tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-37733426385199528732024-02-08T07:51:46.985-08:00Content WriterDan Rafterhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15652481958743932768noreply@blogger.comBlogger118125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3773342638519952873.post-74336861650630834502010-05-24T21:02:00.000-07:002010-05-24T21:08:04.606-07:00When do you fire a client?I have a client whom I really like working for. I write a set number of content stories for him every week. What he does with the stories I have no idea. But he always pays on time, each and every week.<br /><br />So why am I considering "firing" this client? As nice as the guy is, writing for him is starting to make less financial sense by the week.<br /><br />Earlier this month, I picked up a new ghost-blogging job for a financial services provider. I write about anything to do with mortgage loans, auto financing, credit scores, credit card debt ... you get the idea. He pays me about $600 a month. Basically, I make $20 for every 400 words I write. Not great money, but solid. And I'm a fast writer, so it works out.<br /><br />I'm also taking on a new personal blog at a blogging site run by a major metropolitan newspaper. For this blog, I'll be covering residential real estate. I'm excited about the opportunities here. My goal is to develop an audience -- thanks to the blog network's already built-in readers -- and then translate that into more opportunities down the road: a book, a position with one of the more lucrative blogging platforms on the Internet, a guest columnist position. Why not reach for the stars, right? <br /><br />In the meantime, my reliable content publisher has become a bit of a burden. I simply no longer enjoy writing his stories, and the time to pound them out has become terribly scarce. Because the pay-per-article just isn't high enough, I have to let him go.<br /><br />This, by the way, is actually a good problem to have. When you have to fire a client, you know that you're starting to do better again. At least that's how I look at it.Dan Rafterhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15652481958743932768noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3773342638519952873.post-83173410753187007682010-04-25T16:44:00.000-07:002010-04-25T16:48:58.086-07:00NinerNiner a strange oneHave you heard of <a href="http://www.ninerniner.com/">NinerNiner.com</a>? It's one strange little site.<br /><br />Apparently, writers can sign up to the site and earn money for making posts to a series of blogs that NinerNiner runs. The problem? The pay per post is awful. For 200-or-so words, you can earn a payment of 50 cents. Yes, 50 cents. <br /><br />And that's for a high-paying blog. NinerNiner also pays 10 cents for posts on some blogs.<br /><br />I suppose this is good if you're angling to get a chicken sandwich off the dollar menu at McDonald's: Just two 50-cent posts and one 10-cent post to cover the tax! But if you want to make a living as a freelance writer? It's probably best to pass on NinerNiner. <br /><br />By the way, I've poked through some of the company's blogs. You truly do get what you pay for. The quality of the content is amazingly bad on most of the blogs.Dan Rafterhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15652481958743932768noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3773342638519952873.post-88064223888171764932010-04-22T12:54:00.000-07:002010-04-22T12:58:54.882-07:00Is Demand Studios' USA Today deal a raw one for writers?I'll answer the question in the title of this post right away: Yes. It is.<br /><br />If you don't know, Demand Studios is paying its writers $20 for travel stories that will eventually end up in the pages of USA Today. This begs the question: Is this a great way for writers to get a byline in the national paper, or is it just one more sign that newspaper publishers enjoy screwing over writers?<br /><br />I think it's the latter, unfortunately.<br /><br />Look, $20 is simply a lousy fee for a USA Today story. The USA Today is a national newspaper. It should be paying writers $500 or more for travel stories. Instead it's worked out a deal with Demand Studios to fill its pages on the cheap.<br /><br />To me, this stinks of a terrible deal for writers. I write every now and again for the Washington Post. I get paid a lot more than $20. My fear is that more big-time newspapers -- not the small ones that have always paid lousy -- will make similar deals with content providers like Demand Studios. <br /><br />It's already tough enough to make a living as a freelance writer. We don't need papers like USA Today working to make it even tougher.<br /><br />(And I, unlike most writers, actually kind of like USA Today!)Dan Rafterhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15652481958743932768noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3773342638519952873.post-91478020496738623992010-04-21T19:14:00.000-07:002010-04-21T19:22:11.625-07:00Yes, sometimes journalism can still be funI took my first helicopter ride today. A commercial real estate developer flew me over the company's latest major project, an intermodal site in one of Chicago's suburbs. And, I can't lie, it was pretty neat.