It depends on how fast you can type.

I could probably write one in like 20 minutes.. But that doesnt mean everyone can.

Damn, I'm jealous.

I'm a decent typer, but I have a hard time thinking of what to say, figuring out how to structure it, doing research to back up what I'm saying in the article, and then trying to write it in a way that sounds interesting.

Perhaps I'll be better off outsourcing the writing, but need to be sure I hire someone that can crank out the kind of quality that gets syndicated, builds trust and effectively presells. Sounds like a complicated process and a lot to expect of an article writer. Seems they would need to be an excellent researcher, writer and copywriter...

Recommendations, anyone?

if you are writing 1000 - 1200 word articles then i dont think its too bad to be looking at a few hours or so from start to finish. maybe even longer if you are writing really good quality article that require some research.

i mean if you type 75 words a minute (mistake free) it would take you 15 minutes or so of just straight typing, not to mention errors, thinking, or re-writing anything.

if you want to speed up some, try just not thinking so much on your first run through. then spend more time re-working the article once you have a bunch of thoughts down on the paper (or word processor). most people find it easier to collect and organize their thoughts better once they have it all "on the paper"

lol David. I can type about 80-90 WPM with 100% accuracy.

@Gary, you might want to check out Dragon Naturally Speaking.

You talk, it converts it to text for you. Then you can just go back and proofread.

Thanks for your replies everyone. I'm going to try both writing my own and outsourcing with various writers. Then I'll do a little non-scientific test about which results in the most traffic, sales and sign ups.

PatriciaJ, I'm guessing that you find it worth it? Spending hours writing an article is profitable for you? Do you outsource or plan to at all?

It depends on how fast you type, how fast you're able to receive thoughts and ideas, and lastly, whether you're interested in the topic you're writing about.

I personally write at 70 WPM and think of ideas quite quickly. If I'm interested in the niche I'm writing the article about, and don't have to conduct further research, then it would take me about 20-35 minutes to accomplish that article. It drastically varies on the situation and person.

Im dyslexic so anywhere between 30-60 minutes have been known to go up to 2 hours but the article quality does come out well and it flows so thats all that counts.

It can take me anywhere from 30 minutes to 2 hours. It depends on the topic and how much I know about it and whether or not I really know what I want to say.
Where are you getting tripped up? If it's in finding qualified research to back up what you want to say, have you tried using the search modifier "site:.edu" or "site:.gov"?
I've written in a lot of topics, and if you want to PM me with your niche, I might be able to point you to some good sites for research.

Love,
Shannon

It takes me about an hour to write 1000 words on a topic I know. There are several topics I know well enough to cut that time to 45 minutes and still not sacrifice quality.

Today I wrote an 850 word article on a spiritual - metaphysical concept that I was only somewhat familiar with. I had to stop twice for research. One research item took more than a half hour to find.

I had about two and a half hours into this thing before finishing. It's going to be a blog post. But this is a blog I really want to fly so the material has to be excellent every time.

You say you know your topics so you should focus on getting to the point where you spend an hour, hour and a half to get quality stuff. Otherwise, it might be a better use of your time to outsource your writing. Good luck.

From research to final output? three to four hours.

-Chris

I say just do you. It's not just about how fast you type. It also depends on if you are one of those people who can type directly from your head. Not everyone can do that. Just because two people have two diff. techniques for accomplishing the same goal, it doesn't mean they can't both succeed.

Joey

The answer to this really depends on several factors. First of all, I have a few advantages: I'm usually constantly structuring the article in my head as I write, somewhat subconsciously, and find it very easy to transfer my thoughts to the page. I'm very familiar with grammar and spelling, so I don't have to stop often to proofread on the go, and save it for a one- or two-pass edit at the end. I'm also a very fast typist, and if I have a clear mind and lots of energy, that typing speed just keeps going up and up.

So... if it's in one of my main niches, I can knock out a great 1000-word article in somewhere between half an hour and an hour.

If it's in an obscure niche or I want to absolutely blow it out of the water, it could be as long as four hours.

Usually, it falls somewhere between those two extremes.

