12/25/08

Merry Christmas


I just wanted to drop by and wish everyone a very Merry Christmas and a safe and happy holiday season.

May Santa bring you everything you wish for ;)

12/24/08

10 Ways to Earn a 6-Figure Income Freelance Writing

Freelance writing can be such a lucrative business. But there are thousands of writers out there struggling to make a few dollars a week from pathetic revenue-share sites.

I was going to write a complete article about top 10 ways to earn 6-figure income from freelance writing, but someone pointed me to wards an article that says it all already. So I'll pass that link on to you.

http://www.freelancewritingsuccess.com/bly1.php

This guy has gone into depth on his own 6-figure freelance business and the article is really eye-opening. Enjoy!

12/23/08

Demand Studios - Paying Freelance Market

Demand Studios is seeking freelance writers to write articles on all sorts of great topics.

https://www.demandstudios.com/freelance-work/writers.html

Pay is $15 per article up front and you must be over 18 and have a US address to be accepted.

You can take as many or as few assignments as suits your own schedule.

Profiting from PLR Articles

Have you ever heard of PLR articles?

I hadn't until a couple of days ago. A friend tried patiently to explain exactly what they were. All I could see was that the pay-rate was way too low for me to make any money, so I ignored the offer.

But I understand differently - now that I've seen them working, that is.

What are PLR Articles?

PLR is short for Private Label Rights. I write an article and then offer Private Label Rights to the ownership of that article. The new owner can put it on his/her website or on a blog or in a newsletter to build content.

Or they can have it re-written so it's unique and put it into several article directories to build traffic.

PLR Articles are an inexpensive way for webmasters to build content and traffic at a low cost.

How Much Do PLR Articles Cost?

I guess it depends on the writer. I watched my friend sell hers for $1 per article and I screamed at the injustice of such low prices. After all, she's a professional full-time finance journalist writing for $1 an article? No Way!

She just smiled and said "You don't get it. These aren't individual sales. I'm not selling it once only. I'll sell 50 articles today."

That made me pause. 50 copies of the same article is.... $50 per article. That's professional rates!

I sat at her house and drank coffee and watched the sales coming in. She was right. She sold 50 - and that was just before lunch time with enquiries still coming in strong. We still had a whole week left to watch sales.

She laughed and said she needed to start writing some more articles.

PLR Article Packages

So my friend is obviously earning more than $50 per article by creating her own market for them. What I didn't mention earlier is that she sells them in packages of 5 or 10 at a time.

The package I watched her comment casually on in a forum and then proceed to sell a total of 65 packages by the end of the day consisted of 10 articles containing highly targeted keywords.

That's $10 per PLR article package - which is the same as $1 per article. No wonder people were buying them so fast. They know they're getting cheap rates for quality work.

She sold 65 of those packages that day I was there drinking coffee with her. I'm certain she made $650 that day from her articles.

I'm going to volunteer some of my own articles to be added to PLR article packs on her website and I'll be sure to keep you up to date with my results.

This looks like it's going to be fun.

:)

12/22/08

Top 7 Online Freelance Writing Tips

If you've spent any amount of time online, you'll notice that writing for the online world is far different to the writing style used for magazines and newspapers.

Let's look at some things you should remember when you're writing for an online audience:

Online Freelance Writing Tip 1: Keywords

Visitors can't find your article on a search engine unless it contains the right density of keywords.
Too few keywords means your article may not be found and search engines won't list it very highly in search engine results, meaning no one will find it unless they're directed right too it.

On the opposite end of this, having too many keywords in one article is considered to be 'keyword spamming. Think about how many articles you've read where the writer has tried to stuff so many keywords in that it feels unnatural and awkward.

Try using Textalyser.net (http://textalyser.net) to analyze your keyword density. If you find your keyword density is over 5% then rewrite it and see if you can keep it at around 3-5%. This has to be done at the same time as making sure your article doesn't sound unnaturally stuffed with keyphrases that don't flow.

Online writing is about visibility. You're competing with billions of websites for people's attention. Do a simple search on your favorite search engine and learn a little SEO (search engine optimization).

