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WRITE FOR DEMAND STUDIOS
Demand Studios is the content provider for a number of online sites such as e-how, answer bag, golflink, flowgo and more. They accept freelance writers to write for their various websites.
You can submit an application to write for them. I submitted my application ba...
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My Writing Website
I used to have my own domain name setup for my personal webpage. I could never really figure out the ftp file uploading and always struggled to keep the site updated. I decided to setup a free site on Blogger to keep track of all my writing projects.
The site is located at: ...
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www.today.com.
Here is a blogging site that freelance writers may want to check out. If you are looking for other sites that pay you to blog, then check out the www.today.com site. I found their listing on a pro bloggers job board site last week. They are looking for bloggers in just about any ca...
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Every time I write a new article, I list it with certain social networking and bookmarking sites. Most of these sites require that you set up a free account in order to access their services. I see quite a few page views to my articles coming in from Digg and Technorati.
If you can get an artic...
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Writing.Com is the online community for writers and readers of all interests and skill levels. Whether you're an enthusiastic, creative writer looking for the perfect place to store and display your writing online or a casual reader searching for a good story, Writing.Com is the website for you!
...
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I sold my first re-print of an article I had previously published online. The Editor of The Heart of New England online magazine saw my Vermont Artisan Cheese article on the Associated Content website. She emailed me on March 8th requesting permission to reprint it on the magazines website.
It's ...
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<p><strong>Cocoa Beach Century Ride<strong><br>
As some of you might remember, last year my husband Rob and I raised money for the Leukemia & Lymphoma Society through their Team in Training program. The event we trained for was the 109 mile El Tour de Tucson, which took...
click title to read more
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One of the sites I write for is Suite101. I just found this post from Luxury Vacations Feature Writer Jennifer Miner on the Suite forums.
Traval Anthology Seeks Submissions
Hi, I'm part of a (very) new group blog called TravelingMamas.com (as is another frequent Suite101 contributor). We're s-l-...
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Well, now I have loads of time to go back to writing for all my blogs. I have been in prep school since February 29th to possibly become a Guide on About.com. My final review was yesterday and here is the email I received from my prep mentor:
My "Dear Jane" Letter
"Lynn,
After a difficult d...
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Have You Heard of Absolute Write?
I just joined the forum over on Absolute Write a few days ago. I had been looking for information on the About.com prep process for guides-in-training. I found a link on the Suite101 forums to the Absolute Write About.com thread. So I ran right over and signe...
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You might have noticed, my three Orble blogs haven't had any Google AdSense ads on them since February 28th. That is the day I recieved a generic email stating that they had disabled my adsense account. Couldn't really figure out why, they didn't give me any details. And I have 4 blogs setup up with...
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Hello guys and gals!
Sorry I haven't posted in a few days. But I'm right smack dab in the middle of Guide Prep Training to possibly become a Guide on About.com!
I've applied to a total of 5 guide topics since September, 2007. I always got the "thanks for applying" message. Then 3-4 weeks later...
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<a href="http:www.bloguniverse.org"><img src="http:www.bloguniverse.orgimagesbloguniverse.gif" alt="Blog Universe"><a>
<a href="http:www.bloguniverse.org">BlogUniverse<a>
Blog Universe is a free directory submission site. You can add a free link to your ...
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I started my freelance writer career writing for a variety of print publications. Over the years I've had a number of articles published in various Llewellyn Worldwide books. My articles have appeared in Llewellyn's yearly Herbal Almanac, Magical Almanac, Witches' Datebook and Witches' Calendar.
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Do you Smorty?
Smorty acts as a go between to connect advertisers with bloggers. The bloggers receive offers to <a href="http:www.smorty.com">advertise on blogs<a>
This is an interesting opprotunity for bloggers that you may want to check out. Bloggers can choose which opportuniti...
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Demand Studios Logo
WRITE FOR DEMAND STUDIOS
Demand Studios is the content provider for a number of online sites such as e-how, answer bag, golflink, flowgo and more. They accept freelance writers to write for their various websites.
You can submit an application to write for them. I submitted my application back in November. Didn't think they were interested. Got an email last week saying I had been accepted to write for the e-How website. I can claim between 1 and 10 articles at a time. They pay $15 per article - exclusive content.
REVAMPED WEBSITE
I think Demand Studios just redid their whole site not too long ago. My original application must have gotten lost some where. I'm almost thinking I might have sent in another application a few weeks ago? Maybe I should use a spread sheet to keep track of that kind of stuff!?!