Time spent doesn't necessarily increase the finished article's quality, as there's a "point of diminishing returns" with any article where editing it will sap the liveliness and personality out, or make it seem too carefully structured, or just isn't worth the time. (95% perfect as opposed to 98% perfect doesn't matter when you've spent four extra hours getting there.)

Some people type very slowly, or can't touch-type and have to constantly check, or simply can't structure their thoughts easily. They might take three times as long as me to write an article and still not do it as well. On the other hand, someone might take twice as long to write an article, but due to their own talent and finely-honed skills, create an article way better than mine.

It's more about the steps taken during the process and the finished product than the time spent on it.

Yea I think it really depends.. Sometimes I'm able to to pump out an article in 30 minutes other times it can take an hour to write a post, I dont think you should be worried how long it takes you to post as long as your creating quality content

It usually takes me a couple of hours to do a good 1000 word article. Sometimes I use dragon, but sometimes I'd rather type for some reason.

I have a strange way of writing where I write a couple of paragraphs and then I have to do something else for a while. I'm actually writing an article now and this is my "something else". I guess my brain needs to be distracted to let what I have written "settle" and let my subconscious work on the next couple of paragraphs.

If I need to do a lot of research it can take 3 or 4 hours but usually when I do those longer articles it is on the topics that I know very well.

OK, well I guess I have to go back to writing mine now… thanks for the distraction!

Lee

About an hour when I'm on a roll, but possibly 2+ hours.

I write all of my own stuff because I don't really trust anyone else to do it exactly the way I prefer it.

[DELETED]

I found that I can get more done when I begin on an article and come back to it later.

I hate the idea of forcing words to come out, when I find that I'm all out of juice, I simply stop, save it for later and begin work on another article. The articles that are usually left to simmer are those that come out best as I'm passively looking for more info on the subject.

So I guess it takes days at times.

It all depends. Sometimes 60 minutes. Sometimes weeks if it's research-intensive.

On average, 2 to 4 hours including formatting.

A good 1000 word article with proper reserach, proofreading, etc, usually takes me about an hour, maybe a little more. I usually spend about 15-20 minutes researching, 20-30 minutes writing, and 15-20 minutes to proofread the grammar and tweak a few sentences, etc.

If it's a topic I'm already familiar with, it takes me about an hour. If I have to do any significant amount of research, it can take two or more hours. I could probably do it faster if I really focused, but I tend to fall into ADD mode online, checking email and half a dozen other things every few minutes.

It takes me all day to write a 1000 word article because when it's done, it's flawless -- complete with illustrations, charts, and references. What the hell can 20 minutes or even an hour accomplish?! Give me a break!

I can't pump out a good 1,000 word article that fast. For a well thought out informative article with credentials, etc.. would take me at least half a day or more.

It usually takes me a few hours. I never assume that I know everything that there is to know about a given subject so I always like to do research (sometimes excessively).

Also I've found that if I make an outline like you would for a book it makes the writing phase a breeze. If you're spending a lot of time organizing your thoughts in your mind as you write, that might be something to try out. It can't hurt.

Usually i will take more than 2 hours to write a 1000 words article for my software,it is too long,I wish i can get faster.

I've adopted the Alexa method, as well...as we've both been staunch proponents of it for a long time. Roughly 75%-90% of my 500+ articles are 800-1,000 words. It isn't without reason either. I do feel that longer articles are generally have a greater possibility of capturing more keywords, and providing more in depth information and insight. Of course, the debate could be had to no end that you don't need a long article to have quality, and that long articles can be 1,000 of garbage.

Writing these articles hasn't been easy.

Sometimes, I'll go days and days without writing an article because of sheer writer's block. When I get into a groove, though, I can churn out pretty high quality, 1,000+ word articles, like clockwork--10-15 minutes. THOSE articles are typically my military-related articles that need little to no research.

On subjects I'm familiar with the topic, it takes me between
15 and 20 minutes to write a 1,000 word article.

BUT...

Read this post by Jon Morrow about ideas, and you'll realize
why it isn't important how FAST you write, but how HARD you
work to get those ideas in front of your audience.

