27 {{ upvoteCount | shortNum }}
27 {{ upvoteCount | shortNum }}

Article writers - I have a newfound respect for you

by Audrey Harvey
23 replies
I know I'm an article writer too, but I'm a veterinarian and I only write on pet topics - it's my passion, my career of 20 years and what I know best.

Until now.

My friend has asked me to write three short articles for his site, and I agreed. Researching a topic I know nothing about and have no interest in, and then creating a well written piece about it is not easy. It's taking a lot of self discipline and focus which I don't have to worry about when I'm writing about something I love.

Those writers who do this day in and day out for a living, who research and write on topics that are dull and boring, and create good content when there's very little information out there to work with, you rock!
#article #newfound #respect #writers
  • Profile picture of the author TheGrooby
    Touche. I hate writing about anything I know very little about. I will gladly pay for that service for the entirety of my natural life.
    {{ DiscussionBoard.errors[2883305].message }}
  • Profile picture of the author Kevin Williams
    This is the reason I switched from article writing to copywriting. It doesn't just get old - it busts through the door bashing you in the head with boredom.
    Signature
    High Quality Content - Articles, eBooks, and Salesletters, Oh My!
    {{ DiscussionBoard.errors[2883320].message }}
    • Profile picture of the author Tina Golden
      It helps if you can find an angle to make it more interesting to you. There are very few topics that I can't handle but there are a couple that I dread getting orders for.

      You want a tough topic to make interesting? And that has very little information available? I had to write an article about hog ring pliers once. Now that one was a tough nut to crack.

      Tina
      Signature
      Discover how to have fabulous, engaging content with
      Fast & Easy Content Creation
      ***Especially if you don't have enough time, money, or just plain HATE writing***
      {{ DiscussionBoard.errors[2883330].message }}
      • Profile picture of the author TheGrooby
        Originally Posted by TMG Enterprises View Post

        It helps if you can find an angle to make it more interesting to you. There are very few topics that I can't handle but there are a couple that I dread getting orders for.

        You want a tough topic to make interesting? And that has very little information available? I had to write an article about hog ring pliers once. Now that one was a tough nut to crack.

        Tina
        I wasn't expecting that... I can't imagine writing about hog ring pliers. Never even heard of it.
        {{ DiscussionBoard.errors[2883352].message }}
      • Profile picture of the author Matt Bard
        Originally Posted by TMG Enterprises View Post

        I had to write an article about hog ring pliers once.
        LOL That would be like me trying to write about what finger sandwiches go with a Sunday tea brunch.

        Or why Barbie wears a certain shade of pink :confused:
        {{ DiscussionBoard.errors[2883424].message }}
        • Profile picture of the author Tina Golden
          It's kind of neat, really. I've researched so many different things through the years that I'm kind of a font of useless information now. My roommate is always looking at me and saying "how on earth did you know that?" And I always say, "I had to write about that". She thinks IMers are pretty weird now.

          Tina
          Signature
          Discover how to have fabulous, engaging content with
          Fast & Easy Content Creation
          ***Especially if you don't have enough time, money, or just plain HATE writing***
          {{ DiscussionBoard.errors[2883453].message }}
          • Profile picture of the author MarkWrites
            Originally Posted by TMG Enterprises View Post

            It's kind of neat, really. I've researched so many different things through the years that I'm kind of a font of useless information now. My roommate is always looking at me and saying "how on earth did you know that?" And I always say, "I had to write about that". She thinks IMers are pretty weird now.

            Tina
            We have a lot in common.

            They may laugh at you when you know a weird fact, but when it comes time for Trivial Pursuit... everyone will want to be your partner.
            Signature

            {{ DiscussionBoard.errors[2884488].message }}
      • Profile picture of the author Alfred Shelver
        Tina you better hope your client does not see you giving away such a golden Niche ..... LOL

        Originally Posted by TMG Enterprises View Post

        I had to write an article about hog ring pliers once.
        Tina
        Signature
        Best $10 Articles on Warrior Forum Guaranteed
        {{ DiscussionBoard.errors[2884190].message }}
        • Profile picture of the author vicone
          It's somewhat easier if you are writing for your own websites as you can at least choose niches that have material available and possibly some interest.

          Of course. on topics where I have prior experience and training I can write a decent article off the top of my head. However, I'd turn green if asked to prepare a piece on a subject such as American Football. I can only imagine the guffaws from readers who would leap at the chance to write about that!

          Incidentally, I've seen some of Audrey's articles about cats and dogs and they made excellent reading. You should leap at the chance to get some of her articles on pets.

          Ivan
          Signature
          {{ DiscussionBoard.errors[2884239].message }}
          • Profile picture of the author TheGrooby
            Originally Posted by vicone View Post

            It's somewhat easier if you are writing for your own websites as you can at least choose niches that have material available and possibly some interest.

            Of course. on topics where I have prior experience and training I can write a decent article off the top of my head. However, I'd turn green if asked to prepare a piece on a subject such as American Football. I can only imagine the guffaws from readers who would leap at the chance to write about that!

            Incidentally, I've seen some of Audrey's articles about cats and dogs and they made excellent reading. You should leap at the chance to get some of her articles on pets.

            Ivan
            I could write all day about American Football!
            {{ DiscussionBoard.errors[2884258].message }}
  • Profile picture of the author Audrey Harvey
    LOL Tina, I can't beat that one :-)
    Signature

    Expert content written by an experienced veterinarian and published magazine and newspaper writer.
    Feel free to contact me for details.
    {{ DiscussionBoard.errors[2883359].message }}
    • Profile picture of the author Tina Golden
      I didn't have a clue what it was. I actually called my roommate's dad in Miami and he told me they were used when doing car upholstery but that was all he knew. Wasn't easy coming up with 400 words on that bad boy, let me tell you...lol.