SHORT ARTICLES
Demand Studio articles are really short. You use their template to write the article according to their format. I wouldn't be interested in reselling the articles anywhere. But I could rewrite/expand upon the article to make it a whole new article and try and sell that somewhere else.
CLAIM ARTICLES TO WRITE
You don't have to claim 10 articles at a time. You have 7 days from the day you claim an article until the time it is due. So you could claim 1 article a day for 10 days, that way you would spread out the due dates of each article. Or just claim articles during your slow time while continuing to write for your other gigs.
SUGGEST ARTICLES TO WRITE
You can also suggest articles to write. I claimed 6 articles and didn't really see anything else I was interested in. I submitted suggestions for 3 other articles - one of which was accepted within seconds. Another article I suggested (How to Choose a Road Bike) was denied - too many published articles on that topic. I changed the title to How to Choose a Women's Road Bike and it was accepted right away. Another article suggestion was How to Choose a Triathlon Bike - that was rejected so I changed it to How to Choose a Time Trial Bike, that suggestion was accepted right away.
I've written 5 articles so far. Takes a day or two for them to be accepted and published. Once they are published you can claim additional articles to always have 10 articles in your claimed article list. I've been submitting photos with each of my articles too, but most articles on e-How don't have photos.
PAYMENT
I just got payment for my first 4 e-How articles through Demand Studios last night via Paypal. Yippie - thought it was going to take longer to get paid.
Demand Studios provides content for around 50 sites besides e-How including trails.com, gardenguides.com and livestrong.com. As a biker, who writes a lot about biking, I would love to be able to put on my resume that I write for trails.com and livestrong.com.
I'm wondering if you have to prove yourself with Demand Studios by writing for e-How at first. Maybe once you've been writing e-How articles for awhile they approve you to write for their other sites? I filled out a second application, using a different email, saying I was only interested in writing for livestrong.com. Still waiting to hear back.
PHOTOS
I've been adding photos to all my articles. They don't pay extra for adding photos - still just $15 per article.
Does anyone else have experience writing for any of Demand Studios sites? I would like to hear about other writer's experiences with Demand Studios.
Take care,
Lynn
Freelance Writer Lynn Smythe
My Writing Website
I used to have my own domain name setup for my personal webpage. I could never really figure out the ftp file uploading and always struggled to keep the site updated. I decided to setup a free site on Blogger to keep track of all my writing projects.
The site is located at: Freelance Writer Lynn Smythe.
RSS Feeds
I write for quite a few online sites, so I placed RSS feeds of the 5 latest articles for most of the sites on the main page. I still need to setup a page with my resume of print publication articles.
More Links
I don't think I'm going to keep a resume of all my online publications on the site. They currently number in the hundreds - information overload. Guess I should add links for each site I've had articles published on: Suite101, Associated Content and Helium are the main ones.
Your Site
Do you have a personal website setup to keep track of all your online and print publications? Please share the link to your site and I'll check it out when I get a chance.
Take care,
Lynn
www.today.com.
Here is a blogging site that freelance writers may want to check out. If you are looking for other sites that pay you to blog, then check out the www.today.com site. I found their listing on a pro bloggers job board site last week. They are looking for bloggers in just about any category.
I sent in an application to see if they would be interested in a Herb Gardens blog. They emailed me today with the link to my blog: herbgardens.today.com. Not much to see so far, still figuring out the formating etc... Looks like the site uses Wordpress as the blogging software. My Bike Diva blog, with the WebbleYou blog Network, uses Wordpress, so I am pretty comfortable using that software.
Anyways, they say they pay $5.00 per blog post, max 1 blog post per day ($35 per week, around $140 per month). After a few months, they take a look at how much traffic your site is generating and decide whether or not to offer you more $$ per post. Looks like they place google ads all over your blog, that's how they generate income.
You have to accumulate at least $50 before you can be paid. I added my first post today, so it will be a few weeks before I'll be able to request payment. I'll keep you updated on how I like the new site.
Today.com might be worth checking out. To apply to author a blog for them, go to www.today.com/apply. I sent them an article clip on a herb gardening article I wrote for Suite, somewhere between 500 and 600 words long.
For the short term, a brand new blog paying $5.00 per post seems pretty good. I guess if you have a HUGELY popular blog, you are better off setting it up yourself, on a site such as Orble, and collecting all the ad revenue yourself.
Take care,
Lynn
P.S. Do you have a blog on Today.com, or know anyone that has experience with this site? I'd like to hear from anyone else who is blogging over at Today.com.
Squidoo Logo
Every time I write a new article, I list it with certain social networking and bookmarking sites. Most of these sites require that you set up a free account in order to access their services. I see quite a few page views to my articles coming in from Digg and Technorati.
