Winning. Duh.: How Writers Can Win After the Google Change
Charlie Sheen in Better Times, 2009 Creative Commons
I have to admit, I'm a popcorn munching watcher of the train wreck which is becoming Charlie Sheen. Throughout his rants, though, is one message that I love: Winning. Duh.
A lot of writers right now feel like they are loosing after the changes Google has been making. So, in Charlie Sheen style... Quick! Think of three things you like about your writing career. Don't feel like you're winning yet? Then try these tips for overcoming Googlepocalypse:
Google love niche sites, so start writing for them. Create your own site or blog that focuses on a common theme. Go back and de-SEO your articles that took a hit. Google just may love them again.
How My Articles Have Been Affected by Google Change
Well, yesterday I talked about how Google's new algorithm has slammed Suite 101 from first page result to dozens of pages back. Well, the change has very harshly affected my page views over at Suite.
This time last month I was getting around 2,500 page views a day at Suite. Yesterday I got 873.
On the other hand, my eHow articles that I posted years ago are doing better than ever. Other former eHow writers report that their page views are doing the same or better than before the Google algorithm change. Other reports confirm that eHow has benefited from the change.
Now, I may be wrong, but in my opinion eHow articles are much more spammy than Suite 101. Wasn't the whole point of changing the algorithm to get rid of spammy sites in search results? Looks like an epic fail on Google's part.
Google Changes the Way it Searches and Slams Suite 101
Drawing by MagicMarie
Google has made changes to their algorithm that lowers the ranking of Suite 101 and raise the ranking of eHow. According to Sistrix, Suite basically lost 94% of its rank. According to some research done by some of my fellow writers, Suite articles that used to be on first page results have now dropped out of site and have been replaced by eHow articles and scraper articles.
After all the talk about Google targeting eHow for its low quality, these results are puzzling. What's going on here? Have some ideas? Share them in the comments.
Update on Tweeting for Money
In this post about tweeting for money I talked about three sites that offer you paid opportunities to tweet. Here are some updates on how I'm doing.
The first one I joined is called Sponsored Tweets. I have made payout ($50) twice now and a little bit more. The process takes me about two or three minutes each time, so it kinda feels like I'm making free money.
The second tweeting for money site I joined was Magpie. I think I ended up making 11 cents. I couldn't figure out why my account never showed the amount it should have so I deleted my account with Magpie.
The third paid Twitter posting site I joined was MyLikes. MyLikes is pretty easy to use and you can also get paid for Facebook postings. They have no minimum payout, so I really liked that. I've made around $5 so far. No much, but it didn't take me more than a few minutes to earn, so I'm going to keep my MyLikes account.
Writing When You're at Your Worst
There are two conditions that can keep me from writing anything: the flu and large amounts of stress. Now, most freelance writing veterans will tell you to muscle through and write no matter what. I believe that sometimes you need to stop and learn your limits.
I used to be part of the man-up-and-do-your-job tribe. That was until I wrote an article while I had the flu. I was on a deadline and my article needed to be turned in within the next few days. So, I pumped myself full of flu medicine and wrote my little heart out. I edited the article and sent it on its way. A few hours later my editor sent me an email that pointed out all of the embarrassing typos.
Yah, not gonna repeat that!
Do you have a time when you refuse to write?
Writer Tax Write-Offs You May Not Have Considered
It's tax time in writer's land. For many that means paying taxes on your writing business. You probably already know that you can use office supplies as deductions on your taxes, but there are a lot of other things you can use, too. Here are some ideas:
Magazine subscriptions that are used for research that pertains to your writing The space that you use as your office Internet fees PayPal fees Fees for Elance or other job sites Books used as research or learning tools for your writing Camera and accessories if you take your own pictures for articles Shipping costs Domain name and website costs Software such as Microsoft Word Trips (travel expenses, hotel fees, etc.) used as research for articles Now, I'm not a tax professional, so contact your accountant or tax preparer for more information on these potential tax deductions for writers.
January 2011 Freelance Writing Earnings Update
Well, January turned out to be a great month for my freelance writing business. I made just $40 shy of $2000.
This is great considering I did less than 20 hours of work in January. I'm proving just a little more every day that you don't have to work insane hours to make cash freelance writing.
Of course this doesn't account for time that I used for job searching and marketing, but that only figures out to an extra five to ten hours a month. So, in total, I worked around 30 hours this month. That adds up to around $67 an hour.
Let me tell you, there are very few jobs where I live that pays $67 an hour and the cost of living is low, so we're doing pretty good.
I would like to note that I have been Demand Studios "sober" (as one former DS addict calls it) for six months. That means that I have been either making money by writing for my own blogs and websites, residual income sites or private clients for the past six months. I made a lot of money through them, but the continuous cycle of searching for titles, writing titles and searching for more titles wore me out. I feel so liberated to get off the DS treadmill.