      Tina
      Signature
      Discover how to have fabulous, engaging content with
      Fast & Easy Content Creation
      ***Especially if you don't have enough time, money, or just plain HATE writing***
      {{ DiscussionBoard.errors[2883387].message }}
  • Profile picture of the author Dan Pollack
    When one is writing an article that is of no interest to them, perhaps focusing on what it would take to make the article interesting to others could actually make it fun. Make a game of it. I've done it, and it works for me.
    {{ DiscussionBoard.errors[2883630].message }}
  • Profile picture of the author tpw
    I used to do it a lot, but I finally gave up ghost writing, because writing about things that I was clueless about began to wear on me...

    Real estate is the topic that always defeated me, although medical was often a challenge too...

    The worst one I did was when I went to do the research on it, I could only find content that I had written years before on the same topic.
    Signature
    Bill Platt, Oklahoma USA, PlattPublishing.com
    Publish Coloring Books for Profit (WSOTD 7-30-2015)
    {{ DiscussionBoard.errors[2883726].message }}
    • Profile picture of the author wenzel777
      Challenging? Yep. Rewarding? It sure can be : ) Dealing with a funky article here & there certainly livens up the tedious side of writing. It's nice to get a batch on a familiar topic, but that can get old as well. Key is to get creative and have some fun with it.
      {{ DiscussionBoard.errors[2884100].message }}
  • Profile picture of the author paulie888
    I certainly do not envy article writers and ghostwriters who have to do this on a daily basis. It has got to be insanely tedious and mind-numbing to research a topic you have absolutely no interest in and then write about it - I'd think it's just as bad as working at a regular job, or even worse!
    Signature
    >>> Features Jason Fladlien, John S. Rhodes, Justin Brooke, Sean I. Mitchell, Reed Floren and Brad Gosse! <<<
    {{ DiscussionBoard.errors[2884272].message }}
    • Profile picture of the author OlgaH
      It's all about focus and research and some more research.
      {{ DiscussionBoard.errors[2884325].message }}
  • Profile picture of the author Supernatural_fan
    Originally Posted by Audrey Harvey View Post

    I know I'm an article writer too, but I'm a veterinarian and I only write on pet topics - it's my passion, my career of 20 years and what I know best.

    Until now.

    My friend has asked me to write three short articles for his site, and I agreed. Researching a topic I know nothing about and have no interest in, and then creating a well written piece about it is not easy. It's taking a lot of self discipline and focus which I don't have to worry about when I'm writing about something I love.

    Those writers who do this day in and day out for a living, who research and write on topics that are dull and boring, and create good content when there's very little information out there to work with, you rock!

    I'll take it as a compliment But seriously now, it is indeed a total nuisance to write about topics you have no idea about. The worst article I did was about the plastic moulding process, it was absolutely dreadful. I had to explain all steps of the process, good think i watch a lot of documentaries. in the end, everytime I have a nasty article to write, I just put on my favorite music and turn up the volume. Sometimes works... ( aaaand sometimes doesn't)
    {{ DiscussionBoard.errors[2887721].message }}
    • Profile picture of the author Audrey Harvey
      Originally Posted by Supernatural_fan View Post

      I'll take it as a compliment The worst article I did was about the plastic moulding process, it was absolutely dreadful.
      It was certainly meant as a compliment.

      Plastic moulding is way up there with hog ring pliers, I think. LOL
      Signature

      Expert content written by an experienced veterinarian and published magazine and newspaper writer.
      Feel free to contact me for details.
      {{ DiscussionBoard.errors[2887817].message }}
  • Profile picture of the author DeborahDera
    Originally Posted by Audrey Harvey View Post

    I know I'm an article writer too, but I'm a veterinarian and I only write on pet topics - it's my passion, my career of 20 years and what I know best.

    Until now.

    My friend has asked me to write three short articles for his site, and I agreed. Researching a topic I know nothing about and have no interest in, and then creating a well written piece about it is not easy. It's taking a lot of self discipline and focus which I don't have to worry about when I'm writing about something I love.

    Those writers who do this day in and day out for a living, who research and write on topics that are dull and boring, and create good content when there's very little information out there to work with, you rock!
    It's definitely not easy. There are few topics I won't even attempt to write on - adult, questionable products, etc. I also know I can't write tech-related articles that revolve around coding, etc. Other than that, I can usually figure out how to write something on almost any topic - and quickly.

    Of course, I had a really new, obscure topic come across my desk earlier this week. It took me 3 days to write 6 articles b/c I spent so much time engrossed in the research!
    Signature

    [B]Web Articles & Content * Blog Content * High Quality PLR

    {{ DiscussionBoard.errors[2889306].message }}
  • Profile picture of the author outsourcetous
    Worse still the client says you didn't quite get the article right. You either need to revise or he asks for a refund. :|
    Signature

    Get quality blogging services from as low as $8/400 words.
    www.valuewriters.com

    {{ DiscussionBoard.errors[2890185].message }}
  • Profile picture of the author idlplumb
    I've never tried writing about something I know nothing about but I couldn't begin to imagine how difficult that must be. I think I would pass on that.

    For those of you who do it....hats off to you guys (and gals)
    {{ DiscussionBoard.errors[2890223].message }}

Trending Topics