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How To Write A Good Article?
An interesting question if I do say so myself. To begin with, one has to define what “good” means and it seems to me it can mean different things to different Hubbers depending on their goals.
As a newbie I have very little experience to base this Hub on, but of course that isn’t going to stop me from writing it. All I can tell you is my reasons for writing Hubs and my experience based on the seventeen Hubs I have written in a little over three weeks.
First, allow me to answer my own question: I have no idea what makes a good Hub if the criteria is a Hub that attracts many people and gives birth to many comments. I know practically nothing about keywords and google and social media and linking and how to use all of those things to increase your Hub score. My highest scoring Hub for a couple weeks now has been a Hub about alcoholism, a subject that is near and dear to my heart. I simply told my experience and shared my strength and hope in it. At one time the Hub scored 100 and I have no idea how. Currently, as I write this, my highest score is for a Hub entitled, “The Five Worst National Parks in America,” and it was just a silly piece of fluff I threw out there because I can’t write serious pieces all the time and my sense of humor needs to be released on occasion. That Hub had no redeeming social value and yet it has remained in the nineties for quite some time. Go figure because I can’t!
Some Hubs took off immediately and soared and then suffered a painful crash and burn, while others never got off the ground i.e. “Leaving The Rat Race Behind.”
My personal score is 94 this morning; it seems to rise late at night and then dip during the day and again, I am clueless as to why. Maybe those who determine Hub scores are night owls and they sleep in during the day.
Back to the subject of what make a “good” Hub. I began writing Hubs because it gave me a public forum to publish my writings. I wanted to put it out there for others to see and so that I could get feedback on my writing. I understand that it is possible to make money with Hubs but that was pretty far down on my priority list when I started writing these little pearls of wisdom (or nonsense) three weeks ago. I write about personal experiences and things that are important to me, and occasionally I allow my sense of humor out to stretch and get some exercise. In other words, what makes a good Hub for me is one that is written honestly and has some entertainment value for others, or resonates in them and gives them some strength. I do not do this for the possible rewards nor do I write them for praise. I simply write because I love to write.
If you are a newcomer and you are hoping that this Hub holds the secret to a higher score and loads of cash then you will be greatly disappointed. There are many Hubs out there with good suggestions on how to raise your score and I strongly recommend that you search and read them if that is your goal. In the meantime I’m just going to keep plugging along at my craft and write about those things that interest me, and if you enjoy them then that is a bonus.
Best of luck in your Hub experience; may the wind always be at your back and may your Hub scores soar with the birds.
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Comments
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Thanks Wesman; I still haven't signed on to any other site; keep dragging my feet on that one. It takes me a long time to commit to a new avenue once I get comfortable on one site.
Billy what I regret is having deleted some things altogether. I hate now that I'd spent some sort of time on anything....and deleted it.
I'd never do that now...I can always "fix" a thing or simply move it somewhere else where I also have adverts, and might make a dime off of it.
To me, blogger or "blogspot" is perfect for moving something to until I figure out what I want to do with it, if anything.
Sometimes the capricious and nonsensical staff here unpublish something of mine I think of as too good to do away with - those, I move to Info Barrel, the other major site I make money on...and does Info Barrel ever complain????? Hell no.
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Wesman, I loved that hub about Tingle! I certainly understand what you are saying; I am in the process of re-evaluating everything. We'll see what happens! I am still learning from those who came before, and I suspect I'll be learning for quite some time. :)
Oh man, I can't tell you how poorly equipped I was coming into this site.
I was a very successful blogger on Myspace....and boy lemme tell ya, what is popular on a social network....has nothing to do with what can or will be popular on a site like this one, which is only partially social network.
I know for certain you had read some of the things that I'd transferred from Myspace to here...I remember you commenting on something I'd titled "Joe Tingle's Tale," which was a totally bizarre and random encounter I'd had with some...very on edge individual at a rural gas station....the guy was very very angry about some sort of social situation at a local church....well over twenty years prior.
That was a really successful social network bit....but nobody in the world would find that page with a search engine.....except for Mr. Joe Tingle!
So I moved that thing to my blogger account, for fear of it downgrading my HP subdomain in the eyes of almighty Google.
It still comes down to what the author wants. If someone wants a social network style thing...then they must do a lot of socializing, and create social content.
I like that too....but mostly, I have to write for money, as that is where my needs are....so I'm mostly into analyzing my stats, and seeing what the search engines like out of what I do, as that is where the money comes from!!!!!
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Wesman, this is a very old one. In fact, I will have to read it and see what I said. I have the feeling my viewpoint may have changed since then but I'm not sure. Thanks for stopping by!
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Jackie, I'm not so sure about that! In fact, I have a hub coming out tomorrow about this subject. Thanks for taking the time to read one of my oldies.
This must be an older one of yours!
Well, maybe what is "good" depends on what the author wants?
I can't for a second go with comments as an indication of success....but I do admit that some things were written FOR the discussion in the comments.
I'm really doing this to see what kind of money I can make....and that is truly the bottom line. So essentially, the comments are only ....an extra.
