Online Writing

Amazon KDP Select Update

2012-01-12T20:18:00.000-08:00

The numbers for December 2011 are in, at least in the form of a newsletter, for Amazon's Kindle Direct Publisher Select program.

KDP Select December Earnings

The $500,000 is being divided between a little over 294,000 "sales" through Prime member's free days. How much each writer gets depends on how many Prime members checked out his or her eBook. Each "sale" in December earned the writer $1.70.

My Own KDP Select Experience

The travel eBook I enrolled in the program did better, much better, than it would have otherwise. I scheduled two of my five free days in December, one on a weekend and the other on Christmas day. My theory being that people are more likely to download travel eBooks on weekends and holidays when sitting around relaxing and dreaming about a cool holiday. I don't know how my theory panned out compared to the other writers participating in the program, but I am pleased with the results.

Feel free to leave a comment if you have had an experience with Amazon KDP Select; or if you have any questions about the program I'll do my best to help you out with an answer.

Suite Writer's Update for January 10, 2012

2012-01-10T19:19:00.000-08:00

I just wanted to share this here, in case anyone who reads here hasn't checked in at Suite lately.

Suite is purging some articles from their system, about 50,000 articles according to the forums. So far, if any of your articles have been removed, a notice pops up in the message section of your "My Suite" page. As far as I know, email notifications have not been sent out.

The notice provides a link to view your deleted articles, but, so far, the page is blank. To find your deleted articles, you can hover your mouse over the view icon for each article. If the URL starts with an X instead of your regular sub-domain, there is a 95% chance that article has been deleted. Or, you can click on each article and see if it opens.

Just a thought: if you created a "web" of articles when that was recommended, you can end up with links that do not go anywhere.

2011 Year-End Online Writing Summary

2011-12-30T04:54:00.000-08:00

With 2011 drawing to a close, I find myself reflecting on the online writing experience of the past year - on my own online writing adventure. Online writers faced some big changes and upheavals in 2011. Some (now former) "cash cow" sites, where writing quick, easy articles brought in a livable wage, crashed. Search engine changes left many writers who counted on residual earnings based on page views or ad clicks wondering where the readers and the money went.

As part of saying "Goodbye" to an interesting and challenging year, I thought I would offer a review of my online writing experience of this past year.

Paid Surveys

While not actual writing work, I tried a couple of paid survey sites and found them very time intensive for very little pay. Then, with payout around $50 on the sites, I gave up without ever reaching payout. Two thumbs down - waste of time. (Though I did a few surveys on MTurk, and while still time-intensive for low pay, the pay actually came through quickly. So - my suggestion - if you want to do surveys, check out the surveys on MTurk Also, request permissions for the writing jobs, and transcription if you are a good typist. Finally, if you have other better- paying work, it makes sense to only spend fifteen or twenty minutes a day doing the extremely low-paying HITS offered until you get access to some of the higher-paying jobs. You won't get a shot at the higher paying tasks unless you do some, but if you can make more elsewhere it doesn't make sense to invest all of your time making 60 or 70 cents an hour either. Once you have over 100 HITS approved, they open up a few more options for you and over 1,000 even more tasks become available.)

Cloud Sourcing

For the most part, I am not a fan of cloud sourcing. The cloud sourcing sites I tried, MTurk, Cloud Croud, and Clickworker were all legitimate: all actually paid as promised. The problem was, for me, the wages worked out to be dismally low. I had the most success with MTurk after I was approved as a writer for one of their customers. At 2 cents a word, it wasn't getting rich, but the money was there quickly after approval, and so far, nothing has been returned for a rewrite and nothing has been rejected.

Wikio Experts to Overblog

Good while it lasted - current state - gone. The site owners have replaced Wikio with Overblog. Overblog did not hold my interest, but, since Wikio always paid honestly, Overblog is probably worth checking out for those interested in writing for residual-type earnings.

Factoidz

I don't have one bad thing to say about this one. It seems to still be going strong. The pay is not sky-high for general submissions but product reviews pay well, and for a site that pays for page views, the up front payments and activity bonuses are higher than average for an online content site.

Skyword

Another good one. Decent upfront payments. Good residual/page view paymets. Excellent editors. All around good experience. (No clue why I wrote that in non-sentences)

Demand Media Studios

Oh my! What a ride! I somehow managed to ride it out through all of the "layoffs" for lack of a better word, and I'm still writing for the site occasionally, but the titles are down to almost nothing and the editors seem to have upped the ante on unpredictability. They claim to have changes and new formats coming as well. It should be, at least, interesting to ride it out a little longer and see what they have to offer and what they ask.

