I need a writer

1. 84

   Sufidreamerposted 14 years ago

   I also agree with Mark
   
   Freelance writers have to start somewhere - it is very difficult to go out and command high rates if you have no client base and no customer references. Sally may work for a cent per word but, if it is part of the process of building a business and specialising, then it is no problem, as with building any other business.
   
   Working for pay is also a great way to improve and climb the steep learning curve quickly. I can understand why people say 'Why sell your articles when you can throw them on Hubpages,' but I love being a freelancer.

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   Pcunixposted 14 years ago

   You know, this reminds me of a guy who used to call me years ago.   He probably called me half a dozen times over three or four years, and the pitch was always the same.  He had a programming project he wanted me to do and wanted to know my rates.  I'dquote him whatever I was charging at the time and he would laugh.
   
   "You can't make it in this business at those rates", he'd say and then he'd tell me that he could pay about 30% of that.   It was then my turn to laugh.
   
   Now he was right in the sense that if I wanted to go through him and people like him, I couldn't get my rate.  But I didn't need him:  I knew how to get my own customers. 
   
   Sally doesn't need "Misha", but if he can convince her that she does, that's her loss.

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      Sufidreamerposted 14 years agoin reply to this

      I'm not entirely disagreeing with you, because I hate low prices, but the bolded statement is the important part. Most successful freelance writers started off at low rates but, as they developed a customer base and specialized, they charged more money.
      
      Ultimately, the onus is on Sally to learn new skills and focus upon a niche - that is where she can start to charge professional rates for her work. If she does not, then she will become one of the 90% who fail. She has to learn how to find her own customers - it took me over a year before I was at that stage and could shift away from the freelance sites.
      
      The problem is that people think that freelance writing is a single marketplace - it isn't. A specialist sales copywriter is in a completely different market from an article writer, and businesses will pay good money for a proved sales writer. Academic and technical writers can make excellent money, too - the key really is to find a niche that you are good at. In that respect, freelancing is like any other business

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         Pcunixposted 14 years agoin reply to this

         Of course.  One cent a word isn't excellent money.

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      susanlangposted 14 years agoin reply to this

      @Pcunix    well said pcunix....and a BIG loss it would be!

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3. 66

   Mishaposted 14 years ago

   LOL surely we all are just a bunch of fools, and Pcunix is the only bright guy around, who reads the mind of Google and knows for sure what future holds for us.

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      Pcunixposted 14 years agoin reply to this

      I don't have to read minds, Misha.  Google has made it very plain what their goals are.
      
      Yeah, a lot of people here think you are such a brilliant guy, fine.   But if it comes down to you against Google, I'll put my bets on Google.

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      Pcunixposted 14 years agoin reply to this

      By the way, I'd call that an ad hominem attack.  Will you be as quick to report yourself as you were quick to try (unsuccessfully) to have me banned?
      
      Just wondering...

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4. 66

   Mishaposted 14 years ago

   I frankly see no attack here. You claimed to know the future of the Internet, you claimed to know what Google will be in a short while - I just praised your forecasting ability.
   
   And the liberal use of the word fool to mark those that disagree with your points is yours, too.
   
   
   I do think that G tries to move in the direction you pointed though - but I have my doubts not only about predicted timeframe, but about the theoretical possibility of reaching the stated goal at all. But surely you know better.

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      Pcunixposted 14 years agoin reply to this

      You always seem to want to rewrite my words.
      
      I said our fictional writer who sells her writing for a penny is foolish.   
      
      As to knowing the future, of course I do not.  But I do know what Google has said their intent is and again, I'll take them against you any day.
      
      We both know that the Internet is full of pointless garbage and that Google wants to eliminate any ability to steer searchers toward it.  You think they won't succeed, and indeed seem to hope that they will not.   That seems to be a strange attitude unless you are part of the large mass of people producing that junk.   
      
      You obviously have bias - if people aren't willing to sell their content for a penny a word, your costs would be higher.   I don't buy content, so I am not biased that way, but I do have a strong bias against those who pollute the Internet with junk.  I don't like those people.   You seem to have a very different view of them, which again is a very strange attitude.
      
