Wilderness Interviews SimeyC
Comments and thoughts from one of HubPages' most helpful Hubbers
One of HubPages' more prolific and helpful Hubbers has leveraged a love of writing coupled with a strong knowledge base and a wide variety of interests to create an effective and successful array of Hubs. Whether you need top quality tips and instruction on the use of Excel and Word or are more interested in video games or a product review, SimeyC can likely provide what you need.
Freelance writing seems an odd occupation for a computer or Excel expert – what brought you to HubPages? What were you looking for there?
Ever since I can remember I have been writing stories and poetry. Being a ‘geek’ even when I was younger, I initially approached writing with a mathematical mind, but eventually I let my creative side take control and began to get some of my school work highlighted. I was entered for several competitions in school and even though I never won, I contracted the writing ‘bug’.
When I came to the US after meeting my wife on the internet, I was unable to legally work for 18 months. I started searching for ways to earn online and came across sites like epinions.com and other similar sites that allowed me to write reviews of products. There wasn’t much money in it, and to be honest my reviews were terrible, but again it stimulated my love for writing. Somehow after seven or eight years I found out about Hubpages and found it to be the easiest platform to be successful on - not only that, but I found the community was the most helpful.
You are a graduate of the Apprentice Program and many are interested in your experience there. What were some of the more interesting or important things you brought away from the program?
If I look at the lessons I can probably say that I knew at least 70% of the information that was presented to me in the AP. Despite this, I probably gained more knowledge about the art of online writing in six months than I have in ten years of writing on the web.
One of the most important lessons I learnt is not to be afraid to ask for help and criticism – some of the people on the AP (and on HubPages in general) are very helpful and will often find errors, have suggestions or even give you simple words of encouragement. I realize now how important these things are. The AP taught me to focus on one thing at a time. Before the AP I used to have several different writing projects on the go at the same time and therefore each project was slightly diminished because I wasn’t giving each 100%.
A final lesson for me, and one that is hardest to come to terms with for some, is the fact that I didn’t know it all – yes I knew 70%, but that extra 30% ties everything together and often makes the difference between success and failure. And there’s more thing – what I found most interesting was the diversity of people on HubPages. While we all have a common goal, it was very educational to see the different backgrounds, personalities and problems people face – I gained a huge amount of respect for many of my fellow APers and often wondered how they managed to get through the course!
You write on a very wide range of topics. Are some of these written just for fun or do you “stick to business” with your topics and subjects?
Great question! Hmmmm – when I first started on HubPages I wrote on subjects I thought were popular and would get me the most money. With the help of the AP program, I’ve realized that I need to be a little more professional in the way I approach writing. I try and write on things on which I am either an ‘expert’, or in which I have a lot of interest.
There are a few Hubs that I throw in for fun, as is the case of my favorite Hub “
101 things to do the day before the world ends”, but generally I stick to things I know well. I perhaps have four or five key subjects and I try and rotate them so I don’t get too bored! And for once my ‘geekiness’ actually pays off!
After only three years on HubPages you have published a large number of Hubs and have indicated that you have deleted many others. Do you write anywhere else, or stick to HubPages?
I write on my own personal blog, publish on a couple of competing websites, and am exploring a few additional avenues. I have learnt that it’s not always a good thing to have all your eggs in one basket and therefore have started to diversify. HubPages does remain my main writing site though.
Have you ever considered writing a book, perhaps a science fiction novel or a tutorial on Excel? Is that a possibility in your future?
I have several short stories ‘published’ in e-book format and have four unfinished novels. I will finish one of the novels eventually, but to be honest, I never really expect to sell them, as my English is nowhere near the standard required to produce a decent novel. I’ve considered writing an Excel tutorial book and may start with some small e-books first to see if there is a niche market, but for the moment with my full time job, my family, and my online writing, I don’t have the time and perhaps dedication to sit down and complete a full project. In the
HubPages Forums and through the Apprentice Program you have been extremely helpful to those asking for help. What advice might you have for the beginning Hubber?