Online Freelance Writing Tip 2: White Space

Writing for an online audience means catering to their needs as well as remembering the search engines at the same time as providing information. You need to keep finding new information to give people so they'll keep coming back and reading what you have to say, then write out that information in an article designed to keep them interested. Then you're caught out trying to include optimized phrases to attract high paying clicks on the paid ad bars just to be sure you're earning at least something for all the effort you've put in and all the work you've done and all the information you provide...

What a messy paragraph. Nobody likes to read large chunks of text. It's painful on the eyes and many readers simply lose interest. When people read online they prefer clearly written small paragraphs that are easy on the eyes and easy to skim through information.

Break up your writing with paragraph breaks or even sub-headings to help online readers skim through to the bits of your work that interest them most.

Online Freelance Writing Tip 3: Sub-Headings

Sub-headings are a logical way to break up your content and help readers to skim through your article quickly to locate points of interest.

Sub-headings have a double advantage, too. Because they're usually set in a bold typeface, they're a great place to put your keywords for maximum visibility to search engines at the same time as breaking up your work into manageable chunks.

Online Freelance Writing Tip 4: Clean, Clear and Correct

Which brings us to the next point. Online writing is about getting people to understand your point. Too many newer writers will fill an article with keywords so many times that the sentences no longer have any meaning.

Keep your writing simple. Use strong nouns that explain your meaning and avoid adjectives where you can. Only include keywords where you know it won't affect the flow of your writing style.

If you're struggling to meet a requested word count, then words like absolutely, positively, certainly and amazingly seem to become very popular. These words might flesh out your word count, but they do nothing for your writing style.

Before you submit your writing, run it through a spell-checker. When you're sure it's correct according to the computer, read it again.

Words like then and than are spelled correctly so they won't show up on your spell-checker, but they also need to be contextually correct in your article. Nothing beats a good set of eyes.

Re-read before you submit.

Online Freelance Writing Tip 5: It's Not About You

If you're writing a blog, then feel free to throw in your personal opinion and your own personal anecdote.

But if you're writing an article with the intention of selling it online, then leave out the personal slant. People read articles in order to learn something or to find information about a topic. Your personal stories have their place in reviews or opinions - not in informational articles.

Online Freelance Writing Tip 6: Plagiarism

Copying another writers work is never a good idea. You're allowed to take ideas from other people's writing, but stealing the actual words they used is theft. Don't do it.

Copyscape (http://www.copyscape.com) is one popular plagiarism search engine. Most people are aware of Copyscape now and if they use it to check on your work, you'll be found out.

Not only could plagiarism negatively affect your reputation with your clients, but you could also bring down the wrath of the rightful author.

Online Freelance Writing Tip 7: Back-Up Your Work

Hard-drives crash and die. It's a sad truth and it keeps the computer companies happy when they get paid to fix your computer problems or replace faulty parts - but it doesn't replace your lost hours of work and research.

If you can afford to buy an external hard drive, store all your work and important information on one of these. Unfortunately, these have a habit of dying miserable, untimely deaths too, so you might back-up your work on a re-writeable CD for just such an emergency.

Or you could use Google Docs and store your work securely online. Not only are you able to access your work from other computers but you can also use their storage space for your back-up needs.

:)

12/18/08

ePIFfunnies - Paying Freelance Market

ePIFfunnies

If you've had a funny epiphany, then post it to ePIFfunnies and get paid $15 for your effort.

http://www.epiffunnies.com/contact/submit-ePIFfunny.asp

Here's what their website says about what you should submit:





  • It must be based on an actual experience.


  • It must be funny, clever or insightful.


  • It should not be in the form of a “this is the way it is” or “this is the way it should be” lecture. Rather, it must help the reader to gain an “epiphany” or represent an “epiphany” on the part of the writer.


  • It must meet the “So what?” test. In other words, it must be significant.


  • It must not be offensive.


  • It must be original.


As long as your story is funny and true you could earn a few extra dollars toward building your freelance business income.