It's a paradigm shifting piece of thought leadership - plus
a story that's as inspirational as anything I've seen.

On Dying, Mothers, and Fighting for Your Ideas | Copyblogger

A quote from it:

All success
Dr.Mani

Hi there,

A 1000 words article is great. Definitely much much better compared to a 400, 500, 600 etc words Article.. There's no doubt about it BUT only if it's of good quality.

you've to realize that a 1000 words POOR QUALITY article is not going to go far, google won't index it.

I would recommend you to go for 500 words article with GOOD QUALITY instead.

However, if you think you can write a 1000 words article with GOOD QUALITY content, then by all means go ahead. It's even better

Hope this help,

God Bless,
Jeremiah

It takes hours for me to write a 1000 word article coz I'm aiming for a high quality article.

I'd say about 30-40 minutes if I am writing on a subject that I know very well... at least one hour if I need to do a little research and it could take a few hours if I am completely new to the subject...

Mind that English is my 5th language so sometimes my brain blocks for a few moments translating a phrase to a few different languages, lol.

- Alex

I think it's a good idea to focus on quality no matter how long, the quality will speak for itself with long term interest, long after the shorter articles have been made redundant

This took me a little over two hours from idea to completion:

Radial Symmetry

Now, granted, fiction is not an article. But if your research is done, and you're just setting fingers to keyboard to get the words out of your head and into the world, you should be able to get 1,000 words out in about an hour.

Most people aren't really done with their research when they sit down to write, and they try to multitask it in. They'll start writing about (say) the history of Ayurvedic yoga, and realise they don't actually know it. So they stop writing and go research, then come back and realise they still don't know very much, and go research some more. That's where most of the time comes from.

But if your research is done, and you just write, you can pump out a lot of content pretty quickly.

As others have said, it varies with each writer. Some days I reel one off in an hour and sometimes it takes much longer. It helps if you write a point form outline of the piece first and then fill it in -- start from a high level then drill down. One other bit of advice I would give is to make sure you always read your articles out loud when proofing them. That's the best way to review not just grammar, but flow and logic too.

If you are using WordPress, I've found the "After the Deadline" plugin to be very helpful as a writer's tool. It doesn't just check spelling, it also does a very good job on the more subtle grammar mistakes we are prone to.

Regards,
jim

It would really depend on how fast you type and most especially how well you know the subject matter. Structuring the contents from introduction down to your main points, and the ending would not be that easy but if you love what you'll like to write then go with it. Considering your audiences will also be good. At the end it doesn't matter how fast you are but how many people will be able to learn and educate from your article. Also, I got this feeling your good at this (twinks).

Very interesting discussion!

In answer to OP's question - a decent 1,000 word article, from idea to completion will take me a little over an hour (maybe some more).

I have some structures in mind that I tend to use, but sometimes it does get a little confusing. Also, English is not my first language (but then I have spent eons in England, and have a British accent), so I like to think I can write well.

For me, research takes the most time, followed by editing (I type at 60-70 wpm with good accuracy, so just flesh writing would takes 15-20 mins, give or take). Its not that I make mistakes, more like I can dramatically improve the quality of a piece after reading (I am actually more of a editor than writer!), which I do.

I have heard of people writing a 500 word article in 12 minutes or so, can't imagine doing that! Maybe its just me...

The method I use to churn out 1000+ articles for traffic and backlinks is "Professional Paraphrasing!" I simply hook up Dragon NS and find a high quality article which is relevant to my niche and paraphrase paragraph by paragraph. I can chur out a great article like this in 1/2 hour.

Now if I am guest blogging on a high traffic website I will research and put out an original piece for sure, but for churning good content the above method works great. One thing I have learned is that working smart will let me be much more productive!

Andrew

I got a lot of help from getting some great tips when I got this book from Churchill Publications

I find that if I'm simply typing up some notes for myself on a specific technique someone has explained or notes on a WSO that I've bought, I can easily write several pages in 15 minutes or so (I have plenty of "notes" files that are 20+ pages that took me no time at all to write up). However, I tend to write obscenely slow when writing articles, particularly if the article is something I have no personal interest in.

