In the beginning there were few...
Steem was abundant and competition was low, thus the few gorged themselves until they became blubberous monstrosities capable of consuming any fish that dared to cross their path.
The whales remained fat and powerful - capable of pushing any post of their choosing to the top of the trending page.
Times were good for the Steemit whale, but down below there were rumblings of a revolt amongst the lowly, insignificant minnows.
Whale diversity? The minnow was on to something. You see the few that reaped the benefits of low competition in the beginning all came from the same walk of life and enjoyed similar things.
And incidentally...
For some this was perfectly fine; however, as more minnows joined Steemit the desire for non-crypto and Steem related content grew.
Fortunately there were intelligent whales that recognized the issue and decided to take action into their own hands to appease the minnow masses.
The whales kept to their word and over time minnows from all walks of life slowly grew up to join the whale ranks.
The whale diversity problem was solved and Steemit evolved into a social networking utopia where all points of view were equally represented, supported, and rewarded.
Footnote: This account is 100% factual
Awesome. Great story you put together and for the most part, it really is accurate.
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Hey thanks Bernie. It is a good night when I get to watch a Mr. Robot episode in peace, and then come back to votes from you, smooth and blocktrades.
Glad you enjoyed the story.
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Wow, this is so super cool! tremendous job you did here. how long did it take to make the drawings? and how did you create them?
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You won the trifecta! What are your secrets?
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What a fantastic bedtime story - and it's 100% factual, too! Any time you can mix a true story with great storytelling and beautiful illustrations that depict actual events, you've got yourself a winner that will survive posterity.
Good job!
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Thanks @ats-david
Sleep tight. Don't let the Steemit whales bite.
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I slept very well. Unfortunately, I had no dreams of whales showering me with Steem Dollars. I did dream about an alley cat, however. I suppose that could be related.
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There definitely is one bitey Orca out there... But most of them are nice.
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Yeah, it was a good story with perfect pictures. I even read the balloons. :)
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Nope.
No minnow has "[grown ]up to join the whale ranks".
A maximum upvote value of a few dollars does not make you a whale.
And that alone would imply earning over $100k+
You'd need several $100ks to have an upvote value of $10.
Do you see where I'm going with this?
I don't think it's a good idea to sell unrealistic dreams to newbies with an incomplete understanding of the SP size necessary to have significant influence on the platform.
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Mostly incorrect, though I don't know where exactly you draw the "whale ranks" line.
@stellabelle started in this system with absolutely nothing, and knew literally nothing about Steem or crytpocurrencies when she joined. I know this because I and other early adopters had to help her get up to speed and learn how to do the simplest things like open a cryptocurrency exchange account.
By now, she has even taken out some funds if I'm not mistaken, has invested nothing, and her account is currently worth $200K and was worth more like $500K when the price of STEEM was a bit higher. That was all built by her using her talent as a writer, along with a willingness to learn and grow, to work hard, and to focus on her own positive contributions rather than engaging in sniping, negativity and jealousy.
There are several other bloggers who have done extremely well. In fact they probably outnumber the original whales at this point and while as a group their stake doesn't exceed the whales' stake yet, it probably will in time.
Your negative-mindset trolling is exactly that. Hopefully not too many are dragged down by your miserable attitude and approach to life.
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@stellabelle is a fine example of success @smooth. Thanks for bringing that up.
Also I think people forget that steemit is still brand new. It's not even steemit, it's steemit beta. It is going to take awhile for things to begin to balance out.
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Totally agree. On the other hand, the way any investment goes, there is a time when "easy money" is gone. The early adopters (like presell ETH buyers), made nice profits for their efforts. Later investors made out nicely, but not the 1000x that they could have.
We can't expect to be where those who arrived at the beginning are. And as the project grows, so will the competition. Except for those who already have large followings and can really hit the ground running, becoming a whale will become more and more difficult.
That's just life. I sure wish I had arrived a lot earlier. But, on the other hand, I am really glad I'm here on the beta, and am looking forward to a nice ride. I don't think I can ever be a whale at this point, both because it's harder now and because the bar will be raised over time. But, if Steemit continues to be successful, I do expect to reap a decent reward for my efforts and investment of time, energy and a little BTC.
Addendum - if Steem goes up in value nicely, folks who arrived now and did poorly are going to be super grateful that they were here.
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Not sure where the negativity is. Just being realistic. They've made a lot of money, sure. They won't have the same influence individually as whales. Full stop
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Woah there! Where in the story did I say this was how things really are?
Oh wait... I said it right in the footnote. My bad.
Given your username I would think that you would understand this is all meant to be very light-hearted. I don't think anyone reading this is taking it as truth.
Also, newbies don't expect to be whales (they wouldn't mind though). They want what we all want - to make a few bucks off a post.
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Ironic, isn't it? Perhaps satire and sarcasm are not so closely related?
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Haha, I took it too literally too. And I'm really not average...
