Uh Oh - My first competition problem

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   thisisoliposted 14 years ago

   So when the Hubpages Competition came out I was pretty excited,, I gave myself a personal challenge of creating three commercial hubs for each day,however I have hit a problem.
   
   I am finding it pretty hard to write on some subjects, that I just cannot take seriously, including reiki and homeopathy. Infact the best I can say without laughing is 'placebo'.
   
   This is making it increasingly hard to write about with the good old commercial positive spin. I am too honest for my own good, I don't like to lie to people, and this just feels dishonest.
   
   Am I the only one, or are there others who are struggling with some of these topics?

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      Arthur Fontesposted 14 years agoin reply to this

      Couldn't you just right it in your honest opinion.  If you think the subject is rubbish just say so.  As long as it is on subject it should not matter.

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      Rochelle Frankposted 14 years agoin reply to this

      Write about the placebo effect.

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      Sufidreamerposted 14 years agoin reply to this

      I know exactly what you mean, Oli - I have turned down a few good writing gigs because I was not happy with some of the practices. This is even worse when some of the treatments are directly harmful or give false hope.
      
      As Maddie said, whilst you are obviously in it to make cash, surely a Hub or two pointing out some of the shadier practices will not hurt too much. A little public service announcement!
      
      Best of luck with the competition

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      cosetteposted 14 years agoin reply to this

      
      
      speaking for myself only, i decided after reviewing all the topics to drop out because i don't do a lot of those things. if you really want to do it, just be honest about it but in a fun way like maybe make it a humorous hub, like "I Was A Reiki Master for the F.B.I." or something. that way you could still sell Amazon books and products. that's what i would do if i were doing it anyway
      
      good luck.

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      double_frickposted 14 years agoin reply to this

      how bout make a statement about how you feel those things are placebos and the value in that. honestly, regardless of whether its actually healing or just the placebo effect the fact is healing is taking place, right?

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   Maddie Ruudposted 14 years ago

   Write about why you think they're bogus.

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      lorlie6posted 14 years agoin reply to this

      Perfect solution, Maggie-the questionable nature of some 'treatments' can prove a fascinating topic.

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   Cagsilposted 14 years ago

   Well, I think it might help if one was viewing the topic openly and receptive.
   
   Just a thought.

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   thisisoliposted 14 years ago

   Hehe but saying something like homeopathy is just a placebo, makes it rather hard to sell homeopathic medicines

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      girly_girl09posted 14 years agoin reply to this

      adsense revenue on these sorts of hub can't be that bad. People will still click if they're looking for information on the topic.

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         Maddie Ruudposted 14 years agoin reply to this

         Yeah.  Leave out the EBay/Amazon capsules and just use AdSense.

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      Marisa Wrightposted 14 years agoin reply to this

      I know what you mean, oli.  I've just written a negative Hub about Reiki (based on my personal experience) and was thinking - this isn't going to sell a darn thing. 
      
      It's not that I go looking for highly commercial subjects, but I do try to find an angle for every Hub I write.  The fact that I can't find one on these negative reviews did make me pause - but if I could win a prize with one of them, that counts as earnings too!

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         Jason Menayanposted 14 years agoin reply to this

         You should ask Maddie about her Wu-Yi Tea Hub!

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         darksideposted 14 years agoin reply to this

         The Adsense ads, whether they are for or against (the product/service/concept), can make you money.
         
         People use search engines to find answers to questions. Your hub could be in the results for whatever the keyword phrase is they're using. They may find your hub beneficial, but it'll be the click thru that makes you the money.

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   Hauntyposted 14 years ago

   What do you think works better than reiki or homeopathy? You could write about them in this context. I hope that you won't end up writing about pills though.

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   sunforgedposted 14 years ago

   Six months ago I would have laughed at "reikki" well i did...but last semester i took part in an intro to reikki class and had treatments performed every week..and I laugh no more, I cant explain, but perhaps I will try

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   sunforgedposted 14 years ago

   on the fun side, I looked into reikki as a niche to cover, you can purchase some wacky reikki items on ebay including remote treatments and attunements

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      thisisoliposted 14 years agoin reply to this

      Haha brilliant!
      