<br /><br />I've flown in airplanes, of course, but taking off in a helicopter just has a different feeling. For one thing, you're surrounded by a lot of glass. You really feel the air rushing past you and the ground slipping away. I mean, when you're in an airplane you can imagine that you're merely in a really noisy house or apartment, long as you don't look out the window. In a helicopter? No way.<br /><br />I even got to wear one of those cool headsets. <br /><br />This is all just a reminder that sometimes working as a writer can still be fun. Yeah, I had to take notes during the flight. But I also spent much of it enjoying the view. That's not so bad.Dan Rafterhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15652481958743932768noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3773342638519952873.post-55513534774125695992010-04-20T10:53:00.000-07:002010-04-20T11:02:10.202-07:00eCopywriters: Ups and downs<a href="http://www.ecopywriters.com/">eCopywriters</a> is one of those content-writing sites that hasn't yet garnered a lot of attention. We all focus on Textbroker, Demand Studios, Examiner.com and Suite 101. But for those willing to dig deeper there are a host of sites out there that will pay you for your writing.<br /><br />Now, they might not pay you well. But remember this: You don't have to turn in stellar prose to earn your bucks at content sites. <br /><br />eCopywriters is a pretty straightforward site: If the editors here approve your application, you'll be able to write almost immediately. Writers here are ranked by the editors, and that impacts the pay you'll receive. I generally get about $8.80 for writing a 440-word story here. <br /><br />The good news is that the stories are pretty easy to write, if you know financial topics. The site generally gets plenty of insurance-, finance- and auto-related stories. The good news is that these are straightforward stories. You won't find too many assignments that are as strange as the ones you'll find on Demand Studios.<br /><br />Now for the bad news: First, there's the pay. It's generally in line with most content sites. That means it's pretty low. That's fine, though, if you can write the stories fast enough. The real problem with eCopywriters is how long it takes to get paid.<br /><br />You won't receive payment here until eCopywriters' client approves your work. This can take a long time. When I first signed up, I had several stories waiting for approval for more than a month. This has improved a bit lately, but stories still take an average of three weeks or so to earn approval. <br /><br />Once stories are approved, you'll get paid quickly. eCopywriters has never stiffed me on a story, so that's a plus there.<br /><br />Another downside is that the company's list of available jobs is occasionally empty. Don't rely on eCopywriters, then, for steady income.<br /> <br />I don't write for the company much these days. If I'm looking for fast cash, I'll go with Break Studios and Textbroker. To sum up, eCopywriters is a good source for a bit of extra cash at the end of the month. Don't rely on it, though, for a steady stream of income.Dan Rafterhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15652481958743932768noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3773342638519952873.post-28877420813489513332010-04-19T10:40:00.000-07:002010-04-19T10:48:46.838-07:00Content Divas worth the timeSeveral months ago, I signed up with <a href="http://www.contentdivas.com/">Content Divas</a>, another content-writing site. This one, though, is a bit different. Once you're accepted, you can apply for a wide variety of writing projects requested by Content Divas' clients, everything from travel writing to real estate stories to debt consolidation and mortgage-loan features.<br /><br />So far, I've had good luck with the site. I am now on my fifth month of a reoccurring financial project, where I write blog posts on debt consolidation, credit cards, credit repair and other topics. I also have a second reoccurring project with the company where I write copy to match the graphics used on a site devoted to consumer finance issues. The pay isn't great, 18 cents a word, but it does add up to a decent paycheck every month.<br /><br />What I found the most difficult with Content Divas was initially acquiring work. After you sign up, you have to request projects that are offered to the pool of Content Divas writers. As a new writer, it can sometimes be difficult to grab any of the stories before more veteran Content Divas writers nab them.<br /><br />It helps if you have a specialty: For me, my specialty in covering the mortgage-lending industry helped me land my first assignment for them, a PLR book on real estate financing. Once I finished that, the editors at the site connected me to the blogging project that I'm still working on.<br /><br />Overall, I'd give Content Divas high marks. The editors are fair and quite pleasant. And the work can be steady once you get established. Oh, yes, the work itself is fairly simple.Dan Rafterhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15652481958743932768noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3773342638519952873.post-44267128446828131322010-04-17T20:09:00.000-07:002010-04-17T20:14:50.307-07:00What Is It About Demand Studios?Demand Studios must be the biggest name in the freelance-writing world these days. Every time I make a post with "Demand Studios" in the title, my visitor numbers take a big jump. <br /><br />That's a sign of how the freelance-writing world has changed. As reporters lose their "real" jobs, they rush to Demand Studios and its $15 stories. The place is a financial safety net. I know, because it's one to me, too.