Ultimate
Writers' Guide:
Top Five Websites
That Pay You to Write
A guide for writers who are considering publishing premium content for web editors. Should you really give away your work for pennies?
— Write for joy. Write for your readers. Write for yourself.
Writing for web editors takes discipline. If you intend to make any real money, you'll need to know what to write, how to present topics, how to cultivate your audience and how to reach new readers. These five websites provide a basic platform and a thriving community for writers who prefer not to fly solo in the blogosphere.
Rating System:
★★★ – easy/great
★★ – average
★– not consistent/difficult
1. Triond — Submit your content. Pays variable rate averaging .50 - $1.50 per 1,000 page views. Publishes to in-house publications.
Barriers to entry — ★★★
Pay — ★★
Quality of writing — ★★
Score: 7
2. Redgage — Submit your content. Pays variable rate averaging .85 - $1.50 per 1,000 page views. Bonuses of $4.00 and up for featured articles. Daily, weekly and monthly prize drawings of $50.00, $150.00 and $400.00.
Barriers to entry — ★★
Pay — ★★
Quality of writing — ★★
Score: 6
3. Constant-Content — Submit your content for CC’s clients. Select tiered licensing and set a competitive price for your work: one-time rights, exclusive rights and full rights. Articles are typically priced at $25 - 100. Marketplace: submit to a list of titles they supply. Pay for these titles typically ranges from $10-40. Certain articles pay up to $200. CC's commission rate is approximately 35%. Publishes for web and non-web clients.
Barriers to entry — ★
Pay — ★★
Quality of writing — ★★★
Score: 6
4. Helium — Marketplace: Write to titles submitted by Helium. Pays upfront variable fee $12 - 100 plus an unspecified amount for page views (est. $1.00/1000). Bonuses and awards for featured articles. Publishes for web clients.
Barriers to entry — ★
Pay — ★★
Quality of writing — ★★★
Score: 6
5. Associated Content – Submit your content. Upfront fees for US writers only, range from $1.00 - 20.00. Pays variable rate of $1.50 - 2.00 per 1,000 page views. Publishes to partner sites and syndicates to clients. "Calls for Content" allows you to write to titles.
Barriers to entry — ★★
Pay — ★★★
Quality of writing — ★★
Score: 7
Rates, criteria and pay-out options change frequently.
Topics are widespread. Word count is upwards of 500. You can typically write a short article about anything — gardening, health and family, pets and animals, entertainment, political and business news.
When writing for these sites, bear in mind that articles which are evergreen and general in nature have a greater chance of earning long-term revenues. An article about travel to Rome may have longer viewing power than an article about the latest headline on CNN.
Remember the sheer joy you get from writing
Take into consideration, however, that the pennies, nickels or dollars you earn are not the best motivation or reason to begin writing for these sites. Too often the pay-outs are too meager to justify your time in terms of an hourly wage, especially if you're not prolific. Be clear about your objectives, whatever those may be. Perhaps you're hoping to build a fan base for a new blog. Or maybe you want to understand how readers surf the net and end up finding your article. If you are a writer who is engaged in a long-term project such a book or a screenplay, submitting content to any of these websites can give you the break you need while you can keep doing what you enjoy: write.
For writers who are more interested in writing fresh content that is news driven, visit Digital Journal, a citizen journalist news site that pays writers for reporting events from the ground.
Sites like Triond power several niche publications, such as Cinemaroll for film lovers and Newsflavor for current events, where you can find other writers who share your interests and where you can focus on writing your best content. Other sites, like Constant Content, allow you to foster professional relationships with customers who are looking for content, some of whom are new and are eager to find writers who can become regular contributors for their websites and publications.
Whether you choose a page view driven site or a customer content site, using these forums to explore and practice your writing may not always pay but they will always be good for your craft. NewsSip
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