      Again, as I have stressed elsewhere, your particular quality standards may be high.  I have no way of knowing that, so I have to give you the benefit of the doubt, but I still say your attitudes seem strange.   People who are producing quality (or their best efforts, at least) should welcome Google's efforts.  Their goal is to produce accurate and useful results, which should benefit those who strive for good content.   Why would you NOT want that?
      
      Perhaps you do.  Perhaps we only disagree on the likelihood of their success.   Once more, I'll bet on Google against you.

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         susanlangposted 14 years agoin reply to this

         @ Pcunix  Very well said and I agree with you 100 per cent!  By the way pcunix?  Can I hire you, I need a writer for the start of my second book.  

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            Pcunixposted 14 years agoin reply to this

            No, you cannot :-)

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               susanlangposted 14 years agoin reply to this

               @Pcunix  Ok... my loss   

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         Mishaposted 14 years agoin reply to this

         Umm, I started to write a reply to you, but then I realized it gonna be useless. Aside from having very strong opinions on how the world should operate to satisfy you, you obviously have some very strong opinions about me and what I do.
         
         I am not sure what are your grounds for such opinions - but I don't see any value in trying to change any of them, so I will just ignore you from now on.

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            WryLiltposted 14 years agoin reply to this

            Oh gee and here I was thinking that anyone in the "Earning more than me and better than me at SEO" group all had club meetings and wore matching badges.

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               Mishaposted 14 years agoin reply to this

               LOL This gentleman does not belong to "better than you at SEO"

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                  Pcunixposted 14 years agoin reply to this

                  Certainly not.  I have done very little with SEO.  If the subject interests anyone, I suggest they read Misha, Sunforged and so on.
                  
                  Here we are talking about Google!s interest in eliminating manipulative SEO.

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                     sunforgedposted 14 years agoin reply to this

                     This is the first time you mentioned manipulative seo.
                     
                     The effectiveness of 30k automated backlinks leading to the newest diet drug can and will be stopped.
                     
                     But that was never the discussion - the first notion that was discussed was "keyword research" and you made the broad statement that SEO and keyword research would become meaningless.
                     
                     Which as i will state again - is impossible as long as weighted factors exist.
                     
                     Change is possible - SEo is the flipside of SE - and will continue to be so

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                        Pcunixposted 14 years agoin reply to this

                        Yes, I said keyword research could become pointless and I stand by that.  I fully understand why you would hate to see that happen.
                        
                        
                        By the way, I always appreciate the argument style that attempts to diminish the other person. There is no secret art here - I understand exactly what you do and how you do it and anyone can educate themselves on that subject.  So lets dispense with the "incomplete knowledge" b.s., ok?     
                        
                        If you don't believe that Google wants to eliminate the value of keyword research, fine, you don't believe it.  Your disbelief isn't going to change a thing - they either succeed to a greater or lesser extent or they fail.
                        
                        As I said, we should come back to this in a few years and see how they are doing.   But if you want to keep on pretending that they are not trying, be my guest.

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                           sunforgedposted 14 years agoin reply to this

                           Its your incomplete responses that leads me to state your knowledge must be incomplete.
                           
                           I dont think its some difficult mysterious art - hence why i expect a more informed response after you made the blanket statements that you did.
                           
                           I do not attempt to diminish you .. I just wanted a coherent response.
                           
                           But I concede defeat or at least accept that my wants are unreachable.

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               Pcunixposted 14 years agoin reply to this

               In spite of Misha's caustic tone, he doesn't deny Google WANTS to achieve exactly this.
               
               If they succeed, it will affect his income.  I would expect him to dislike the idea.  Belittling me doesn't change Google's intent one bit.
               
               Again, a lot of people think Misha is very smart and I won't disagree.  I just don't think he is smarter than Google :-)

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            Pcunixposted 14 years agoin reply to this

            That is rather funny )
            
            Actually, it is you who wants the Internet world to keep working in a way you can exploit.
            
            As to me, I have no way of knowing whether Google's efforts will help me or hurt me.  As I said, they want to find the best content.  Right now, they think some of that is mine.  That could change and hurt me.
            
            From the viewpoint of someone who searches for information,yes, I want Google to do better.  As a producer of content, I might lose traffic in that scenario, so I can only be ambivalent on that score.
            
            But I'll be overjoyed to have you ignore me.  I assure you I will not ignore you.

