Here’s wishing you lots of engaged followers, Malky. The vast majority of my new “followers” turn out to be accounts that were created only a few weeks earlier (at most) yet already follow thousands and thousands of authors. They do it only for follow-backs. It works: about 10% of Medium users will mindlessly follow them back. This is why an account that appeared out of thin air last week and posted a few thoughtless AI articles or gooey streams of consciousness or dusty copy-paste from employee handbooks can sport an “impressive” 3.2k followers. It’s smoke and mirrors.

They’re inevitably accounts that have never engaged with me or read my comments or stories, and never will. I block them without remorse.

The upside is I’m always delighted when a legit user (as evidenced by the human number of accounts they follow, readable stories they post, or previous engagement here) chooses to follow me. The endless parade of greedy bot clowns Medium has allowed to overrun this platform really makes me appreciate that a few people that are still here reading, thinking, and responding.