Suite101

Suite and its writers have taken a really hard hit with the search engine changes this year. It should be interesting to watch as changes unfold over the next few months.

eBooks

eBook writing is moving to the forefront as one of the higher online writing niches. The two eBook publishers I can personally review are Amazon Kindle Direct and Smashwords. I have heard good things about Smashwords, though my own results were tepid. For me, Amazon KDP outperformed Smashwords by about double. My most recent eBook, released December 8th, 2011, is in KDP Select, so it's exclusive to Amazon for 90 days. In exchange they offer the use of some of their best promotional tools. If it proves worthwhile, I'll share more info on that later.

Smartphone Apps

I suspect smartphone app writing will pass eBook writing as the next big earning opportunity for online writers. Google has a drag and drop style app building program to help non-code-writers build their own apps.

Blogging

I really like blogging, but I tend to focus on other paying work rather than add content to my blogs. I know a lot of people make good money blogging, for me, probably because I don't invest enough time in it, the money is not there. I suspect blogs built around supporting or selling a product or membership are far more lucrative than blogs like this one, with occasional posts geared around providing information for writers and nothing actually for sale.

So, I'll close this post, along with the year 2011, by wishing everyone reading here a safe, happy, and prosperous new year.

For Craft How-To Writers

2011-11-26T12:53:00.000-08:00

If you are one of the many creatives who enjoy both crafting and writing, FW media (The Writer's Market parent company) is accepting queries from prospective writers.

The FW company website offers details as to what the query needs to contain in order to be considered, but does not mention pay rates - stating that they will contact writers with contract proposals if interested in their work.

Details about the requirements for Craft Book queries are located here.

For Sci-Fi Writers

2011-11-26T12:16:00.000-08:00

This will eventually be moved to the "Breaking Into Print" page, but for now, this paid writing opportunity (for science fiction writers) will be here, on the OWA home page.

Analog: Science Fiction and Fact accepts manuscript submissions though an online form on their website.

According to the Analog website, "Analog pays 6-8 cents per word for short stories up to 7,500 words, $450-600 for stories between 7,500 and 10,000 words, and 5-6 cents per word for longer material. We prefer lengths between 2,000 and 7,000 words for shorts, 10,000-20,000 words for novelettes, and 40,000-80,000 for serials. Fact articles are paid for at the rate of 6 cents per word."

If you check it out and have any luck, be sure to stop back here and motivate everyone by sharing your success.

Is it Contract Change Season?

2011-11-13T06:53:00.000-08:00

Heads up DMS writers who have not logged in at Demand this weekend: just a couple of days after Yahoo Contributor Network's contract change, Demand Media Studios is following on their heels.

While coercing workers into agreeing to a new contract under the threat of no longer being permitted to work hinges on the unethical under any circumstances, legal or not, at least in comparison to Examiner about a year ago and now YCN, DMS had the grace to give writers a heads-up so it would not be a total surprise when logging in.

They have an announcment up on the writer's dashboard stating that all writers are to log out Monday morning for site updates, after which it will be required that writers accept the new contract terms or they will not be able to access the dashboard.

In other words, if you don't agree, you're fired. I know they don't technically "hire" their writers, but since you have to apply and be accepted, then apply for each special project, and they offer insurance and benefits in the form of Demand Deals discounted merchandise, the terms hired and fired fit the situation.

In closing, I do plan to agree because I can't really foresee any reason not to "sign", since you sign away all rights to your work when DMS buys it anyway. As long as they pay the amount they offer on the day they say it will be there, I don't see what difference it makes; maybe if you wrote revshare articles for them, but as I understand they are not doing any eHow right now, so revshare would be off the table anyway.

Yahoo Contributor Network's New Contributor Contract

2011-11-10T20:51:00.000-08:00

I haven't logged in at YCN for a few days, and when I tried to log in tonight (November 10, 2011) I was greeted with a message about the new contributor contract. Basically - if contributors do not agree to the terms of the new contract, they can no longer log into their accounts.

Since I have not noticed this conversation anywhere else on the Internet yet, I thought I would post about it here.

The terms are in my opinion, as is customary for these user-generated sites, pretty one-sided. So, while not unusual, check them over closely before agreeing. You will be giving up some of your existing rights if you agree, but you will not be able to access your account if you do not agree. (My apologies for adding that part twice.)