Should you be working faster? I don't know. I suppose it depends on how good the article is and how much it earns you. If it takes you three days to write an article but it reads like Hemingway wrote it and it earns you $10,000/year then I would say it was worth the three days it took to get it down. If, on the other hand, you crank one out and it takes you three days but earns you $10/year then I'd say you're not working fast enough.

Also, follow Andrew Jacobsen's advice and use Dragon Naturally Speaking. I haven't personally tried it but most people speak at about 100 - 150 words/minute but type at about 60 - 80 words/minute, I would guess, so you'll save quite a bit of time doing it that way.

It takes me several hours to write an article. So I outsource that part. If you can afford to, I recommend you outsource that part of it and just do the parts you are good at. If you don't have much to spend, you can always use fiverr or iwriter for $2 to $5 for a article. You might have to rewrite parts of them, they're spun articles, most of the time, so some times they don't make sense. But I have also gotten articles from them that are good and don't need anything done to them.

It depends. If time is the factor, then 45 min. If quality is the factor, then three hours.

as i stated very early on in this thread, i dont think the 30 minute professional article is impossible, but i dont believe it is the norm either.

not many writers typically go from "hey i am going to write an article about (insert topic) to a fully completed (ready to syndicate) article in 30 minutes.

maybe it has a happened a few times, but there is no way that is the norm. those posts should have the "results not typical disclaimer"

I don't write much to be honest but I do write occasionally. The time it'd take me to write a 1000 word article would depend entirely on the topic I'm writing. An obscure topic, for example, would be difficult to write on because collecting information would be time intensive.

Even if I know a topic very well, it's tough to come up with articles that are 1,000 word long, or more. You need to have an outline in mind and for the article to read well, you need the entire idea to flow well. The longer the article, the greater the chances of the writer losing the attention of the reader (if the article isn't written well). It is very easy to lose your grip over the article and the way it flows, too, as the length increases.

I'd say it'd take about 2-3 hours (more, actually) for me to come up with a 1,000 word article that keeps the reader hooked. If I have to just put words together, it'd take less than 20 minutes. However, then it'd just be some sort of a word compilation, not really an article that will serve the purpose that you're trying to serve.

For me it can range anywhere from 40 minutes to 5 hours depending on how much I Know about the subject matter and what my overall goals & intent are. Once I know my overall goals, my target audience and know what I'm trying to convey, I'll then look for a template or model I can use for the basis of my outline. Having templates & systems for the research & writing process make a world of difference.

Personally, I've been working on an effective research process for about 2 years now. I'm a stickler for quality & delivering value so my ability to do solid research quickly is crucial. As for writing templates, I've built up a nice library of those. Many of my template are in mind map format so its easy for me to put everything together chunk by chunk as I conduct my research.

However the past few months I've started using Scrivner a bit. If you do a lot of writing you owe it to your self to check it out. It's originally for MAC, but is now available on windows. It works kind of like the old school method of using postcard for research chunks. It's a great tool for all kinds of writing. Non fiction, novels, sales copy, etc.

Heres a link (no affiliation, just a fan) - Literature and Latte - Scrivener

Lastly, if anyone is looking for a good resource on creating writing templates, check out Content Catalyst by Roger C Parker.

-------

Edit - Quick tip, if you chunk things down and construct things in mind map format you can easily create spin off content for re-purposing. For example, I could take a chunk of content from a single node on my mind map, re-frame the content in the form of a question and BAM I got a nice useful blog post, tweet, etc.

Hope this helps.

Writing doesn't take me too long, say 30 minutes with Dragon. But it's the research that can take time, especially if I'm writing something high quality.

[DELETED]

As the editor of a high-quality content writing service working with pros, I can tell you; it takes my best writers between 20 minutes and 3 hours per 1000w+ quality piece, on average.

Of course, as mentioned above, it really depends on several factors. The amount, and type, of research ultimately play a big role in how long a decent 1000-worder will take you.

As you probably already know, churning out quality content is no easy task, especially if you need stacks of it, but if you've got a good writing system in place, it certainly becomes a whole lot easier.

