I've found some great websites that are specifically here to help you find freelancing work whether it be article writing, editing, proofreading, ghost writing, customer service, graphic designing, or virtual assistants. No matter what sort of online work you are looking for, these websites may be able to help you in your quest for work!
Rat Race Rebellion - This website has work at home jobs for almost anyone! Some of their job listings include: accountants, bloggers, mystery shoppers, medical transcriptionists, call centers, courthouse researchers, and more.
Freelance Writing Gigs - This is for the writers out there. Each day, they post listings of various job leads for journalists, bloggers, article writers, and proofreaders. The majority of the job leads are found on Craigslist but are for anyone wanting to work from home.
Fancy Hands - This is a job listing for virtual assistants. Jobs are posted and it may be something as simple as setting up reservations for someone or researching a product online. It's typically some very simple tasks that busy people just don't have time to do.
Remember, even when websites say that the job leads are legit, you should always make sure that you protect yourself. Always get prices and terms in writing and keep copies of your emails just in case you need them to prove that an agreement was made. Trust your instincts and research the company if you have to. Don't accept any job that you are not comfortable with or that you feel does not pay enough. It is your time and your hard work at stake, make it worth it and make it count!
Showing posts with label freelance writing. Show all posts
Showing posts with label freelance writing. Show all posts
Wednesday, February 15, 2012
Wednesday, December 28, 2011
Advice for New Freelance Writers
If you are just venturing into the world of freelance writing, there are some things that you should do to prepare yourself.
The first thing you should do is figure out how long it would take you to research and write an article, both 300 words and 500 words. This will be just so you can know how many articles you would be able to write in an hour. Make sure that you give yourself enough time when applying for writing jobs. I had a job offer today where they were expecting me to write 4- 350 word articles in an hour. Yeah, I'm sure I could do it, but they would be shotty articles because I wouldn't have the time to do the proper research and proof read everything a few times.
The next thing you should do, is figure out what the smallest amount is that you are willing to take for your time and effort into writing an article. I am bringing this to your attention because I am seeing too many writers selling themselves short. When you are applying for jobs on freelance websites such as elance and odesk, be sure to know what your hourly rate would be. I've seen job posts where some clients are only offering $1 for a 500 word article. Seriously? My time is worth a lot more than that, and if the topic is something that needs researched, it is going to take even more time to search and read through material. I can't believe that so many people are willing to work for such a tiny amount, or that clients or buyers expect writers to put all kinds of work into an article, for mere pennies. If you are a good writer, you are worth more money!
If you are going to try out one of the freelance websites I have posted about, make sure that you know what to say when you apply for a job. Unfortunately, there are lot of other writers out there who are applying for the same job and are willing to work for pennies per article, however their articles may not be of very good quality. When you apply for freelance jobs, be sure to list any experience that you have, whether it be blogging, guest blogging on other blogs, other freelance writing gigs you have done, any college courses you may have taken, and what your areas of expertise are in. Also, always make sure to give them an example of your work. If you have never done any freelance writing, go practice by writing a few articles. Pick a subject and then write about it. Always have something to show in your portfolio. Most freelancing websites provide a way for you to upload articles to put in your portfolio or profile. Also, if the job listing includes what subjects they need articles about, or how many hours per day, be sure to include something of the same nature in your application letter.
Also, never write a specific article for someone as a test. I've had people contact me telling me, "write a 300 word article on Ohio Real Estate (ok, I made the Ohio Real Estate thing up, just as an example), for a test and then I will decide if I want to hire you." Errrrrrrrrr, hit the brakes! This is a great way for them to get a free article out of you. Don't waste your time on something you don't even know if you are going to get paid for.
Once you begin producing quality articles, clients will begin noticing you. Don't expect to get a bunch of jobs immediately, it may take time; just be patient and write your butt off!
The first thing you should do is figure out how long it would take you to research and write an article, both 300 words and 500 words. This will be just so you can know how many articles you would be able to write in an hour. Make sure that you give yourself enough time when applying for writing jobs. I had a job offer today where they were expecting me to write 4- 350 word articles in an hour. Yeah, I'm sure I could do it, but they would be shotty articles because I wouldn't have the time to do the proper research and proof read everything a few times.
The next thing you should do, is figure out what the smallest amount is that you are willing to take for your time and effort into writing an article. I am bringing this to your attention because I am seeing too many writers selling themselves short. When you are applying for jobs on freelance websites such as elance and odesk, be sure to know what your hourly rate would be. I've seen job posts where some clients are only offering $1 for a 500 word article. Seriously? My time is worth a lot more than that, and if the topic is something that needs researched, it is going to take even more time to search and read through material. I can't believe that so many people are willing to work for such a tiny amount, or that clients or buyers expect writers to put all kinds of work into an article, for mere pennies. If you are a good writer, you are worth more money!
If you are going to try out one of the freelance websites I have posted about, make sure that you know what to say when you apply for a job. Unfortunately, there are lot of other writers out there who are applying for the same job and are willing to work for pennies per article, however their articles may not be of very good quality. When you apply for freelance jobs, be sure to list any experience that you have, whether it be blogging, guest blogging on other blogs, other freelance writing gigs you have done, any college courses you may have taken, and what your areas of expertise are in. Also, always make sure to give them an example of your work. If you have never done any freelance writing, go practice by writing a few articles. Pick a subject and then write about it. Always have something to show in your portfolio. Most freelancing websites provide a way for you to upload articles to put in your portfolio or profile. Also, if the job listing includes what subjects they need articles about, or how many hours per day, be sure to include something of the same nature in your application letter.
Also, never write a specific article for someone as a test. I've had people contact me telling me, "write a 300 word article on Ohio Real Estate (ok, I made the Ohio Real Estate thing up, just as an example), for a test and then I will decide if I want to hire you." Errrrrrrrrr, hit the brakes! This is a great way for them to get a free article out of you. Don't waste your time on something you don't even know if you are going to get paid for.
Once you begin producing quality articles, clients will begin noticing you. Don't expect to get a bunch of jobs immediately, it may take time; just be patient and write your butt off!
Friday, July 22, 2011
Zemandi: Getting Paid to Write
Since Demand Studio's list of article topics have grown quite boring and none of them seem to be anything that I have enough knowledge of, I have been looking for other places to write for money. I read a bit about Zemandi and decided to check it out. So far, I am not impressed. First of all, you have to request that an article topic be sent to your email, then you have to go check your email and decide if it is something you wish to write about or not. If you don't want to write the article, you have to go back to the Zemandi website to decline it, and then put in the article number. Seems like a lot of wasted time to me. You have your choice of writing content, review, or blog article. A few assignments I received in the mail were for me to write for free so that they could get an idea of what writing level I am at (isn't this why most places just ask for articles you have already written), or they are 450+ word articles for $2.50. Really? Even though I am pretty desperate for money, I do value my time a bit more than that. Most of the articles are mundane and uninteresting things to write about on top of the no/low pay. It may be a good place for new writers to start off at and dip their toes into the writing world, but I don't know if you can generate a decent amount of money.
Have any of you worked for Zemandi? Is there potential there? Is it worth writing an article for no or low pay to get to the better paying articles? Please feel free to comment and give us your input!
Have any of you worked for Zemandi? Is there potential there? Is it worth writing an article for no or low pay to get to the better paying articles? Please feel free to comment and give us your input!
Monday, February 28, 2011
Writer's Access
Here's another opportunity for the writers out there. Writeraccess.com is somewhat like Demand Studios where you can choose the articles that you would like to write. When you register with writer access, you have to submit a few articles that you have written in order to receive your writer level. The prospective articles will then be listed by level and you will be able to choose from any articles on your level or below, but not above your level.
I submitted a few articles that I have written for Demand Studios in the past. If you have read my blog or work for Demand, you know that some of the editors can be very picky and there are specific guidelines that you must follow in order to have your article approved for publication. With that said, writer access only gave me a level 3 for my writing. Not bad, but the 4s and 5s get paid significantly more for articles. The application process is a bit tedious, as you are expected to give a specific number of articles you have written and been paid for around a certain topic, which can prove to be very time consuming (plus honestly, I haven't kept track of how many articles I have written around one specific subject).