I'm not going to give away my top producing title....but I will say, the most successful thing I've ever published on this site or any other....has maybe four to six comments.
I don't research keywords at all. I had no expectation that my "hit hub" would be the most successful thing I've published. I keep trying to reproduce a few more that will be as successful for me....and have yet to get remotely close, but I'm going to keep right on trying.
My two hubs that did better than any were just fillers until I could get my usual written. Guess that should tell us something. You though are very popular and I think you could write just about anything and be a hit but that is another story, huh?
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Remaniki, thank you; I don't know where my writing voice came from but people do seem to enjoy it and I am grateful for that. I love making the human connection with others.
Hi Bill,
I have been inactive on HP for more than 2 years now having come back this year to at least 'stay in touch', so any help from other hubbers is welcome, but coming from you it is always special because I think it is the way you say things, honestly and openly without pretensions. I simply love the way your hubs are presented just plain simple yet powerful. You have some magic in you, maybe?
All my best wishes to you for a successful journey on hubpages. Sharing it as always. Cheers, Rema.
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Thank you Jainismus; I appreciate your visit and comment.
Great analysis. Thank you for sharing your views, which are useful for new Hubbers.
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Julie, you are very gracious and I thank you! You come across as a very genuine and lovely person and I look forward to following you on your writing journey.
Your "voice" in your writing is wonderful. I love you candor. Nicely done.
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Ishwaryaa, those are very kind words and I appreciate them very much. I am humbled by the reception I have gotten on HubPages and I look forward to watching you grow as a writer.
A well-written guidance for newbies! I had read your hub on alcoholism and it was truly uplifting and touched many of readers, including me! No wonder it touched the perfect 100! I am blessed with the fact that some of my hubs hit high 90s and other hubs did reasonably well and still stayed though their hubscores fluctuate a bit. You did extremely well in your HubPages journey! Well-done!
Thanks for SHARING. Useful & Interesting. Voted up and Socially Shared.
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Hey, Mary, good to see you again. I hit 100 a couple times and have no idea how it happened or for that matter how it dropped afterwards. It helps to not really care. I might be concerned if I dropped to 70 suddenly but it wouldn't change the way I write.
Thank you my friend; I really do enjoy your comments.
Billy I missed this hub when you first wrote it but I have a feeling its as true now as it was then. I've been here for almost two years and I have no idea what makes a good hub either! The ones I write just because, turn out to be better than the ones I think are really good.
My hub score (karma) has hit 100 several times (even stayed there for several days once), why? I don't know but its okay with me.
I agree with you 100% on the reason for writing hubs, I write them because I enjoy writing them and if they can entertain others than that makes me happier yet!
An honest hub, well written as always.
Voted up, useful and interesting.
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Jackie, that is a question I have wrestled with and still have not come up with a solution. Thanks for your input as I value your opinion.
I think too many try to drown themselves in hubs and maybe it is for profit, I don't know, but personally if a hub of mine does not go over as well as I hoped I will remove it. What good is it sitting there dragging your average down? It doesn't hurt to push it out a time or two to make sure circumstances made many miss it but other than that what more can we do?
Just my personal opinion.
See, now I just found this and thought it was new. Proved my point!
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Audra, you pulled out a relic. I haven't read this in months. Thank you for your kind comment. I may not be as great as you say I am but I am working to improve.
You are special; never forget that!
You were a great writer at three weeks!!! Now, you are extraordinary! This is a great read especially for the newbies!
Voted up and shared with as many people as I can!
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Reves, you are not alone; most of us have no idea how the scoring goes. You will learn along the way what seems to work and what doesn't. Best of luck to you and thank you.
I have not written more than a couple of hubs as of yet. And seriously speaking, I have no idea how do I actually know by myself whether I am writing anything at all. I mean, it seems like I need to learn a lot. And I still do not understand the scoring part. Hopefully, I will get to know it more. By the way, I liked your writing. A great hub indeed. And I like the photo of the confused hubber. :)
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Savanahl, you are a kind soul and a kindred spirit. I am proud to have you following my writings and proud to follow yours. Thank you!
Hi billybuc. I always love reading your writing. It brightens my day every time. It seems we've been here about the same amount of time and here's what I've concluded. We all write about SEO this and banklinking that but I don't think any of us really knows so let's all of us follow your advice and just write for the love of writing. Thanks for sharing your wisdom and humor with us. Love it.
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winbo, thank you; I think it's important to always respond to comments quickly. If they take the time to write then I should take the time to respond, but I simply missed these and I appreciate you being understanding.
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It took me two months to notice there was a comment button I could push to see the latest comments....thank you for being so gracious.
no mention Billybuc.. :) It's ok
That's okay no problem
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I appreciate that Shimmering and I love your work; I will follow anyone who writes from their heart as you do.
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Gloshei, thank you so much. Had a glitch with HubPages so never saw your comment till now.
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Thank you winbo...I'm sorry I'm late with this answer. I never got a notice telling me that you had responded...thank you.