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            susanlangposted 14 years agoin reply to this

            @ Misha :  Poor..poor Misha, always tossing the first ball...or should I say throwing the first punch..and then retreating after he runs out of silly insults.  Awww..... thank goodness you will ignore me Misha, maybe I'll have some peace now!    

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   sunforgedposted 14 years ago

   Why does a business persons desire to be able to steer traffic towards our own content equate with creating "junk"
   
   If 50 High Quality (subjective and immeasurable) results are possible for a specific query than some sort of algorithm MUST be used to select which will rank higher then the next.
   
   That algorithm will contain weighted factors - SEO will respond to those factors.
   
   There is no getting around this and you have yet to point anything out that explains how this could be any other way.

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      susanlangposted 14 years agoin reply to this

      I see alot of "junk" floating around the internet. I hope meaningless waste is banned forever.

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      Pcunixposted 14 years agoin reply to this

      I have explained it. 
      
      Why don't we revisit this in a few years and see where we are at?

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         sunforgedposted 14 years agoin reply to this

         You most certainly have not.
         
         Latent Semantic Indexing is not new, Googles stated desires for search results are not new. Your imaginary robot with magical powers still is yet to be designed by a human mind.
         
         Quality is not quantifiable , so unrelated weighted factors are needed to attempt to discern where quality lies.
         
         It just seems you have incomplete view of what SEO is.
         
         Since you cant seem to answer or discuss how one article would rate higher than another, any further discussion is meaningless.
         
         There is no such thing as a perfect search result, searchers do want focused targetted results to turn up - that targetting is often achieved via keyword research, statistical analysis and seo.
         
         For every great mind trying to make the factors of the algo invisible, there are another 3 trying to unravel its mysteries.

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            Pcunixposted 14 years agoin reply to this

            Obviously you have a vested interest in seeing the world not change.  Obviously it makes you very angry to hear any suggestion that it might.
            
            Your anger is your problem, not mine.  I have no anger.  If steamboats no longer carry freight, steamboat people get hurt.  I understand and sympathise, but pretending that I am lying or belittling me as Misha has done will not change anything.
            
            Google will continue to minimize the effectiveness of your SEO efforts because it is in their best interests to do so.  If they wanted our input as to keywords, they would look at keyword meta tags or provide space in the site maps - but they do not, do they?
            
            My bet is that  Google wins the battle.

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               sunforgedposted 14 years agoin reply to this

               Im not angry..Im frustrated at an incomplete discussion..wasted keystrokes and all.
               
               I stated a basic scenario and you replied with a  pipe dream about a magic robot who could or could not exist at future time w/o even recognizing the outline of the discussion.
               
               I like Utopias as much as the next guy but I dint expect that to be the end of your story.
               
               Its like trying to have a discussion with Nostradamus!
               
               I wrongly assumed that your time on the net equated with a basic understanding of search theory and dynamics ...now I feel robbed.

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   Daniel Carterposted 14 years ago

   Good thing I didn't apply, Misha. You have too many offers from good writers, and I'm only fluent in southern drawl and pig-latin.
   
   I admire your very capable enterprising abilities.

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      Mishaposted 14 years agoin reply to this

      LOL Thanks Daniel. You could have applied, and would have been accepted - 2 years ago

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7. 67

   Greek Oneposted 14 years ago

   darn!! i was interested until I read "I expect people who have quality hubs"

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      susanlangposted 14 years agoin reply to this

      @Greek   I always wondered why some people think they have the last word on who writes a quality hub!   But....we all know you write splendid hubs Greek.

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8. 85

   Pcunixposted 14 years ago

   Let me just close with this.
   
   The reallity of the Internet is what it is.  Habee's last post is exactly right:  you make money when and where you can.
   
   If you want to learn about keyword research and niche hunting, I suggest you read Sunforged, Misha and others here who give excellent advice on how to make money on the Internet as it exists today. 
   
   If that is too much for you, selling your work outright might be your best choice, but really, their methods are not hard to understand.
   
   The question is whether this will remain as it is.  I think not, but I could be wrong.  If you do not understand that Google wants to eliminate SEO influence, you do not understand Google.
   
   That is what all the anger is about.  Steamboat owners not liking a very possible future is my view, but if course they see themselves differently.

