How do they do it?

I'm a little confused here, I have seen really good posts so far on Steemit, most way better than those that seem to garner so much of the $'s on the site. How do they do it? Are there any good folk that would be so kind as to give a few pointers here? While it is interesting to have a community that can contribute to a discussion, story or post, the incentive is also something that might be important to understand. Is there something that needs to be done for a user to gain influence and subsequent rewards?

Please comment below.