The Feast and Famine of Freelance Work and How to Make it Work For You
If you've been a freelance writer for more than a few minutes you've probably heard of the feast or famine theory. Basically, when you freelance work will come in ebbs and typhoons. Sometimes you will have so little work that you will curse the day you ever quit your job and became a full-time freelance writer. Other times you will get so much work you will curse the day you ever quit your job and became a full-time freelance writer.
Hey, you've got to love this job to stick to it.
So how do you make it through the slow times and the times when you work into the wee hours of the night? Here are some tips:
Try saving as much as you can during the feast so that you won't have to sing on a street corner for change, or worse, when clients aren't knocking down your door. As Sting says, "Honey, you don't have to put out that red light." Do something productive that will make you money the next time you are short on clients. Try these slow day ideas. On days where you have too many clients consider sub-contracting some of the work to free up some time. Learn to say "no." One of the reasons you have too many clients may be that you're charging too little for your time. Don't be afraid to say no or ask for more money if a client wants you to do a lot for a little.
So Which Keywords Will Work For Your Residual Income Articles?
Figuring out which keywords will make the most money for residual income articles is difficult. The best way I've found to test out ideas is to use a site that caters to short articles. I used to use eHow for this, but now that their writing program has shut down I've moved on to using List My 5.
My earnings there have been comparable, plus the site is laid out a lot like the old eHow. These articles take about 10 minutes to write, tops, so they are quick. Very little effort to see which of my ideas are hits and misses. Once I know, I use the subjects and keywords in articles for my blogs, websites and Suite 101 articles. I can almost always replicate my results in the longer articles. Give it a try and let me know how it works for you.
How to Add Keywords to Articles without Looking Spammy
I recently got an urgent sounding email from a writer named Steven. He read my post about How to Make Google AdWords Work for Your Writing Niche and said he was confused about my advice to put a SEO keyword six times in a 400-500 word article.
Well, I figured other people may be confused, too, so here is a simple method for adding keywords without spammy side affects.
Use your SEO keyword in the title Add it to the first line of your article Work it into two of your sub headings Always use your keyword once in your closing paragraph Plop that keyword into your article summary That's six times and it won't look spammy if it's done where it makes sense. It's actually very easy once you are practiced at it.
Now in some of my articles I break the six rule. For example, in my article Tips for Sketching with Watercolor Paints I use the word sketching, well, way too much.
In most of my articles I use keyword phrases, not singular keywords. In that article the keyword phrases are Sketching with Watercolor and Watercolor Sketching. Of course, if you don't count the phrases, then, yes, I used the keywords you listed way too many times.
Sometimes, though, you just can't get around using the same words over and over. In this case, clarity is more important than SEO in my opinion. Usually when I find that I'm using one word way too often I find another keyword that has the same meaning.
For example, instead of saying Mr. Rolls, say the car's designer or the car maker or the car's innovator. With an article about depression you could say this condition, this issue and this problem. This is great for adding more value to your article in Google's eyes because you're using more keywords. Also, using it, he or she is always an option.
Sometimes you just can't get around using one word over and over. There's just no way around it. As long as your article is useful, then it will rise above the seemingly keyword stuffed prose.
In this case I really wasn't able to get around repeating myself. Sketching doesn't have a synonym. Rules are made to be broken and often I don't follow them for various reasons, BUT 6 is a good rule of thumb. Using a keyword too few times will keep your article off Google's radar.
Comparison of Content Sites in Handy Graph Form
Ever wonder how contents sites stack up against each other? Kimberly White has figured it all out and has put it in graph form over at Crunchydata.com. The data is for 2010, so it's current. Click on the link, above, for the facts, but it looks like Associated Content, About.com and Suite 101 top the ranks.
This is just the information I've been looking for. I'm grateful Kimberly took the time to sort it all out.
Demand Media's eHow Facebook Log-in and Death of the Forums
Well, this is a sad month for former eHow writers. Demand Studio Media is closing down the forums and switching to Facebook for logging in. For many that participated in eHow's forums over the past few years this announcement is really depressing. It is also angering many, since Facebook is known for its many security problems. This article over at WebProNews sums the situation up pretty well: Demand Media's eHow Faces User Backlash Over Facebook Log-in | WebProNews.
On the forums there is speculation that this is due to Demand Media's IPO. We'll have to wait and see how the backlash from the members affects this move.
Tips for Writers with Social Anxiety
As a writer with social anxiety I know how hard it is to send queries, do interviews and communicate with clients. Some times the stress is unbearable. There are some tricks that I use to get the job done, though.
Do email interviews. This way you're communicating indirectly, taking the pressure off. Likewise, communicate with clients through email as much as possible. I rarely find a client that just has to talk to me on the phone or in person. If a client tries to insist on a phone call say, "It's my policy to do email communication so that I can have a written record of our talks. This protects both of us if there is a problem." For those rare phone calls make sure to allow yourself to be as comfortable as possible in a quiet room. Use a worry stone or try to write down as much as possible to take your mind off of your anxiety.
Demand Studios Scares Me
So, last week I was over at Demand Studios website wading through the overwhelming pile of crap titles because work's a little slow this month. I lucked out and filled my queue with articles on art. My favorite subject.
