The new earnings guidelines reference a mysterious “proportional share” that supposedly compensates writers of shorter articles (poetry, comics, flash fiction), and also “editorial bonuses” of $100 or more that editors can award creators at will. But since no one I know of — and I’ve been asking very widely — has benefited from either the “proportional share” or the so-called “bonuses,” the only conclusion I can draw is that they don’t exist — i.e. we’ve been both lied to AND robbed by a billionaire.

As a means of protest, I now include the following at the bottom of all of my posts, and will continue to do so until the system is fixed. Feel free to do something similar. Unless we band together, nothing will change:

HELP!

Medium’s unexpected new change in the way it compensates members of its Partner Program rewards creators of long, padded articles, and essentially demonetizes shorter content.

As nearly all of my posts are poetry, cartoons, or efficient fiction/essays, I’m faring very poorly under this new system.

Since the change was implemented, my Partner Program earnings have plummeted by 90%, and hundreds (if not thousands) of others are in the boat.

If you want to help, send an email to Medium CEO Ev Williams (ev@medium.com) and/or to yourfriends@medium.com expressing your displeasure with the unfair new system, and asking them to restore all the missing earnings which have essentially been stolen from its writers. I and others would be so grateful!