You cannot write a great piece of work and then sit back and watch it earn money. Not in the beginning anyway. You begin as a minnow, but that's not exactly correct. You are on the very bottom of the ocean floor. Some would say you are plankton.

You have yet to learn how to swim.

You may produce your best work ever, today. But if no one ever sees it, it doesn't earn you squat. You need followers to vote and comment on your work. Yes you want to attract the attention of the BIG fish, but the big fish rarely go the ocean depths where your work is lingering. The big fish wait for a piece to get pushed upward by smaller fish. So that's who you need to think about attracting.

Yes you can join the various minnow groups, and garnish 10-20 votes from the group who never read it, therefore it gained 0 comments and sank back downward. There are also a steady group of the vote for me, and I will vote for you pages, but again, no reading, no comment. Am I saying you must have upvotes and commentary to move it upward? YES, I AM.

Whining

This platform allows you to whine to your hearts content. You can blame the founders, developers, whales and even God. Again, that doesn't earn you squat. You will get some upvotes and commentary, because misery loves company. However, larger fish have no interest in reading a whiny article blaming others for you inability to learn to swim. Moaning about how much whales earn is not going to help you get noticed and could potentially harm your earning potential. Ignore the whales, you don't need to follow them, watch them or even vote for them. They will do just fine without YOU! Focus on your own problems and learning to swim first.

Learning to Swim

Put out content even though it is not earning. Set a goal to put out at least one a day for 30 days. You need to have postings on your blog wall. Other fish will look at your blog posting wall, wondering who is this new minnow and having several postings up, lets them get a sense of who you are. They will check you out. Learn to use the formatting abilities and always include art or video of some sort. Get creative.

Due Diligence

Your posting goes out to the NEW wall where readers like myself are likely to see it and possibly read it. Many think that their work is done, which is why they can't swim up off of the ocean floor. Putting out your post is only 1/2 of the work. Reading, voting and commenting on others work is your due diligence. You have been given 50 votes a day. If you don't do it, why should others do it. If no one does it, well everyone down there just stays down there, unable to swim.

Comments

Every newbie seems to underestimate the importance of the comments section. You can also upvote a comment. I have found I often make more $ from my creative comments than from my creative posts. Comments count as a post in your posting count which can aid in raising your reputation. You should use your writing skills when commenting. Engage a conversation. A few examples:

@tracemayer -20 votes It is rather insane that some people think they can put other people in cages merely for moving, or transmitting, pieces of paper with pictures of dead people around. I suppose the insanity is only surpassed by yet other people strutting around in costumes thinking they can put people in cages for feeding other hungry and desperate people.
@ptmikesteem48 - 9 votes Dealing with much death in my life has made me learn that everyday is a gift, a gift that it is up to me to make the most out of. It is up to me to live a positive life in honor of all the people that I have lost in my life.
@albertfall52 · 24 votes- ($235.83) Thanks for the review @ozmaster. I've heard nothing but great things about the OnePlus 3 and for the price, this phone truly is the definition of bang for the buck.

Replies

There is a reason why you have a page on your account for Comments and Replies. Just as you monitor how your recent post is doing, you must also monitor your comments and replies. The quicker you respond the more likely a conversation is engaged. This is swimming. This is where you make friends, create community and gain a following. Those that you have engaged with, communed with, will be drawn to be favorable to your future work.
You could just say Thanks, but that's not swimming. An example

@ericvancewalton67 - You're welcome! This poem was inspired by my father who was in the US army and Air Force. He passed on a lot of what he learned to my brother and I. We all three keep our shoes polished to this day. Thanks for reading and taking the time to leave the thoughtful comment!

If you look at any top trending article today or over past 30 days, you will see the conversation below. ALL top pieces of work have this. You cannot skip this part and think you are going to achieve rewards.

Working it

• create content
• format and art/media and a title
• post and start reading
• vote and comment, you have 50 votes to give away
• monitor your post, monitor your replies, respond quickly
• engage conversation

After you have made a few friends you can count them and vice versa to make sure a conversation does get initiated. As you do these things your following grows, your reputation grows, your work is actually being read and liked. You are still a minnow, but at least now you can swim. The fish just above you are likely keeping an eye on you. You have their attention. THIS is exactly the place you need to be to get your work noticed. Keep posting and working it. You will find that the number of people following you has grown, the number of reads your getting has grown and with that, the number of votes your getting.