Paid Tweeting

2011-11-09T17:25:00.000-08:00

If you have heard about people making money on Twitter, and wondered, hey, how do they do that? One way is by posting paid tweets.

A number of sites offer paid tweeting opportunities, and while I have not checked out very many of them, I would like to share information about Sponsored Tweets. (That is an affiliate link, by the way, just so you know and don't feel later like I am trying to trick you.)

How Much Does it Pay?

Sponsored Links advertisers offer pay according to what they are willing to pay per click, anywhere from a penny or two on up, and some offer pay simply for posting. (You have to read through the details of each offer to know which type you are agreeing to tweet.)

You also are offered a suggested price per tweet when you sign up, that price is based upon the number of Twitter followers you have. The site then sends you offers from advertisers based on the price you select.

Keep the Spam in the Small Can

My personal recommendation is to be sparing with paid tweeting, and also try to choose ads to tweet that are similar to your other posts, so you don't alienate your Twitter followers by making them feel like you are simply spamming them.

Happy Friday

2011-10-28T09:11:00.000-07:00

Hi All,

I'm just popping in on this beautiful sunny day to say "Hi."

I'm planning a busy weekend as far as writing and am looking forward to it in spite of it being a work weekend, and want to wish everyone a fun, productive, and safe weekend.

Have a great one!

Sites Scamming Writers

2011-10-19T21:21:00.000-07:00

Have you ever been checking out writing sites, or work from home sites, and just known you were looking at a bold scam? Some of them are pretty obvious, especially the ones that tell you you can write one letter and make over $200,000 from it. Would it be cool if it were true? Sure, who couldn't use a few thousand extra dollars for a page of writing? Is it realistic? Um, not so much.

That's what we, as writers need to ask ourselves when we come across sites making big promises. Some of the scams are not as obvious as the one mentioned above. In reality, most are probably not that obvious. However, if it sounds too good to be true, or plays to your vanity, or your even your need for quick cash for living expenses, take a breath and check it out before you give them, well, anything.

Before you invest yourself in a site's program, see what you can find out about the site. Compare it to similar sites. Is that the exciting way to approach things? Not so much, but take it from someone who had to learn the hard way when it came to spotting scams, if you can avoid getting burnt by an unethical scam site, you'll be glad you made that extra effort.

Another Algorhythm Change?

2011-10-14T18:28:00.000-07:00

How many Panda slaps can online writers take? Sounds like the start of a joke, right? Well, it's no joke. Apparently another blow came to the online world either late last night or early this morning, and the big content sites witnessed page views plunging not only to the floor, but way down into the pits of the basement.

How Did the Main Content Sites Fare?

If you check the current Alexa charts for some of the bigger sites, Suite101 and HubPages got hit pretty hard. Demand Media Studios is down a bit, but, like before, hardly any damage compared to the others. My own Suite101 views dropped by around 90% today, and from the look of the chatter in the forums there as well as the Alexa charts, it's almost across the board.

Strange Coincidences?

Okay, I like a good conspiracy theory, and before I proceed I want to point out that this next part is theory, or maybe educated guess - not fact.

It's interesting timing that Demand dumped all of their eHow titles, leaving many, many, many of their writers at a total loss for work a few days before Panda swiped its paw again, and also a bit odd that they were the least affected in terms of lost page views from searches. The timing makes it look as if they knew big changes were coming and wanted to cut their losses as quickly as possible.

Maybe online writers should start watching to see what DMS does, and if they make a big change, the writers will have a clue another algorhythm change is about to hit.?

Edited on Sunday October 16, 2011

Hi again, I'm back to leave an update on this, at least on my Suite page views since I specifically listed them as an example. Compared to yesterday, the page views have slightly more than doubled, compared to last Sunday, well, it's a pretty sad comparison. So - slight increase today - not could be better, a lot better.

Wikio to OverBlog Transition

2011-10-04T06:48:00.000-07:00

I have been checking in at the Wikio site everyday since they announced the big switch-over. I wasn't planning to make the switch-over, but I've been watching my pennies slowly add up on the Wikio revenue page and knew, even though it's not a lot, I would never see the money if I didn't make the switch. (At least, it's very unlikely since there is no way to click the invoicing button if you can't get to the page where it is. Also, I wanted to be able to dish on the new site and what it's like.)

The transition was pretty simple. You select your subdomain name, if you're a Suite writer you already know about that stuff, read a long page of legalese to set up the blog. (By the way, they claim full rights to your blog posts, pictures, and anything you post.) Then you go to another page of legalese (completely written in French so some of us have to use a translator tool to read it)where it describes the monetization of your work. They actually post the formula for calculating your earnings, so there is some transparency there that you don't get with other sites.