The most important thing to understand as a new writer on HubPages is that success isn’t instant. Most of the successful writers on HubPages have perfected their skills over several years and only by hard work and dedication have they been able to do this. However, don’t give up!
Write, write and write. Create Hubs, ask for feedback, and learn. Create more Hubs, improve, and learn. Learn, learn, learn! It’s a process that takes months, but if you ask for assistance in the Forums, there is always someone willing to help. Don’t be discouraged if the feedback seems harsh – those providing the feedback are experienced and are being honest. They won’t sugar coat things. Listen to their advice and you should do well eventually.
With a family, children, pets, and an outside job, do you find it necessary to strictly budget your HubPages time to particular periods, or do you simply write when you feel the urge?
I wrote a Hub last year regarding setting goals for writing. What I try and do every year is sit down, look at how well I did for the year, and set some realistic goals for myself. I monitor my performance as the year goes by and then adjust the goals based on success and/or life events that were beyond my control. I don’t limit myself on time, as sometimes I’ll get in the ‘mood’ and write nonstop for several days, however I try not to overdo it as I often find myself dreading the next Hub.
Have you set any future goals for your writing career, either on HubPages or elsewhere?
Ummmmm... See the answer above! I’ll share a secret though (shh don’t tell anyone). I have both short term goals (one year) and long term goals (ten years) for my writing ‘career'. I don’t ever expect my writing to make me a millionaire, but a long term goal is to be able to retire early and live off pensions, then supplement my income with my writing. I’d be able to dedicate far more time to writing!
There have been many major changes, both in the field of freelance writing as well as on HubPages in the time since you began here. Have you been able to work through those changes without undue difficulty, or is adjusting to change still a struggle?
The field of writing has always been a difficult one - even before the internet. I understand that there is no guarantee that my writing, no matter how good, will get traffic. The changes that we’ve all been through have been very tough.
On one hand we have Google changing things almost daily and making it impossible for us laymen to really understand what they are looking for, despite their telling us that “quality is king". On the other hand, we have HubPages, which is trying to make its platform the best writing site on the web by implementing changes that, while sometimes confusing and challenging to users, and often experimental, are all done for the same purpose: to try and make HubPages a platform that is immune from the vagaries of Panda!
It’s not an easy journey for any of us (including HubPages staff), but it is an important one. I understand the frustration of many users, but from my experience of business, I understand that there is a need to change and adapt to the environment, and there will always be a downside in the short-term.
Any business expert will say that the long-term view is the most important! So to answer your question: yes and yes. Yes, I am able to work through the changes without too much difficulty, and yes, it continues to be a struggle! But the journey is an important one!
Can you give us any general advice on how you have handled those changes?
Aside from throwing darts at pictures of Eric Schmidt? The best way I can handle them is simply to accept them. While I have ranted and raved occasionally, at the end of the day there’s not much I can do to change what Google or HubPages will do.
I will voice my opinion some times, but mostly I haven’t changed the way I approach writing – aside from applying the lessons I have learnt from the AP that is (One caveat here – I note that HubPages is far more willing to listen to users than Google is. While they cannot change everything to suit the user, they do listen to our criticism and attempt to fix things!).
As a Brit living in the US, do you find it difficult when writing for a predominantly US website?
I've lived in the US for over a third of my life and find my written and spoken English is now a strange cornucopia of quaintness and abruptness! I still do not understand Americans' hatred of the humble 'u' and often find myself using "colourful" language when writing the English words containing this apparently superfluous letter! I often find myself adding quaint words in my writing that normally have no place in good ol' American Literature.
Finally, I spotted your Hub on
Buying Gargoyles. That topic is one that would never have occurred to me. So many Hubbers have great difficulty in coming up with ideas for topics and subjects; how do you keep your creativity going to find topics and sustain your prolific pace of writing?
In many cases I end up writing a Hub because when I was searching for something there wasn’t a decent article. In the case of the gargoyles Hub, I was searching for a present for my wife and was amazed at the lack of sites available. One tool I find particularly useful now is the ‘Exclusive Title’ tool. I often type in random words to see what the tool comes up with and have created several of my own titles based on what the tool showed me.
|
