Member-only story
Is Simily Really Awful?
A tale of six months on the platform
I’ve been chronicling my writing journey on Simily for just over six months now.
I’ve written about my early excitement in finding a platform for creative writing — a place I could publish my fiction and possibly earn some money.
Well, I’ve earned a very small amount of money there. I’ve definitely encountered some very solid writing. But I’ve also experienced frustration.
I then read a tale of a writer who put up a few stories, didn’t enjoy the experience, and described Simily as “awful.”
I wouldn’t describe it as awful.
I will say I’ve read stories from very good writers who are planning to leave the platform as soon as they reach the magic payout number of $10.
Despite the review saying the platform is bad and the exodus of some writers, Simily continues to add members each week. They are now around 4300 members. Simily adds around 100 net members per week.
Sure, that’s pretty slow growth — but it is growth.
Can you make money on Simily? Some, sure. It will take some time and patience. It’s got less than 5000 members while Medium has hundreds of thousands.
I will continue to suggest that Simily start spending time and energy promoting their writers via social media.
I will also suggest they invest in some advertising to attract people to the platform.
I’m not sure what the membership “tipping point” is, but I’m guessing they’d need around 10,000 members in order to have the funds to make some needed changes.
The site loads slowly. It’s a bit glitchy. Groups exist but can go days without any new comments.
Will Simily survive? Will another platform emerge to highlight creative writing? Will Medium become a place where more creative writers find an audience?
Here are a couple of my Simily stories:
