How to Start Making Money as a Freelance Writer
April 14, 2009 |
Getting your first freelance writing assignment can seem a lot like getting your first job. Employers always want you to have experience, but how can you get experience if they won’t hire you?
Fortunately, freelance writers today have several outlets on the Internet where they can easily publish their work and get paid. It’s not an easy path to riches by any means. But these websites for writers supply you with a little coin, a community of other writers to help you learn and grow, and an opportunity to parlay your experience into more lucrative writing assignments.
Helium
Helium.com is a very interesting venue for writers for several reasons.
First, they supply you with the ideas to write about. No more writer’s block. Simply pick any topic out of the hundreds of suggestions and start writing.
Second, your work is rated by other writers. For each of Helium’s suggested topics, from three to three hundred writers will submit articles. All Helium members are expected to rate other writers’ work by comparing articles on the same topic and deciding which is better. Their rating engine filters hundreds of such comparisons to rank articles competitively. Many writers covet getting that #1 rating.
Next, there is a huge forum where you can share and interact with other writers in hundreds of groups on almost any topic of interest.
Now, about getting paid. Helium shares its advertising revenues with its writers. Each of your articles earns money based on its number of page views, and other factors related to your contributions to the site. The more articles you submit and the better quality they are, the more page views you get. And the higher your ranking on the site, the more money you make. You probably won’t be able to pay your rent with your earnings but you might be able to afford a nice evening out every month.
Another way to earn money is to accept assignments from publishers in Helium’s Marketplace. Web publishers are constantly in need of fresh articles to keep their search rankings high. They submit their requirements to Helium’s writers along with a deadline and the price they’re willing to pay. The publisher is free to select any article from those submitted, and payments range from $15 to $150 or more. Many writers make most of their earnings in the Marketplace.
Suite 101
Like Helium, Suite101.com shares advertising revenues with its writers. But the vibe at Suite101 is very different.
Helium can sometimes feel like the wild west. Anyone can write an article and publish it at Helium, and some are awful. Of course, those go to the bottom of the rankings, but they’re still painful to have to read when doing ratings.
Suite101, on the other hand, does not admit just anyone as a freelance writer. To join, you have to submit writing samples and be approved. Suite 101 also has editors who review every article submitted, and will make suggestions to writers when appropriate. You must also contribute a minimum of 10 articles every three months.
Though Suite 101 does not have as much of a community feel as Helium, the pay is significantly higher. If you write on topics that are reasonably popular, it’s not difficult to earn $1 per month per article. If you post 100 articles, that’s $1200 a year.
Constant Content
ConstantContent.com is a marketplace where you can put your articles up for sale. Publishers looking for content for their websites are able to search for articles on topics they’re looking for.
Articles are reviewed to be sure they meet certain standards before they are accepted on the site. If accepted, you set the price for your article according to different publishing rights you may offer. Typical prices may range from $2 to $240. If you’re selling usage rights, your article can be sold multiple times. Other rights represent a one-time sale.
Some freelancers have complained that the web site is confusing and when Constant Content rejects an article for not meeting its standards, they aren’t always clear about what needs to be fixed. Other writers have boasted selling hundreds of dollars of material per year through the site.
Associated Content
AssociatedContent.com follows a different business model from Constant Content by offering to purchase themselves the articles you submit. If your freelance article is approved, you will receive an offer typically ranging from $3 to $10. You can choose to accept or reject the offer. If you accept the offer, your article will be published and you can receive additional payments based on page views.
Though you get to choose the topic you want to write about, your articles must fit within specific categories. If you’re having trouble thinking of a topic, they have topic suggestions you can write on.
Many freelance writers grumble that Associated Content’s payments are too low, but compared to Constant Content where an article may never sell, at least you’re getting paid and Associated Content pays quickly.
Triond
Similar to Helium and Suite 101, Triond.com also uses a revenue sharing model. Triond is unique, however, because it publishes your articles on a variety of topical websites that it owns. The dozen and a half ezines in the Triond portfolio cover topics such as computers, music, movies, books, travel, cooking, business, health and more.
To write for Triond, it’s best to pick the magazines that interest you and read the articles to get a feel for the subject matter and writing style they like. Then write your article and submit it. If approved, Triond publishes it on the appropriate website and starts tracking your page views.
Recommendations
If you’re really uncertain of yourself as a freelance writer, try Helium first. There are no qualifications and everyone gets published. The ratings will begin to let you know how well you’re doing as a writer, you’ll find tons of support and encouragement in the forums, and you’ll make a little money on the process.
When you have some confidence in your writing try Associated Content or Triond to see if you can get an actual publisher to say your work is good enough for them to publish. Associated Content will give you immediate gratification (up front payment), while Triond is a source of regular small monthly payments.
As you establish yourself as a freelance writer, try Suite 101. You have to be accepted as a writer and editors will review every article you write, so it’s an excellent place to establish your credentials and grow as a writer. Plus, if you write on popular topics, the revenue share is not bad.
Almost all of these sites use PayPal, so if you don’t have a PayPal account, you’ll need one. Also, you usually have to have a certain minimum revenue accumulated before they will send it to you. It varies, but can be from a minimum of $10 to $25, and is typically paid once a month. An exception is Associated Content, where your up front payments are usually credited to your PayPal account within a few days.
This article was featured in Working at Home Blog Carnival - 134th Edition at Working at Home on the Internet.