If you can get an article listed on Stumble Upon, you should see a HUGE increase in page views. However, Stumble Upon limits the number of links it will accept from a certain website before it blocks you from adding anymore links from that site. So, instead of trying to link every article I write on Suite101 to Stumble Upon I just link my main page.
I've also had great success listing my latest articles on the various message board forums I belong to such as Absolute Write and Accentuate Writers. These are two freelancing websites that contain tons of useful information in addition to the message boards.
My Social Networking and Bookmarking Sites
All About Steak
www.allaboutsteak.com
I just registered with this site and started bookmarking all my food related articles to this site. Don't let the name scare you, you can also add vegetarian and other non-steak recipes to the site.
Ask
www.ask.com
Blog Upp
www.blogupp.com
If you have one or more blogs, you should use this service. Register your blog with Blogupp in exchange for placing a widget on your site. Great way to drive more traffic to your site for FREE!
Classmates
www.classmates.com
Great way to find old high school and college classmates. However, the free account is a bit limited. To enjoy all the benefits this site has to offer, you would have to sign up for one of their subscription accounts. I haven't done this yet, trying to decide if it would be worth the $$ or not.
Digg
www.digg.com
Facebook
www.facebook.com
I like this site much better than MySpace. I link all my articles to my Facebook page. I get quite a few page views coming from my links on Facebook. Lots of bells and whistles that can be added to customize your personal Facebook page.
Google
www.google.com
Google should eventually find your article. But why not get an early jump on driving traffic to your articles by visiting Google and adding a link to your articles as soon as they are published.
Linked In
www.linkedin.com
Great site for adding general contact information, staying in touch with business contacts and even high school and college classmates. I list the main sites I write for as current jobs. I found quite a few of my college classmates and business associates on LinkedIn.
MyBlogLog
www.mybloglog.com
Part of the Yahoo family. Register with My Blog Log and find out who is visiting your blogs.
MySpace
www.myspace.com
Add a blog or bulletin about your latest article to your MySpace page. Now that I have a Facebook account, I rarely use MySpace anymore.
Squidoo
www.squidoo.com
Create a lens on Squidoo to keep track of all your latest articles. You can add a RSS feed for each online site you write for to your Squidoo lens.
Stumble Upon
www.stumbleupon.com
Limits the number of links you can add from each site.
Technorati
www.technorati.com
In addition to being able to add bookmarks to each of your articles, Technorati also allows you to claim and track each of your blogs on their site.
Yahoo
www.yahoo.com
Yardbarker
www.yardbarker.com
I link all my sports and fitness related articles to this site. I am an avid road biker and have started to write articles on road biking and road biking events.
Zoom Info
www.zoominfo.com
I honestly don't remember why I signed up for this site. I forgot I even had an account with them until I received an email from them the other day. I signed up for a free account with them back in late 2006. This was before I started writing for online content providers. Guess I need to update my profile on this site or just delete the account.
Other Networking Sites
There are tons of other social networking and bookmarking sites available. I don't have any experience working with these other sites. But thought I'd list a few of them in case you want to research them yourself.
Blinklist
www.blinklist.com
Delicious
http://del.icio.us
Furl
www.furl.net
Hub Pages
www.hubpages.com
This site is a bit like Squidoo.
Newsvine
www.newsvine.com
Reddit
http://reddit.com
Spurl
www.spurl.net
What Sites Do You Use?
Are there any other social networking and bookmarking sites that you use that aren't on this list? Add a comment to the end of this post and let us know what sites you like to use.
Writing.Com is the online community for writers and readers of all interests and skill levels. Whether you're an enthusiastic, creative writer looking for the perfect place to store and display your writing online or a casual reader searching for a good story, Writing.Com is the website for you!
With 608,473 members and 1,309,677 literary items created since inception, this community is bursting with activities, inspiration and creativity.
Free memberships are available to everyone. Each membership includes an online writing portfolio, numerous writing tools, email services and the chance to meet and bond with fresh creative minds, just like you! No other website services the Writing world better than we do.
Visit the Writing.com website to learn more, or to sign up for your own account.
Artisan Cheese
I sold my first re-print of an article I had previously published online. The Editor of The Heart of New England online magazine saw my Vermont Artisan Cheese article on the Associated Content website. She emailed me on March 8th requesting permission to reprint it on the magazines website.
It's kind of funny, it's one of the lowest page view articles I have ever written for Associated Content. But I guess the editor thought it was the perfect fit for The Heart of New England Magazine.
I received $15 for the reprinted article - way more than I've made in page views over on Associated Content.
