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Need to Pick Your Brain

by nursewriter
44 replies
This year I have decided to do my best to get out of debt, get my clunker of a car fixed and to have some money left over to actually live a little.

My goal is to earn $3300 per month.

I have a few ideas on how to do this brewing in my little brain but could use a few more.


My strength is writing...I can write almost anything. However, it is hard to find anyone willing to pay good money for quality writing.

I know some of you have had great success with offline businesses....I have considered this route but my problem is the area that I live in. I live in a small town in rural Ohio just a few miles from Wilmington. Some of you may be familiar with the devastating job losses and high unemployment rate in this area. Businesses all over are closing their doors because no one has money to spend.


I have considered advertising my writing services to other marketers who are doing the offline thing. Something like offering a package deal of a certain amount of articles with article submissions, press releases, auto responders and reports. Would this be something that would work?

Any and all ideas would be appreciated.


Thanks in advance
Lucinda
#brain #pick
  • Profile picture of the author JasonP
    Originally Posted by nursewriter View Post


    Some of you may be familiar with the devastating job losses and high unemployment rate in this area. Businesses all over are closing their doors because no one has money to spend.

    Its not that they don't have money to spend, its that they're afraid to spend what they have. My job as an Internet Marketing Consultant, is to show these people the value in spending money to make some money. If you have the ability to convince people, and reassure them of their decision to invest in a web presence, then offline is the way to go for you. There is plenty of money to be made, and an amount like $3300 will be easy to achieve and maintain.

    Hope this helps!
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  • Profile picture of the author francoza
    If your are providing A+content, then you will surely get good price. Some people can pay upto $15 for one single article.

    You should post your offer in hire or buy and sell section. There are many buyers out there who want to buy quality content and would be happy to have your service.

    They might hire you too.
    I hope this helped you.

    Best of Luck!
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    • Profile picture of the author x3xsolxdierx3x
      Originally Posted by francoza View Post

      If your are providing A+content, then you will surely get good price. Some people can pay upto $15 for one single article.

      You should post your offer in hire or buy and sell section. There are many buyers out there who want to buy quality content and would be happy to have your service.

      They might hire you too.
      I hope this helped you.

      Best of Luck!
      You mean, you would sell one of your articles for a flat $15...

      cringe....I would NEVER do that....some of my articles earn $30-$50 a piece/month, on certain website platforms....

      (lol...err...didn't mean to come off confrontational....I'm not sure I would go that route though...)

      Just think...if you can tailor each article to earn $30-$50 per month.... x 12 months.....one can do pretty well.....compare that to just selling an article for a flat fee, only for that company to go and earn multiples of that flat fee on that one article.....
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  • Profile picture of the author x3xsolxdierx3x
    Lucinda,

    Have you ever considered writing for residuals? (a % of Adsense Revenue share?)....

    I write for several websites in conjunction and have done really quite well....but, it's all about finding the BEST platform...

    I have done ALOT of research in regards to different platform's websites and offerings....we can keep this thread going if you'd be interested in hearing some pros and cons/advantages/disadvantages...I'd be more than willing to help....

    Ps. You're a Nurse? I graduated with my B.S.N. last year.....gearing up to take the NCLEX pretty soon (I had some military obligations, so I couldn't take them right after school as preferred)
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    • Profile picture of the author nursewriter
      I have thought about posting my services in the for hire section as a specialist. Do you think people would be willing to pay good money for health articles written by a professional? I have been an RN for the past 13 years and I am still active in the work force....I have a vast amount of knowledge trapped in my brain that I would be willing to share




      Originally Posted by x3xsolxdierx3x View Post

      Lucinda,

      Have you ever considered writing for residuals? (a % of Adsense Revenue share?)....

      I write for several websites in conjunction and have done really quite well....but, it's all about finding the BEST platform...

      I have done ALOT of research in regards to different platform's websites and offerings....we can keep this thread going if you'd be interested in hearing some pros and cons/advantages/disadvantages...I'd be more than willing to help....

      Ps. You're a Nurse? I graduated with my B.S.N. last year.....gearing up to take the NCLEX pretty soon (I had some military obligations, so I couldn't take them right after school as preferred)

      I would like to know more about this option. Please explain it a little more.