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   Peter Hogganposted 14 years ago

   Stand by your guns Pcunix. SEO doesn’t work and bumble bees can’t fly. Keyword research is completely redundant (why would I want to know what people are searching for?) and I am oblivious to the online tactics used by my online competitors (even if they are totally dominating the market why should I care?). I rank well for "green garage doors in Aberystwyth" it's my trophy term and no one is going to take it away from me.  The phone people are threatening to cut their service and the electricity is due to get switched off and I could do with a good meal. Despite all this I refuse to listen to any of this pro SEO bollocks. All SEO is crap!
   
   Long live anonymity and ivisibility - over and compleatly out.

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      Pcunixposted 14 years agoin reply to this

      Did you even read what I said or do you just assume what you want to assume?
      
      SEO DOES WORK!
      
      Whether it will continue to work in the future is all that is being argued here.
      
      By the way, I forgot to mention Peer Hoggans articles as another excellent source of tutorials on keyword research and general SEO.

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         Peter Hogganposted 14 years agoin reply to this

         That was a bad edit, Stand by your guns Pcunix, should have been deleted from the post. Sorry Pcunix.

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         1. 85

            Pcunixposted 14 years agoin reply to this

            I might refer you to this excellent post by someone you know where he claims
            
            ----
            Note that Google does not rely entirely on LSI for finding relevant results. However, Google has been using LSI for some time and has recently increased its weighting. This means that while traditional keyword based search queries are still relevant - i.e., Google still tries to retrieve documents that contain the specific search terms or keywords you use - Google’s search algorithm has begun to place more importance on LSI when attempting to determine and retrieve relevant documents for a specific search query.
            -----
            
            Some people might see that as diminishing the value of keyword research :-)

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    Shadesbreathposted 14 years ago

    You guys are so black and white.
    
    Google is what it is.  People are what they are.  Was it wrong for some of the villagers to dig a pit trap to catch food when the hunters insisted it was braver to go head-to-head with a spear?
    
    No, it was not wrong.  And those villagers' families ate well.
    
    Was it wrong for some of the hunters to go out and keep hunting, to hone their skills, stay strong and while learning their craft well?
    
    No, it was not wrong. Their families ate too.
    
    When the attack from the other tribe came, having two kinds of minds in the village helped bring victory... those who were adept at strategy and those who were strong with a spear.

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11. 0

    Nelle Hoxieposted 14 years ago

    After several months of intense learning on how other people have been conducting keyword research using Market Samurai, TKA, and Wordtracker, to decide what to write about, I can say that it works - up to a point.
    
    I have always used my marketing and economics background to pick out niches and probably will return to that quickly - with my marketing copy superchaged with the new found keyword strategies.
    
    At some point google will crush - like it always has - the gamers who rely soley on keyword research to pick topics. (It's not that hard to figure out who's doing what, with what products, once you know the various systems.) It will be fast, crushing and relentless, and those who only know keyword research, as a means to select niches, will have a very hard time understanding what's happening to them or bouncing back from it.
    
    This is the way of the interent and google. But keyworders should enjoy the party while it's still going on.

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       Pcunixposted 14 years agoin reply to this

       Well, if the content is good, shouldn't they continue to do well with what they already have?
       
       Also, I don't see this as deliberate - I see it as a side effect of trying to deliver the best results.  Could you  expand on why you think it is deliberate?  Are you thinking that the need to discard bad content is so high that they are willing to risk throwing the baby out with the bathwater, so to speak?

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          Nelle Hoxieposted 14 years agoin reply to this

          I think Google acts very deliberately to crush what they don't consider worthy. And yes they will go after specific keyword algos if that's the best way to get rid of it. G is very efficient.
          
          It really doesn't matter to me. 85% of the time I make a great deal of money with Google. And I adapt very quickly. I probably do better than most, right after Google changes the rules, so in some ways I'm looking forward to less competition.

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             Pcunixposted 14 years agoin reply to this

             I doubt there will ever be a lack of competition :-)
             
             But that doesn't mean the competition does it well, of course.  There will always be winners and also-rans.

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    Band2posted 14 years ago

    Seriously?  You weren't giving credit and only paying 8 bucks?  Wow!  I have written for less in my day but ONLY if I got a byline!  Then again, if it's just a throwaway and I already have something on file . . .LOL!
    I must give you credit though for recognizing your limits!  i always find it so tedious to read a hub (or anything else for that matter) by someone who is new to the English language.
    Good for YOU!