<br /><br />Now, I do wish the company paid more than $15 a story. (They do offer $20, $25 and $30 stories, but those are for special assignments. And, from what I've heard, they're usually more work than they're worth.) I do wish that the copy editors didn't ask for the moon for these $15 stories. <br /><br />But, despite all this, I'm sure glad that Demand Studios is around. Those $15 stories have added up for me. They've helped me fill in the blanks from all the trade magazines that have gone kaput. <br /><br />Here's a word of warning, though: Nothing lasts forever, not even Demand Studios. Writers need to always be drumming up alternative streams of income, and not just more content sites. For me, that means editing comic books and making inroads in commercial writing. More about all this later.Dan Rafterhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15652481958743932768noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3773342638519952873.post-86356721583481654452010-04-17T19:59:00.000-07:002010-04-17T20:09:03.944-07:00Some Thoreau thoughtsLast night I went to see a play, "The Night Thoreau Spent in Jail." My wife designed the costumes for the play -- yes, both she and I work in "creative" fields. Woe to our bank account! -- and I wanted to get a look at them before the play closed. They looked great, of course. They always do.<br /><br />The play, though, got me thinking about what we all do for a living. Why did you get into writing? Did you want to make a difference? Did you want to make people think? Did you want to entertain people, make them smile or cry or shout? <br /><br />I know that's what motivated me to write. But I've lost sight of this as I scramble to make enough money to pay the bills in this dismal national economy.<br /><br />"The Night Thoreau Spent in Jail" details the long evening when Henry David Thoreau, the famed writer, poet and, of course, tax resister, spent in jail for not paying his taxes. What struck me was Thoreau's conviction to make a difference, to have an impact on his world. It's what inspired him to leave behind his idyllic life at Walden Pond and re-enter the human race. <br /><br />Now, I'm certainly no Henry David Thoreau, and my house is no Walden Pond. But as I've concentrated on pounding out the content stories, and the regular paychecks they produce, I've left behind much of the writing that inspired me, and, I hope, the people who read them. So, I'm making this resolution: I will continue to churn out meaningless content stories to keep my bank account full enough. But I won't forget to write the stories, too, that represent real journalism, the stories that require me to actually talk to people who have something important to say.<br /><br />Earlier this month, I wrote a story about grooms who are doing just as much to plan their weddings as are their future brides. This isn't earth-shattering stuff. But it means something. Someone might read that story, maybe a groom who isn't pulling his weight on the wedding planning, and make a change. Maybe that lazy groom will order the wedding invitations so that his stressed bride-to-be doesn't have to. Whatever, a story can make a difference, even a small one.<br /><br />A content story? Not really. Remember that: Content is for money, purely. Real stories, they're for money, too, of course, but they're for something else, too.Dan Rafterhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15652481958743932768noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3773342638519952873.post-60182510306624299982010-04-16T08:21:00.000-07:002010-04-16T08:26:51.577-07:00Today's dayI imagine that a lot of readers of this blog wonder what I do with my typical workday. I imagine this, of course, because it's probably fiction.<br /><br />But in case anyone is wondering, here we go:<br /><br />Today I have a $75 story due on home energy audits. I'm still trying to nail down an interview. Yes, I waited too long to get started on this story.<br /><br />I also have a $50 content assignment due. This assignment focuses on how important it is for small business owners to analyze their financial statements on a regular basis. Yes, that's not very interesting, but it's easy writing.<br /><br />I have to write two stories for a blog that I'm working on through the Content Divas site. The stories are on payday loans and bankruptcy. I can write about anything I want, as long as they are on these two topics.<br /><br />An independent comicbook company needs a press release written. I pump these out fairly quickly. <br /><br />Finally, I hope to write and turn in five $15 Demand Studios stories. <br /><br />That's a lot of work, but when the day is done, I'll be able to add more than $250 to my monthly total. That's not bad. This month I'm on track to meet my freelance goals.Dan Rafterhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15652481958743932768noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3773342638519952873.post-5170925483704374542010-04-15T08:03:00.000-07:002010-04-15T08:09:25.034-07:00Attribution becoming a real pain at Demand StudiosAttribution has become quite the buzzword at Demand Studios these days. Seems the people behind the company have forgotten that they're paying writers $15 for most stories. If they want heavily sourced stories with proper attribution, they should be increasing their paltry rates.