Lots of change happening on medium.com this week. A new membership plan for active readers was released in beta, creating a paywall for the the good stuff and promising more to come.

That left much unanswered. And it sparked a wave of concerns from members. One thing’s clear, Medium could be doing better in the PR department. A good FAQ goes a long way at times like these, and I actually found one among comments to member posts (link below).

A well-kept secret? Go figure.

It’s especially ironic that it’s easier for me to summarize what I’m learning about Medium here on WordPress, where I can create content more fluidly. Medium provides a beautiful content experience. But the simplicity of their toolset becomes limiting when you want to organize, curate, or otherwise assemble information.

Perhaps that’s the good stuff yet to come? Here’s hoping.

We’ve been discussing Medium strategy on Twitter via both #mediachat and #smchat, and I’ll sum up those conversations like this:

Medium is elegant, attractive and intuitive. It could play a huge role when it comes to your content strategy. Where are you developing your public voice, the messaging and stories you want to share with the world?

The net of it:  I think Medium is worth a look, especially once we get through all the changes. Personally, I love it there, and plan to stay with it. And I’m not afraid of change, or a reasonable monthly subscription.

Worst case, we go back to clickbait and plain old internet.

Meantime, while the dust is settling (and it may take awhile), let me provide a few key links for quick access and reference.

Let’s start with the official view:

• Ev Williams: Changing What Stories Get Told  – the announcement
• Medium: Partner Program – I hadn’t seen; I’ll be applying
• Medium: Membership FAQ – needs visibility on all Medium pages

Next, insight from a few top Medium writers:

• Aura Wilming: Inside Scoop – cutting to the chase
• Renee S: Confusion in Search of Clarity – great Q’s
• Mike Essig: All I Can Say – pragmatic to the core
• Jessica Semaan: 7 Ways they Got it Wrong – how it feels not to know

And stay tuned for my own two cents:

• Taking Chances .. my post has been written, I will put the link here.

Stop back in. I’ll add more links if they offer new insight or perspectives. And yes, I’m a founding member, whatever that brings. If you’re on Medium, you can tell who’s “in” by looking for the little green semi-circles on Medium profile photos, like mine. You’ll learn who’s placing their bets. Or, at least, who had a spare $5 spot.

Let me know your thoughts – on here, Twitter or Medium.

One way or the other, I’ll see you online.

Chris (aka @sourcepov)