:)

12/16/08

WiseGeek - Paying Freelance Market

WiseGeek

http://www.wisegeek.com/faq.htm

Seeking article writers across various topics. WiseGeek offers free and clear answers to common questions. You are able to suggest new topics.

Writers choose articles from a pool of available titles, which are updated frequently. There's always plenty of work!

Writer's openings are infrequent, so get your application in soon or they'll close this window of opportunity.

Scroll down the FAQ page until you see the section regarding freelance writers.

Pays $10 per article.

12/12/08

Create Passive Freelance Income

I get a lot of people ask me how I can possibly make as much money as I do from writing. I'm not a famous author and they've never seen my work written anywhere.

So how is it possible for a no-name to be making a great living from writing when no one knows who I am? How can I possibly earn the income I bring in and manage to pay extra payments off my mortgage, have no other debts, live very comfortably in a great seaside suburb and still have extra money each week to save for a trip abroad for me and my daughter every winter?

The answer is simple. It's so easy to profit from your writing talents in so many different ways that the biggest problem I have each day is finding enough hours to write all the things I want to write about.

Many writers will not find it so simple if they insist on only working for revenue-share sites and pittance paying clients. These are the writers who will make a few dollars a week and then give up after a few months because they're going broke.

They're always easy to spot...

So how do I do it? Let's work it out.


Multiple Income Avenues

I don't just write articles. And I only spend a small amount of time right here on my blog. I write all sorts of things - whatever keeps me interested and stops me from burning out over writing countless amounts of articles.

So I break up my writing into fun bits that may not be a lot of money, but they're still income, I'm still being paid and I'm having a bit of fun.

Aside from this, having more than one type of income coming into my freelance business means that if one company decides not to pay me, my whole business doesn't stop. I still have other clients and other companies sending in money so I always have something coming from somewhere.

If you haven't read my earlier blog post on how to set up multiple income avenues you can find it here: Create Full Time Freelance Income


Repeating Income Avenues

This type of income is a little different - and a little harder to set up - but it's the most profitable, the most rewarding and the most money!

Some of the big gurus call this "passive" income. There's nothing passive about it, so I prefer to call it repeating income avenues. That's where you do a lot of really hard work only once and get rewarded for that big effort for several years into the future.

Did you know this is how book authors, inventors and music artists get paid? They're called royalties and the creator does the work only once, but then gets paid every time someone buys that product for as long as that product is available.

I don't have any big name novels on the shelves with fancy publishers - but I do ghost-write instructional/educational ebooks for a publishing company and they pay me a handsome royalty for every copy that sells. (okay, they're gaming guides...)

I have one that I wrote three years ago that still brings me a nice amount of money every month. Very handy. Especially when you consider that I've written nine now and working on the tenth when I have a free moment between articles.


These are just a few ways to help increase your own freelance writing income.

What ways have you found that keep your freelance writing business alive and kicking?

12/10/08

Get Paid to Rant!


Oh my! Now I've seen everything.

I've just been paid to rant.

You read that correctly. There really is a site out there willing to let you rant about anything you want to just get off your chest and scream out to the world. They don't care about literary perfection or grammatical correctness. They don't mind what you're ranting about. Complain, whine, whinge, rant or let off steam. Just rant and if they publish your rant you get paid.

I never would have believed there was a profitable way to let off steam - but here it is:

Rant Blogger - http://www.rantblogger.com/?page_id=19

Okay - the pay is pathetic. It's $5. But let's be serious - I wasn't composing a feature article for an internationally published glossy magazine. I was ranting about something that ticked me off.

They'll even let you submit as many rants as you want - as often as you feel like ranting.

Visit Rant Blogger and check it out for yourself.

Build Your Freelance Business Your Way

I'm noticing a common thread among the comments I've been getting on this blog and across several writer's forums as well.

People have this strange idea that they need to write articles all day every day in order to be working at home and earning money.

This just isn't true!

Your freelance business is YOURS. You have the freedom and the power to set it up however you choose. You can include article writing, content creation, paid reviews, forum posting, affiliate sales, ghost-writing, copywriting, ebook writing, paid emails, banner ads, - whatever you want to add. Mix and match your favorite bits of these with a few get-paid-to options and then break up your day with your different options to stop you going stir crazy.