<br /><br />Does anyone think that will happen? Nope, Demand Studios will continue asking writers to source stories as if we were writing for the New York Times. Hate to break it to you, but the Times pays a lot more than $15 a story.<br /><br />Demand Studios has benefited from the crummy economy and the woes of newspapers and magazine publishers. Writers who never would have considered writing $15 stories are flocking to the site because they are running out of other options. Simply put, too many magazines and newspapers have shut down or closed off their freelance budgets. Demand Studios is there, eager to take in desperate writers.<br /><br />Personally, rewrite requests at Demand are driving me crazy. Where are the copy editors who realize that we're all getting paid horrible rates? Why do I keep getting those who think we're writing for some higher good? We're churning out garbage stories for eHow, a site that serves as a depository for some of the most poorly written junk on the Internet. Increasing the quality of the writing on the site is a noble goal. But paying writers $15 a story to do this smacks of a company taking advantage of people desperate to pay their bills.Dan Rafterhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15652481958743932768noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3773342638519952873.post-44786994782935786322010-04-14T16:14:00.000-07:002010-04-14T16:19:32.129-07:00What about Break Studios?I've signed up and given <a href="http://breakstudios.break.com/">Break Studios</a> a try. All I have to say about it is ... eh.<br /><br />It's fine, I suppose. Maybe I'm burning out, but all the content sites out there feel the same to me these days. The difference with Break Studios is that the topics are generally easier to write than the bizarre title requests you'll find at Demand Studios. The editors at Break aren't as much of a hassle, either.<br /><br />But then there's the pay and the waiting. First, stories at Break Studios pay $8. That's lousy, again. But the stories are easy to write. I've picked four mortgage titles -- how to refinance your home, how refinance fees are calculated, how credit scores are determined -- and pumped them out quickly. They were all approved.<br /><br />But it takes forever to get an editor to review titles at Break Studios. The first time I submitted, it took two weeks for someone to look at the story. The last three times it's taken about a week-and-a-half. That's not exactly speedy editing.<br /><br />Break Studios also pays just once a month. Again, this isn't great. If you miss the monthly cut-off thanks to slow editing times, you'll have to wait until the next month's payoff to get your money.<br /><br />I'd give Break Studios a "C" grade. The writing's easy. The editors, too. But the pay's too low and the editing and payment times too long.Dan Rafterhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15652481958743932768noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3773342638519952873.post-25576422301533497312010-04-12T08:31:00.000-07:002010-04-12T08:34:40.481-07:00A Demand Studios funnyMost of the copy editors at Demand Studios are smart, talented folk. Really. Don't believe all those Web sites out there that slam them.<br /><br />But you should believe the rumors that there are certain editors for the site that aren't up to snuff. There aren't many, but there are some. When I run into one of them, I usually abandon the rewrite request. It just isn't worth it; you can't please one of these "special case" editors.<br /><br />I ran into a funny copy editor situation just this morning at Demand Studios. The editor approved my story, a thrilling one on parking lot laws, but also left me this slightly scolding comment: "A little rough in some places. You'll be find with some more proofing."<br /><br />Why don't you proof that sentence and tell me how "find" that copy editor is?Dan Rafterhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15652481958743932768noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3773342638519952873.post-58561053341905027272010-04-11T18:55:00.000-07:002010-04-11T18:59:06.884-07:00Clients: Remember what you're payingHere's a quick post for anyone out there who hires freelance content writers: Remember what you're paying for the words you're getting.<br /><br />What I mean by this is that you shouldn't expect New York Times prose when you're paying $4 for a 400-word article. It's not worth freelance writers' time to research such low-paying articles. To make such a job worthwhile, a writer has to be able to pound your $4 article in no more than 10 minutes. Even then, that's only $24 an hour, not a great wage. <br /><br />So when you do order a $4 400-word article, don't expect breaking news, a jaw-dropping read or to learn something new. Expect something written off the top of a writer's head. After all, that's the only way for a writer to make even a lousy hourly wage.Dan Rafterhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15652481958743932768noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3773342638519952873.post-4128905278937393022010-04-11T08:51:00.000-07:002010-04-11T08:58:57.346-07:00My new success strategy at Demand StudiosI've been writing pretty heavily for Demand Studios for the past four months. The first three-and-a-half went really well: I concentrated on writing real estate stories, my specialty. I wrote mostly about loan modifications, credit scores, foreclosures, home equity loans and anything to do with real estate.