      I have decided That I am not going to write the Reiki hubs, I just can't seem to do it, ran out of steam 250 words in to my first hub on htem, couldn't even bring myself to write 50 more words of padding and publish it anyway.  I have decided that I will spend the time writing anotehr set of 3 hubs on a different topic during that time!

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   rebekahELLEposted 14 years ago

   sometimes reading more about it makes for an interesting topic.
   people that search these topics generally want to know more about it.

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   WriteAngledposted 14 years ago

   I was sceptical about homoeopathy a long time ago. Then, my first daughter had problems as a baby with a blocked tear duct getting infected. At the time, we lived in Zagreb, Croatia. She was sent for a fairly painful procedure, which involved sticking a needle through the duct to clear it. A few months later, we returned to the UK. The problems returned. The unblocking procedure was frowned on in the UK, so she was put on increasingly more powerful antibiotics. Finally something snapped in me, when I read the side effects of the last antibiotic she was on.
   
   I threw the antibiotic into the bin and went to a nearby pharmacist, who was also a stockist of homoeopathic remedies (this was well before the days when Boots stocked them!). I explained the problem. He recommended homoeopathic Euphrasia eye drops. Within two or three days, my daughter's problem had cleared. It never returned, except for a very slight blockage, which never got infected, when she had a bad cold.
   
   I don't believe that a six-month-old baby can show a placebo effect.
   
   This convinced me to try for myself. I used to get very bad hayfever, which first manifested when I was 20. I tried a combined remedy produced by Nelsons. The first year, I had symptoms for a week. The second year, I had symptoms for one day. Since then, I have had no hayfever symptoms for almost 30 years even though I have not continued to use the remedy.
   
   Yes, I know it is possible to grow out of hayfever. However, the combined experience of my daughter and myself makes me think there must be something to homoeopathy.

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    wrenfrost56posted 14 years ago

    You could do a bit of research on the science behind them or the lack of. I've hit a bit of a brick wall at the moment, can't find enough time!

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       thisisoliposted 14 years agoin reply to this

       I know a fair bit about homeopathy, simply because my mum is smitten by it and loves to talk about it, much to the amusement of the rest of the family.
       
       There doesn't seem to be a lot of science behind reiki either , never looked in to it before, but I have looked in to it for hours and cannot find anything worth writing about.  Even at it's first inception, it states that the reiki healers must charge for their skills for it to work, and the entire subject stinks of a poorly conceived con.
       
       I am truly amazed that the NHS actually supports this.
       
       I think using the word science on these techniques is rather a stretch, Homeopathy has a scientific method behind the creation of the pills but it actually involves the dilution of products to such an extent that you are looking at getting one molecule of anything in one pill out of a hundred.  When questioned about this the answer seems to be regarding the 'essence' of an element, which makes little sense.  I also find the fact that homeopathy is strong enough to cure, but too weak to have side affects, and that it is often described as an immunisation or vaccine by building up a tolerance, yet it is used after people become ill. 
       
       Blind studies have proved homeopathy for it's placebo effect. However, at least the placebo effect is some affect.

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    myownworldposted 14 years ago

    see Oli,  you've already got the material for a hub there....!
    
    best of luck with the contest btw. I hate forcing myself to write...and just marvel at people who have the discipline to do so, esp. on any subject under the sky. (Now if only it was a short story competition, my hands wouldn't stop writing!)  Anyway, I kind of understand what you're going through....so sending lots of inspiration your way.....

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       thisisoliposted 14 years agoin reply to this

       Hehe thanks for the inspiration.  I can write about most random things without any trouble. I have way too much common sense however, so when I see things like this I feel frustrated!
       
       Its going to feel weird not doing the competition tomorrow, after I geared myself so much towards it, I do however have a few insomnia hubs on the way that I am writing as we speak
       
       I also have 1000 words to write on marble, the joys of freelancing!