"The remuneration is therefore calculated in accordance with the popularity of the Blog using the following formula:

Popularity= popularity ranking based on the [system for analysing traffic on the Blog]/100 * Rate of advertising coverage * Unique visitors/1000

Gross remuneration = Popularity * CPM" (Directly quoted from the contract as translated by Google translator.)

At the end of the switchover process, a message pops up saying that access to OverBlog will be granted in a couple of hours, so while you can look around the site, you can't immediately get into your account.

I actually think the site has some potential, and while I don't plan to invest a lot of time there, I do plan to post once a week or maybe once a month while I am making my final assessment of OverBlog.

(I seem to be having a typo day today, so to anyone who read this when it was fresh - sorry about that.)

Snipsly Review

2011-10-03T22:00:00.000-07:00

With a cutesy name and a big and transparent rev-share cut for writers, Snipsly is probably a site you will be hearing a lot about in the future.

They make it easy to post. Article length is fairly short; after you get the first article approved. Links you post in your articles there are dofollow, so you can link back to your blog or to your other online work.

The site is set up so it's easy to find the rules and information, though the rules recently changed and I'm not certain everything has been updated yet.

Page views and earnings are recorded through your Google Analytics account, so if you want to sign up at Snipsly and earn anything, you will need one of those. If you just want to sign up to build some backlinks or write about a topic you are passionate about, you could get by without one, but really, why miss out on a chance to earn money, if you are trying to earn a living as a writer? (Sorry about that run-on.)

Review of Amazon's Mechanical Turk

2011-09-26T19:07:00.000-07:00

Mechanical Turk, also called MTurk, is Amazon's cloud sourcing work/project site.

MTurk is similar to Facebook's Cloud Crowd and also to the German-owned ClickWorker cloud sourcing sites.

MTurk workers have to pass simple tests and maintain approval ratings by doing acceptable work, in order to be paid a few cents for simple human intelligence tasks, or HITs.

I found getting started to be really frustrating, my HITs kept timing out while I read the directions and a lot of the graphics would not load on my antiquated pc. I ended up earning two cents for my first two hours there. (That's right, two cents for two hours. I almost didn't log back in, but I'm glad I did, I happened on an easy - and interesting - series of HITs and, while still dismal as far as a per hour rate, did make a couple bucks in about 30 minutes.)

A few of the tasks were writing HITs, paying about 25 cents per 50+ words or less, so I would not recommend MTurk as a place a writer will want to hang out for too long if you have any better paying gigs.

If, however, you have been hit hard by negative changes in the online writing world, MTurk is a place where you can earn a little bit of money.

Redgage Review

2011-09-20T20:43:00.000-07:00

I'm not much of a social networker. I wish I were, my life as a writer would be easier and more profitable if I had that social gift. Redgage is making it easier for me to get into the networking trend.

I've have been reading about Redgage for a long time, a couple of years actually. I signed up months ago and still didn't really do anything there. It took a long time for me to decide to give it a try.

The first thing I discovered when I finally posted, even though the site kind be kind of glitchy, it's fun. I started posting links to my blog posts and articles, and quickly moved into adding photos.

Rating other's work is also kind of fun, though optional. I have never given anyone less than a five star rating, but then, only if they deserve it. If they don't deserve five stars, I just go on to the next photo, link, or blog post. (I operate on the "If you can't say anything nice, don't say anything" theory when it comes to Redgage ratings.)

I only have a couple hundred "friends" there compared to my 500+ Twitter friends, but they are great and actually pop in to leave comments and ratings on my posts while I rarely hear any real communication from my Twitter friends. (I do the same for them - aside from it being fun, it's just the polite thing to do.)

It's even kind of fun watching the pennies add up in my Redgage account. Does it pay anything like "real work"? No, but someday I'll reach payout and buy myself something special - for $25 or less.

Another thing I notice, when I run my sites through the backlink checker tool, I have a lot more backlinks than I had before I started posting links to my blog posts on Redgage.

Finally, I have also noticed increased traffic to my sites and my articles coming from Redgage. I have to say I recommend Redgage as a blog promotion tool, and a social networking opportunity, though, if you are looking at it for the money, it's probably going to take a long while to earn any.

Making Money As a Post-Panda Online Writer

2011-09-17T20:13:00.000-07:00

This post goes out to those writers who, like me, found it pretty easy to scrape together a decent living as a writer before Panda slapped down the sites that paid reliably.