Here is a copy of the email I received from the editor:
"Hi Lynn,
I'm publisher & editor of The Heart of New England online magazine. I would like to publish your article about Vermont Cheeses. I pay $15 per article. Please let me know if this is okay. Thank you!
Marcia Passos Duffy
The Heart of New England online magazine
www.TheHeartofNewEngland.com"
Invoice for Payment
She asked that I send the article to her in word format as an email attachment and to send her a seperate invoice to be paid. I use Paypal so I sent an invoice through Paypal to the editor for $15. I received payment the very next day.
On March 14th I received another email from the editor with the link to my article reprint: Vermont's Artisan Cheeses.
Now if I could only figure out how to sell reprints off ALL my articles, I might be able to go on that trip to Hawaii!!!
Free Reprint
A million years ago, my first few articles were published just so I could start collecting a few clippings to show to other editors. I had a few articles published in the Essential Herbal Magazine. No payment, but I did receive a free copy of the magazine.
About a week prior to selling the chesse article reprint, I was contacted by the Editor of The Essential Herbal Magazine. Here is a copy of her email to me:
"Hi Lynn,
I'm in the process of putting together the first five years of The Essential Herbal into 2 volumes. One will encompass Spring/Summer, the other Fall/Winter. The first three years are almost completely sold out, and there was a lot of great stuff in there. So I'm writing to ask if you will give me permission to reprint the articles that you submitted to the magazine. Proper credit of course - and you may want to change the credits to reflect your lynn smythe creations site.
Please let me know at your earliest convenience.
Thanks!
Tina
www.essentialherbal.com"
I gave her permission to reprint the articles asap. I updated my contact information, so you never know, I could be receiving more reprint requests in the future.
Team in Training Logo
Cocoa Beach Century Ride
As some of you might remember, last year my husband Rob and I raised money for the Leukemia & Lymphoma Society through their Team in Training program. The event we trained for was the 109 mile El Tour de Tucson, which took place on November 17th, 2007. We were the mentors for the Palm Beach County cycle team. It was a phenomenal experience, both the ride, and working towards raising money for such a worthy cause.
This year, Rob is going to be the coach, and I will be the mentor for the group training for the 2008 Intracoastal Waterway Century Ride. This 100 mile road bike ride takes place on October 26th in Cocoa Beach, FL. We are looking for people to participate as a member of the Palm Beach County TNT cycle team.
This is a great way to get the support and structure you need to get in shape, meet new cycling friends and achieve something many people haven't - riding 100 miles on a bicycle in one day! The Leukemia and Lymphoma Society is a charity that does much to further research towards cures, and ease the burden of those battling leukemia, Hodgkin’s disease, lymphoma and myeloma along with improving the quality of life of patients and their families.
In exchange for the support and training, you commit to raising a certain amount of money. The participation minimum for this ride is $2100. This might seem like a large amount, but you'd be very surprised at how quickly and easily this amount of money can be raised. Last year Rob and I raised over $6,500!
ALL CYCLISTS WELCOME
Last year's team had everyone from very athletic road bikers, to recreational cyclists, to diehard couch potatoes, to a 63/73 year old couple riding their tandem bicycle. EVERYONE is welcome, no matter what prior road biking experience you may have. The Palm Beach County cycle team will have a coach, and a mentor to help you out with your training and fundraising goals. Each training ride also includes a SAG vehicle, filled with snacks and goodies, that sweeps the ride route should anyone have a mechanical problem or any health issues.
  
INFORMATION MEETINGS
Information meetings will be starting in Palm Beach County over the next few weeks. Rob and I will be attending most of these meetings, and will spend a few minutes at each meeting talking about our experience with the Team in Training program.
BOYNTON BEACH - Monday, April 14 - 6 pm - West Boynton Beach Library
JUPITER - Monday, April 14 - 6 pm - Jupiter Community Center
WEST BOCA RATON - Wednesday, April 16- 6 pm - Fleet Feet Sports Boca
EAST BOCA RATON - Monday, April 21- 6 pm - East Boca Community Center
ROYAL PALM BEACH - Tuesday, April 22- 6 pm - Royal Palm Beach Library
WEST PALM BEACH - Thursday, April 24- 6 pm - South Florida Water Mgmt District
PALM BEACH GARDENS - Saturday, April 26- 9 am - NIKE Women, The Gardens Mall
WEST PALM BEACH - Saturday, May 3- 9:30 am - The National Croquet Center. This is also the Fall Season Kickoff for all TNT events including the Accenture Chicago Triathlon, The Nation’s Triathlon, The Bank of America Chicago Marathon, Nike’s Women’s Marathon and the 20th Annual Intracoastal Waterway Century Road Bike Ride.