<br /><br />Then, about two weeks ago, something strange started happening. The good real estate titles dried up. I began stretching. After getting one rejection -- which happened because I tried a topic I knew little about and then botched the job. This was my mistake -- in my first three-and-a-half months, I rapidly got three in a row. This time, all three were because of odd copy editor requests. <br /><br />This was frustrating. It represented $45 down the drain. Then there were all the odd rewrite requests. It seemed that many of the copy editors editing my real estate stories wanted to me to write stories that were worthy of my work with the Washington Post or Chicago Tribune. Sorry, for $15, Demand Studios isn't getting my best work. It's just not worth it.<br /><br />So here's my new strategy: I'm only writing lists, and I'm only the writing the simplest of lists, stories that are nearly impossible to get rejected. So far, I've written about gift basket ideas, holiday meal ideas, low-cost laptops, traffic laws in Phoenix, the best birthday presents for teen girls, etc.., These stories take 15 minutes to write, which means that I can pump out four in an hour if I'm working hard. That's $60 an hour; not a bad rate. It also means that I can get my Demand Studios writing out of the way fast on an average workday. I try to write five stories for Demand a day, or $75 worth. (I only write $15 stories.) When I get them out of the way, I can spend the rest of my day writing for my private-client content jobs, newspapers or trade magazines.<br /><br />So far, I've been at my new Demand Studios strategy for about a week. It's gone quite well. The biggest challenge is finding these easy list titles. But if you're patient enough to wade through them, you'll find things like "romantic gifts for adults." That's as easy a $15 as you're likely to make.Dan Rafterhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15652481958743932768noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3773342638519952873.post-33515277669959448912009-10-15T05:51:00.000-07:002009-10-15T05:56:10.455-07:00The mistakes content writers make: Read the directionsI'm always amazed at some of the foolish mistakes content writers make when looking for jobs. For instance, a lot don't follow the directions.<br /><br />I see this a lot at the job boards and writing forums that I frequent. Someone will post a job and request that interested candidates either e-mail them directly or send them a private message.<br /><br />Inevitably, a string of writers will post their own messages on the job board or forum. They'll write: "Hey, I'm interested," or maybe, "I'd like to do this." <br /><br />Now, the job poster might not even come back to the message board. The poster asked for private messages or e-mails. Why would a writer post his or her response on the message board itself?<br /><br />Besides, why would a content producer hire someone whose version of a cover letter and writing samples consists of "Hey, I'm interested?" <br /><br />Content writers, here's some free advice: Pay attention to what you're doing. Read the friggin' instructions before applying for a job. You'll never get anywhere without doing this.Dan Rafterhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15652481958743932768noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3773342638519952873.post-1396832478107169652009-10-09T17:31:00.000-07:002009-10-09T17:43:25.022-07:00Giving Content Divas a shotI'm constantly looking for new content-writing work these days. That's because it's getting more and more difficult to earn steady writing assignments at print magazines and newspapers. These clients still make up the majority of my freelance-writing income, but content writing has steadily accounted for a growing percentage these days.<br /><br />I've built up a nice base of reliable content-writing clients. But I always need more. That's because a lot of content-writing clients need only enough writing to fill up a certain number of niche sites. Once they get that writing, they disappear for a month or two until they need some fresh copy.<br /><br />This is partly why I applied last week to <a href="http://www.contentdivas.com">Content Divas</a>. Much like <a href="http://adastratraffic.info/">AdAstra Traffic</a>, which I've written about recently, Content Divas is a company that links freelance content-writers with content projects. <br /><br />This evening, I heard back from Content Divas -- just two days after I sent in my application -- that I've been hired on as a writer. Now, the pay, as with most content-writing jobs, isn't stellar. But the service promises fairly steady work. And right now, with the struggles that the economy is suffering through, I appreciate any work that's steady and reliable.<br /><br />I've heard from other writers, and read on other blogs, that Content Divas pays its writers on time. It has a unique set-up, too. Writers are hired to write keyword articles, blog posts, press releases or e-book material. Projects last a certain number of days, and writers are expected to turn in 1,000 words each day. If projects are short, and only last a few days, writers receive payment at the end of the project. If they're long, they receive partial part upfront, the rest when they finish the job.