Paid Content Sites Revamped

Photo © Chance Agrella
Last Updated: January 17, 2008

I am listing all paid content sites I can locate. I am primarily interested in those sites that offer upfront payments, though I will note those that only offer revenue for ads or page views. I do this so writers may know, at a glance, which sites will pay them and which ones will tease them with ‘revenue’. (Very few make decent money with revenue only)

Because some of the reviews are a bit detailed and the amount of paid content sites listed is growing fairly quickly, I thought it best to break up the original list into several posts. This will make it simpler for you to find the specific paid content site you are looking for.

If you have information or would like to add your own review, please email me or add a comment. Please be specific and accurate in order to best help your fellow writers. If you know of other sites that offer accurate and current paid content site reviews or additional paid content sites I should add, please let me know (email or comment).

The links to the listings are in the sidebar, and each posting shows the date of the last update, for your convenience.

Thank you so much for your help and support in this endeavor (i.e. thank you for helping me to help you!)

Paid Content Sites A-B

Paid Content Sites C-G

Paid Content Sites H-L

Paid Content Sites M-S

Paid Content Sites T-Z

Website and Blog Tools: Value Calculators

Image via WikipediaThere are many fun and helpful tools for freelance writers with blogs and websites. One is a blog or website value calculator.

This tool uses various methods to calculate what your website or blog would be worth in financial terms. This is helpful if you wish to sell or flip your site/blog. It can also give you a rough idea of how well you are doing with your blog or website.

You do not have to place the widget on your blog or website to get the information. You can enter your url into a box on the calculator website and it will calculate it for you. As you can see, however, the various calculators come up with some very different answers!

My blog is worth $1,129.08.
How much is your blog worth?

This website is worth
What is your website worth?

To find out the worth of your own blog/website or to get your own widget, just click inside either widget on the "How much is your website/blog worth" link.

Writing Samples to Land a Gig – Six Things to Know

Image via CrunchBaseSometimes when applying for a new client or freelance writing gig, you will be asked to provide a ‘sample’ of your work. Usually, you can simply provide appropriate links to previously published work in the same topic. However, sometimes new prospects will insist upon custom ‘samples’. What should you do?

There are several schools of thought on this, and it seems to be more a matter of personal preference than anything else. However, there are a few great rules of thumb to keep in mind as you make your own decision about how to handle such requests.

1- If you write it, you own the rights to it. If someone insists they own the rights to the sample they are asking you to submit, there is a strong possibility you are being conned. There will then be nothing to stop them from saying you did not meet their hiring guidelines and then ‘rewrite’ your submission enough to prevent you from being able to take legal action against them. If someone wants the rights to your work, you will have to sell or assign them. Otherwise, the sample still belongs to you.
2- Samples should be paid for. If someone really insists upon a custom sample, they should be willing to pay for your time and effort. After all, they are asking you to work for them, even if it is just to create a custom sample. Exceptions to this are a matter of opinion. I have found very few instances in which I felt it was acceptable to write a free custom sample.
3- Previously written works should usually be sufficient examples of your style, voice, knowledge, and skill in the topic and genre. While there are legitimate reasons why a custom sample might be necessary, in most cases, prior works should suffice.
4- Protect yourself with links. If you send in a link to a sample that has been previously published and someone else now owns the rights, you are giving yourself extra protection against theft. This is because if the new prospect steals your content, the company/client that purchased it will be able to take legal action and probably has deeper pockets and more legal resources than you do.
5- Set up ‘Google Alerts’ on all your published works. Some recommend using the title, some say to use several lines from your work, and others recommend using key words/phrases. Be sure to enclose lines, sentences, and other word groupings in quotation marks to get results that are more accurate in your notifications. This is not fail-proof, but it is a great way to track references to your work, as well as help protect yourself against content theft.
6- Get or stay involved in writing forums. Members are very good about protecting one another from the scammers and giving one another leads to great gigs. More than once, I have seen alerts about such fraudulent job postings just as I was getting ready to report them to the group. Having such a great group of writers to confer with has saved me enormous time and effort when it comes to weeding out the bad gigs from the good ones.

Resource:
Google Alerts

Freelance Writing and Taxes

Image via WikipediaThis post will become another ongoing resource for information with a link in the sidebar.

As of the date of this posting, the New Year (2009) is here and it is time to carry on the act of giving to others . . . by way of taxes to the government!

Yes, as a freelance writer you are considered ‘employed’ and responsible to pay not only income taxes (in the U.S.), but other items such as Self-Employment taxes may apply as well! Now is the time to begin collecting and compiling all of your income and expense information for the prior year (2008).

To keep yourself out of trouble with the government and help you know what you need when filing there are three things I keep in mind:

1-If you can’t prove it, don’t claim it! If you are audited you will be asked to provide PROOF of everything. If you don’t have proof, spare yourself trouble and don’t claim it. Make sure to get proof for it the next time. Make it a habit to document and get itemized receipts for everything related to your work as a freelance writer. Then be sure to file it in a safe place.