      Good luck on the NCLEX! It was the most nerve wracking experience of my life but it was worth it
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      • Profile picture of the author x3xsolxdierx3x
        Originally Posted by nursewriter View Post

        I have thought about posting my services in the for hire section as a specialist. Do you think people would be willing to pay good money for health articles written by a professional? I have been an RN for the past 13 years and I am still active in the work force....I have a vast amount of knowledge trapped in my brain that I would be willing to share







        I would like to know more about this option. Please explain it a little more.


        Good luck on the NCLEX! It was the most nerve wracking experience of my life but it was worth it
        Hey again, Lucinda,

        lol....I hear you about the NCLEX....I took it once and received a letter via snail mail that said "You Nearly Passed" in every category....lol....so much for any constructive feedback of substance....

        Back to the drawing board, but I'm going to definitely pass it my next time around (fingers crossed...lol)....

        I'll be honest...I've never actually sold an aritcle....I've come across opportunities, and I could certainly see how those opportunities would be appealing to those who had an immediate need...

        If someone was in serious financial straits, I could see having to sell an article for $15 or $30 (I may be missing some but, I don't think most companies or websites will pay a writer much more than that as a flat-fee, unless there were some other things involved....time as a member? contributions already? etc...)

        From a long-term financial standpoint, writing for residuals (% of Adsense Revenue Share) just makes the most sense to me....

        I have a long list of 'similar' websites that all payout different allocations of revenue share...it gets a little confusing, though, because some websites that offer a higher % of revenue share, may actually have very little popularity and, subsequently, less favor in search engines....

        That means that even though a website may offer 100% in revenue share, chances are highly unlikely that your articles will be found with ease, and, even worse, they won't really make any money.

        So, there is an intricate science, I believe, to selecting a website to write for. phew...off the top of my head, I can list a TON of them....I do have a very detailed graph of roughly 19 of these sites, and I have their platform offerings and functionality broken down, for best comparison....

        Suite101
        eHow
        InfoBarrel
        HubPages
        Squidoo
        Helium
        Xomba
        FireHow
        Bukisa

        ....the list goes on and on.....

        I've written for several of them....and, they are all in varying stages of growth.....ultimately, the higher their Page Rank (PR) and authority in search engines, the easier it will be for your articles to be found...and, of course, earn....

        Based on my own research, I only really write for 2 of these websites now. I don't want to make this post a downright blatant promotion of the websites.....but I can just speak from personal experience as far as the user experience and earnings have been...

        I only write for Info Barrel and Squidoo right now, but, I don't just write for them because alot of people do already....like I said, I decided on them because of some very extensive research I did over a few months....I am also considering branching over to HubPages, as well....
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      • Profile picture of the author Zabrina
        Definitely capitalize on your extensive experience!

        Some suggestions:

        --Shoot for $1,000/month, see what works, and scale it up.
        People's brains seem to like that number. It's not impossible to achieve, and once you start earning it consistently, everything afterwards looks like a piece of cake. Plus, this will force you to develop a solid business model that won't limit you to a certain amount a month, ie, make you ask yourself, "What exactly is my plan? How can I scale this up? Can I scale this up? Do I have to drop this client and do something else with that time?" Remember, don't stop striving for new opportunities that pay better.

        --Work on passive income so you don't have to keep earning.
        Ebooks are a great way to earn passive income, and with your medical expertise, you can write all kinds of health/fitness ebooks! If you'd prefer, you could write them for others, but you could also learn how to market them and keep 100% of the profits.

        --Combine business models.
        Look for a combination of short-term and long-term income, but don't sacrifice one for the other. Write some things that will bring passive income, and write others to pay the bills until they're done, up, and selling well.

        --Reassess your plan often.
        Give yourself a chance regularly to see what's working and what isn't. Drop what isn't working (even if they pay you some money, sometimes it's worth dropping a client to get the time you need to land a higher-paying job) and improve/scale up what is.

        --Don't spend too much time here.
        There are lots of incredible things to be learned here, but really try to focus on one way of making an income until it works for you or you know it won't (a few months of consistent effort). I explored too much last year and didn't make as much money as I could have. Now I'm concentrating on my strengths I already have, and doing better.

        Good luck! And capitalize on your RN designation as much as possible, you can command an expert's price for that.
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        • Profile picture of the author x3xsolxdierx3x
          Originally Posted by Zabrina View Post

          Definitely capitalize on your extensive experience!