<br /><br />I'm a fast writer, so I'm hoping that this will work to my advantage with Content Divas.<br /><br />Meanwhile, today was an interesting day. A comic book biography I've written on House Speaker Nancy Pelosi was officially announced at a number of comic-book sites today. The comic, published by BlueWater Productions, will hit comic stores in January. At the same time, I've been hired by BlueWater to write another comic biography -- I can't say who yet, but it's for the companies music-themed line and will focus on a very popular female musician -- that will be released in 2010.Dan Rafterhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15652481958743932768noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3773342638519952873.post-44925766049463088442009-10-09T05:10:00.000-07:002009-10-09T05:23:00.876-07:00The content-writing mistake: Don't tell people to look for their baby strollers in the mallWeb site owners tick me off with their often lousy pay rates. But, guess what? We content writers often tick off site owners, too, with our lousy work.<br /><br />Don't believe me? Check out <a href="http://www.itswritenow.com/1320/how-to-write-a-niche-article/">this blog post on It's Write Now </a>by Emma Nelson, an owner of several niche Web sites and a person I often write stories for. Emma writes about some of the big sins writers make when composing niche articles. Some are fairly obvious such as repeating keywords over and over in a 300-word story.<br /><br />Some are more humorous. Emma describes writers explaining what candles or Teddy bears are. Yes, we all know what these things are. But some writers are compelled to tell readers in great detail that a candle can provide light, but only when lit. (That, of course, can lead to a 100-word paragraph on what a match is.)<br /><br />But one of Emma's last points resonated the most with me because I've been guilty of it. She complains about writers who fill their stories with paragraphs telling readers that they can find Teddy bears, candles, MP3 players, iPods or whatevers at their local mall or department store.<br /><br />Thing is, the owners of niche sites don't want their readers to buy these things at a store. They want them to buy them at the links they provide on their sites. <br /><br />So remember, folks, as much as we complain about lowball offers and unrealistic deadlines, the people we write for are complaining just as much about lousy writing, missed deadlines and idiot writers -- myself included -- who tell people to buy their crap at the mall.Dan Rafterhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15652481958743932768noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3773342638519952873.post-34384247771331349842009-10-08T11:29:00.000-07:002009-10-08T11:38:32.859-07:00Ridiculous content-writing offers at Digital Point ForumsWe all know that content writers don't exactly fetch kingly rates. But if you're fast enough, you just might make a decent hourly rate, as long as you don't accept assignments that pay insultingly low offers.<br /><br />Now, if you are looking for insulting offers, try exploring the <a href="http://forums.digitalpoint.com/">forums at Digital Point</a>. This forum, dedicated to Web site owners and the people who provide them services, has its own subsection where Web site owners request content writers for their sites.<br /><br />Sounds like a good place to find work, right? Well, sometimes. Unfortunately, it's most often a place where site owners ask writers to provide them content for ridiculously low offers.<br /><br />Here's an example: This guy <a href="http://forums.digitalpoint.com/showthread.php?t=1525571">needs an article writer for a bulk project</a>. The pay he's offering? A miserly $1 for 300 words. But, the poster promises, the work is in bulk. What does this mean? That he'll end up paying writers $5 for 1,500 words. That's pretty damn bad.<br /><br />This poster is <a href="http://forums.digitalpoint.com/showthread.php?t=1524853">willing to pay $2 for 300 words</a>. Again, this is pretty lousy. What's even worse is the poster's attitude. The poster says that writers who provide three or more "bad" articles will be fired. That's right, fired from this terribly lucrative $2-for-300-word job. What will the poor writer do? Work at McDonald's for even more money?<br /><br />Overall, Digital Point is a rather depressing place. It's filled with forum posters who can barely string together two sentences demanding perfection from writers for $1 articles. If you're looking for good content-writing work -- and there are good clients out there, even in the world of content writing -- skip Digital Point.Dan Rafterhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15652481958743932768noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3773342638519952873.post-79239010145127833662009-10-07T09:05:00.001-07:002009-10-07T09:10:18.477-07:00Living without your phone: It's not badMy work phone unexpectedly cut out earlier this week. I'd pick up the phone to hear absolutely nothing on the other end.<br /><br />Getting a human on the phone at AT&T was a bit of a chore, but I finally managed to do it, and a technician was on his way.<br /><br />Funny thing, though; I didn't really miss my phone much.