Days past and the titles lingered. One by one I set them free, back into the green and murky pool of the title list.
In the end I didn't write a single article for Demand. Why? Because Demand Studio scares me.
There. I said it.
The very thought of having to deal with the copy editors gives me hives. Sure, most articles go through without a glitch, but then there's always that one where you get a copy editor that wants you to do something that is so stupid you rather stick your hands in a hot toaster than to edit one word of your article.
It's the waiting for this inevitable stand-off that gets to me I think. I can't take the waiting. It never happens when you're looking for it, ready for it. It only seems to happen when you're having a good day. Then, wham! You're out for the count.
Yah, I'm thinking I'm just gonna go do some more marketing to fill up my extra time. No more DS for me.
Article Earnings at Suite 101: What I've Learned
Suite 101 has started sending out reports every month on how much your articles earn. From these reports I've learned:
One article can earn you over 19% of your overall earnings Sometimes your best earning articles are ones with a long tail keywords Older articles (I mean years old) tend to earn me the most money An article doesn't have to get a lot of page views to make a lot of money A large amount of articles may not earn you anything one month, but that can change in a few weeks Seasonal articles can make you a lot of fast cash, even if they're brand new
My Number One Tip for New Freelance Writers
When I read advice given to new freelance writers I often find one major thing overlooked: how to get paid. My best piece of advice for new freelance writers is to sign up for a PayPal business account and debit card.
99% of the businesses that you will come in contact with will want to pay you either by check or by PayPal. It used to be that all of my clients paid my by check, but that was more than five years ago. These days, only one of my many clients pays me by check. If you ask other freelance writers I think you'll find this a common theme.
Now there are many people out there with horror stories about PayPal, but I think if you establish yourself as a business right from the get go you won't have any problems.I've never had a problem. In fact, when someone tried to hack my account PayPal was quick to catch the sucker and protect my money.
Plus, when I use my PayPal business debit card I get cash back on purchases. Can't beat that!
Free Query Tracking Template
Every year I design myself a query tracking spreadsheet and this year I thought I'd share it with you. Click here to view the spreadsheet and to download it if you like it:
How to Organize Your Freelance Writing Assignments
An Example of How I Organize My Freelance Writing Assignments
Once you get several freelance writing assignments it may be hard to juggle them all. Here is how I keep track of all of my assignments, how much I'm making from the assignment and my due dates.
On a legal-sized sheet of paper I write the total I will make this month at the top of the page. I write the names of all of my assignments as headings with plenty of room for writing in-between each one. Beside each heading, I write down how much I will make from the overall assignment and the due date. Underneath the heading I divide the project into manageable bites. Beside each bite I write how much that bite is worth. I find out how much each one is worth by dividing my overall payment by how many bites I have. Lastly, I decide how many bites I want to do in a day by figuring out how many I have total for all of my projects and how many days I want to work that month. For example, if I have 40 bites and I only want to work 20 days this month I would have to do two bites a day.
Demand Media Studios Now Charges for Revenue Share
Have you noticed a negative amount in your account balance at Demand Media? Many writers are. Why? Now Demand Media Studios is charging writers if their revenue share articles don't make enough. This is a statement made by Josh the Comunity Moderator over at DMS (the bolding is mine):
"During January of each calendar year, and provided that your account has been in existence and in good standing for at least the prior six (6) months, Demand Studios will automatically distribute any earnings reflected in your account at the end of the prior calendar year that are more than $1 and less than $10, minus a $1 nonrefundable processing fee. In the event the earnings reflected in your account are less than $1 at the end of any calendar year, those earnings will be forfeited and reset to $0 (zero dollars) during January of the following calendar year, and you will not be entitled to payment of any such earnings."
I'm posting this information here just in case they delete the thread and other writers would like to see the original source of this information.
This tactic is like stealing money in my opinion. That money is the writers. They earned it. Taking it without notice is wrong.
Do you have a negative balance? How does this make you feel?
Follow Up:
I guess Demand decided they messed up because they issued a notice saying that they are reversing all deductions.
Links to Freelance Writing Job Sites and Leads
Since I'm looking for freelance work again, I thought I'd share some of the freelance job sites where I look for freelance jobs at. They are tied and true and full of great job leads.The best part is that I've weeded out sites that list mainly location specific jobs. It's all freelance, all the way.
About Freelance Writing Write Jobs Freelance Writing Gigs Online Writing Jobs Sun Oasis Absolute Write Networking and Sharing Leads Forum Absolute Write Paying Jobs Forum Places for Writers Writerfind Freelance Job Openings .com Twit Job Search Rat Race Rebellion (Be careful. There's a lot of junk on this site.) Blue Badger Now that you know where to find freelance job ads, check out how to search through them quickly to find the best paying clients with this post:
How to Quickly Weed Through Freelance Writing Job Ads Here is a link to how to apply to the jobs using templates:How to Apply for Freelance Writing Jobs Quickly