          Some suggestions:

          --Shoot for $1,000/month, see what works, and scale it up.
          People's brains seem to like that number. It's not impossible to achieve, and once you start earning it consistently, everything afterwards looks like a piece of cake. Plus, this will force you to develop a solid business model that won't limit you to a certain amount a month, ie, make you ask yourself, "What exactly is my plan? How can I scale this up? Can I scale this up? Do I have to drop this client and do something else with that time?" Remember, don't stop striving for new opportunities that pay better.

          --Work on passive income so you don't have to keep earning.
          Ebooks are a great way to earn passive income, and with your medical expertise, you can write all kinds of health/fitness ebooks! If you'd prefer, you could write them for others, but you could also learn how to market them and keep 100% of the profits.

          --Combine business models.
          Look for a combination of short-term and long-term income, but don't sacrifice one for the other. Write some things that will bring passive income, and write others to pay the bills until they're done, up, and selling well.

          --Reassess your plan often.
          Give yourself a chance regularly to see what's working and what isn't. Drop what isn't working (even if they pay you some money, sometimes it's worth dropping a client to get the time you need to land a higher-paying job) and improve/scale up what is.

          --Don't spend too much time here.
          There are lots of incredible things to be learned here, but really try to focus on one way of making an income until it works for you or you know it won't (a few months of consistent effort). I explored too much last year and didn't make as much money as I could have. Now I'm concentrating on my strengths I already have, and doing better.

          Good luck! And capitalize on your RN designation as much as possible, you can command an expert's price for that.
          Completely agree!

          ....I wouldn't just "settle" though for selling an article for a Flat-fee of $15....$30....$50....heck...I wouldn't even do it for $100....

          Some of my nursing related articles pull in at least $30 alone, per month.....it's not $100 right away....but, over the course of a year, it's significantly higher than what it would have been if I just sold it for $100....

          Bear in mind, also, that people who offer to buy your articles are doing it for a reason...they KNOW they can take your specialized knowledge, post it elsewhere, and earn multiples of what they paid for it on that one article.....

          It's a business, and it makes complete sense from a business standpoint. Of course, I'd pay someone $15 flat for an article, if I could make $100-$500 over the course of a year. That's a GREAT investment....mildly shifty...lol....but, a great investment for THAT person....
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        • Profile picture of the author x3xsolxdierx3x
          Originally Posted by Zabrina View Post

          Definitely capitalize on your extensive experience!

          Some suggestions:

          --Shoot for $1,000/month, see what works, and scale it up.
          People's brains seem to like that number. It's not impossible to achieve, and once you start earning it consistently, everything afterwards looks like a piece of cake. Plus, this will force you to develop a solid business model that won't limit you to a certain amount a month, ie, make you ask yourself, "What exactly is my plan? How can I scale this up? Can I scale this up? Do I have to drop this client and do something else with that time?" Remember, don't stop striving for new opportunities that pay better.

          --Work on passive income so you don't have to keep earning.
          Ebooks are a great way to earn passive income, and with your medical expertise, you can write all kinds of health/fitness ebooks! If you'd prefer, you could write them for others, but you could also learn how to market them and keep 100% of the profits.

          --Combine business models.
          Look for a combination of short-term and long-term income, but don't sacrifice one for the other. Write some things that will bring passive income, and write others to pay the bills until they're done, up, and selling well.

          --Reassess your plan often.
          Give yourself a chance regularly to see what's working and what isn't. Drop what isn't working (even if they pay you some money, sometimes it's worth dropping a client to get the time you need to land a higher-paying job) and improve/scale up what is.

          --Don't spend too much time here.
          There are lots of incredible things to be learned here, but really try to focus on one way of making an income until it works for you or you know it won't (a few months of consistent effort). I explored too much last year and didn't make as much money as I could have. Now I'm concentrating on my strengths I already have, and doing better.

          Good luck! And capitalize on your RN designation as much as possible, you can command an expert's price for that.
          Oh YES......eBooks are where the money is at!....IF you do it right....

          I've written one already, and am SERIOUSLY considering tapping into my Nursing expertise to write another one, as well.....

          I don't run this blog...but, have exchanged personal emails with the owner....

          Pat Flynn successfully launched his eBook and earned well over $200,000 last year!

          The Smart Passive Income Blog - Passive Income Ideas and Online Business Tips

          He has a tremendous FREE eBook about how he went about creating his eBook. Of course, you have to join his mailing list....but, I have that eBook printed off, lying right next to me, it's THAT good...

          (and, no, he didn't pay me to make this post...LOL)...

