TreasurePen - Earn Money by Blogging

I stumbled upon another site that will pay you to write simple blog posts, and while I haven't published anything there yet, it looks pretty decent.  TreasurePen pays you 70% of ad revenue earned from your articles, and if you write on topics with good ad alignment, that can pay out at a decent rate.

When registering, please enter Ldyjarhead@yahoo.com 
as the person who referred you 

You must have a Google adsense account in order to get paid, but if you already have a blog or website, you probably already have it monetized with adsense ads on it, so it's an easy task to attach your account to Treasure Pen so that you can get paid.

If you're dissatisfied with the amount you're making on your own blog, TreasurePen might be just the thing for you.  Sure, on your own blog you'll rake in 100% of any earnings from adsense, but if your blog doesn't get decent traffic, that might not amount to much.  Treasure Pen's large library of content will likely bring more traffic to the site, and 70% of decent earnings is better than 100% of next-to-nothing.

I'm going to try a few posts there to see how it works out, and I'll be sure to report back on my results.  In the meantime, if you sign up for TreasurePen, please fill in my email address (Ldyjarhead@yahoo.com) when you register so that I'll get credit for sending you there.

Happy writing!

~ Marie Anne

Writing Tips: Finding Newsworthy Topics for Any Examiner Title

Photo by moppet65535

When publishing on Examiner, writers can get a boost in page views by getting articles approved as newsworthy.  Not all articles approved as such will get into the search engine news feeds, but just getting the newsworthy designation on Examiner will improve credentials.  As the dashboard meter climbs, it will cause future news articles to be reviewed more quickly and, if worthy, sent into the news feed immediately.  The latter can be a big boost if writing on a breaking news topic and you can scoop other writers..

If you write top news stories or about celebrities and other hot topics, you probably already have sources that you get information from, but what about your Examiner titles that are a little more obscure, and not generally in the news?

Tip:  Make sure you're following Examiner's criteria for writing a quality news article.

In my experience, you can find news items to write about on just about any topic.  Not everything will be headline news, but if something happened within the last 48 hours and you have a dated source to refer to, it can still be tagged as news.  Readers who share similar interests on topics you write about will be happy to read something that isn't about the latest celebrity wardrobe malfunction, or who is having whose baby, so read on to learn how to find news topicst for even the most general subjects that you write about.

Google Alerts

The Google Alerts tool is my preferred way to find newsy topics to write about since notifications are sent directly to my email, and I don't have to go digging elsewhere.  In a previous article about google alerts, I shared how it can be helpful for writers to find people who might be stealing their articles as their own, but the mechanics of setting up the google alert is the same as I explained there.

To find breaking news to write about, set up a google alert for a word or phrase that fits the topic of your Examiner titles, and choose whether you want to receive notification of anything that publishes with that word/phrase, or just news items.  You can also set how often you want to get the alert - as it happens (separate email immediately after something indexes on google), or a daily/weekly email with a compilation of everything that popped up during that timeframe.

I set mine to as it happens so that I get the most up-to-date information and can make the 48 hour window that Examiner requires for items to be considered newsworthy.

Tip:  Make a separate email folder for google alerts and use filters to direct emails directly there.  Google alerts on some topics might generate numerous emails a day, and it will be much easier to find and filter through them if they're contained in a separate folder.

Social Media

I mentioned social media sites in a post about how to find ideas to write about, and you can take the information therein and apply it to newsworthy articles as well.  If you're a celebrity writer, use interest lists on Facebook and lists on Twitter to watch for your favorite headliners to post something that might be worthy of an article.  The Facebook post or Twitter tweet with the timestamp is suitable as a source to show that you're reporting within the 48 hour window that Examiner requires for news.  Everyone and their dog has a Facebook page (including my own dogs!) and Twitter account, so you should be able to find all sorts of interesting things to write that would be considered newsworthy.

Still Not Convinced?

To show that you can indeed write newsworthy articles on just about any topic out there, I'll use my own articles as proof.  One of my Examiner titles is for crafts and I write a lot about crochet, since that's one craft that I know a lot about.  I have google alerts set to email me whenever the words crochet, knit, and knitting index as news on google.  None of these topics would be considered headline news, but I wrote and published these articles after receiving google alerts, and they do fit the parameters that Examiner has set forth for an article to be deemed as newsworthy:

Nebraska teen crochets through arthritis pain to help others
Norway's 'Slow TV' to feature 5-hour knitting contest
Third annual Stitch 'n Pitch scheduled during Fort Wayne Tincaps Game
Giant knitting needles and crochet hook to beat Guinness World Record

If I can write news about crocheting, you should have no trouble finding newsworthy topics to write about for your own Examiner title(s).

