Writing for joy, passion, and money
I am a big fan of using sites like iWriter, Textbroker, and The Content Authority (all sites I have personally used and have enjoyed) but I do know that it is all too easy to get stuck. I have personally used iWriter, Textbroker, and The Content Authority, all with great results. Right now, my favorite is iWriter simply because there is so much work available, I know I can log in and always find at least a few articles to write.
It’s been a few weeks since I started my full time job. One thing I’ve realized is that it is making me a better writer! I spend most of my time at that job writing for various clients and also company blogs and websites.
When I first started my writing career, I wanted to write novels. In the fourth grade, I read my first novel and I also wrote my first story. I was hooked. I wanted to spend the rest of my life writing and reading novels. I’ve certainly taken a lot of detours.
I’ve been a writer for over a decade and I’ve been making money at it since the beginning. Honestly, I’ve made it this long because I am stubborn. I did a lot of things wrong and I didn’t necessary have an easy start. Here’s a list of all the things that I’ve found difficult about turning my love for writing into a career.
I got some feedback today from my place of work that my writing is “too SEO” oriented.
All I can say is, CRAP … Looks like I picked up some bad habits from the old days of search engine optimization that have affected my writing.
My writing is filled with keywords and I can’t help it. The sentences are short and the content is impersonal. This is the way I have written for “others” for as long as I can remember.
Here’s the crux of my problem – I have a partition in my brain. On one side, there’s my personal writing. On the other, I have my “writing for others” stored. Client writing, by default, takes on a robotic tone because none of them have ever wanted me to make my writing too personal.
The problem is that at work, we have clients whom we write for in a ghostwriting capacity which means that it has to take on a more “blog oriented” tone – much as I am writing right now.
Apparently, I need to write like this at my place of work but it is hard to jump over to the “personal side” of my writing brain so that my writing better pleases my employer. Fortunately, I am used to getting critiqued. As a writer, it happens all the time. I can adapt, it’s cool.
But the question remains – how am I going to make that jump? For now, my strategy is to pretend that the blog I am writing for is mine and see if that helps the situation anyway.
Also, I am starting to write fiction and poetry again. Through that process, I bet my writing will open up a little.
I am all for writers taking on clients, writing SEO content, and writing for the content mills. However, don’t let that affect your overall writing style to the point where you’re having a hard time turning it off like I am!
Have you ever wondered how to improve your writing skills? As a professional writer, I often wonder if my writing is stagnating or if my efforts to improve my writing are really paying off.
Sometimes, my answer exists when I look back. The other day, I found an old college writing portfolio. I could tell I was young then. I suspect I am better now, after all these years of experience. Age is a good teacher.
Aside from that, there are some practical ways to improve your writing. I thought I would share with you some of my favorite methods.
As you all know, I got my start on the internet as a freelance writer. I remember my first paid project – it was about hairbrushes! This individual was a hair brush seller and needed articles for a website.
I was nervous because this kind of work was unlike anything I had done. Prior to that, I made my income by getting my articles and creative writing published in magazines and literary journals.
My first exposure to iWriter.com before I started writing there was as a buyer. I took on a project for a client to deliver 100 articles over the span of just a few weeks. I quickly learned that I was in way over my head and I knew I needed help.
I decided to use iWriter over other content sites because I liked the way the site was organized and the rates were very reasonable. Two weeks later, my project was complete – and I was still able to turn a profit. The process was painless.
I am a writer. When I was a child, I said I wanted to be a writer and that is exactly what I became. Amazing, right? Well, on my journey to becoming a writer I realized that the conventional method of getting my work published is one that doesn’t make very much money.