          I did exactly what he did and am just about to release my first eBook course!
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  • Profile picture of the author cleanoutguru
    Register on a certain site and look for writing jobs there. Just be careful of scammers.
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  • Profile picture of the author JaiJay
    That's some fantastic information there x3xsolxdierx3x , I guess it took a long time to whittle the list down to what suits you best?
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    • Profile picture of the author x3xsolxdierx3x
      Originally Posted by JaiJay View Post

      That's some fantastic information there x3xsolxdierx3x , I guess it took a long time to whittle the list down to what suits you best?
      oh, it sure did take a while JaiJay....I never really like to invest any time or effort into anything unless I KNOW that what I'm doing is the best course of action....

      ...so, it all came down to research for me...

      It literally took 3-4 months of researching different company website's TOS (terms of service) and FAQs, in order to figure out which ones truly offered the BEST....

      It was just so tricky though because:

      1) There are just so many user-generated content/revenue sharing websites out there...it's clear they are truly the wave of the future...(some of these websites are the highest ranking in the world because of that)

      2) Some companies are pretty shady, at best, with their TOS, general business practices, and transparency with users. If companies/websites REFUSE to disclose their revenue share with users, I stay far away from them (I can name a few....)....

      At this time, there is nothing in Google Adsense's TOS that says that these websites can't share the percentage of revenue they share with writers. (if there is...please, show me! lol...)....so, the one's that refuse to disclose that distribution, I really have issues with.....and refuse to touch....

      Never considered myself an expert at much, but I do feel very knowledgable when it comes to this So...if ya'll have any questions...fire away! lol
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  • Profile picture of the author nursewriter
    I am looking for ways to make immediate income however I want to have a good passive income also. Eventually, I would like 80% of my income to be passive so I can concentrate on other things I want to accomplish.

    However, finances are really tight at the moment and I need to get some money coming in.

    I am loving all of the great advice and suggestions provided in this thread. You guys rock!!!
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    • Profile picture of the author Jackbgd
      Originally Posted by nursewriter View Post

      I am looking for ways to make immediate income however I want to have a good passive income also. Eventually, I would like 80% of my income to be passive so I can concentrate on other things I want to accomplish.

      However, finances are really tight at the moment and I need to get some money coming in.

      I am loving all of the great advice and suggestions provided in this thread. You guys rock!!!
      Then it's easier for you to write articles for the "online" folks than for offline. For example, if you put up an offer to write content for others... let's say you get hired for 20 articles a day, and you write each article for 6$, so, you'd be making 120$ a day, and you need maybe 4-5-6 hours to write these articles, after that you can work on your "passive" online income by creating content for yourself etc... but you'd still be making over 3000 a month by writing articles for others, if your quality is good
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      • Profile picture of the author x3xsolxdierx3x
        Originally Posted by Jackbgd View Post

        Then it's easier for you to write articles for the "online" folks than for offline. For example, if you put up an offer to write content for others... let's say you get hired for 20 articles a day, and you write each article for 6$, so, you'd be making 120$ a day, and you need maybe 4-5-6 hours to write these articles, after that you can work on your "passive" online income by creating content for yourself etc... but you'd still be making over 3000 a month by writing articles for others, if your quality is good
        I wouldn't settle for $6 an article....

        On another note, there is definitely a trade-off....you can earn very quickly by writing articles for others, or you can keep complete control of your writing, and earn lifetime residuals (well, depending on the site you write for)...

        I understand the immediacy of the money, but, hm....you'd essentially be writing up a whole website of articles, in return for maybe $120...and, then, the person you sold them to will make multiples off your writing....

        I still truly believe a FAIR residual website, that offers lifetime rights and revenue share to your content, is the BEST way to go by a mile.

        ....and, with your specialized expertise, I wouldn't sell yourself short...
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      • Profile picture of the author nursewriter
        Originally Posted by Jackbgd View Post

        Then it's easier for you to write articles for the "online" folks than for offline. For example, if you put up an offer to write content for others... let's say you get hired for 20 articles a day, and you write each article for 6$, so, you'd be making 120$ a day, and you need maybe 4-5-6 hours to write these articles, after that you can work on your "passive" online income by creating content for yourself etc... but you'd still be making over 3000 a month by writing articles for others, if your quality is good


        Here is the problem with accepting offers to write articles for a low price. It is impossible to write 20 QUALITY articles in five or six hours. When I write an article I spend some time on research. I am trying to find the best information on that particular niche that I can.