~ Marie Anne

Tips for Examiner Writers: Finding Article Ideas

(Photo by Ed Yourdon)

(These tips will be helpful to all article writers, not just those who publish on Examiner)

Keeping your Examiner title(s) updated with fresh content will give a boost to the rest of your portfolio within that title, but as with any other form of writing, ideas can dry up from time to time.  You can get ahead of any dry spells by knowing where to look for new ideas on topics that you write about.  Social media sites can provide fodder for any subject, so make sure to utilize them to your advantage.

Facebook

If you're on Facebook, like and follow pages on topics that you write about.  You can add each topic area to a separate interest list and refer to the feed for that list instead of having posts from those pages get buried in your regular newsfeed.  Click to see more in-depth instructions on how to create and utilize interest lists on Facebook.


Google+

Similar to Facebook, you can sort through posts on Google+ by creating circles for each topic that you have an interest in.  When you find pages that you want to follow, add them to the circle(s) that you've created for that subject matter.  Clicking to look at the circle you're concerned with at that time, you'll be able to tune out general posts that might be cluttering your page/feed.

Twitter

Twitter by itself is extremely difficult to follow for anyone who is following more than a handful of people.  A third party app can sort your Twitter feed into a much more manageable tool.  I like HootSuite, where I can add names to lists, then make separate streams based on those lists, or hasthags, or any number of other parameters.  If I need an idea for an article about a particular TV show, I can refer to the feed for the list I created that might include certain actors I follow, television networks, and even hashtags associated with that particular show. Glancing through that Twitter feed is sure to spark something to write about.

I'll be writing more posts with tips for article writers, so keep an eye on this blog.  If you have any questions about writing for Examiner, feel free to leave a comment and I'll try to address it in a future post.

Not writing there yet?  Click to get started writing for Examiner!

~ Marie Anne

Do you write on newsy topics?  Social media and other tools can help you find newsworthy topics to write about.

Why I hesitated to publish on Bubblews

Photo by Laurence Simon

I've been seeing my friends post on Facebook and other social networking sites about this new place to write - Bubblews - and after a cursory glance, decided it wasn't for me.  Lots of folks are publishing nonsensical junk, much of it in broken (if even that) English, and I didn't want my name hitched to that wagon.  After hearing again and again that my friends reached payout in just a short time, however, I decided to give it another look, and I'm glad I did.

Sure, there's still a lot of junk on Bubblews, but if I write something that I'm not ashamed to attach my byline to, why should I worry about what everyone else is doing?  I'm rarely without something to say, but often what's going on in my head isn't fit for any of the other places I write for and publish, so to Bubblews it goes.  There are few restrictions on Bubblews - if you think it, you can publish it.

The requirements are simple; each post need only be 400 or more characters (that's right, characters, not words), and that's only two tweets on Twitter.  Anyone can do that, and make a buck while doing so.

If you're game to give it a try, click on any of the links in this blog post to sign up, then pop on over to Facebook and let me know that you're on board so that I can help you get started towards earning money with your very first post.

~ Marie Anne

So You Want to Write Children's Books

If you're a writer, you're probably no different than the rest of us and have thought about taking your keyboard off into different directions.  Article writing might pay the bills, but perhaps you've always thought about delving into fiction, or if you're already a fiction writer, you might have wanted to switch gears and try a different genre.  Have any of us NOT thought we'd be great at writing children's books?

Sounds easy, right?  Kid's books are generally shorter than adult novels, and they don't need big words, so those things alone should have us pumping out children's lit at lightning speed, no?

No.

I'm finding out that there's a lot more to writing books for kids than I ever would have thought.

I'm the type that gets an idea in my head to do something and then I want to do it.  Now.  Little research or forethought, just jump right in with both feet and make it happen.  As you can imagine, I rarely have any amount of success when I take on a project in that manner.  So ... I thought I'd like to try my hand (fingers?) at writing some form of children's fiction, and since I honestly know nothing about where to start, I'm doing a little homework.  There's hope for me yet!