I have not had much luck with this website for a few reasons. First of all, most of the articles are 4s or 5s, however even when they are level 3 articles they are typically snatched up pretty quickly. Also, article are not always available and the que is cleared out rather fast. They send out emails when there are articles available, however they send them out to all of the levels, so I've wasted a lot of time logging in to browse through the que only to have none in my level. The emails also seem to be sent out around 5am est, so by the time I open the email, the majority of the articles have already been taken.
So, I basically have no way of increasing my writing level because I can't get any articles unless I am up and online at 5am (which I am not!). Even though I haven't had much luck with this website, I wanted to pass the word along in case anyone else wants to give it a try. If you have had an experience, good or bad, with writer access, feel free to leave a comment and tell me about it!
I submitted a few articles that I have written for Demand Studios in the past. If you have read my blog or work for Demand, you know that some of the editors can be very picky and there are specific guidelines that you must follow in order to have your article approved for publication. With that said, writer access only gave me a level 3 for my writing. Not bad, but the 4s and 5s get paid significantly more for articles. The application process is a bit tedious, as you are expected to give a specific number of articles you have written and been paid for around a certain topic, which can prove to be very time consuming (plus honestly, I haven't kept track of how many articles I have written around one specific subject).
I have not had much luck with this website for a few reasons. First of all, most of the articles are 4s or 5s, however even when they are level 3 articles they are typically snatched up pretty quickly. Also, article are not always available and the que is cleared out rather fast. They send out emails when there are articles available, however they send them out to all of the levels, so I've wasted a lot of time logging in to browse through the que only to have none in my level. The emails also seem to be sent out around 5am est, so by the time I open the email, the majority of the articles have already been taken.
So, I basically have no way of increasing my writing level because I can't get any articles unless I am up and online at 5am (which I am not!). Even though I haven't had much luck with this website, I wanted to pass the word along in case anyone else wants to give it a try. If you have had an experience, good or bad, with writer access, feel free to leave a comment and tell me about it!
Sunday, January 2, 2011
An Update
Just a heads up, I have a few reviews to get caught up with so those will be coming soon. I had hoped to get caught up over my holiday break from school but I ended up being sick most of the time! Why does that always happen??
I thought I would start out the year with an update on how I am doing with some of the writing places I posted about in 2010.
Demand Studios: Was doing great with them for awhile, had writing assignments to work on every day. Despite the sometimes annoying editor attitudes, I was making money on a regular basis. A few months ago, all of the good titles suddenly disappeared. I was sorting through hundreds and hundreds of mundane titles that I had no interest or knowledge in. The titles are categorized by computers and the computer has not been doing a good job. I search through "health" articles and am flooded with titles about how to fix a car, or fix a plumbing problem. Now, come on, how many auto mechanics do you know that work as freelance writers? Hmmm? I search through animal health and come across topics regarding cat tow motors.. not cats as in felines. I was having a very difficult time finding any article to write about. I would look through the list throughout the day and it was always the same. I couldn't go without making money, so I would end up turning to textbroker or suite 101 to make up for it. I have written only a few articles for Demand over the past few months. I've been very disappointed with them. I suppose I could pick random articles, but I just don't feel comfortable writing about a topic that I don't know a thing about.
Text Broker: Like I mentioned in the above paragraph, I go back to writing for textbroker when I am desperate. Their articles are very low paying, however most of them are 200-300 words and are very easy to write. They don't always have a wide range of articles to choose from, unfortunately and only pay +a month, but they are great for someone just dabbling in freelance writing.
Suite 101: I have 24 articles on Suite 101 so far. I focused most of my time on Demand Studios because I was making immediate money with them, however I think I will start dedicating more time to Suite. I have made payout with them 4 times so far, and each time, the payout has been a little bigger. I know with time to add more articles, this could be a great money earner for me.
Hubpages: I really haven't put a lot of time into hubpages. You really have to find a niche to make money with this website just because it is all based on adsense and amazon earnings. I think people do better with this site if they write articles around a specific item and then link to specific items on amazon. I see a slow increase in my adsense account, but I'm still a long way from payout.