        A quality article cannot be pumped out in ten minutes. A quality article will contain golden nuggets not found in a thousand other places on the Internet. There also has to be time for proofreading and editing.

        Maybe I am slower than the rest of the article writers out there. But I feel trying to push myself to write 20 articles a day at $6 an article would not work. The quality of my articles would definitely suffer.
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        • Profile picture of the author x3xsolxdierx3x
          Originally Posted by nursewriter View Post

          Here is the problem with accepting offers to write articles for a low price. It is impossible to write 20 QUALITY articles in five or six hours. When I write an article I spend some time on research. I am trying to find the best information on that particular niche that I can.

          A quality article cannot be pumped out in ten minutes. A quality article will contain golden nuggets not found in a thousand other places on the Internet. There also has to be time for proofreading and editing.

          Maybe I am slower than the rest of the article writers out there. But I feel trying to push myself to write 20 articles a day at $6 an article would not work. The quality of my articles would definitely suffer.
          Because of the nature of our profession, Lucinda, I think we SHOULD give the most accurate, evidence-based, information we possibly can. This takes time. Other nurses will obviously be searching for these articles, and, we should want them to have the best information possible.

          That's why I can relate....it takes me awhile sometimes to write a very quality 1,000+ Word Article...I would NEVER exchange that for $6....I'd roll the dice with it in the search engines, and apply alot of the SEO type techniques I've learned to it.

          "But I feel trying to push myself to write 20 articles a day at $6 an article would not work."

          ...I wouldn't do it, Lucinda...at least not in our niche....JMHO
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  • Profile picture of the author MANNSK
    Thanks for the good info in this thread, I'm going to look into the article sites mentioned.
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  • Profile picture of the author Jackbgd
    Originally Posted by nursewriter View Post

    This year I have decided to do my best to get out of debt, get my clunker of a car fixed and to have some money left over to actually live a little.

    My goal is to earn $3300 per month.

    I have a few ideas on how to do this brewing in my little brain but could use a few more.


    My strength is writing...I can write almost anything. However, it is hard to find anyone willing to pay good money for quality writing.

    I know some of you have had great success with offline businesses....I have considered this route but my problem is the area that I live in. I live in a small town in rural Ohio just a few miles from Wilmington. Some of you may be familiar with the devastating job losses and high unemployment rate in this area. Businesses all over are closing their doors because no one has money to spend.


    I have considered advertising my writing services to other marketers who are doing the offline thing. Something like offering a package deal of a certain amount of articles with article submissions, press releases, auto responders and reports. Would this be something that would work?

    Any and all ideas would be appreciated.


    Thanks in advance
    Lucinda
    If you write well, why don't you just go into affiliate marketing? Pick a good product on Clickbank in a not too competitive market, start a blog, write 3-4 good posts, include an affiliate link, then just sit down... write 50 articles with good keywords (check it out with Google Keyword Tool), then, submit these articles to 10 directories. You'll have 500 backlinks... then just kick back, let the articles rank... and you'll be making 400-500$ a month with this one blog. Make 7-8 blogs like that, and there you are... over 3300$ a month...
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  • Profile picture of the author DanielCW
    Why not sign up at textbrokers.com: Your Source on the Net -. In fact there are plenty places all over the net that you could write content for. If you are as good as you say then write a sales page and do a WSO. What do you have to lose???
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    • Profile picture of the author nursewriter
      Originally Posted by DanielCW View Post

      Why not sign up at textbrokers.com: Your Source on the Net -. In fact there are plenty places all over the net that you could write content for. If you are as good as you say then write a sales page and do a WSO. What do you have to lose???
      I am a member of textbroker....they will pay you in the range of $1 to 3 per article. You are stuck in the same boat of having to pump out a ton of articles to make it worth your while.

      There is also a psychological aspect of writing articles for peanuts that a lot of people don't realize. If I am getting paid only a few dollars per article, I start to think that is all my writing is worth. I won't try to challenge myself or improve on my writing. The result is a sub-standard article that I am not proud of.

      Not to mention the burnout you get from trying to pump out articles as fast as you can.
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      • Profile picture of the author JaiJay
        Originally Posted by nursewriter View Post


        Not to mention the burnout you get from trying to pump out articles as fast as you can.
        I started out like this, it does begin to get you down. I know my writing is of good quality though so I began to charge more and people do pay it if they can see the results.
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    • Profile picture of the author Obelisk
      Lucinda,

      If you are looking for a quick buck, then simply offer your services either here or one of the many freelance sites out there.

