It's definitely something that saddens me to see, too. Even in my year since joining Medium, I've seen so many people start writing and then stop unceremoniously. I always hope that it doesn't mean their dreams have been crushed and they've lost faith in their writing. Life definitely get's crazy sometimes, so I just try to envision them just moving onto greener pastures. The growing graveyard of Medium writers can definitely get me a little down sometimes, though.