I withdrew all my stories from various publications about six months in and set up my own publications. You will note that all the top writers have their own publications.

They got to be top writers because they had their own publications.

When I first arrived, I published in Age of Awareness. I might have got one or six readers, but that was about it. They used to accept just about everything I wrote, and then they gave me a hard time over something, and that was that. The bottom line is that nothing I wrote for any publication gained any traction.

People open up publications and invite other writers, for the simple reason that it gives their own writing more exposure. No other reason.

The Climate Conscious publication didn't impress me. Let's leave it at that.

I used to be number two in terms of climate change on Medium. I was top writer at least 20 or 30 different times for various topics. I never paid any attention because I recognize bullshit that is meant to flatter. I refuse to be flattered because it's a hook to get you to do things for someone else, invariably for them to profit at your expense.

If you're seriously interested in something, suggest you open your own publication, then start writing there. Then find other people who write about the same thing, and read them and comment intelligently. With a bit of luck, they will come back to read your stuff. It's a long slow process to gain a readership.