WRITING FROM HOME FOR A LIVING

The Online Writing Grind

Do You Have What It Takes?

You get up, make your coffee, and immediately check every form of communication you have on the Internet. This is a daily routine that you cannot afford to skip out on if you want to get paid to write articles at home.

Your life revolves around what your next big scoop will be (scoop is a journalistic term for story idea). If you feel like this sounds a bit appealing, and you love to write, you might be an ideal candidate for online freelance writing.

Allowing yourself the liberty to get paid to write articles at home is in fact a lifestyle choice. Writing is the kind of profession that demand’s one’s full time attention. There might be times when your work week looks very empty, and you are scraping the bottom of the barrel. Other times, you have an insatiable list of demands and you wish you had another set of hands. But blink twice and other online writers might have snagged your jobs, so you are left empty handed if you deliberate.

Get Paid To Write Articles At Home

If you want to make money writing articles, the first step is to get a great education. There is no circumventing this process. There are many people in the world that assume that because they can speak a language, that they can also be a writer. However, writing is a craft. Like any other profession, it takes honing. You will need to learn the rules of grammar and spelling as a basic. Nothing can save you, not even Grammarly, if you don’t understand the rules behind creating a sentence. And spell check is not very fun to use when you are looking up every second word.

University or Trade School? Or are you a natural…

Most writers have a university degree. The good news is, most degrees will teach you writing to some level. That level is usually a cut above the average person. So, if you want to be a proficient writer, you need to go to university first. If you are a prodigy that really paid attention in high school, you might be able to skip this step. Many people who are successful have not gone to university. However, it certainly does help. You will enrich your work ethic, skills, life experience, and life overall if you have a post-secondary education.

You might wonder what other programs will prepare you to write? Well, college diplomas are also a great option. Colleges are practical places where you can implement many of the tools you will use. An example of this is taking classes that teach you to start your own website and be digitally literate. You will also want to take communications classes alongside this. However, being a writer and a web designer is a dynamite combination for the current marketplace.

“Everyone is unique, so what works for one writer might not work for another one. You can’t just assume that your friend’s writing gig would be the perfect fit for you.”

So, you might ask, what about trade school? Trade school is an excellent place to take a course in journalism. You will learn the ins and outs of sourcing, a skill that even your post-secondary counterparts might not possess. Also, you will understand how to not land yourself in trouble with the law over a story. This is great news for you in the online climate because you will feel confident to take the jobs that other online writers would stay far away from. You’ll put together a professional document that makes you look like a rock star and will have your name to it, if you sell it to major news outlets. Journalism is far from a dead profession, especially in you want to make money online. You simply need the connections to have access to information. A journalism diploma will teach you exactly where and how to hunt this information. It might also give you connections to real world contacts. It really will open up a world of possibilities

If you come away from this list not sure which route to pursue, then you can try giving your own current skills the litmus test. Apply to several online writing sites, and you will see where you are at. If you can get a job with your current skill set, then that is a great accomplishment. You might work there for a while and learn through the hard knocks what clients do and do not like. Some talented writers did not take post-secondary. However, I’m not going to say that it doesn’t help, because it certainly does and will. You will have to decide if you can make it in an industry that is highly competitive and lucrative without any training. Only you can make this assessment.

Now, onto the actual process of getting a job online. If you want to get paid to write articles online, then you will have to discover a method of collecting jobs. You might enjoy the thrill of writing a piece and then shopping it around. This works for many professionals. They invest their time like any writer in getting together all the raw materials and then polishing it. Then, they think of a list of outlets that might want to pick up the story or editorial. Most of the business’ today have information about who to contact for what online. So, you can send the story to the submissions department.

The joy of writing a great story

Writing Tips and Tricks

If you are going this route, then you might want to be cautious of a few hiccups you could face. You should always submit stories in a pdf format. Even if it is a reputable company, you are just begging the organization to steal your copy by submitting the .doc version. Even though there is now software where people can make pdf’s readable, it takes a lot more work then just cut and paste. The person will also have to go through the document after they steal a pdf and ensure that all the wording is correct. Usually with this type of app, it is still quite off. It might not be worth the time.