I do have a few new writing places to post about soon, so keep your eyes open and don't forget to subscribe so that you are notified every time I post something new!
Here's to wishing everyone a prosperous 2011!
I thought I would start out the year with an update on how I am doing with some of the writing places I posted about in 2010.
Demand Studios: Was doing great with them for awhile, had writing assignments to work on every day. Despite the sometimes annoying editor attitudes, I was making money on a regular basis. A few months ago, all of the good titles suddenly disappeared. I was sorting through hundreds and hundreds of mundane titles that I had no interest or knowledge in. The titles are categorized by computers and the computer has not been doing a good job. I search through "health" articles and am flooded with titles about how to fix a car, or fix a plumbing problem. Now, come on, how many auto mechanics do you know that work as freelance writers? Hmmm? I search through animal health and come across topics regarding cat tow motors.. not cats as in felines. I was having a very difficult time finding any article to write about. I would look through the list throughout the day and it was always the same. I couldn't go without making money, so I would end up turning to textbroker or suite 101 to make up for it. I have written only a few articles for Demand over the past few months. I've been very disappointed with them. I suppose I could pick random articles, but I just don't feel comfortable writing about a topic that I don't know a thing about.
Text Broker: Like I mentioned in the above paragraph, I go back to writing for textbroker when I am desperate. Their articles are very low paying, however most of them are 200-300 words and are very easy to write. They don't always have a wide range of articles to choose from, unfortunately and only pay +a month, but they are great for someone just dabbling in freelance writing.
Suite 101: I have 24 articles on Suite 101 so far. I focused most of my time on Demand Studios because I was making immediate money with them, however I think I will start dedicating more time to Suite. I have made payout with them 4 times so far, and each time, the payout has been a little bigger. I know with time to add more articles, this could be a great money earner for me.
Hubpages: I really haven't put a lot of time into hubpages. You really have to find a niche to make money with this website just because it is all based on adsense and amazon earnings. I think people do better with this site if they write articles around a specific item and then link to specific items on amazon. I see a slow increase in my adsense account, but I'm still a long way from payout.
I do have a few new writing places to post about soon, so keep your eyes open and don't forget to subscribe so that you are notified every time I post something new!
Here's to wishing everyone a prosperous 2011!
Tuesday, May 18, 2010
Suite101 for writers
Suite 101 is another website to write for when looking for a monthly residual income. Unlike eHow and Hubpages, you have to actually apply with suite101, supplying them with two sample articles that you have written. I got an approval letter from then within 24 hours of submitting my application. With suite101 you can choose to write about whatever you wish, however, they are a bit more strict about things. For instance, if you use a photo in your article you have to supply a photo credit. They also have a specific way they would like the articles to be written to improve key word optimization.
After you have submitted an article to suite101, an editor will read it within a few days (sometimes it may be a week, or so). They may give you suggestions for improving the article. These are only suggestions and do not have to be changed. I did have one article that I wrote and put in too much of my own opinion into it, therefore, they made the article inactive until I was able to re-write it better. As with demandstudios, most of the editors are helpful, but you may still come across one that comes off as being a bit rude or a “know it all”. Being a writer, you have to learn to just let things slide off of your back and not take them too personally.
Also, with suite101 you have to submit a minimum of 10 articles every 3 months. I thought this may be a bit difficult but it hasn’t been so far. I’ve even used some of my rejected demand articles for suite101 with no problems.
Now, I’m not quite sure how this happens, but my suite101 articles seem to get a lot more traffic than any of my articles on hubpages, or eHow. For instance, one of the first articles I wrote on suite was one for St. Patrick’s Day (it was about that time) and within a few days I had over a thousand hits. Last week I wrote one about Cedar Point (an amusement park in Ohio) and when I checked my status a few days ago, I had over 4,000 views!! In only a few days! Even though I’m not at payout yet, I have already accumulated more with suite101 than I have anywhere else, and I have less articles on suite. I’ve read the opposite on other blogs, where some writers earn more with hubpages or eHow than they do with suite. I can’t figure out why. Maybe it all depends on what subject you are writing on! Here are a few sample Suite101 articles that I have written so that you can see what sort of format they are looking for.