I can't say I have all the answers about how to recover, but I have made a couple of observations.

My first observation is, the paying work is still out there, but it takes longer and more effort to earn decent wages. Gone, at least for me, are the 15 minute = $15 articles. (Those were rare for me anyway because I am admittedly a slow and usually contemplative writer, except for when I'm blogging.) Now I end up spending a whole hour, or longer, on the same articles I casually breezed through in the pre-panda days.

My next observation is, the SEO information I spent hours upon hours upon hours learning, means very little right now, at least to the content sites that used to beg for lots of SEO - oops - I should have written keyword stuffing not lots of SEO.

I resisted taking on private clients for a long time, mainly because the work for content mills was there - well, everywhere - and it was so easy.

I suspect, for right now, private clients and business writing is the way to go for writers who want to jump back up to pre-panda earnings. Feel free to check out the job board here on this site, there are also some great Yahoo groups for freelance writers, with job leads shared regularly via some of the groups.

Good-Bye Wikio Experts, Hello OverBlog?

2011-09-01T19:22:00.000-07:00

Another good writing site bites the dust. Ignore my earlier post about writing for Wikio Experts.

The site sent out emails today informing writers that Wikio is closing and articles will be transferred to the OverBlog site. I won't waste your time by posting the entire message. It is already posted on several other sites anyway. If anyone wants to see it, however, leave a message and I'll get it to you.

Upfront payments are gone. Even articles already claimed and in writer's queues will no longer earn an upfront payment.

Joel, the moderator in Wikio forums, is promising this is going to be a positive change, with writers pleasantly surprised when the details are released.

Added, he did stress that the kind of writers they want are the writers who write for the love of writing rather than the love of money; and writing there should be about enjoying writing rather than for work.

I checked out OverBlog, and found the details to be a bit sketchy. I guess they are in flux along with Wikio Experts.

Without the rest of the details, I cannot see much point in continuing with the site, or continuing to encourage others to sign up. I recommend moving into wait-and-see mode when it comes to this site. It could turn out worthwhile, but it is too early to tell.

When further details are released, I will share as quickly as possible for those of you who are interested.

Review of Wikio Experts

2011-08-25T19:05:00.000-07:00

I'm a little late popping in with my review of Wikio Experts, but here it is...

Wikio HQ is located in France, writers are asked to use UK spelling and gear articles toward a UK audience. The pay, via PayPal, is in Euros. SEO for the site is as simple as including at least 3 keywords (provided) in a natural (not keyword-stuffed) writing style.

My one warning (just to get it out of the way): Wikio is a site where some writers recommend using a pen name due to some "creative" editing. I personally have not found any errors added to my articles, though I have not checked all of them.

With the warning out of the way, the rest is all good. Writing for Wikio is an all-around pleasant experience. The pay is decent. In my experience, most articles are accepted without a hitch. The editors, when a rare rewrite is needed, are friendly and helpful.

While I am not personally a fast writer (I wish did have the gift of fast writing and typing) Some of the sites writers claim to earn an enviable hourly rate.)

If interested in applying to Wikio, I invite you to apply through this link. (After you sign up, if accepted, they will give you your own link to share.)

Setting Up Your Own Writing Center for Kids

2011-07-27T11:55:00.000-07:00

I think setting up a writing center for kids is a great idea, and I enjoyed Arvin T's approach to the topic. Making writing (or learning to write) a positive, exciting experience gives children an extra opportunity to express themselves creatively, and that is (almost) always a good thing.

Author: Arvin T

If you want your child to express his or herself fully, then you should help him boost his writing skills while he or she is still at a young age. Setting up a writing center that will be focused solely on teaching kids the basics of writing is just what the doctor ordered. Getting your child involved in some writing lessons will help them develop their writing skills as well as showing them the tools that they need in order to become an effective writer. Take note that the activities in your writing center should be structured on the fundamentals of writing and not the advanced stuff since you are catering to kids after all.

To start off, you can have your first writing lesson become focused on how to properly hold a pencil, crayon or any other writing instrument. They won't be able to write effectively if they do not know how to hold a pencil correctly, so this must never be overlooked. After this is done you can let your next writing class be about grammar and the proper usage of words. They should also have a very well rounded understanding on the concepts of writing and the processes involved with it. You should also remember to incorporate some fun filled writing activities to help them work on their creative thinking.

