Writing Articles

Not long ago, I found an alternative way to get paid for writing, without having to go through the lengthy, and often painful; process of sending out, and following up, queries and submissions. I discovered content sites.

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These are websites that showcase writers’ work, and some of them offer content to editors and publishers, then pay the writers for their sales. Their main customers are site owners and developers, so it’s important they provide informative articles with suitable keywords on the subjects needed. The sites are American, as are most of the buyers, with implications for American English spelling and nuances.

Constant Content

This was my first choice because its editors only accept work to a high standard. They provide guidelines for writers and there is plenty of chat in the forum about reasons for rejection.

Once you have registered as an author, you can choose to offer an article for one-off usage rights, unique rights and full rights. With help from the site’s guidelines, you name your price for each of these. Of course, if your piece has been previously published, or you want to place it elsewhere as well, you can only offer it for usage. You provide a ‘sample’ of the piece for display. This can be the whole article, or just enough to entice a buyer.

Your article goes through a review process and you will be notified by email if it is selected and showcased. If it is rejected, the editors will usually explain why, and you can change it and resubmit if you wish. Writers who don’t understand the reasons can post questions in the forum or email support.

The site has a section called Requested Content, which displays public requests from buyers seeking particular articles, as well as what they are prepared to pay for them. You have to be quick off the mark with a response as there is plenty of competition, and the customer may choose to buy quickly. But if it’s not chosen, your article will remain showcased so, unless you decide to withdraw it, someone else may find it and buy it. You can also submit pieces on subjects of your choice, that haven’t been requested, because other customers just search the site to find what they want.

Once you are established and buyers get to know your work, you may even get private requests and can expect higher rewards. Customers can request articles from specific authors, but they will still only buy if the work fits what they need.

Your quota of sales is 60%, the other 40% going to Constant Content. The one-off rewards may seem low but it is a real money-spinner for well-established authors who write and sell quickly all the time. There is also a system of payment for work by referred writers.

Helium

Here, your complete article is displayed for viewers to read. In return, you are expected to read and rate two other articles through multiple choice questions.

But you earn money when someone accesses your article; you are paid per click. How much depends on the subject matter, whether it can attract advertisers as well as readers, and your ratings – an incentive to submit really good work.

The Helium Marketplace is a similar concept to Constant Content’s Requested Content. The rights offered by Helium are non-exclusive and must retain your byline but do not exclude editing. You retain your copyright; Helium, as the virtual agent, retains a commission from the fee paid for the non-exclusive rights. If the buyer wants additional rights, it will be up to you to negotiate and obtain your extra payment.

I found some possible advantages here. The buyers seemed to be offering higher amounts than the average on Constant Content, and they give more detail about their requirements. Then there is the extra lucre from viewings. You can influence this by providing links on emails etc.

Suite 101

Here you commit to submitting at least 10 articles over a 3 month period granting them exclusive electronic rights. You get a share of their advertising revenue, and a measure of guidance and editorial support if you want it.

When you apply to join their ranks of authors, you have to submit a couple of sample articles so they can assess the quality of your work. They have two levels of writing members: initially you would be a Contributing Writer, which means you can submit articles on any subject. Once you have proved your worth, you may gain the status of Feature Writer covering a particular topic. At this level you earn a higher percentage and you can also be a moderator and write your own blog. Clearly, your earnings will depend on high volume.

Blogvertise

This is a way of making your blogging pay. If you are accepted by this site, you receive payments for completing assignments. The site administrator sends you a task to be completed and published in your blog within 5 days.

The task will relate to a website that has to be written about, with the address included three times. You can choose whether, and how, to review the site, so you don’t have to endorse anything you are not happy about. You can even write a complaint about it. The word count should be between 60 and 100, so tasks are manageable.

Payment, via Paypal, is per task and starts low: from $4 – $25. Once you are established this can increase to up to $150.

One or all

If you are a prolific writer, there is no reason why you shouldn’t try out all of them. I think I’ll get around to this, as well as continuing to make inroads on the more traditional markets. Far better to have my work out on display than gathering dust in my files. In fact, my next task is to see what I can rework for the web.

Check out the sites: www.constant-content.com; http://helium.com/cms/whatishelium; www.suite101.com/freelance_writers/; www.blogvertise.com.