. It’s called “Find Me in Your Memories”: https://medium.com/promptly-written/find-me-in-your-memories-4ba7796d11e0

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Yes, short fiction absolutely can be boosted and I don't mind you adding one of yours at all. I've added both of those to my weekend reading list and thank you so much! :)

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Jun 16, 2023Liked by Linda Caroll

You’re welcome! :)

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If you want to read the work of a writer who knows how to make you feel (usually shock), then check out Frank T Bird. He's new on here, but he's been on Medium for an age. He's an indy novelist, short story writer, and opinion blogger. His writing is not for the faint hearted, and if you're easily offended - avoid, but beneath the bad language and crudity is brilliant writing with a unique voice and style. I think he's going to be big.

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Awesome, Drew, thank you! I will definitely check him out.

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Jun 16, 2023Liked by Linda Caroll

Anthony Cloe Huie. His poem “Before I Bleed” is transcendent.

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Thanks, Margie. Omg, I am going to so enjoy reading all these new faces. Only one so far is familiar to me.

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I don't if you've heard of Reese Beckett at all. He's a young guy from England who's written some good poetry (and published a book of it recently) as well as some fascinating music and movie review pieces.

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Thanks David, I will check out his work, too. The feedback here is just amazing!

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Jun 16, 2023Liked by Linda Caroll

I don't write much on here, but what I do write is creative nonfiction, so I guess I qualify. :)

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Do you write on Medium, too? If you do, I'd love a link to your profile so I can read your work, too. :)

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Sure, and I've only written one or two there. I hope to squeeze in some more time to write than I have been. Here's my Medium link: httphttps://medium.com/@liannucc - thx, Linda!

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Here is one you might find relevant to boosting and women's equality. It is called "The Two Gifts." It is a medieval feminist tale about how a guy figured out a fair use of power in the relationship with the woman he is marrying. https://medium.com/feminist-fables/the-two-gifts-f1677164fa0b

It was first published in the Medium publication called "Feminist Fables."

Thank yoiu.

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Thank you so much Philip, that sounds right up my alley personally, too. I will go check it out. :)

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Thanks for letting us know Linda. Just curious. What's belly button gazing?

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If you can imagine a 13 year old pouring her soul into her diary or whinging on social -- that's pretty much belly button gazing. Basically, it's self-indulgent self-focused self contemplation. A skilled writer can take the same incident or experience and write it into a story that random strangers not only will read, but take something away from. Trouble is, belly button gazing is like porn in that it's really hard to define, but you know it when you see it. lol

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Thank you for this. There are so many talented writers that make me feel. Here are two I enjoy: https://medium.com/@juliej0904; https://medium.com/@lisa_kelly_zuba

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Thank you so much, I will check them both out!

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It’s nice to know you can boost outside of a publication. I don’t write often enough, and haven’t pinpointed a publication to write for since 2020. I also don’t think I’ve written anything worthy of a boost in a while 🤣🤣🤣 But, now knowing that, I may try. I’ve written more in a personal blog style for the past couple of years.

I will definitely send recommendations for boosting when I read them. I read a lot of great stuff on Medium, I always follow the people, but haven’t saved any stories in a while.

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You made me laugh. And thank you. If you still have one of emails, you can hit reply and it will come directly to me. So feel welcome to share. I am sometimes super slow replying because I get a ton of email with work, clients and running a publication, but I catch up now and then lol

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Self-published is as eligible as anything! Same with a lot of the genres people think "won't work," like fiction & poetry.

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Yup - exactly Kevin. Thanks for always having my back. It's not unnoticed. :)

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