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13. 70

    Peter Hogganposted 14 years ago

    First of all I have to say what a well written piece. But I don't think that LSI will help unless you are targeting the right keywords to begin with.

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       Pcunixposted 14 years agoin reply to this

       Yes, a very well written piece :-)
       
       (for those not getting it, that is Peter's own  article at http://hubpages.com/hub/latent-semantic-indexing)
       
       Of course LSI helps if you are targeting the subject matter.  The whole point is to help Google find relevant content whether or not the content contains the specific search words you used.  LSI isn't the only way they know that - they also garner that from backlink text  and from Analytics tracking.

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14. 85

    Pcunixposted 14 years ago

    By the way, I just dug up an excellent example of monetization.
    
    In 1993, I sold a 4,000 word piece to a magazine for $1,250.00 .   There was no way to monetize that on the web until ten years later, but if there had been, I might have had a hard time deciding which way to go.  But if they had offered me $40.00, I would have turned them down flat :-)

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       BDazzlerposted 14 years agoin reply to this

       Ah, yes, those were the good old days, you just needed few editors that liked your work, and a hot market for anything computer related ... dang... I miss those days.

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    sunforgedposted 14 years ago

    ummm.
    
    When one writes a piece for upfront payment ..there is no reason not to revamp, rewrite and republish in your own ways.
    
    its not an either/or situation

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       Pcunixposted 14 years agoin reply to this

       Absolutely true.   And it might well be that the extra $40.00 comes from a few minutes of effort, which might not be bad.  "Spinning to article buyers" could be a cottage industry!
       
       But that could dilute your direct earnings, right?   And could vioate the terms of purchase, too, I would think.  I can't imagine Misha being happy about someone selling him a post, spinning it up but leaving his carefully researched keywords intact and using it themselves.  But maybe I am wrong?

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          sunforgedposted 14 years agoin reply to this

          Who said spin?
          
          A writer should be able to attack any concept from dozens of viewpoints and write original material based on the research that was required for the initial articles.
          
          The offer that was posted originally in this thread is exactly the situation you would do such a thing for.
          
          if they are buying, you can assume its profitable to them...learn how to make it profitable for yourself.
          
          But that could dilute your direct earnings, right?
          why?

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             Pcunixposted 14 years agoin reply to this

             Yes, I should not have used the word spin.  I understand that you meant rewriting.
             
             Your potential earnings are diluted any time some other person has an article on the same subject.  I would expect the purchaser to object on the same grounds.

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                sunforgedposted 14 years agoin reply to this

                the credence of the purchasers objections are equal to the green proffered.
                
                at a penny a word - one would go blind to any objections, wouldnt they?
                
                Your potential earnings are diluted any time some other person has an article on the same subject.  I would expect the purchaser to object on the same grounds.
                
                no, not really - there are only 10 spots one needs to be in - most competition is no competition at all.
                
                ethically, the purchaser should get whatever is agreed upon.. ethically, you can use the knowledge in your head to write about and publish anything you please .. its a big net -
                
                This is actually one of the reasons i hate buying content - i never know who is on the other side of that username and dont want to share any terms or niches that i dont already have a firm holding in

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                   Pcunixposted 14 years agoin reply to this

                   By the way, you seem to contradict yourself here.  Can you expand on why you say it doesn't matter but then say you don't like to buy content because they could use your research???  If it doesn't dilute you, why would you care if they did that?  It must be for some other reason?

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       Band2posted 14 years agoin reply to this

       I totally agree.  If i get paid upfront and I retain the rights--I will republish elsewhere with little or no rewriting, in fact!
       However, some sites I write for now not only pay me upfront but also for the number and length of views so i have been hesitant to do too much of this.

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          sunforgedposted 14 years agoin reply to this

          and the phoenix rises yet again
          
          

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             Band2posted 14 years agoin reply to this

             Well, see, if HP people thought that then they would have an escuse to ban my account and I wouldn't be able to research all the things that supposedly never happen here.
             I will honestly tell you that the picture is actually from an acting/talent website.
             I also know of whom you speak! That's how I found the picture!

