I couldn't care less about being a top writer. I've had so many top writer labels since starting on Medium, that I long lost count. Then, again, as a web writer of some 23 years, to me, it's just a tool to flatter the writer. It doesn't mean anything.

I recently changed my writing style without any real care of growing my readership on Medium. That's because this site now has an editorial policy that doesn't gel with me. So I'm setting up elsewhere and while I continue to write on Medium, the long term plan is to change lanes.

Like Ev Williams, I realize that writing to earn a living is a difficult thing to do.