But, another trick that is important is to give the people you are shopping to a teaser. Do not give them the whole article, or even the best part. You will want to give them enough to show that you are a competent writer. But you shouldn’t give them too much, or you will be opening yourself up to theft. You can tell them that if they want to see the entire document that you will expect a down deposit. If they reject it, the deposit is non-refundable.

To do this basic set up for shopping your work, you will need an account. PayPal is a great medium to accept payments from people. You need to set it up, link it to your bank, and then your clients can pay you through this. There are other ways for them to pay, just as send you an etransfer. E-transfers can be a lot better because they do not charge any fees for service. However, if you have international clients, etransfers might not work from bank to bank. PayPal is better in these instances because they offer money exchanges with rates that are not too exorbitant.

Another option is to use platforms that act as a middle man. People would are your middle men usually charge 20% for the use of their services. However, it is worth it often because they help to ensure that clients pay you on time. They have rules and regulations that they have already set up to guard against fraud. And if someone who is fraudulent occasionally slips through the wire, then the person is easy to report. If everyone works together on that site to guard against fraud, including other writers, then it is certainly a likelihood that it will eventually be minimized. You also have access to their team of employees. This staff will advise you regarding clients, issues, courses of action, and will take action if they feel that you are being mistreated. These services are definitely worth 20% of your fees and you will barely miss that money.

If you don’t want to do platforms, then you should probably consider getting yourself vocational insurance. This insurance will protect you because you are publishing under your name. You name is a brand, and you might get backlash for the information you put out there. You need to protect yourself. However, if you are stealing copyrighted information and plagiarizing, there is no amount of insurance in the world that will have your back. You could face fines, professional humiliation, and even jail. That is why I recommended that your first step in a writing career is education. You will be much more equipped with how to quote, site, etc. properly with vocational education.

 become a ghostwriter

While this information might be a lot to take in, you can let it soak in for a while. There are a lot of ways to practice your writing skills online that are profitable. For one, you can start as a ghost writer. Ghost writing is a great way to collaborate with another professional in the field. You unfortunately often sell your copyright to the other professional in the process, however, you are gaining real world experience. The professional collaborating with you is responsible for editing, fact checking, and polishing the product. But you are giving them a head start through offering your interest in the field and skill. They often will appreciate the fresh perspective that you bring to the table. You, in the meantime, will start to gain that real time experience that is invaluable. You will get feedback from market experts regarding what they liked about your material.

Ghost writing won’t necessarily bring you fame, but it does give you money. It is an excellent way for some writers to get into the market. If you are already established, then you can consider co-authoring as a solution. That way, you are getting your name out there in the market while still enjoying the perks of collaborating. The energy that comes from taking someone else’s story idea and bringing it to fruition can be powerful. You might learn about fields that you never knew much about and gain some perspective for your future pieces.

If you like to write, then the opportunity to get paid to write articles at home might be ideal for you. You will have to assess your own personality to determine what type of work schedule, education, and platforms you want to join. There are a lot out there, and all a person needs to do is a quick Google search to discover them. That is the beauty of living in the digital age that we are in. And there is no time like the present to begin your writing venture, because you only have one life to live.

In preparation for your journey, you might want to take the Myers Briggs Test or read some books like- “What Color is your Parachute” to look at your personality. Everyone is unique, so what works for one writer might not work for another one. You can’t just assume that your friend’s writing gig would be the perfect fit for you. A Myers Briggs Test will teach you whether you are an introvert or an extrovert, which is probably one of the most important characteristics about yourself that you can determine.

If you are an introvert, then you will be recharged through alone time. And that means if your job is online, it might not drain you as much. But that also means that you will be seeking solace on your down time at home instead of around family and friends. Your social life might take a hit unless you personally schedule in time to see your loved ones. Extroverts, on the other hand, might find that it is nice to get paid to write articles online; however, they will experience a sort of yearning to go out after work hours end.

When you look at the market, there are many appealing parts of learning to make money writing articles. Just make sure you go into it with an open heart and mind, as well as your skills, and you will certainly find a world of opportunity.

Good Luck