Cedar Point in Sandusky, Ohio
In my future posts, I’m going to talk about various ways for promoting your articles, and how to come up with subjects to write on, but don’t worry, even if you are not into writing, I have quite a few other money making tips to share, too.
If you have a facebook page, please do me a big favor and go to the new page I have made for this blog, “Like” it, and invite your friends! I can use all of the help I can get. Crazed Mama's Facebook Fan Page
Also, don’t forget to enter our contest in my previous post. Only 4 people have entered so far! What? Don’t you people like free stuff?? It’s free to enter, and you could win something that I think is really cool!!
After you have submitted an article to suite101, an editor will read it within a few days (sometimes it may be a week, or so). They may give you suggestions for improving the article. These are only suggestions and do not have to be changed. I did have one article that I wrote and put in too much of my own opinion into it, therefore, they made the article inactive until I was able to re-write it better. As with demandstudios, most of the editors are helpful, but you may still come across one that comes off as being a bit rude or a “know it all”. Being a writer, you have to learn to just let things slide off of your back and not take them too personally.
Also, with suite101 you have to submit a minimum of 10 articles every 3 months. I thought this may be a bit difficult but it hasn’t been so far. I’ve even used some of my rejected demand articles for suite101 with no problems.
Now, I’m not quite sure how this happens, but my suite101 articles seem to get a lot more traffic than any of my articles on hubpages, or eHow. For instance, one of the first articles I wrote on suite was one for St. Patrick’s Day (it was about that time) and within a few days I had over a thousand hits. Last week I wrote one about Cedar Point (an amusement park in Ohio) and when I checked my status a few days ago, I had over 4,000 views!! In only a few days! Even though I’m not at payout yet, I have already accumulated more with suite101 than I have anywhere else, and I have less articles on suite. I’ve read the opposite on other blogs, where some writers earn more with hubpages or eHow than they do with suite. I can’t figure out why. Maybe it all depends on what subject you are writing on! Here are a few sample Suite101 articles that I have written so that you can see what sort of format they are looking for.
Cedar Point in Sandusky, Ohio
In my future posts, I’m going to talk about various ways for promoting your articles, and how to come up with subjects to write on, but don’t worry, even if you are not into writing, I have quite a few other money making tips to share, too.
If you have a facebook page, please do me a big favor and go to the new page I have made for this blog, “Like” it, and invite your friends! I can use all of the help I can get. Crazed Mama's Facebook Fan Page
Also, don’t forget to enter our contest in my previous post. Only 4 people have entered so far! What? Don’t you people like free stuff?? It’s free to enter, and you could win something that I think is really cool!!
Thursday, March 11, 2010
Paid Per Article - Demand Studios
I have mentioned before about working for textbroker. Textbroker.com is a great place to start when thinking of getting into freelancing. They are normally pretty easy to work for and they pay twice a month via paypal.
The other company I work for getting paid per article is Demand Studios. Now, they do require sample articles and I think a resume as well (not positive if it was them or not that needed a resume). The resume needs to state any past work history that would involve writing or editing. I applied with them the first time and sent them an old sample article that I had written for Associated Content. It was written a few years ago and was really not that great, but it was the only article I had to send them. I was denied, and very upset. I continued working for Textbroker and saved copies of my best articles. I wanted to give Demand Studios another shot, but I had to use a different email to do it since I was denied before. I sent them the articles I had saved from TextBroker and I got an email the same day saying that I was accepted!
I was a bit nervous to start working for them because I heard that they are very picky and that they have rude editors that pick apart each article. I finally took the leap and wrote my first article for them and it was accepted with no rewrites! Phew! Now, I'm not perfect and since then I have had plenty of revisions, but the editors have always been very professional and most of the time they rewrites were just a few minor things that needed tweaked. I am not very thick skinned, but I have taught myself instead of getting upset about rewrites I will just take them in stride and consider them to be learning experiences. Demand does have some strict rules to follow when writing articles, but once you write a few articles you will get the hang of it.
