Great article, Sinem.

This leads me to a question where I think your answer might be interesting to some people and maybe it's a fit for one of your next articles:

Should you fully adapt to editorial changes requested by editors of major publications just to get accepted by them (compromising)

Or should you rather stay true to your content style and try and publish it elsewhere, even if it means going with a smaller pub or no pub at all?

I personally have exactly that problem. My latest article in The Startup was changed a little without my permission. I spent about 2 hours finding a usable and high-quality photo of a police negotiator for the topic. I took one right from the FBI website, which according to US law puts it in the public domain as government entity provided media.

But the editors chose a photo that has nothing to do with the topic, it shows a generic convo over a cup of coffee.

Another article I wanted to publish with the writing cooperative didn't fit their style guide. Instead of making the requested changes and waiting another 3-4 days for their answer, I simply put it elsewhere.

I don't like compromising my identity just for the sake of exposure.

What's your opinion on this?