2-When filing taxes yourself, read all the b-o-r-i-n-g extra information that applies to what you can and cannot claim and write off. You may miss claiming something you can or claim something you cannot if you do not use extra care. Remember, the tax code changes EVERY year. What applied last year may not apply this year, or may have changed significantly

3-If someone else prepares your taxes and makes a mistake, you are STILL LIABLE for them! Be sure you use a reputable company/tax professional and that you look over your paperwork before you sign it. If they mess up, you will be liable for the taxes, interest, and penalties. (NOTE: in some cases the IRS will waive fees, and separate penalties may be lodged by the IRS against the preparer).
See:
Paid Preparer Mistakes – Who is Liable
http://www.avvo.com/legal-answers/tax-preparer-made-mistake-in-2006-taxes-who-is-lia-13228.html
Paid Preparer Penalties
http://www.irs.gov/taxpros/article/0,,id=179707,00.html

In the United States, the deadline for filing and payment is April 15th. Between January 1 and April 15, many resources of free and low-cost help will be popping up and advertised. As I see them (the legit ones), I will add the information to this blog.

In the meantime, here are some links to get you started:

United States Department of the Treasury: Internal Revenue Service (IRS) – Homepage
http://www.irs.gov/

Recovery Rebate Credit – Important Information: You May Qualify
http://www.irs.gov/newsroom/article/0,,id=186065,00.html?portlet=6

Self-Employed Individuals Tax Center – IRS
http://www.irs.gov/businesses/small/selfemployed/index.html

IRS – Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)
http://www.irs.gov/faqs/index.html

Highlights of Recent Tax Changes (Publications listing)
http://www.irs.gov/formspubs/article/0,,id=174600,00.html

IMPORTANT:
Please note that with the economic situation of 2008, there has been talk of giving citizens of the U.S. a tax holiday for their 2008 taxes. As the year proceeds, more information will be released and updated about that by the government, and I will continue to post updates here for you. If you become aware of any updates or relevant information not listed here, or any corrections that need to be made, please email me with them and your source(s) of information for verification. Thank you!

Playing the Client Shuffle – Happy New Year!

Image via WikipediaWhile many view New Year’s as a time to make resolutions and make changes, in the life of a freelance writer, every month can be a time of making changes. Projects end, clients come and go, pay rates abruptly change, and work opportunities are like hot dates – they come in cycles of feast and famine. It can be difficult to formulate a concrete work plan when so much can be up in the air – especially considering the U.S. economy as of late.

Something I do while playing the client shuffle is reassess where I am at in my writing career and what I want to accomplish. I want to work fewer hours for more pay. For me, that plan has been in progress for the past year and while it has not progressed as quickly as I would have liked, it has indeed progressed.

Another aspect of my plan is to only take the work I want and enjoy. No more tedium and endless articles on b-o-r-i-n-g topics that numb my brain while my eyes glaze over and I begin to drool. (Seriously – it is not pretty!)

I have had some ‘lucky breaks’ along the way, but I have also worked hard to increase my skills, pad my resume, and learn from the masters. I no longer feel like I need to take low paying gigs or tedious work in order to pay the bills. I have my financial house in order and I have worked my way up to much better pay than what I got when I started. I still have plenty of room for growth and improvement, but I have the time and the drive to get there.

When it comes to your freelance plan for the new year, what do you hope to accomplish?

Oprah and Others Deceived by Author: What Does this Mean for You?

Image via WikipediaIn the news is a story about an author who included very intentionally falsified facts in his upcoming book, which was to be published in February, and even touted by Oprah. Now that the secret is out, more than a few are upset with him.

What does this mean for writers? I hope that it will mean more careful checks across the board in the publishing world, though I doubt that will be the result. For the most part, it is now, and perhaps will always be, up to writers to check their facts thoroughly and to write with the highest standards of journalistic integrity in mind.

The other side of this is that as readers, we should approach any ‘news’ or ‘biography’ and the like with skepticism, realizing that many have not gone through any type of serious fact-checking, and some ‘fact’ is more ‘opinion and spin’ than actual factual accounting.

Sources:

News of Fabricated Holocaust Memoir Sparks Anger, Sadness
FoxNews.com/Associated Press. Monday, December 29, 2008.
http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,473445,00.html

False Memoir of Holocaust is Canceled
Motoko Rich and Joseph Berger. New York Times (online). December 28, 2009
http://www.nytimes.com/2008/12/29/books/29hoax.html?_r=1&ref=us

The Freelance National Anthem - Everybody Sing Along

I'd like to give special thanks to Deb Ng at Freelance Writing Jobs for posting this great video. The song is played twice, with the second time accompanied by lyrics so all may sing along.

Please join me in singing The Freelance National Anthem:



Today's Question:
What do YOU love best about Freelancing?