This is the system I personally use when writing a decent article:

• I choose a topic (3 min)
• I decide on the angle and conclusion (5 min)
• I pick a great title (Important) (3 min)
• I do the necessary research and jot down key points (15 min -2 hours depending)
• I write the article (one that lives up to the title) (30 min - 1 hour)
• I correct spelling and grammar (5 min)
• I 'save' and come back later (30 minutes or so)
• I proofread and edit if necessary (5-10 min)

That's like 3.5 hours for a great piece normally, and I take a 'stand up' break every 20 min or so.


Conclusion:


Depending on your budget, how much content you need, and how specialized the content should be, you might be better off hiring someone to do the hard work for you. Keep in mind that time is money.


Cheers

[DELETED]

[DELETED]

Some PLR articles are okay if they haven't been used anywhere else because you want original and relevant content with no grammar errors. I can type pretty fast so it would take me about 30 to 45 minutes for right a quality 1,000-word article.

[DELETED]

I can write two 2500 word, good quality (I think) articles in a day, maybe for two or three days at a time, but then I go totally blank and may not be able to write any more for a week, does anyone else suffer this writers block problem?

It varies for me. Sometimes I can crank out a long article in a few hours and sometimes it takes me days. It partly depends on how well I know the topic and also how excited I am to write about it.

Like a lot of things the more you do it the better and faster you get at doing it. My first couple of long articles would take me a week or more and lots of stress but now its much easier and I really enjoy the process.


Have fun,

Gary Z

It's not the actual writing that takes that long, it's the research and organization up front. If you spend the time to pull all your facts together and organize your thoughts into a clear outline, it can take as little as 30 minutes to write a 1,000 word article. Then I like to let it sit overnight and go back to it the next day. Sometimes, what seemed brilliant at the time looks mundane the next day. Time for a little editing.

If you already are familiar with your subject, you may just be taking longer to write the article because you haven't organized your thoughts clearly in advance.

Another tactic you can use to write faster is to try free writing. Even if you have a good outline you can get stuck. If this happens, open up a notepad and just start writing whatever comes into your head. Put a timer on for 10 minutes and keep writing, even if it's 'blah, blah, blah'. Your brain will kick in at some point and you might come up with some really great stuff. I learned about this technique in Ed Dale's 30 day challenge.

Just using a timer for any writing is a help. Work expands to fit the amount of time you have. If you give yourself a "time budget" for each part of your article writing, you'll be much more efficient. For example, you could give yourself 10 minutes to do some keyword research to come up with a good long-tail keyword for the article. Then give yourself 20 minutes to do some research for facts and interesting quotes or ideas. Then another 15 to 30 minutes to outline your article. Finally, leave about 1 hour to write the article. That's just a really rough guide and totally depends on your topic and how complicated it is.

I really wouldn't worry too much about word count. It's not the length of an article that dictates its quality. It's the gems of information that people get out of it. I've gotten some great tips from a short list of ideas someone wrote in 200 words vs. absolutely nothing from a 3,000 word essay.

Hope the tips help you a little.

Op question:

How long?

about 2 hours with the research and pictures....

Cheers,
Yoangov

About 2 hours if its a topic I'm not interest in.

How much time or effort you spend on writing an article of that length isn't important. The important thing is that you get what you set out to achieve. As long as you are happy with your work and the results it generates then it is worth it. When I sit down to write an article the one thing I focus on is getting it right.
Think of article writing like building a house. If your structure is not done properly or you use bad materials or if you rush the construction then your house isn't going to last too long. Take your time and do it right and it will serve you well for years.

I picked up a really good method while I was an affiliate for a company called "Big Ticket To Wealth", I do believe it's called IMACC or something rather.They teach you to go to something like Ezine Articles or Article base, anything of that nature and just pick yourself 5-6 articles. Now just grab a piece of paper and start getting you ideas written down. Won't take you any longer than 15-20 min to have an article that readers can enjoy and of course it's all in your own words.

Unfortunately I don't think I have ever written a 1000 word article personally. I have written some blog posts that long. But I have pretty much always paid someone else to write articles...