It's YOUR business we're talking about here. You're the boss and you get to choose what happens in your business.

The word 'Freelance' simply means being self-employed. It doesn't mean writing. You could be a freelance photographer or a freelance consultant. You could be a freelance internet guru or a freelance online business owner. It's up to you.

If you plan on working at home for any length of time then not only will you need to be making money, but you'll also need to be having some fun or else you'll lose your motivation. By doing things you really enjoy every day, you'll be excited to get out of bed and jump onto the computer to start working because you're having fun.

However, if you only follow what the "gurus" are telling you will make money, you'll be working on ideas and tactics that they enjoy and profit from - not things you really enjoy doing.

In order to build a freelance business and then keep that business running strong you need to be passionate about what you're doing. It's fine to listen to the gurus' ideas, but see where you can replace their products and their profit making tools for your own business and your own passions.

My passion is writing. I love writing and I love helping people to get out of debt. I also love helping people learn about environmental issues and being a little greener in their every day lives. These are the topics I specialize in because they're what I enjoy doing every day.

Here are some things to remember when you're creating your own freelance business:

- Find your own little niche and create a specialization around it.
- Learn how article marketing works and use it well to promote your business.
- Talk to other writers on forums and learn how they established their freelance clients.
- Advertise your services.
- Learn to write great query letters and send them out to magazines that focus on your little niche.
- Build a portfolio of your own work (this goes hand-in-hand with the article marketing idea)
- Love what you do!

Most importantly - don't listen to the 'gurus' who want to take your money to teach you only how THEY do things that they enjoy. Listen to their ideas, but use your own version of the things you love doing instead.

Follow your own passions and do the things you love most. Life's too short to work at anything that's no fun!

:)

12/5/08

Freelance Writing and Repetition

While I love my private freelance clients and the business they send me, sometimes I get a little jaded by the amount of repetition there is in their requests.

In the last two days alone I've written 14 different credit card debt relief articles. I've managed to find 14 different ways to pay off credit cards and reduce debt and I've written about them all.

If people are really struggling under that much debt, are they going to read through 14 different ways to pay them off? I'm beginning to doubt it.

Of course I could just be having one of those days where I've seen so much negativity about people's debt levels and credit crisis issues that I need a day off.

Seriously - if I have to write one more credit card article this month I'll scream...

Sigh.

But those articles pay my bills. Those articles are how I manage to stay out of debt.

So my clients will keep ordering them and I'll keep writing them - but only until a new topic-of-the-month rolls around and every freelance writer goes crazy writing that topic.

What secretly bothers me most about today is that I had orders to write 15 of these credit card articles...

I still have one more to go!

12/4/08

Freelance Writing and Eye Glasses

Sigh.

Well I knew it would happen to me sooner or later. I spend so much time at my computer reading from the monitor that I now have to have eyeglasses whenever I read.

I went to my local store and I was horrified at the prices they were charging. The girl told me those prices were quite normal. I didn't think so. I mean we're having an economic crisis out here in Australia too, so I wanted to find eyeglasses that weren't going to eat into my budget.

So I went home and did what I do best - I jumped on the net and found a place in America called Optical4Less that will ship me new eyeglasses straight to my door at less than 1/4 the price! I'm ecstatic!

I need complete prescription eyeglasses and they were happy to fill my order exactly as I need it.

I took a look through their huge online catalogue and found a perfect pair of eyeglasses with trendy frames. The price was so low I also bought a pair of tinted sunglasses as well for when I'm driving. They will ship my eyeglasses out to me free even though I'm on the other side of the world - but their site says they'll ship free worldwide.

Anyway, if you're a freelance writer who needs to stare at your screen all day every day and you're looking for quality eyeglasses at a really low price, try Optical4Less.com.

You'll love how cheap the prices are and you won't have to suffer with eye strain ever again!

:)

12/2/08

Paid Forum Posting Jobs

Looking for a list of paid forum posting jobs? You've come to the right place.

