Would you sell an article for $5?

1. 60

   Fotographerposted 12 years ago

   Would you write for someone if they paid you $5 for every 800 word original/quality article?

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   1. 79

      Uninvited Writerposted 12 years agoin reply to this

      No... I write 250 word blog posts for $10

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   2. 61

      myi4uposted 12 years agoin reply to this

      Nope... I get paid $5 for 60 words.

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   3. 60

      Teylinaposted 12 years agoin reply to this

      Nope. If no more than that, I'll give it away!

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2. 70

   Cagsilposted 12 years ago

   Nope.

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3. 60

   SunSevenposted 12 years ago

   NO.

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4. 37

   Greg Sageposted 12 years ago

   no

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5. 81

   Mark Ewbieposted 12 years ago

   Depends.
   
   If I was allowed fluff, for example...
   
   Greeting fellow person, I offer my internet hand in warm friendship and a shared concern over anything that ails you.  we are all brothers, and / or sisters, or indeed both, and I have no problem with that.  For your future reference I pen these words under the name Mark Ewbie, and am truly delighted to make your acquaintance as previously mentioned.
   
   Or do I need to do concise?
   
   Hello.  I'm Mark.

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6. 74

   WriteAngledposted 12 years ago

   Depends on:
   
   1. How desperately you need the money
   
   2. How the return per hour matches up with average wages where you live and also how much you could otherwise earn in the same time by writing elsewhere or doing something else
   
   3. If you could earn more elsewhere, the likelihood you could get the other type of work regularly enough to meet your needs.

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7. 67

   Rosie2010posted 12 years ago

   Personally, I won't.  I write for the pleasure of writing and earning money from my writing, however little, from Adsense and HP Ads is such a thrill.  But that's just me.  If you are prolific and can write 800 words in 15 minutes, then you can write four 800-word articles in an hour, which makes it $20 per hour work.. not bad.  That's above minimum wage for sure.  Are you talking about just one article you wrote and someone wants to buy it from you for $5 so he/she can post it as his/hers?  Think about it.  If this person offered you $5 for your article, from a business prospective this person must know your article is worth more that, otherwise he/she won't even bother.  Just a thought..

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   1. 37

      Greg Sageposted 12 years agoin reply to this

      I type fast, and I hardly ever proofread anything...
      
      ... and I don't think even I could come close to sumbitting 4 800 word articles in an hour.
      
      
      If they were all topics you could crank out with zero research, $20 for 500 words sound like somewhere around the point that it would start being worth doing... and that's assuming you can't make $20/hr doing something else.
      
      Now, if NO ONE cares about quality whatsoever...

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      1. 81

         Mark Ewbieposted 12 years agoin reply to this

         I don't care... show me the money.
         
         I wrote...

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         1. 37

            Greg Sageposted 12 years agoin reply to this

            Well, a hand-drawn picture IS worth 1000 words...

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            1. 81

               Mark Ewbieposted 12 years agoin reply to this

               My entire collection is available for three dollars if you're interested.  Including a caterpillar that looks a bit like a giraffe.

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               1. 37

                  Greg Sageposted 12 years agoin reply to this

                  A little bit like a what?
                  
                  Now you're just making up creatures.

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                  1. 81

                     Mark Ewbieposted 12 years agoin reply to this

                     I have to go poop now.

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                     1. 67

                        Rosie2010posted 12 years agoin reply to this

                        LOL

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                        1. 37

                           Greg Sageposted 12 years agoin reply to this

                           You laugh now.
                           
                           Just wait.
                           
                           He'll write a hub about it.
                           
                           ... and draw a picture.

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                           1. 81

                              Mark Ewbieposted 12 years agoin reply to this

                              Well. What a coincidence.  It's not poop of course it's a pie, but it.. well.. never mind.
                              
                              

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               2. 67

                  Rosie2010posted 12 years agoin reply to this

                  Oh, Mark, $3?  a bit much, doncha think?  sorry, can't help it.  Sorry to read about low traffic from another thread.

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                  1. 81

                     Mark Ewbieposted 12 years agoin reply to this

                     No probs Rosie, my fault for not writing what searchers are looking for.

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                     1. 37

                        Greg Sageposted 12 years agoin reply to this

                        Coincidentally, I've nearly finished writing one called:
                        
                        Free epic fail porn: Making money online with Justin Beiber and cute kitten videos
                        
                        I may have to borrow your "pie" drawing to illustrate.

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                        1. 81

                           Mark Ewbieposted 12 years agoin reply to this

                           That is funny.  Always grateful for a credit of course.  You would credit it, wouldn't you?

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                           1. 37

                              Greg Sageposted 12 years agoin reply to this

                              Well, I certainly don't want people to think I drew it....

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                              1. 81

                                 Mark Ewbieposted 12 years agoin reply to this

                                 Lol.  You win for tonight my friend.
                                 
                                 Same time tomorrow?

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                                 1. 37

                                    Greg Sageposted 12 years agoin reply to this

                                    Can't. my mom says she needs me out of here tomorrow so she can vacuum the basement and clean the shark tank.

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      2. 67

         Rosie2010posted 12 years agoin reply to this

         It was just a supposition.  But my mistake that I didn't say "supposing"

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8. 0

   EmpressFelicityposted 12 years ago

   No. Lowest I go is $12 for 500-600 words.
   
   Rider: I might have to go lower one day, but hopefully not.

