Amen. You know, some writers debate about whether or not they should have a niche on Medium. Well, I have a niche, because I write about things I know much more about than most people.

My latest article is about HIV and public health, about the State of Tennessee turning down desperately needed HIV testing and treatment funds from the federal government ... because the State of Tennessee has a grudge against Planned Parenthood.

I didn't write about that out of the blue, however. I've paid extraordinarily close attention to HIV and public health since 1990 when I joined Act Up in New York City. I also worked providing HIV services and education for almost a decade.

I write about LGBTQ issues from direct personal experience, and also from my experience of years of activism, and also because I network with professional advocates and often reach out to them for guidance and quotes.

So yes, you could say I have a niche. You can also say I have expertise, which is kind of the same thing.

I'm with you. I'm not interested so much in reading about people's uninformed opinions. Personal experience? Sure, I want to read about people's lives. I value Medium for that. I've never learned as much about transgender people, for example, as I have through storytelling on Medium.

But there's a big difference between telling stories about our lives and sharing relatively uninformed opinions.

If I were somebody looking to transition gender, I would definitely read Medium stories about people's experiences with transition. But if I were looking for medical information about how to transition physically, I would look for professional, qualified advice from experts. (That's not to say that people who share personal stories about transitioning can't also be experts, of course.)

Niche, expertise, professional experience, however you want to talk about it, truly knowing what you're writing about is critically important.

At least for me.

Speaking of which. When I see you writing about history, I'm always quick to read, because you've shown me over the years that I can trust your professionalism and accuracy.

People should think about that too, probably.