Paid forum posting is not the ideal writing job for every writer. In fact I can think of plenty of reasons why you might want to avoid this kind of writing job completely. The pay is low and you probably wouldn't give up your day job to do paid forum posting.

But if you've got time to spare or if you just love the community feel of forums, then why not get paid for what you're already doing? Some forums allow you to add a signature box, so you could even be promoting your own blog while you're getting paid...

For those who want to add a few extra dollars to their writing income each week with very little brain-power or effort required, paid forum posting can be a great way to bump up your income.

In an earlier post I wrote about the benefits of creating more than one type of writing income to build your freelance business and increase your total writing income.
You can see that post here: Create Multiple Freelance Incomes

If you're one of those people who doesn't have more than one writing income source, then perhaps paid forum posting might fill a few minutes of your week for a few extra dollars.

There are two types of paid forum posting.

The first is the professional, organized forum posting jobs where you are told what to post and on which forum. When the job is complete, that forum is replaced with another that requires boosting. You're being paid to help out those forum owners. This first option is just like a job. You're expected to complete the tasks given to you. You should get paid between 15 and 20 cents per post for your efforts.

The second type of paid forum posting is where you just post whatever you want. Two word answers are fine. Non-English speaking is fine. Do what you like at any time with no restrictions. Obviously because this second type of paid forum posting is unregulated, the pay is quite low (generally 1 - 5 cents per post) but you have no rules to follow. If you prefer to just chat and post at random, then try here: http://ravens-writing.blogspot.com/2009/01/freelance-writers-who-dont-want-to-be.html


If you'd rather work with a more regulated option with higher pay, then here's a list of some paid forum posting companies you might want to try.


Best Forum Posting - http://www.bestforumposting.com/
Forum boosting, editing and article creation services. Very well organized company. Pays on time every time.

Content Current - http://www.contentcurrent.com/
Also known as ForumBooster. Content Current still has loads of bugs in their software systems, problems with accepting/approving work completed and is notorious about being VERY late with payments.

Forum Advantage - http://www.forumadvantage.com/
This site is owned and operated by Hostedhere LLC (see Paid Forum Posting)

ForumBooster.NET - http://www.forumbooster.net/
Also known as Content Current. Forum Booster still has loads of bugs in their software systems, problems with accepting/approving work completed and is notorious for being VERY late with payments.

ForumsFirst - http://forumsfirst.com/
Forum posting and blog commenting services. Quick, efficient and professional. Always pays on time!

Inb0x - http://www.inb0x.com/
Forum posting services - payout is via PayPal once your account reaches $15

KickStart Your Forums - http://www.kickstartyourforums.com/main/
Forum posting and article creation. Has been acquired by Paid Forum Posting.

PaidForumPosting - http://www.paidforumposting.com/
Excellent, highly-organized site for forum posting and occasional article creation jobs - owned and operated by HostedHere LLC. Payout is always prompt immediately after job completion. Apply to become a writer here: http://www.forumadvantage.com/writerapplication.htm

Paid Posting Forums
Owned and operated by HostedHereLLC - see PaidForumPosting

Paid Posting Tools - http://www.paidpostingtools.com/
Forum posting and blog posting services. Big site with very helpful admin and fellow members. Pays well and on time.

Posting Direct - http://www.postingdirect.com/
Decent paid forum posting site - pay out is via PayPal once your account reaches $20

Web Vigor - http://www.webvigor.com/
Very quiet at times but nice community. Pays on time.

Wired Flame - http://www.wiredflame.com/
Forum posting. This site can be a little quiet at times, but their system is easy and they'll pay out every Friday by PayPal with no minimum required.


Someone asked me to list a pay rate per post for each of these sites as well. Gee! It's not enough that I provided the links and information?

Okay. Let's just say most of the sites above pay between 15 and 20 cents per post. The only ones I can think of that pay below that rate are the two non-paying companies I've said to avoid completely anyway. They 'pay' 10 cents per post - when they pay their writers at all.

So if you're interested in paid forum posting, give some of the companies on this list a try and boost your income a little.

If you're not into the idea of paid forum posting, then ignore this post!

;)



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