I'm an active member of many writing forums, ezines, sites and communities. The reason I visit these so often is because I'm willing to keep learning more about being a freelancer so I can progress and keep improving my writing skills.
After all I'm a freelance writer, so why wouldn't I want to keep improving? Improved skill plus more knowledge of the markets and what editors require equates to me earning more money in the long run - right?
But one thing I've learned by being an active member of so many writing sites is that there is a growing number of people willing to scrape the bottom of the barrel and only work on the lowest-of-the-low payment scale - Revenue-Share sites.
These are sites like Helium, Triond and the like, which expect writers to contribute to their "articles" in order to receive a couple of cents of the shared revenue generated by that article.
What an absolute rip-off. No wonder so many new writers feel as though it's impossible to make any real money through writing!
Let's be honest - if you were an accountant or a shop keeper, would you put in all the work and then hope someone paid you maybe at some point in the distant future at a rate of a few cents per day? You and I both know you wouldn't - so why should a freelance writer be any different?
The answer is: they shouldn't.
If you do the work, you deserve to get paid. If they don't offer upfront pay for your time and effort - find somewhere else to submit your writing. Easy.
There are so many legitimate freelance writing sites out there willing to help and point new writers in the right direction, so why be fooled by these sites offering pittance in return for your precious time and skills?
Avoid them. You can do better - and so can your writing career.
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