<br /><br />Sure, I'd check in with my home phone to see if anyone left me a message on voicemail. Wouldn't want to miss all those editors calling in with lucrative assignments! But not having the phone ringing allowed me to really concentrate on pounding out the content stories. In fact, I wrote 16 content stories yesterday, and five pages in the graphic-novel script that I'm working on. I also had time to apply to three other writing jobs.<br /><br />I don't know if I would have been as productive if that phone had been working. <br /><br />By the way, the technician showed up at my house and only had to open our AT&T box outside to get the phone working again. Seriously. He didn't have to touch a button or turn a screw. He had no explanation for it, other than saying that maybe when he opened the box something inside it fell out and stopped my phone from fritzing out.<br /><br />Personally, I don't care. I'm just glad that AT&T didn't charge me anything for repairs.Dan Rafterhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15652481958743932768noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3773342638519952873.post-70361241777467693572009-10-06T06:57:00.000-07:002009-10-06T07:02:07.736-07:00Giving BrightHub another tryA couple weeks ago, I wrote a rather snotty post complaining that I'd been rejected by BrightHub. Well, turns out I may have posted a bit too soon.<br /><br />You may know <a href="http://www.brighthub.com">BrightHub</a>: The site pays writers $10 upfront for short, explanatory stories on a number of topics. Authors can write about environmental science, investing, finances, engineering, etc.., Authors also earn residual income on the money that their stories generate over time.<br /><br />Last month, I received a message from BrightHub saying that my application to write for the environmental sciences channel had been denied. I was a bit miffed. But last week I received another message. This one stated that I'd been accepted to write for investing channel.<br /><br />I turned in my first BrightHub story last night. Now, I just have to wait and see what my editor thinks. It's true that $10 a story isn't much, but BrightHub, if I can write the stories fast enough, might be a good way to fill in the gaps during the slower months. And this month of October, unfortunately, is turning out to be one of the slowest I've experienced in more than five years.Dan Rafterhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15652481958743932768noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3773342638519952873.post-7147462281232063762009-10-05T12:30:00.000-07:002009-10-05T12:35:34.819-07:00The big content-writing mistake: writing about what you don't knowI've never been to Cornwall, England. It looks like a lovely place, though. Some even say it's the birthplace of the mythical King Arthur. If you're in Cornwall, you can visit the castle where he supposedly was born.<br /><br />I didn't know any of this until this morning. That's because I agreed to write four content-writing articles on Cornwall.<br /><br />The price was more than fair. And the assignment specs weren't onerous in any way. However, the assignment turned out to be a bit of a pain in the butt for me. That's because I committed the big sin of content writing: I took on an assignment writing about something I knew nothing about.<br /><br />The key to making money as a content writer is to write as many stories as you can extremely fast. It's a bit of a grind. But if you know about exercise equipment, it's not too difficult to pound out five stories on successful weight training. If you're really quick, you can do those five stories in an hour to make a decent hourly rate.<br /><br />It's when you take on topics that you know nothing about, though, that you run into trouble. It took me most of the morning to write my four Cornwall articles. That's because I had to spend valuable time researching. Every minute you spend researching is a minute you could be spending writing. <br /><br />So don't be tempted, even if the pay per article sounds good, to write about something about which you know little. It never pays off.Dan Rafterhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15652481958743932768noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3773342638519952873.post-34958547970363951982009-10-02T11:13:00.000-07:002009-10-02T11:25:08.578-07:00Residual income realityI hear a lot of writers refer to residual income when justifying why they write for sites like Suite 101 or Examiner.com. They say that the stories they place on these sites generate revenue indefinitely. That's better, they say, than landing a story for a one-time fee of $20.<br /><br />Well, there's some truth to that, I suppose. But what if you query and land a story for a one-time fee of $500? How long does it take, say, an article on Suite 101 to generate $500 worth of income? Will that <span style="font-style:italic;">ever</span> happen? I don't know.<br /><br />If you want a real look at the negatives of sites that promise writers residual income, check out <a href="http://allfreelancewriting.com/2009/09/02/freelancing/making-money/freelance-writers-a-real-look-at-residual-income/">this post</a> at Jennifer Mattern's All Freelance Writing Blog. She breaks down the real numbers far better than I ever could. You might be shocked, and certainly disappointed, at how little money most people ever make writing for residual income sites.Dan Rafterhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15652481958743932768noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3773342638519952873.post-81880695923106913312009-10-01T12:10:00.000-07:002009-10-01T12:18:21.771-07:00Giving TextBroker a tryMaybe I'm desperate. I had a solid September and a good August. But October looks to be rather shaky from a paying-jobs standpoint. <br /><br />So it's time to give TextBroker a real try. Sigh.