In one quick search this morning, I've already found a valuable tool that I think will help me along this path, or perhaps make me realize that this isn't the road I really want to take after all.  That site is Children's Book Insider at writeforkids.com.

I'm not getting paid to plug Children's Book Insider, but after just a short time poking around this morning, I can see where I'll be spending much more time there, and thought others might benefit from taking a peek too.  Everything I've seen so far is free, but I can't say for certain that there aren't things that they'll encourage you to purchase down the road, but I haven't found that to be the case yet.  Already I've downloaded an incredible eBook filled with information on how to get started, with links to videos that are just as helpful as the text.  I'm tickled that within the first seconds of my researching, I landed on something that has it all.

If you've ever thought about writing children's books, or even if you've already started out on your own, you WILL learn something at CBI ... guaranteed.

Happy writing!

~ Marie Anne

On Writing Fiction

I've been writing articles for internet publication for a while now, but have recently been toying with the idea of dabbling in fiction.  I read a lot of fiction, but haven't the foggiest idea how to go about writing it, so decided I'd best start off with some basics before I get too ahead of myself.

While searching for some tools on how to write fiction, I came across this great deal on Writer's Digest - On Writing Fiction is available for a mere $5 (regularly $14.99) through Sunday night, June 24.  You might have to sign up to be a  member at Writer's Digest first, but it's well worth it as the site is chock-full of tips for writers of all genres.

If you miss out on the special $5 deal this weekend, you can still purchase the book through Amazon.com at a decent price.

TopicSpotter: Newest Online Writing Site

TopicSpotter is the newest  online writing site to hit the internet, just opening their cyber doors the first week of March 2012.  Since it's so new, there's almost no information out there to attest to its credibility or whether it might be a scam.

Flash Fiction

What is Flash Fiction?

Flash fiction is fiction in an abbreviated form, a short story written in less than 2,000 words. If you’re new to writing fiction, flash fiction might be a good way to toss your keyboard into the ring. Article writers who spend much of their time researching for technical pieces might find flash fiction a creative break from the mundane.

To qualify as flash fiction, stories must have a main character, plot, and ending. Individual flash fiction contests might have more specific requirements, so make sure you read the rules carefully before submitting an entry. In addition to a word count, many flash fiction contests will provide a writing prompt that must fit into the story line.

Where Can I Find Flash Fiction Contests?

Typing the words flash fiction contest into any search engine should return a number of current contests.   Most will have a small entry fee, but also award cash prizes to the winner(s).

Here are a few to get you started:

WOW! Women on  Writing - 250-750 words, open prompt, quarterly, Spring deadline May 31, 2011
Leodegraunce - 200 word maximum, open prompt, monthly, current deadline April 29, 2011
FanStory  - 500-800 words, writing prompt White Picket Fence, deadline May 3, 2011

Generally an article writer, my one attempt at story writing was an entry for a flash fiction contest at YCN (Yahoo Contributor Network, formerly Associated Content), where the writer had a choice of several sentences to use as their writing prompt.  I chose "The day started out like any other."  for my entry, The Wait.

I'm taking the A-Z Blogging Challenge, where I will post something from each letter of the alphabet on the corresponding day in April, except for Sunday, on at least one if not all four of my blogs. You can see my other blogs in the sidebar - More of Marie Anne.

The Citizen Herald - Gone Almost Before It Got Started

Photo by Kriss Szkurlatowski

When I posted about the Citizen Herald earlier, I wondered if the site would last long.  I thought the site layout too busy and wasn't too keen on the revenue share setup to pay contributors.  Michael McGimpsey had great aspirations, but it looks like he didn't have what it took to compete with the big dogs in the online publishing world.

A fellow freelance writer who also publishes on YCN (Yahoo Contributor Network, formerly known as Associated Content) signed up, was accepted and wrote a few articles for them and was waiting to see if she'd get paid next month.  It's my guess that she won't.

The Citizen Herald went live on February 1, 2011 and the site is already down and the domain name is for sale.  The aforementioned writer attempted to make contact over several days via email and has received no response.  She sent messages to the Twitter account associated with the site and that has since been deleted as well.

The Citizen Herald is dead.

New Writing Site - The Citizen Herald

The Citizen Herald is one of the newest sites to earn by freelance writing online.  I haven't found much information except what's available on the site itself, so my comments will be based on that alone.