Finally, for the last lessons you can challenge them by letting them construct their own sentences and let them make use of the knowledge they have acquired. You can make them start off by letting them write down some short sentences at first. You can make this activity more rewarding by offering a prize to the one who does well. You should let the lesson progress by making them write longer sentences as time goes on. This will make sure that they do not remain stagnant when trying to form their own sentences.

The idea of setting up your own writing center may not seem much at first, but it can really help you and your kids in a big way. Kids need all the writing help that they can get, and remember that you are not only doing it for yourself, but for them as well.

Article Source: http://www.articlesbase.com/writing-articles/setting-up-your-own-writing-center-for-kids-4609136.html

About the Author

Arvin T

The Wonders of Writing Classes

2011-07-25T11:49:00.000-07:00

I believe even the most experienced writers can benefit from the experience of taking a writing class. Sometimes (in my humble opinion) it isn't about learning how to write as much as the dynamics of the class and the feedback you get from peers and your instructor.

Author: Arvin T

Anyone who has ever dreamed of becoming a writer knows that the road to being a success in the world of literature is not an easy one. You need to have all the necessary tools and know how in order to be a good writer, but how do you get all of these much needed skills? Well the answer to that is pretty simple…enroll in a writing center to learn more about the important tools of the trade. If you are feeling a bit hesitant in doing this, well don't be because there's nothing to fear here. In fact, it could be one of the smartest decisions that you make in your life.

Taking up a few lessons from a writing class can really do so many wonders for you and your writing skills. The writing lessons in this institution include the proper use of grammar, improving your word selection, proper sentence construction, and proper organization of your composition's content. You will also get to interact with your tutors and fellow students and share new ideas with them. This can really help rejuvenate your passion for writing and even inspire you to transcend the boundaries that you have set for yourself.

You might be saying that enrolling in a writing center might be too expensive for you, but it is actually not. The price for enrolling in one is actually pretty reasonable and the benefits it can give you will pretty much outweigh the risks. And why would you say no to something that is not only educational, but can also help you become better at what you do? Whenever education is involved, then you can be sure that you have made a very good choice.

A little writing help never hurt anybody and you will actually be pretty glad that you decided to invest your time and money in a writing center. All good writers have a plethora of opportunities that await them in the future. This is why enhancing your skills by taking up writing classes can become one of your keys towards a more successful future.

Article Source: http://www.articlesbase.com/writing-articles/the-wonders-of-writing-classes-4572595.html

About the Author

Arvin T

Suite101: Page Rank Back Up to 7

2011-07-23T14:23:00.000-07:00

After Panda's smack-down, I noticed Suite101's page rank had dropped to PR6 from its former PR7. I was sad to see it, but not at all surprised given the stats I was seeing on my Suite101 MySuite page and everything I was reading in the forums.

Now, I know page rank isn't everything, but it does tell a story in a sense. Its story was that Suite was on a down-trend. So, I can't help but feel a bit pleased to see that Suite101 seems to be on the right track and has regained its PR7 ranking. I think the changes at Suite have been positive for the most part, even though I have to admit I previously had some doubts as to whether the site could possibly recover.

I'm actually really excited now to see where the site goes next, because they seem to be on the right track. Revs, at least for some writers, are back to pre-Panda levels, so that's good news, too, at least for some Suitees.

SUITE101.COM UNVEILS SITE REDESIGN TO` BETTER SERVE WRITERS.: An article from: Online Product News

Website Content Writing - Avoid These 4 Pitfalls

2011-07-23T11:43:00.000-07:00

Author: C.A. Perez

So, you have decided to become an article writer. You have learned some of the skills for website content writing: how to do research and come up with original articles. You know the basics in terms of structure and style. There is always room for improvement when it comes to content for your website or your blog. This article shows website content writers and blog writers how to avoid four often overlooked pitfalls.

As an article writer you cannot just put in whatever you want. As a writer, you must be aware of what the reader wants to read when they go over the article. If they see things that they find to be inappropriately placed in the article, they will most likely scrap it and move on to find another that better fits their expectations.

Avoid these four simple oversights when writing your website or blog content:

Unsupported Facts

Details will always be present in an article. Many article writers include details that are not supported by research. In short, they include anything. Readers want to read something that is credible. After all, what's the use of reading when the information you find is plain useless.

Poor Outline

Do you want your reader to feel lost? If your article jumps from one topic or idea to another, your reader will soon tire and go elsewhere. His brain will be on overload trying to make sense of an incoherent article. I'm sure you would not want that.