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9. 82

   earnerposted 12 years ago

   I've taken $50/£32 for about 1000 words before, with the keywords supplied.
   
   I'd do it again too
   
   I could do it for a 'living' except I lack the confidence to stand up and say "Hey there - you - I write and you need me to write for you".

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10. 81

    Wesman Todd Shawposted 12 years ago

    Last night a person offered me Ten Dollars to write an article about a website that she works for.  No joke.  I might do it, after all, the adsense etc is still mine.

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11. 60

    JBBlackposted 12 years ago

    I have done it.  So I can't say I wouldn't.  I wrote 100 words for 70 cents and I did it fast.  I did it ten times.  How much am I worth?  Doesn't matter.  Paid practice.  As an estimate 24 articles for about 60 bucks.  They are out there in a variety of homes.  Some of my writing exists on smart looking pages. It was worth the work and the ridiculous token payment to see my words so usefull and gloriously set.  So I'm anonymous, and some weirdo is claiming that he gave out paper umbrellas as a wedding favor at his wedding instead of mine; I won't get credit for my careful research about flooring or the Epstein-Barr virus, my energetic spazzing about RC tanks that shoot or garage door makeovers will not be included in my collected works.

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12. 60

    dutchman1951posted 12 years ago

    depends on what it could lead to. 5.00 by itself no.

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13. 78

    Rising Carenposted 12 years ago

    $5 for 800 words?
    
    I wouldn't unless I REALLY needed that money soon (like around xmas time when I realize I didn't make enough to buy the gifts I need).
    
    However, under normal circumstances, I go for a MINIMUM of 1 cent a word. So $5.00 would get a person a 500 word article, and $8.00 would be needed for an 800 word article. Ideally, however, I go for 1.5 - 2 cents per word (12 - 16 dollars for 800 words).
    
    I might, however, do an 800 word article rewrite for $5.00, but only if the article is PLR or the person can somewhat prove they have the rights to rewriting it. Considering most rewrites I've seen were for obviously stolen articles, I don't get to do rewrites often (but the people with no scruples get plenty of work).

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14. 90

    Urbane Chaosposted 12 years ago

    I would never even dream of doing this on my worst writing day..
    
    I've worked as a professional freelance writer for a long time, but have only just gotten into writing web content in the last couple years.  There's a lot of people that will take jobs for five bucks online, but I'm sorry, that just degrades the work.  I believe you get what you pay for - but that's just my opinion.
    
    Typically, I charge around .07 to .010 cents per word per article.  I've done articles for less money if it's going to ensure that I have a long-term contract, but that's rare.  For a basic 500 word article, the lowest I'd charge would be $35.

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15. 79

    Uninvited Writerposted 12 years ago

    It's refreshing to hear from writers who don't undercut themselves

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    1. 60

       JBBlackposted 12 years agoin reply to this

       Sorry I couldn't help with that.

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    2. 90

       Urbane Chaosposted 12 years agoin reply to this

       It doesn't make any sense to lower your standards just to gain five bucks.  Thing is, I believe that if all writers actually charged what they're worth, many of the "hacks" out there wouldn't hang around as long as they do.  By "hacks", I mean people who just fill their articles with fluff to make pages.  I don't consider those people writers.
       
       It's different if you do it to get your foot in the door, or because you know the person, or something along those lines, but those cases are rare. 
       
       Writing is a profession, just like bricklaying or doing surgery, and one should get paid for what the work is worth.  I may be picky about the subject, but when it comes to keeping a roof over my head and food on the table, I tend to take it seriously.

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16. 74

    wheelinalloverposted 12 years ago

    I am a slow thinker so I probably wouldn't take $5 for anything I write or have written. I mostly do ad copy now and if they don't work I am actually writing free. LOL
    
    In today's business world you are positioning yourself as an expert then telling not selling and that takes longer to write. I have worked hours just to get five right words that will bring people to what I have to offer. The diligence has paid off however as two of these ads are now page one of Google, yahoo or Bing. The biggest money maker among them. I am one of those who believe in testing. Then when something does work I try to duplicate the results.

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17. 0

    klarawieckposted 12 years ago

    I won't sell an article for $5
    
                     ...but I can sell my ex-mother-in-law for $2.
    
             Do we have a deal?

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18. 0

    TopUniverseposted 12 years ago

    I think no one can do it for a well researched original article.

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19. 67

    Anamika Sposted 12 years ago

    I could sell a PR1 text link for that price maybe.

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20. 64

    Traqqerposted 12 years ago

    Not for $5. I recently sold all my 250 articles to eHow (it was pretty much a forced sell) and I got a lot more per article. But I was also earning quite a bit from those articles with adsense.

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21. 79

    Karandaposted 12 years ago

    Writing for $5 for 800 words equates to $.00625 per word. Writers have spent decades trying to increase remuneration for each and every word they produce. This is a big step back for writers world wide.

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    1. 90

       Urbane Chaosposted 12 years agoin reply to this

       Exactly.. well put.

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22. 60

    Teylinaposted 12 years ago

    Karanda and whoever said something about 'degrading' (wasn't the words, but made me think of it) are on it far as I'm concerned--I've written for free (to those or for those for whom I have a special feeling). Other than that, nope; for the art, maybe, free but what brainpower I have is worth more than that until I have to feed a starving child someday!

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23. 87

    Stacie Lposted 12 years ago

    i have written 500 word articles for 5.00 only from easy going and non OCD buyers..

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