      While this method may not be the most scalable method (i.e. if you are writing all the content) it can allow you to get a little breathing room and expand into other areas such as Article Marketing, Guest Blogging, Ghostwriting, etc...

      What I would do is this:

      - Pick a Path
      - Formulate a plan from point "A" to point "B"
      - Then work the plan...

      For instance:

      If I chose the Article Marketing route as an affiliate I would do the following.

      1. Choose a niche that is rich with buyers
      2. Find a stable of products others are successfully selling
      3. Find the hot buttons of the market. What makes them tick?
      4. Peform keyword research to identify profitable keywords
      5. Set-up a writing/release schedule (some call it your Goals)
      6. With #3 in mind I would put the fingers to the keyboard...
      7. Lather, Rinse, Repeat until desired results attained

      Seems simple I know, but the fact remains this timeless little method is a real butt kicker if you actually do it. It took me a few years to accept the simplicity of it all, I thought there had to be a magic bullet that would allow me to sit on my duff and collect the checks...not so...

      Don't overthink your situation, simply pick an approach, set a plan, and work the plan....

      Hope this helps.

      Chris
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      • Profile picture of the author nursewriter
        Originally Posted by smithsts View Post

        Lucinda,

        If you are looking for a quick buck, then simply offer your services either here or one of the many freelance sites out there.

        While this method may not be the most scalable method (i.e. if you are writing all the content) it can allow you to get a little breathing room and expand into other areas such as Article Marketing, Guest Blogging, Ghostwriting, etc...

        What I would do is this:

        - Pick a Path
        - Formulate a plan from point "A" to point "B"
        - Then work the plan...

        For instance:

        If I chose the Article Marketing route as an affiliate I would do the following.

        1. Choose a niche that is rich with buyers
        2. Find a stable of products others are successfully selling
        3. Find the hot buttons of the market. What makes them tick?
        4. Peform keyword research to identify profitable keywords
        5. Set-up a writing/release schedule (some call it your Goals)
        6. With #3 in mind I would put the fingers to the keyboard...
        7. Lather, Rinse, Repeat until desired results attained

        Seems simple I know, but the fact remains this timeless little method is a real butt kicker if you actually do it. It took me a few years to accept the simplicity of it all, I thought there had to be a magic bullet that would allow me to sit on my duff and collect the checks...not so...

        Don't overthink your situation, simply pick an approach, set a plan, and work the plan....

        Hope this helps.

        Chris
        Great post Chris

        I know that I have a bad habit of overthinking. I sometimes have trouble focusing because I have so many things that need to be completed in a day.
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  • Profile picture of the author Dennis Gaskill
    Lucinda - I'm a big fan of writing ebooks. Selling ebooks accounts for the major portion of my income. Of course you can sell it from your website, but you can also create a smaller free ebook that you get listed in ebook directories. You can also offer it to member sites and to list owners on your topic. Be sure to include giveaway rights so anyone who reads it knows they can pass it on.

    The free ebook should have useful information that helps people, but not so much information that it solves all their problems. You solve their problems with your commercial ebook. If they are helped by your free ebook a percentage will buy your commercial ebook.

    When the commercial ebook sales dry up (give it time, if you don't have a mailing list or a popular website it takes time to build momentum) you can kick the sales back in gear by offering a new version and letting your previous customers know about it. You can also start selling it with resale rights, master resale rights, or private label rights.

    If you offer resale/master resale rights, be sure to build in a link or two for new products so you gain sales from those selling your ebook. You can do this with private label rights too. Some will rewrite your product and remove your product links, some won't. You can also start an affiliate program so that vendors could change your link to your products to their affiliate links to your product and you both prosper from add on sales.

    This kind of marketing has been good to me, so it may be to you too.
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    • Profile picture of the author nursewriter
      Originally Posted by Dennis Gaskill View Post

      Lucinda - I'm a big fan of writing ebooks. Selling ebooks accounts for the major portion of my income. Of course you can sell it from your website, but you can also create a smaller free ebook that you get listed in ebook directories. You can also offer it to member sites and to list owners on your topic. Be sure to include giveaway rights so anyone who reads it knows they can pass it on.

      The free ebook should have useful information that helps people, but not so much information that it solves all their problems. You solve their problems with your commercial ebook. If they are helped by your free ebook a percentage will buy your commercial ebook.