<br /><br />Yes, I'm not proud to admit it. Let's face it, TextBroker pays some embarrassing rates. I've seen folks requesting 500-word articles for $1.50. That's pitiful.<br /><br />Still, TextBroker, like Demand Studios and Writer Divas, can help fill in those gaps in months when the number of paying assignments isn't as high as you'd like. <br /><br />So far this month -- and yes, I know it's only October 1 today -- I've written a 500-word story in the fitness field for $7.57 and a 350-word story on mortgage lending for $5.03. I next plan to write a 350-word story on online dating for $5.50. Each of the first two stories I wrote, which required no research because I'm familiar with each subject, took me 15 minutes to write. If the online dating one takes as long, that'll mean I'll have made about $18 for 45 minutes of work. That's not terrible.<br /><br />Of course, it's not particularly sustainable, either. For instance, tomorrow I have to write a 1,200-word story for the Washington Post. That will take up most of my morning. I also have to prepare three blog posts for a Chicago real estate agent. That will take time, too. If I'm lucky, I'll get one TextBroker assignment done.<br /><br />TextBroker is an option, though. If you can pound out the stories quickly, and write only on topics that you don't need to research, you can make a decent hourly wage. Of course, you won't pay the mortgage with TextBroker, but you might be able to pay the cable bill.Dan Rafterhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15652481958743932768noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3773342638519952873.post-28779015794706192202009-09-30T07:48:00.000-07:002009-09-30T07:55:56.540-07:00Another content-writing scammer from craigslistI appreciate craigslist. You have to weed through a lot of garbage, but the site does provide real writing opportunities. One of the jobs I've picked up from craigslist earlier this year has since turned into about $2,000 worth of income.<br /><br />Those craigslist scammers, though, give the site a bad name. For instance, I recently applied to an ad for real estate writers. Sounded like a good opportunity. And real estate writing is right up my alley.<br /><br />This morning, I received a response. That put me in a good mood, until I opened that response. The message itself was strangely worded, as though the writer didn't quite speak the English language. Secondly, the message boasted that I had have my own desk and chair, which was odd because I was applying for a freelance, work-from-home job. I already have my own desk and chair, and would rather have a bit of extra money than another set.<br /><br />Finally, the kicker: The message stated that all writers would have to agree to provide a copy of their latest credit report. And this credit report had to be no more than 14 days old. The company even provided a helpful link to a Web site that will provide you with your credit report for a small fee.<br /><br />So, yes, the entire job ad was just to promote this credit-report site. The real kick is that you are entitled to a free credit report anyway, so there's no reason to pay for one.<br /><br />I wrote back to the person who sent me this response asking her why she doesn't do business in a more ethical manner. I'm sure I won't hear back.<br /><br />The craigslist scammers can certainly wear a content-writer out. I've lost track of how many misleading craigslist job ads I've stumbled into this year.Dan Rafterhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15652481958743932768noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3773342638519952873.post-69747784613412795282009-09-29T19:28:00.000-07:002009-09-29T19:33:02.459-07:00Sometimes you have to give up a content-writing gigEarlier this year, I accepted a writing job at a technology Web site called Digital Media Buzz. It's a quality Web site run by a strong editor. Unfortunately, it was a job that wasn't right for me.<br /><br />The main problem was time. I like technology. I think I know a bit -- just a bit -- about social marketing. But I'm no expert in either. And unfortunately, that's what Digital Media Buzz focused on. <br /><br />I was able to write a few stories for them. And the editor did pay me exactly on time, which is always nice these days. But I found that it was taking me far too long to write the stories for the payment I was getting. Like most online writing jobs, this one didn't pay great. But if I was able to complete the stories quickly enough, it would have been a nice, steady bit of income I could have counted on every month.<br /><br />Unfortunately, I wasn't able to do that. I had to do too much research, not to mention some interviews, and that sucked up all the time I wanted to devote to these stories.<br /><br />So sometimes you do have to give up a perfectly good job because it's not the right one for you. It's unfortunate but true.Dan Rafterhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15652481958743932768noreply@blogger.com0