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I have 6k steem and my votes go from 6c to $50 depending when I vote on something.
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I am lazy to make a post , because there will be no value
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The artwork is awesome. The story is entertaining as well as informative. Makes me want to keep going. Thanks for this.
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Thanks for the comment and welcome to Steemit. Keep going... It's fun!
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What a wonderful way to bring a major issue (in my humble opinion anyway) to the trending page. You used a word that I think is important for the growth of Steemit, and that is diversity, voters with enough voting power to hand out worthwhile rewards in as many as possible interests.
Great Job, I wish my upvote could give you more, but I spent too much time lurking and silently learning instead of jumping in and writing until just recently, you get my vote nonetheless :)
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Simply not true. There is vast gap between whales and minnows. Indeed some sharks and dolphins joined but the ecosystem is still shit
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Hi @kyriacos
I think you forgot to read the footnote.
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If this post doesn't trend we riot!
The jellyfish brotherhood has your back.
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lol. Thanks @moonjelly
I threw a gratuitous jelly in the last image just for you.
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I would cry but I don't have tear ducts.
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Even if you did... crying underwater would be a little, well, weird.
I'm gonna give it a try next time I watch 'The Notebook' to see how it works out.
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OH YES, I see the whales finally succumbed, we are legion!
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Can`t wait for the next episode "Revolt of the non-english speaking minnows" against the language centralization . I wanna see China-Whale! :D :D :D
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If Steemit continues to grow and increase in popularity we'll see many clones in foreign languages. I'm sure of it.
It's open source so anybody could launch a variant in their language with minimal effort.
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Next comic: entitled minnows.
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What a great post! Thank you for the tale. Namaste :)
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hahaha good one @mynameisbrian 8]
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What a wonderful post. And such beautiful illustration! Thank you!
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I love the little minnows with pitchforks!
I think your story is about what should happen, but isn't happening in reality.
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The pitchforks were my wife's favorite.
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Love this! I'm a new minnow and waaaaaaaay outside the core demographic here (hint: I'm a quilter). Am hoping the Steemit artsy/maker community will grow.
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Why would people come here to read content? Content is everywhere. It isn't user-friendly, it isn't that easy to find. Publishing is hard here. Via the tools you can follow what the whales are writing, commenting on and voting on. It isn't quilts. lol :) Best of luck we will see how it grows.
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Welcome to Steemit! Just try to have some fun here.
I was in Grand Rapids Michigan incidentally for the American Quilter's Society show. Pretty cool!
If I were a whale I'd give you some upvotes :)
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hello brian, thanks for this really cute comic style story and the characters are so cute! I hope it turns out the way you envision!
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A Steemit
Haha. Yes that would be great.
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mycket bra IDE
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Enjoy spending your $'s - you deserve it for such QUALITY material! Respect. INSTANT FOLLOW!
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I will. I'll use it to cover my crypto losses from the bfx hack :(
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cool story bro!
You missed the part where the whales guided what the minnows contributed by selective conditioning.
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Absolutely wonderful storytelling. Loved the illustrations! You are spot on about some of the past, I just hope you are right about the future. :)
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Gret work pal. Really does sound like on eof those bed time stories . Do you write stories?
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Nah. First time I have ever created anything like this, but it sure was fun doing it. I might do more in the future.
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This is gold.
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This article is too interesting. Especially the pictures show, ha ha!
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If this isn't heavy sarcasm I'm sad. The trending page is not diverse, its the listing of new posts that represents all points of view. The trending page is full of crypto celebreties I've never heard of, posts about bitoin, and posts about steemit investing and blockchain shit more generally. I don't know if people disagree or agree with this, but I think for Steemit to grow past where it is right now, it should develop into something similar to reddit with monetized upvotes. On reddit I can get into a long discussion with people about any imaginable topic. I like talking politics, for example. Here, Alex Jones is mainstream. I'm not saying St emit is fucked, but I think there's a bit of a circle jerk going on here, and I also think if user growth continues, with the number of active users growing, along with user growth, the problem I'm talking about will take care of itself.
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Interesting, entertaining and clever. As for being a true story... Time will tell.
Love that art!
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Its been a while since i read a post that's worth the payout, this one definitely is. You can see the effort thats gone in to it, keeping things simple is way harder than it looks. Great job. I just hope this diversity continues and the quality of the articles fits the payout earned.
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Me too. I have had a lot of fun on Steemit since I first joined. I hope it continues to evolve and improve.
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Thanks for creating this easy to understand narrative. I am trying to make the leap from Facebook and add content to Steemit that has value. I've written about what I think is interesting, informative and humorous. However, can't seem to attract much interest. I feel exactly like one of your minnows with a pitch fork. Can't help but be frustrated by my perception that I'm contributing and no one can see it or is choosing to read it. So, now I am attempting to comment just as equally as I am producing content to see what happens. I believe in sharing uncensored information. That is my utopia and hopefully I can figure out what I am doing wrong before my little fish body simply dies of loss of enthusiasm.