      When the commercial ebook sales dry up (give it time, if you don't have a mailing list or a popular website it takes time to build momentum) you can kick the sales back in gear by offering a new version and letting your previous customers know about it. You can also start selling it with resale rights, master resale rights, or private label rights.

      If you offer resale/master resale rights, be sure to build in a link or two for new products so you gain sales from those selling your ebook. You can do this with private label rights too. Some will rewrite your product and remove your product links, some won't. You can also start an affiliate program so that vendors could change your link to your products to their affiliate links to your product and you both prosper from add on sales.

      This kind of marketing has been good to me, so it may be to you too.
      This sounds like a good plan. Do you have a list of ebook directories that you submit to?
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  • Profile picture of the author Bev Clement
    Lucinda, only just seeing this post as we have been moving and no internet.

    There are a number of different business models being talked about here, and you don't have to trade your skills if you don't want to.

    There are many people who will pay high rates for writing, I'm not talking only articles and I'm not talking about within the nursing niche. Now, some will say don't trade for writing for other people, yet this is the fastest way to get paid. It will help you get back into the writing arena.

    You can then decide which niche (nursing) you want to write and submit those to various sites.

    You can also write your own ebook, but you will need to market and sell it before earning an income.

    It isn't about writing for peanuts, but deciding this is part of your business model, and you set your own rates.

    I do a couple of business model, but still enjoy being paid by a client to write for them.

    Don't discount the idea of work for hire, because there are people who pay between $0.10 and $5 per word for writing.
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    • Profile picture of the author x3xsolxdierx3x
      Originally Posted by Bev Clement View Post

      Lucinda, only just seeing this post as we have been moving and no internet.

      There are a number of different business models being talked about here, and you don't have to trade your skills if you don't want to.

      There are many people who will pay high rates for writing, I'm not talking only articles and I'm not talking about within the nursing niche. Now, some will say don't trade for writing for other people, yet this is the fastest way to get paid. It will help you get back into the writing arena.

      You can then decide which niche (nursing) you want to write and submit those to various sites.

      You can also write your own ebook, but you will need to market and sell it before earning an income.

      It isn't about writing for peanuts, but deciding this is part of your business model, and you set your own rates.

      I do a couple of business model, but still enjoy being paid by a client to write for them.

      Don't discount the idea of work for hire, because there are people who pay between $0.10 and $5 per word for writing.
      I have heard a few people say this...but, few are willing to say where you find people like this....

      .10 a word would be great....but $5....hm....

      Most of my articles are well over 1,000 Words....

      I just couldn't see someone paying $5,000+ for a single article...

      I could be wrong.

      Where do you suggest finding people that would be willing to pay this?
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    • Profile picture of the author nursewriter
      Originally Posted by Bev Clement View Post

      Lucinda, only just seeing this post as we have been moving and no internet.

      There are a number of different business models being talked about here, and you don't have to trade your skills if you don't want to.

      There are many people who will pay high rates for writing, I'm not talking only articles and I'm not talking about within the nursing niche. Now, some will say don't trade for writing for other people, yet this is the fastest way to get paid. It will help you get back into the writing arena.

      You can then decide which niche (nursing) you want to write and submit those to various sites.

      You can also write your own ebook, but you will need to market and sell it before earning an income.

      It isn't about writing for peanuts, but deciding this is part of your business model, and you set your own rates.

      I do a couple of business model, but still enjoy being paid by a client to write for them.

      Don't discount the idea of work for hire, because there are people who pay between $0.10 and $5 per word for writing.
      Bev,

      Thanks so much for taking the time to post.

      I am all for writing for others...if fact I enjoy it. I love researching different niches and learning new things. I want a few new clients that are going to pay me a decent wage for my writing. This will help me get the immediate cash flow that I need to take care of a few pressing problems such as, groceries, heat and car repairs before it dies completely.

      I don't want people to get the wrong idea about me. I work full time as an RN and while I do receive a steady paycheck I am the sole support for my family. My health insurance at work keeps going up, the cost of heating, food and living expenses have gone up.

      The hospital has put a freeze on cost of living wages and they don't allow overtime. Sometimes you get called off work if the census is low or get sent home early. They are doing everything they can to reduce the amount of money they pay the staff so they can save money.

      So I am stuck in a dead end job unless I want to go back to college. This is not an attractive option to me since I still owe on my first college loan.

