Dude the nail on its head! Nothing comes for free but you also don't need to be hard on yourself but determined in making it a success. Good going on the journey there dude!
I also started in Septmeber 2017 like you. Every now and then I get a whale vote, but in general the posts will always end up for a couple of bucks. And that is okay. It seems reasonable for the amount of effort I put in over the long run. Expectations should always be realistic!
Nice post dude!