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    Pcunixposted 14 years ago

    At a penny a word, I would still feel bound by any restrictions I agreed to.  But, yeah. most probably would not and proof would be difficult.
    
    So, a person with no morals could let someone like Misha do the research and use that knowledge themselves.  That is not something I would have thought to do.  Disadvantage of an honesty streak, I guess :-)

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       sunforgedposted 14 years agoin reply to this

       bites tongue.
       
       Dont confuse foolishness with morality or assume breaking of restrictions that are never stated.
       
       Once again it seems as if you are harping about a topic you are uninvolved with - in any business transaction one should stay true to whatever terms are agreed.
       
       Such terms just dont exist in traditional content buy/sell freelance trade online...its a cesspool of underbidding and cutthroat tactics...fly with your little angel wings to the land of magic robots and lollipops where everyone agrees with your prognostications as my neck is starting to hurt from staring into the clouds while trying to converse with you
       
       In the buy/sell content trade - the strictest terms will ask for unique content and pass dupe checks - Ive never seen derivative content listed as a restriction - and such a term would require a ridiculously high price tag (foolish to assume otherwise)
       
       
       You start w/ pointing out the foolishness of writing for a small return - then you defend the inherent rights of those who proffer low returns for artistic work
       
       then Im the contradiction.
       
       the contradiction is dependent on the competition -> i wouldnt risk sharing a untapped viable term or niche with Misha or Mark - but i could probably risk it with you or anyone who would be willing to write for pennies a word.
       
       But, I should have been more specific - Im always wary about using the freelance sites and content sites and publicly posting  the untapped terms/niche.
       
       Im comfortable sending an email to my freelance partners
       
       
       blah, blah...I dontt care anymore..Good day to you sir

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17. 66

    Mutiny92posted 14 years ago

    at a penny a word, this thread would be worth a small fortune!  (just added my $0.16)

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18. 85

    Pcunixposted 14 years ago

    Please - don't bother yourself again.  The pain of clarifying a statement seems to be much too onerous.
    
    Your arrogance makes me fervently wish nothing but extreme success to Google.  To paraphrase Nellie, enjoy your steamboat ride.

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       Nelle Hoxieposted 14 years agoin reply to this

       There's a tipping point in a profession, when formulas replace talent for a while. And this is what we're seeing now with the keyworders. They can't figure out the marketing trends with their minds and education (or they think it's too much trouble), so they're trying to replace that thought process with forumulas about searches and placement in titles and all sorts of metrics.
       
       The internet gurus who want to make money buy teaching people are also flocking to it - because it's easy to sell and they make lots of commissions off of the newbies.
       
       It's also what we're seeing with many non-American trying to make money off of the American consumer. They don't get the culture - or they can't lower themselves to think like us - so they try to measure us.
       
       Backward looking trends analysis works for awhile, then a paradigm shift occurs and the models just plain out fail. The folks with the forwarding thinking models, clean-up.

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          Pcunixposted 14 years agoin reply to this

          I don't have any models, so I won't be cleaning up, but if you do, more power to you.

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19. 80

    sunforgedposted 14 years ago

    

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       Mishaposted 14 years agoin reply to this

       ROFLMAO

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       Flightkeeperposted 14 years agoin reply to this

       I don't know why you bothered explaining. 

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20. 82

    BDazzlerposted 14 years ago

    I'm pretty sure you don't want me, Misha.  My reports are my own research and start at $80 an hour, and go up to $200 an hour and there is no guarantee it will be what you want, only that it will be true. Of course, they aren't for search engine optimization.

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       ryankettposted 14 years agoin reply to this

       So you charge $80 an hour for writing about your beliefs? And who pays you that? The church? That really does go to show, that religion is nothing but a series of corporate enterprises which seek to profit from the weak and the stupid.

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          BDazzlerposted 14 years agoin reply to this

          Silly person, I do that for free and fun ...  My $80 an hour work is within my profession.  To answer your question as to who pays that much for my research ... well, people who find it worth more than that, obviously.

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             ryankettposted 14 years agoin reply to this

             I wouldn't consider myself to be a particularly silly person. What the hell do you write? Training guides for Astronauts? Technical guides to nuclear weapons for North Koreans? I doubt that I am the only one who doubts the claims of a fellow hubber who effectively states that he can earn $166,400 a year for a 40 hour week without retaining rights to his articles.
             