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    darksideposted 14 years ago

    If it's a struggle then I wouldn't pursue it.
    
    One hub a day would be a good pace for this competition.
    
    Or if you targeted two topics a week and really put your all into it.
    
    I can, if inclined, publish 5 to 10 hubs a day, but if I were given something I had no idea about or didn't interest me in the slightest then 3 a day would be a complete drag.

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    thisisoliposted 14 years ago

    Frick, I would much rather write a hub like that, but it would be hard to sell products outta that!
    
    Darkside, it's tempting to cut down, but I kinda had this challenge set up and I want to see it through!
    
    Cosette, Thats not a bad idea! aybe I will write a hub on 'using Reiki to decide the correct placement of throw pillows' and pass a link your way

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       cosetteposted 14 years agoin reply to this

       
       
       
       omg haha!
       
       if you tie it in with Feng Shui somehow, it's a winner! good luck

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    rmcrayneposted 14 years ago

    Sorry to hear your mother's experience has closed your mind to the benefits of homeopathy. 
    
    Would your conscience be okay with homeopathy for dogs? 
    
    Here is arnica for dogs:
    
    http://www.dogmark.net/dmninter/dogmark … ott02.html
    
    and the rest of Dr. Jill's stuff: 
    
    http://www.dogmark.net/dmninter/dogmark … ott00.html
    
    I use arnica, and used it with my dog as well.  Check me out.  I'm educated, a [non-physician] provider for over 20 years, and have shifted away from Western Medicine to Alternative Medicine (for myself).  Several homeopathics are in my comprehensive plan.

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    Zsuzsy Beeposted 14 years ago

    Oli, you could always write a hub explaining how a shoebox full of prescription drugs made from chemicals that have been tested on animals and have made the pharmaceutical companies millions of dollars are so much better for the body then any other type of alternative medicine.

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       thisisoliposted 14 years agoin reply to this

       I think that would be miscatagorized in to the current competition sections
       
       Besides, while the big companies make millions, even billions, they spend huge amounts on research as well, ensuring better medication for the world in general.
       
       It is easy to demonize companies for trying to make money, while ignoring the fact that they are helping the world in general.
       
       Herbal remedies are all well and good, and they can help with a huge variety of ailments. The majority of medical research is finding new natural remedies, finding the active ingredients in the remedies, and then finding ways to administer them with minimal side effects to the human body.  They do a pretty good job of doing this as well, I have had to use a variety of medical drugs over the years, and have never had any of the possible side effects, and I am also pretty grateful that the advancement of commercial medical products has just allowed me to go through an incredibly painful operation and recovery relatively pain free!

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          rmcrayneposted 14 years agoin reply to this

          Spoken by one truely indoctrinated.

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    IzzyMposted 14 years ago

    Thisisoli, you said earlier in this thread that even the NHS supports Reiki. I haven't a clue what it is all about, seeing as I am banned from this competition, but what I would suggest seeing as you live in the UK, is to nip along to your local hospital/health centre and pick up some leaflets about it, and maybe get a new angle on the subject?
    Everything isn't out there on the internet. The majority of writings on any given subject is about what people want you to know, not what they think.
    You certainly don't have to support it if you feel what they say isn't correct.
    Right away, you have a hub subject. "I don't think this is fact because..."
    Whatever you write, is there for the public and I am sad to have to admit this, but many people take as gospel what they read online.
    The article written today, IMO, that will have the most lasting opinion, are the ones that speak the truth.

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    Nelle Hoxieposted 14 years ago

    Thisisoli, now you know why I don't do much in the health category. Some competitions aren't for everyone - I wouldn't worry about it.

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    DennisBarkerposted 14 years ago

    If you are struggling to understand or write about reiki or other subjects why not interview somebody who has had different experience than you expect to find. Maybe the interview would be enlightening and spark an interest , maybe not, but there would be enough material to write a hub.

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