I write here just for my personal satisfaction, from my heart... I group my poetry hubs under the title, 'From the heartland of love'. most of my hubs are an expression of love or something I have experienced. I guess most people like to read what you write from the heart, not things that are devoid of emotions. Best wishes to you. Have a blessed day. Peace.
Great hub billybuc and very honest. We all like writing some are better than others, but all are worth reading as this is where the inspiration comes from.
I too have had some hubs take off and ones I thought would be interesting are still at the starting gate.
Thanks for sharing and good luck with you writing.
interesting hub. voted up :)
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You are very welcome. I am new myself but it didn't take long to realize that I greatly appreciate meaningful hubs that are written from the heart. Welcome and good hubbing.
I appreciate your honesty and your encouragement. I agree that a hub that offers good reading and helpful information is read the most. Being new to hubpages, I would also be the last person to ask what it takes to write a great hub but I am willing to listen and learn. Thanks for sharing.
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Thank you C, and best of luck with your writing. I don't know any other way to write other than from the heart. I go about my day writing to make money so by the end of the day and I can write for myself I just break free and let it all come out. I appreciate your words.
Great Hub billybuc,
I loved your thoughts on writing. It must always come from the heart and indeed we must always be true to ouselves in what we write about. Voted up, interesting and awesome. Keep up the great work.
Best C
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Susan, that means a lot to me; I love writing and it is gratifying to know others enjoy what I write...thank you for following along.
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vespawoolf, I totally agree with you and I plan on doing just that...enjoy!
I still have not figured out how the hubber score is determined. I've finally given up trying :)
Overall I think you are doing great for only being here such a short time.
I am also mystified by what makes a hub interesting and marketable. My husband keeps reminding me just to have fun, and I think that's good advice. Maybe if we just enjoy writing then success will come with it.
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sharvey...my apologies; somehow I missed the notification that you had written. Thank you so much for your kind words and for following along.
Love your authentic writing and voice! I could almost hear you speaking while I read your writing. This was a really nice piece to read.
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Cheeky, excellent input and I value it...thank you!
Sometimes creating a great hub can be down to just crazy good timing. I know one hubber here - a truly brilliant friend of mine here, who, over the Christmas and New Year period - managed to get a 5 figure number of visitors to her hubs when one of her hubs went viral. I saw the mad number of comments on the hub in question and it was insane.
You pick a particular subject and it gets a huge read because the niche suddenly becomes very hot and topical!
The scoring system of hubs does not have merit outside Hub Pages. It is for hubs only. But Hub Pages does reward for great content!
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Poetvix....it always makes my day when I get a comment from you. Thank you so much; if HubPages did not reward quality writing and content I would be forced to carry on without their approval, as would you I'm sure....have a great evening.
I love the honesty contained here. I have been here for going on two years and still don't fully comprehend the scoring system. I think, and this is just my opinion, the best hubs are those that the author puts their heart into, and of course some hard work. Of course the bots that score don't care what I think nor do they detect "heart." They do detect good writing and content which you have. You will do very well here, sir.
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annart...thank you for reading and for taking the time to leave more than a one sentence comment. It's always been about the writing for me but I'm just stubborn enough to want to see my scores soar and try to figure out how to make that happen. I will just keep plugging along and see what happens...and best of luck to you as well.
I like your philosophy and it's good to know that I'm not the only one wondering why scores go up and down apparently at random and how I've managed a score of 95. I do find that it spurs me on to keep up the numbers. The best bit for me is that I've found one hub leads to another idea (as does reading others' of course) and that it's contributing to my writing experience. I wish the technicalities were easier to come to grips with but essentially, as you say, it's the WRITING that's paramount. Great hub. Voted up and interesting (there should be a click box for amusing, rather than funny,but there we go!). Thanks. I like your writing - keep it up!
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rLcasaLme....well that's good enough for me then; thanks for reading and commenting.
I totally agree that "a good hub is one that is written honestly and has some entertainment value for others, or resonates in them and gives them some strength." I believe that is all there is to it.
I couldn't have said it better.
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hazelwood4...I completely agree with you. Thanks for reading and chiming in; your opinions are valuable as I stumble along this new path.
@Billybuc I think the most important part of the Hubber score and the Hub score is not to worry about it. The scores will rise and fall at any given moment, but the most important fact for everyone to remember that a good Hub is one that THEY have enjoyed writing. Thank you for sharing another very useful and thought provoking Hub.
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EclecticFusion....good to know; I'm good at hoping for the best....thank you!
I just write what I want and just hope for the best! Awesome hub! Thanks for SHARING!
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Thank you as well Joel and I agree...the reasons for writing and your approach are all that is important. I have had my eyes cross reading all of the suggestions for increasing your hub score but that simply does not interest me. Writing is my passion and if someone enjoys what I have written then that is a bonus...best of luck to you.
I, like you, am relatively new to this still. I haven't quite figured out what makes a good hub. I just write about what I want. I have been surprised by some of my hubs that took off, while others I expected to do well kind of failed. I guess it just depends on peoples' interests and who sees them. I like your approach. Thanks for SHARING.
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