If you are interested in joining the TNT program, know someone who might be, or would like more information, please drop me a note.
Lynn Smythe
Team in Training Cycle Mentor
Thebikediva@yahoo.com
www.bikediva.net
For more information about Team In Training and the Palm Beach Area Chapter, visit their website at www.teamintraining.org/pb or give them a call at 561-775
One of the sites I write for is Suite101. I just found this post from Luxury Vacations Feature Writer Jennifer Miner on the Suite forums.
Traval Anthology Seeks Submissions
Hi, I'm part of a (very) new group blog called TravelingMamas.com (as is another frequent Suite101 contributor). We're s-l-o-w-l-y growing, having a lot of fun, and putting together a travel anthology (think Chicken Soup or McSweeny's, but with a travel angle).
The deadline for submissions is the first of September, so no rush. If you think this is something you'd like to participate in - and get paid - then please check out our anthology page.
Don't let the blog name fool you: You don't have to be a mom to write about how edifying or mind-expanding travel can be!
Jennifer Miner
Luxury Vacations Feature Writer
I went to the Traveling Mamas anthology page to find out more information. The deadline for submissions is September 1st, 2008. If your story is accepted you will receive $50 plus a Traveling Mamas travel pack and a free copy of the book.
I'm definately going to try to write something to submit for the anthology. My husband, son, daughter and I travel to western NC every year after school gets out. We even bought 4 1/2 acres of land in Waynesville 2 years ago in the hopes to someday retire to the mountains and build our dream home.
Must be a story in there somewhere. Like the time I took everyone to Linville Caverns (I'm claustrophobic!)
Well, now I have loads of time to go back to writing for all my blogs. I have been in prep school since February 29th to possibly become a Guide on About.com. My final review was yesterday and here is the email I received from my prep mentor:
My "Dear Jane" Letter
"Lynn,
After a difficult decision-making process, we've decided that,
unfortunately, we're not going to be able to offer you the position of Guide to Herb Gardens at this time. While you created a lot of good content and clearly have an excellent grasp of the topic, we've decided to go with another candidate whose greater breadth and depth of coverage gave us a better idea of how they'd perform as a Guide. Thank you for taking the time to go through Prep and for your patience during this long process and we wish you the best of luck in your future work.
Sincerely,
About.com Prep Instructor"
Insane Training
Prep school was really freaking INTENSE! I barely cleaned or cooked during the entire prep training, much to the horror of my husband and kids. And I created loads and loads of content during training. Guess I should try selling it somewhere, or starting my own Herb Garden site. But I don't have the energy right now to deal with it. Maybe the magic publishing/editing gods will come visit me and offer buckets of cash for all the herb garden stuff I've written in the past 18 days!?!
Consolation Prize
Oh well. I actually "met" the girl they choose to be the guide over on the Absolute Write forums. So I don't feel too bad. She is a herb nut like me and a terrific writer. She tried for another guide topic about a year ago, went through prep but wasn't offered the position at her last review. So I guess that means I shouldn't give up my dream of one day becoming a guide on About.com. But Herb Gardens, geeez, that was the PERFECT topic for me.
Pennies from Heaven
Well, now it's back to writing for pennies for all my online sites. About.com guarantees new guides a minimum of $725 per month for the first two years. Dang, I sure could have used that money!
Enough crabbing for now, time to go make a pot of coffee and drown myself in it!
Absolute Write Logo
Have You Heard of Absolute Write?
I just joined the forum over on Absolute Write a few days ago. I had been looking for information on the About.com prep process for guides-in-training. I found a link on the Suite101 forums to the Absolute Write About.com thread. So I ran right over and signed up. The About.com thread on Absolute Write is over 90 pages so far!!! It contains TONS of information on writer's that have gone through or are going through the prep school to possibly become a guide for About.com.
But Absolute Write is a terrific resource of information on a wide variety of subjects. Fiction writing, freelance writing, self publishing, blogging, etc... So far I'm only using the forum but Absolute Write is a complete online writing community. It would take me weeks, months to go through all the information covered on the site.
Besides the forums, other major topics include: classes, market listing, store, editorial services and writer's directory.
Here's a blurb from the Absolute Write website:
"Welcome, writers! If you're interested in freelance writing, screenwriting, playwriting, writing novels, nonfiction, comic book writing, greeting cards, poetry, songwriting, or-- well, you get the idea-- you're in the right place. Thanks for visiting the one-stop web home for professional and beginning writers."
Absolute Write should be bookmarked by any serious writer.
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