             Feel free to correct me if I am wrong. Of course, you probably spend 30 hours per week trying to find 10 hours per week of work, I would be genuinely interested to know exactly what it is that you claim to write about.

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                Band2posted 14 years agoin reply to this

                I'm curious about that, too.  Mind you, I feel it's no one's business BUT when you make a specific claim you leave yourself open for this kind of interrogation.

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                BDazzlerposted 14 years agoin reply to this

                You are wrong.  And you are very close. It is highly specialized technical research. I charge both for research time and report writing time. I don't spend any time marketing myself, people who care to can find me, and if they don't know how to find me, they can't afford me. I make about half what you estimate and spend the other half of my time doing my own research and things I enjoy.
                
                Odd ... I would consider myself a silly if I concluded I knew everything about a person just from a mere 20 articles he'd written.  In fact, I consider myself silly generally.  Taking oneself too seriously ruins the fun in life!

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                Sufidreamerposted 14 years agoin reply to this

                That rate is very easily achievable for technical writers in specialised areas - I have seen people earn much more than that.
                
                As for sales - I know a Canadian guy who charges $300 for a single sales letter (about 2 hours work!). He gets it, too
                
                EDIT: BDazzler - Silly is the perfect state of being.

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                   ryankettposted 14 years agoin reply to this

                   Fair enough guys, I guess that it is achievable. I have a hubpage which has made me far in excess of $1500... so yeah, anything can happen I guess!

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                      Sufidreamerposted 14 years agoin reply to this

                      Good on you - marketing is a very good writing specialisation, too. You are prepared to work hard and learn, and you are starting to reap the rewards.
                      
                      Don't be swayed by the idea that writers all scrabble for a few cents per word (although most of us start out that way!). If you can specialise, you can earn very good money, even writing standard, generic articles. I suppose that it is like any profession - a lawyer can earn a decent wage, but a lawyer who becomes good at business contract law or patent law can make an absolute mint.
                      
                      BDazzler: I can't say any more about the time travel because that would create a paradox that could potentially destroy the universe. Just remember, avoid ducks

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                         BDazzlerposted 14 years agoin reply to this

                         Yeah, we want to avoid a pair o' ducks

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                      BDazzlerposted 14 years agoin reply to this

                      See, to me that's more of an accomplishment and congratulations is definitely in order. I've made like $3.00 in my best month on hub pages(of course I'm not writing for money on hub pages, just fun).

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                   BDazzlerposted 14 years agoin reply to this

                   Tell him about our time travel research future me! (I haven't gotten it figured out yet.)

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    frogdroppingposted 14 years ago

    I'm not going to copy your picture again sunforged but it did make me smile

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    Len Cannonposted 14 years ago

    oh this is two years old.
    
    lame.

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    sunforgedposted 14 years ago

    Google, protector of all that is righteous
    
    http://www.huffingtonpost.com//craig-aa … 76194.html

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       Band2posted 14 years agoin reply to this

       Yeah and here a lot of us sit helping to make them rich--nice!

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    susanlangposted 14 years ago

    Looks like this topic kinda died down for now.

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    Skyshadeposted 13 years ago

    My name is Natalie and I’m looking for a writer to write my life story.  I have written 20 pages about my life. I have had help writing it because I can’t write well. To make it short I have been adopted when I was 5 years old and remember when I leaved with my birth family. It wasn’t pretty living with them. Once I was adopted life did go on but was very hard on me. I had a child that was 1bls and 3oz and lived for two months. Now that is a very good story to tell. Later on in life I have two girls 4 years old and a 6 year old. Now what I’m going through with my 6 year old is. She has thyroidism. That means that her thyroid glands are 100% finish. She also ADHD, has Seizures and that’s many times a day.  She also has bowel problems. She only goes every 3 to 5 day at a time and when she does go she bleeds every time. She is also severely nearside and a learning disability which is on disability. My youngest has asthma which I would go to the hospital for her attacks and the DRs would keep her over nights and I would go often. I’m a single mom with a father on the run from the police from stilling lots of money from the casino were I’m from. I’m off work because I’m on Disability as well so I can not afford to pay much but would be worth it to write it and make a book about it. Sorry about the long story.
    
    nat-joe@hotmail.com

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