Poorly Constructed Sentences

One of the basic skills of a writer is, of course, sentence construction. This means that a writer must know how to create sentences, spell words and observe parallelism. Sentence construction is important, as it is the main tool in getting the message across to the readers. If in the first few sentences, the structure is already difficult to understand, the reader will find no use in reading the entire article.

Using Big Words

Surprisingly, most readers read at the fifth to sixth grade level. Using big words that require a dictionary definition will quickly lose your reader. In a short 300-700 article, who wants to stop and get a dictionary to understand you? Not many! Samuel Johnson wrote, "Do not accustom yourself to use big words little matters." That is good advice.

As you gain more experience in article writing you will become aware of many more things that readers do not want to see. Stop and smell the roses, pay attention. Visit writing forums or sign up for a writing course. You are never too old to learn. Avoid the pitfalls mentioned and increase your readership.

Article Source: http://www.articlesbase.com/article-marketing-articles/website-content-writing-avoid-these-4-pitfalls-1808869.html

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Shorten your learning curve, act now read this website content writing review.
Learn more about how to write articles for your website or your blog visit, http://article-writing.newbie-info.com/

4 Steps to Using Links Wisely in Persuasive Online Writing

2011-07-15T08:14:00.000-07:00

Author: James Edward Bond

Since I have begun using more links in my online writing, I find myself facing a dilemma. Since, I want to earn my reader's respect and show them respect by at least acknowledging the existence of views contrary to my own. I find myself wanting to provide easy access to a lot of information but at the same time not wanting to drive traffic to issues, opinions, or beliefs that run contrary to my views.

I hadn't given this much thought until I was conducting research with my wife this weekend. We were checking political websites and noticed how the links in articles of several blogs only linked to information that supported the views of the author. What got to me is that these where issues that were reported on in both very partisan and non-partisan ways.

Whether I agreed with the point of view or not, on websites that only had a circle of rhetoric I felt the author was insulting my intelligence and presenting a closed minded view of the issue at hand. My point is that there are ways of linking to neutral sources and then compelling an individual to see things your way, using argument and analysis of information. Doing this effectively presents your work as being well thought out and researched. It will also help your work speak to persons who are on the fence on the particular issue being discussed.

Here are 4 steps to make you persuasive online writing more effective.

Limit your links: What I have found, to work best with the types of articles I write (generally between 300-800 words) is to have no more than 3 links in the body of the article. To many links distract from your message and interrupt the flow as you are making your case.
Show opposition first: I always include neutral or opposition views first. This gives plenty of time to help the reader see things your way. It also helps send the subconscious message that …The initial point of makes sense in the beginning. But, after thoughtful analysis they discover that your way of thinking is more correct.
Give your view universal appeal: After providing your argument, belief, or feeling you want to link to information that expands on and supports your point of view… from varying perspectives. Take a look at who shares your view and choose two sources that make your view as universal as possible. For instance if you find support for you argument coming from a senior lobby, college students, labor unions, and local PTA, college professors, and local business. Mention them all and link to two groups that are as different as possible.
Appearance Counts: While websites certainly don't have to be flashy and sometimes (due to loading times) flashy ones are less desirable. Ensure the links you chose present your case in a way that can be heard by your audience. As you build an audience for your work it is important to keep them in mind when writing or linking information.

Article Source: http://www.articlesbase.com/non-fiction-articles/4-steps-to-using-links-wisely-in-persuasive-online-writing-2860406.html

About the Author

James Bond lives in Southern California with his wife Janka and cat Wyatt. He works with a community college district as a coordinator of student activities. JamesandJanka also provide advice to couples on communication techniques and activities to increase intimacy in relationships.