      I supplement my income by writing. However, I don't make enough yet to get caught up.

      Since I work full time right now I have a limited amount of time to write for others so $5 or $6 dollars per article is not a smart option.

      Finding a few clients that pay between 0.10 and $5 per word would be awesome. I just don't know where to look.
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  • Profile picture of the author Bev Clement
    The companies who pay $5 per word are fairly easy to find, but they are in very specialized niches. The problem with naming them on a public forum is suddenly you'll find people who make $2 for a 400 word article thinking they can command far higher fees.

    Obviously, any company paying over $1 a word have a very strict format for their writing, and they will specify how many words you have to write and the topics you can write about.

    The interesting thing is quite a few are in the health niche, and for some reason they pay far higher rates for true stories, rather than the medical article based on medical facts.

    For higher rates, there is a big jump for people, and of course many of these don't commission writers. You have to send in your work, ensuring you have followed everything they have asked, and then you may or may not be accepted.
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  • Profile picture of the author Dan C. Rinnert
    Originally Posted by nursewriter View Post

    I have considered advertising my writing services to other marketers who are doing the offline thing. Something like offering a package deal of a certain amount of articles with article submissions, press releases, auto responders and reports. Would this be something that would work?
    Probably.

    On your website, you don't list what you charge for "regular" (non-health) articles. Some people are more interested in having a quality article and not just an "SEO article." Some of us just like people-optimized articles.

    And, I would consider setting "regular" (non-health) articles at your current health article rate, and raising the price on your health articles.
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    Dan also writes content for hire, but you can't afford him anyway.
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    • Profile picture of the author nursewriter
      Originally Posted by Dan C. Rinnert View Post

      Probably.

      On your website, you don't list what you charge for "regular" (non-health) articles. Some people are more interested in having a quality article and not just an "SEO article." Some of us just like people-optimized articles.

      And, I would consider setting "regular" (non-health) articles at your current health article rate, and raising the price on your health articles.
      Dan,


      You are right. I need to go in and change my rates and really add a little more to my site.
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      • Profile picture of the author Dan C. Rinnert
        You should look into utilizing your Twitter account more. Also, you mention "aspiring fiction writer" on your Twitter profile. You might consider adding samples of your fiction to your writing website. Sometimes, good articles will utilize stories that draw people in, so having some examples of that on your site couldn't hurt.

        Plus, if you are interested in specific genres of fiction, indicating that on your site may also help you to attract more clients in those genres for articles and product reviews, which may help you not only get some additional income but also help get you known in the genre for which you may write fiction.
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  • Profile picture of the author Bev Clement
    Lucinda, you need to make some changes to your website. You have a wso page showing which has your insane prices there If a client finds you why would they pay $0.10 per word when you're offering $7 articles?

    The companies which pay over $1 per word, you rarely get instant payment. They expect you to follow their instructions and then they will review any work submitted and decide if they like it or not. If they do then they pay. Obviously, this isn't the way to go for quick instant cash.

    I know there is a call for health articles, but selling unique articles to 1 client isn't always the way to do it. Many people don't want technical articles even if they are based on fact, because they are not sure if they will fall foul of any laws.

    When we write health books and articles we always write them from a layperson perspective.

    There are people offline who are desperate for writers, and many of them are searching online for writers because too many people are offering a service which is below par.

    As a writer don't limit your thinking, you can offer offline writing to people across the globe. I've never been to Australia yet I have written for offline client there.

    Change your website, and start to promote your services. You don't have to limit yourself to articles, what about ebooks, reports, press releases all of which have higher rates of pay.

    We have written in the past few months, manuscripts for people to send to their publisher, manuscripts for people to self publish, screenplay script, press releases, technical manuals, professional bios, autoresponder series, and a few articles.

    The thing to remember is you need to get your pricing correct, not all writing is equal therefore not all charges are the same.

    Bev
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  • Profile picture of the author sbucciarel
    Banned
    Put out some samples and a listing in Warriors for Hire. Put together some PLR packs and do a WSO in hot niches.

    You could also try out Elance and Guru for freelance writing jobs.

    If you can write whole ebooks that are high quality in good niches, I'm sure you could sell that service. I've seen several of those listed in Warriors for Hire.
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  • Profile picture of the author nursewriter
    Thanks for all the great advice.

    First order of business is to get the website fixed. This thread has really helped me get some perspective on what needs to be done and how I can increase my income.
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