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Hi @rebeccaryan - it is good to have you here.
In the little more than a month I have been on Steemit I haven't managed to make more than 60 cents on a non-Steem related post, so you are doing okay in my opinion.
(Edit: I just noticed this post gained some exposure for my last post, which now has exceeded the 60 cent threshold :)
I would start by taking a look at other authors with similar posts to yours that may have received the kind of payout you are looking for. See who has voted for their posts (steemstats is a great tool) that has some clout and engage them with comments etc. It takes time to build a following.
Good luck!
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Thank you so much! You have motivated me to continue swimming in the sea with all the other fishes.
I will resist the urge to flush. lol
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Cute story, really it melted my heart... so many cute whales and all. Do you really believe the diversity problem has been fixed, All I see are a bunch of Blue whales.
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I liked marijuana whale. :)
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I don't write posts I try to comment more as I consider that I will bring advantage of steemit comments than posts more
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This is hilarious xD
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Can Steemit Evolve into a better Design; Is it a Constructal Organism?
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Great story! I wonder how this story continues... Time will tell...
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Wow you are very creative! Love how you turned this into a story! Love it! Awesome job! Must say I like the future!
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@mynameisbrain your post is FABULOUS !!!
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Gracias por compartir esta informacion. Me gusta lo que has publicado
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Muchas gracias. Me alegra que lo ha disfrutado.
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You could easily make this entire post a children's book. You already have the pictures and everything! You might have some opportunity here if you did and sold them accepting steem dollars.
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You ever see the movie 'Along Came Polly'?
I think my children's book would be something like this.
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Hey, that book teaches an important lesson: Don't play with fireworks!
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Nice story. This sounds real until two weeks ago. . I have the feeling that something new has happened since then....but maybe it's just my perception.
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Elitism entered into steem? Is that what you are referring to? Right now the current trend seems to be elitism/celebritism(is that even a word? If not it is now haha) in which I refer to a syndrome called Elite bring their sheep, which for Steemit has favorable short-term benefits, but probably not so long term benefits as the sheep just follow that person when they move onto the next big thing.
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Loved this post! It's simple & to the point! I've been here a week & all I have attracted are trolls...you've got to build a sound following here to get good value...but you've said it all!
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Now for a glass of warm milk.
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Hi @mynameisbrian great story, I think it makes a lot of sense and steemit really need the whale diversity.
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Very nice story, keep it up! :)
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What a great story weaving the facts of Steemit in and the illustrations were the final touch! Thanks!
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Fantastic!!! Love this post so much
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What an impressive story in pictures. You put in so much effort! Thank you.
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Most amazing. Found this through image surfing to gather some promotional material. This is the living mythology of steemit! I will share this as it explains with simple brilliant clarity!
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Hopefully fish of the Steemit ecosystem will keep evolving into the next generation of whales and dolphins. It should hopefully be just a matter of time.
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THANK YOU FOR SHARING THIS !!
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I just mentioned marijuana in my first post and came to this to see a stoned whale!
The herb can induce introspection and creativity, which can be very powerful for inspiration and unique ideas. I like to use it when I am not working, so that I can think about life and business for awhile.
Then I come back with what I have discovered while swimming the seas of the mind and apply it to my work. Cast your net into an ocean of mystery and come back with some sea monster ideas!
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very good story and very good pictures ,imagination wow wonderfull steemit came on my dream ...
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Hi Brian! @mynameisbrian
I love this article! (Did you do all the drawings yourself?) I think you've hit the bulls eye on what the community thinks the goals and future for Steem is. (Ironically, this is a post about Steem, haha)
I have been thinking about whales and the future for Steem too, and I made a recent post about how we, as a community, can help Steem grow and grow in a positive manner. Please let me know what you think.
https://steemit.com/steem/@shane-loomb/spread-the-word-help-write-the-perfect-steemit-elevator-pitch
Thank you!
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I like that you made it for the folks who love crypto. It really is all about the future of Steem, and not really about quilting, and pretty flowers. But the diversity is still important. We all have our own interests, but at the same time need to respect the interests of others...:D
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I really enjoyed this. Thanks!
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Well done!
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lol
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I love how 100% factual this account is.
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Good job!
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How about more women whales?
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Yep. That's needed too.
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If you're a user that creates some type of visual arts, you're invited to share it on "Steemit Visual Arts" https://steemit.com/art/@justoneartist/facebook-group-steemit-visual-arts
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Entertaining! I love the fact that you wrote your opinion about this pretty tasty!
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This post has been linked to from another place on Steem.
Learn more about linkback bot v0.3
Upvote if you want the bot to continue posting linkbacks for your posts. Flag if otherwise. Built by @ontofractal
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I totally get it. I can upvote this post and write a reply. There will be no reward other than to upvote and write a reply. Staying in Steemit is a choice I make. Posting for no recognition as a minnow gives me something to do.
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