With Demand you can pick and choose the articles you want to write. They pay any where from $3 - $15 an article and pay twice a week via paypal. The only thing I get frustrated with is the listings. I don't know who categorizes the articles, but you can filter your searches to a search for only one subject, however, even when I search for "dogs" I will get a bunch of article offers for how to change car parts! I don't know anything about working on cars and it has nothing to do with dogs! So I waste a lot of time sifting through articles finding ones that I want to write.
With Demand you do have to show at least one resource with each article. My advice is to choose topics that you are at least a little knowledgeable about. For instance, I wouldn't write an article on working on cars when I have no clue what they are talking about!
I am really loving this change of work. I feel more free to do what I want. I don't have to worry about working all day and all night for beans. I can take time to play with my kids, or do something I want to do without stressing over it and I enjoy it!! I'm so glad I took the leap into freelance writing!
My next post will be about residual income and revenue sharing websites, so stay close!
The other company I work for getting paid per article is Demand Studios. Now, they do require sample articles and I think a resume as well (not positive if it was them or not that needed a resume). The resume needs to state any past work history that would involve writing or editing. I applied with them the first time and sent them an old sample article that I had written for Associated Content. It was written a few years ago and was really not that great, but it was the only article I had to send them. I was denied, and very upset. I continued working for Textbroker and saved copies of my best articles. I wanted to give Demand Studios another shot, but I had to use a different email to do it since I was denied before. I sent them the articles I had saved from TextBroker and I got an email the same day saying that I was accepted!
I was a bit nervous to start working for them because I heard that they are very picky and that they have rude editors that pick apart each article. I finally took the leap and wrote my first article for them and it was accepted with no rewrites! Phew! Now, I'm not perfect and since then I have had plenty of revisions, but the editors have always been very professional and most of the time they rewrites were just a few minor things that needed tweaked. I am not very thick skinned, but I have taught myself instead of getting upset about rewrites I will just take them in stride and consider them to be learning experiences. Demand does have some strict rules to follow when writing articles, but once you write a few articles you will get the hang of it.
With Demand you can pick and choose the articles you want to write. They pay any where from $3 - $15 an article and pay twice a week via paypal. The only thing I get frustrated with is the listings. I don't know who categorizes the articles, but you can filter your searches to a search for only one subject, however, even when I search for "dogs" I will get a bunch of article offers for how to change car parts! I don't know anything about working on cars and it has nothing to do with dogs! So I waste a lot of time sifting through articles finding ones that I want to write.
With Demand you do have to show at least one resource with each article. My advice is to choose topics that you are at least a little knowledgeable about. For instance, I wouldn't write an article on working on cars when I have no clue what they are talking about!
I am really loving this change of work. I feel more free to do what I want. I don't have to worry about working all day and all night for beans. I can take time to play with my kids, or do something I want to do without stressing over it and I enjoy it!! I'm so glad I took the leap into freelance writing!
My next post will be about residual income and revenue sharing websites, so stay close!
Monday, March 1, 2010
My First Month of Freelance Writing
The first month's tallies are in. Here is a run down of what I made for the month. Keep in mind that I didn't get a full month's payment from textbroker because they pay on the 5th and 20th of each month, so I missed almost 10 days worth of pay that I normally would have gotten from the end of January. I hope that made sense?? For the next few months I will be posting my monthly stats of what I made, so that everyone can see how and where I am progressing with freelance writing. Some of the sites I just joined and didn't get a chance to profit from them for the entire month. For instance, Demand Studios I only joined up with for the last week of the month, so I was only paid for two articles through them. Here's the run down:
Textbroker: $185.03
Squidoo: $5.36
Demand Studio: $15.00
Sponsored Reviews: $13.00
Grand Total: $218.39
Not too bad for the first month. Like I mentioned before, I have a steady customer on textbroker now. The have been sending me orders for 5 articles a week, however, last week they doubled that and now send me 10 a week. For now, I am just doing the direct orders through textbroker and doing other articles through Demand Studios because I will make more through Demand. Textbroker is a good place to start for newbies, but I've noticed a lot of business that want to pay pennies for an article and yet expect the writer to do everything to their anal specifications. Sorry, but if you are going to be that specific about something you had better shell out a few extra bucks to make it worth my time.