How To Compare Online Writing Courses

2011-07-14T08:11:00.000-07:00

Author: Martin Woodchild

If you have an interest in a career as a writer, it can be useful to check out a selection of online writing courses with the aim of choosing a program that allows you to boost your skills and knowledge. To take up employment as a professional writer, you do not necessarily need to have studied English at a higher level, in fact many of today's most well known writers and journalists never set foot inside a college or university.
Online classes obviously have a number of inherent benefits. For instance, you may be able to study at a time of your choosing, it is often more productive to learn and study from the comfort of your own home, and usually a program conducted over the net would incur less of an expense than those run at bricks and mortar institutions.
Today it is possible to choose an internet based course relating to almost any aspect of writing. If you already have some experience and would like to hone your skills, you should not have too much difficulty in finding a class which is suitable. Likewise, if you have little or no experience of the art of writing, there are plenty of courses available aimed at beginners.
Before you sign up for a program, and make any payment, you should be clear on your exact requirements and desires. Consider exactly what you want to get out of the course. The following advice should help you in signing up for classes that provide you with the type of experience that you are after.
Instead of using a search engine to randomly locate an assortment of courses, search specialist writing websites and forums for information on quality programs. Once you have made a note of a dozen or so possible options, you should then carefully go over the course description and syllabus of each so that you can identify which programs are to your liking. If the program does not cover the topics that you want, do not waste your time by signing up, there will be plenty of others that may be more suitable.
Find out about the tutors. What experience do the instructors have, and what are there qualifications? It would be preferable to opt for a program wherein the tutors have spent time working as professional writers.
Request information as to whether there are any special requirements. For instance, you may be required to do a set amount of researching, as well as submitting essays on a regular basis. It is usually beneficial to choose a course through which feedback is given. Always be wary about signing up for classes that are all one-way, the best learning is always interactive.
If the body running the online writing course has high standards they should be willing to offer a money back guarantee to new students. Prior to enrolling, ask for information relating to whether or not you can get a refund if the course does not live up to your expectations, or if for some reason you are not able to continue with the classes.
Article Source: http://www.articlesbase.com/article-marketing-articles/how-to-compare-online-writing-courses-4738051.html
About the Author

Check out the best online writing courses and find out how to make money from creative writing.

Seven Ways To Get Traffic And Sell Your eBook

2011-07-13T08:26:00.000-07:00

Author: Britt Malka

You need traffic to sell your eBook.

Can you imagine an empty book store… How many books do you think they'll sell? Let's just pretend that this is the old days where nobody had home pages or could sell anything online.

No visitors means no customers and no sales.

So how can you get traffic to your virtual book store?

Here are seven neat ways you can get traffic to your site and sell your eBook.

1. Record Your Book

"Are you crazy?"

I bet that's what you're thinking right now, but I can assure you that I'm not. What's more important here is that Scott Sigler isn't crazy, either. In fact, he's a best selling author, and he started by giving away his books as audio books. He still does, by the way, and it hasn't stopped him from selling huge piles of printed books at the same time.

By giving away his books as audio files, he got fans. And fans are buyers. They are REGULAR buyers. They love you, and you probably love them back.

2. Make Videos

Videos spread like wild fire. People love to watch a short video on YouTube or Viddler, if they can be either amused or learn something new.

If you can make videos related to your eBook, you can obtain visitors. And visitors mean potential buyers. Just remember to make it easy for them to purchase from you. Give them a nice, big juicy "Buy Now" button.

3. Use Social Book Marking

It all started out as book marking tools, but they became social, and instead of every man for himself book marks, we all share our best pages with each other.

You wouldn't book mark lousy pages, would you?

Nah, neither would I, and we've come to expect a site found among another person's book marks to be more interesting than a result that pops up in Google.

Use services like Stumble Upon, Diigolet, Blink, and plenty of others to book mark your pages with, and let the traffic come.

4. Write On Twitter And Facebook

Some people love Twitter, others love Facebook.

It doesn't matter if you hate either of them. Use them both!

Give tips from your book or related to your eBook, and point people to your sales page.

5. Pay Per Click

Pay for visitors… Yes, it's possible. It's not a solution I like myself, but a lot of people enjoy a vast success with AdWords and other Pay Per Click services.

6. Write Articles

Aaaah… My favourite. As a writer, I love to write articles, and you should do the same. Submit your articles to article directories such as ArticlesBase, Ezine Articles, Street Articles, and others.

As a reward, you are allowed to use keywords as anchor text for a link to your sales page. Your articles could be seen by thousands of people, if they are well written and relevant. You can get incredible amounts of targeted traffic from article directories. And it just keeps coming, sometimes years after you've submitted the article.

7. Use Your Signature

This is just SO simple and effective, and yet so people use it.

Every time you send out an email, don't just write "Regards, Your Name". Add a line with a link to your sales page or blog. You'll be amazed and surprised to learn how many people actually use your link and visits your site.

I guess curiosity is a strong motivator.
Article Source: http://www.articlesbase.com/ebooks-articles/seven-ways-to-get-traffic-and-sell-your-ebook-4920351.html
About the Author

But wait!
Before you send traffic to your sales page, you need to know how to cash in the money people are supposed to pay for your book.
Learn how to sell your eBook with my free report "How To Sell eBooks" from http://sellyourebook.in/free/