My next few posts will be on the different websites that I am currently writing for. A few of them are not listed here because I didn't get paid from them yet, but I will go through each one and explain how each works.
Textbroker: $185.03
Squidoo: $5.36
Demand Studio: $15.00
Sponsored Reviews: $13.00
Grand Total: $218.39
Not too bad for the first month. Like I mentioned before, I have a steady customer on textbroker now. The have been sending me orders for 5 articles a week, however, last week they doubled that and now send me 10 a week. For now, I am just doing the direct orders through textbroker and doing other articles through Demand Studios because I will make more through Demand. Textbroker is a good place to start for newbies, but I've noticed a lot of business that want to pay pennies for an article and yet expect the writer to do everything to their anal specifications. Sorry, but if you are going to be that specific about something you had better shell out a few extra bucks to make it worth my time.
My next few posts will be on the different websites that I am currently writing for. A few of them are not listed here because I didn't get paid from them yet, but I will go through each one and explain how each works.
Monday, February 8, 2010
So far, so good with freelance writing!
So, the first website I joined to try my luck at freelance writing was textbroker.com. Basically, you search through various writing offers and pick articles that you are willing to write about. You write the article and if it is accepted, you get paid! They do rate your writing performance and after only writing 2 articles, I had a rating of 4 stars, which is considered to be an "excellent writer". Somehow, though, I got dropped down to 3 stars, but I'm sure it will get back up there. The articles are usually fairly short, 300-400 words, which isn't much at all. I do have to do a little bit of research on the subjects I don't have much knowledge on, but it's not difficult at all. Last week, I was fairly busy, had some out of town doctor appointments and only worked 2 days before the first payday of the month (they pay on the 5th and the 20th). So the payment above was for only 2 days of work. Not shabby, eh?? Also, I got a regular client on my first day, which means they send me direct orders for articles. I've done about 10 articles for them so far, and they are adding me to their list of regular writers! I'm loving this so far! I still have a lot to learn about freelance writing and I know there is good money to be made, just have to do the research and find out where the big money lies, but I'm happy with this so far!
Thursday, January 28, 2010
Delving into something new!
I've been searching for something new for a few months now. I'm just burned out on my current texting operator job and once they lowered the pay rate, I was even more discouraged. I've been wanting to find something to take the place of what I'm making money wise, if not more than what I am making now. I think I may have found it! Freelance Writing. I love to write and I think since taking my Composition class a few months ago, I have learned how to improve my writing skills. I've been doing some research on freelance writing and have found a few great places to start! There are a few different ways to earn money with freelance writing. First is getting paid per article that you write. There are a lot of places online that will pay you to write an article for them about a certain subject. It may be something that you are knowledgeable about or it may be something you have to do a bit of research on. I'm getting used to doing research these days considering I have to write a paper for every class I am taking at school! Anyway, I tried one website out last week, just to see what it was like. I wrote 2 articles, both were approximately 200-300 words long. Two hundred words is a very short article to write. Both articles took me less than 30 minutes to write and I made over $8 for just a few minutes of work! It doesn't sound like a lot when you see what they are getting paid for per article but when you consider the time it takes to write one, the money can add up very quickly!
The second way to earn money is through residual income. I'm not exactly sure how these work except that I know you can write various articles that you are knowledgeable on, post them on certain websites, and you can earn from page hits and/or google adsense!
Since I don't want to give up my texting job completely, I'm going to try the freelance thing at the beginning of February. I'm going to do texting one day and freelancing the next day. That way, I can still get the minimums for my texting job, but can also see what/how I can earn with freelance writing. Then at the end of the month I will see what I've made from both! I'm hoping this can give me a little bit of free time to write in my blogs, so I will still post about various money making strategies in this blog, as well as keeping everyone updated on how the freelance writing gigs are going and what websites I am using. I'm very excited to get started because I just love to write and I'm so burned out and bored with my texting job; I need something new! So keep an eye on this blog and follow me on my new journey into the Freelance Writing world!
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