Google's Attack on Content Mills

For many freelance writers, so called content mills are the way the bills get paid. Although writing website content generally pays less than writing for print publications, it is easier to break into and easier to do when you are balancing parenthood and your writing career. Google's recent changes have seriously hurt many websites and that is causing panic among content writers. Many Ehow.com writers received an email today notifying them that some revenue share articles were removed. This may mean a significant loss of revenue for some writers.

What are you going to do to prevent this from having to much of an impact on your income? After getting frustrated and kind of down in the dumps about it, I have decided on my own battle plan to ensure that I do not give up my dream of making a living with my writing.

1. Blogging I am going to begin blogging regularly again, since a blog is mine and cannot be controlled by other people. I may even start other blogs, there are a few ideas floating around in my head. :) And a well maintained blog is a great place to send potential clients so that they can get a general idea of your writing style. Which leads me to the next step in my plan.....

2. More Private Clients Just an hour a day spent sending out resumes and writing samples to prospective clients could net big returns. Submitting to print publications is also a good idea!

3. Revenue Share Not all rev share sites have been hit by this google disaster. Some of them are still going strong, and are a great place to place quality articles to build a passive income.

4. Just Keep Writing! Until content sites such as Demand Studios or Internet Brands start refusing to pay me for articles, I will continue to write them. Why stop now, when the money is still flowing in? Granted, the editors are becoming harder to please, and the choices of titles to write is narrower, but I can still write!

Writer Access

I am trying out a new company, Writer Access. I applied last week and was accepted as a level 4 writer. Levels go from 2 to 5 with 5 being the highest paying. So far I have written one short tip, but I plan on doing more. The site and guidelines remind me of textbrokers site. So far pay seems to be monthly, but since the site is new that could change in the future.
I found out about the site one my favorite forum, work place like home. There is always a ton of information and support there and I have been a member for quite a few years. I will be sure to update when Writer Access pays and how the editing and approvals go for me.
As for my Demand Studios goal of $1200 for the month....I did it! And the month isn't even over yet, which leaves me more time to check out other clients and writing sites.

Makeover time!

For this blog that is, although the owner of this blog seriously needs one as well!

I have high hopes for Freelancing Parents, but I have been neglecting it really badly. I want this blog to be a place where parents like me, who balance working from home in whatever capacity and raising children, can gain ideas and support. I want the kind of blog where readers comment with their insight and we all work together to achieve our goals. I would love to have a whole freelancing community so that we can share any and every thing.

In order to do that, I have to quit neglecting my blog! Yes, I am taking all the blame, I'm a parent, so I'm used to it! ;)

So today is makeover day. From now on, I will be a more active blogger. I will do more book reviews, write more about the parenting aspect of this blog and think up a good idea for a regular contest. Maybe I can even bring in a guest blogger from time to time to liven things up.

As far as my monthly goal goes, I am still right on target. I have made $660 so far with Demand Studios so I am pretty sure I will hit $1200 by the end of the month. It has been hard to adjust to not having help with the kids. Starting this week, they have started staying with a family member on Mondays while hubby is in school. That gives me the whole day to write. It worked out perfect this week and I am hoping it will be the same next week. I also catch up on Fridays when hubby is home.

The rest of the week I hang out with the kids and have started a major decluttering around here. I fit in writing when ever the munchkins are occupied playing or in the evenings. It's working out pretty good so far. And I really am enjoying doing more with the kids and doing things around the house. Except the dishes....I hate dishes. :(

Update :)

I am slacking on posting, and for that I apologize. It is really difficult to find time in the day to take care of all the kids needs and write what I need to each day to reach my goal. So far, I am doing it but it doesn't leave much time for anything else!

I am trying to work out a schedule that will make the day easier on all of us and allow me to accomplish more. I haven't accomplished it yet, lol, but I am making progress!

So far I have managed to write 4 articles each day except for Saturday and Sunday. I wrote nothing over the weekend, but that's okay. I am still on target. $240 of $1200 done. I can do this!

Days 1 & 2

I can do this. :) If I write 4 articles a day, and take weekends off, I will hit my goal. Even with the kids around I can do 4, and anything that I might write on weekends is just icing on the cake.

I wrote 4 yesterday, even with a brief drive to the river to cool off. I have 2 down so far today. I need to go fix a friend's computer and get some paperwork done today, but I still shouldn't have a problem finishing another 2 articles before the day is over.

Of course, hubby is still here to help out right now. Time will tell how well things will go after Wednesday when I will start flying solo!

Goal time!!

Tomorrow is the start of a brand new month, so it's time to start a new monthly goal! I love goals, even if I don't hit them they still serve to motivate me to try a little harder.

I am shooting low on this months goal because I am losing my help. One week from today, my husband is starting classes at the local college to obtain his CDL's. The class is only 7 weeks long, but after it's over he will hopefully be going to work! Since he has been out of work for almost a year now, I have really depended on him to keep the kids out of my hair and keep the house running somewhat smoothly while I work. Soon, it will be just me most of the week, and if he goes over the road once he graduates it will be just me most of the time.

I am going to be seriously outnumbered around here. :(

My monthly writing goal for this month is going to be $1200, mainly with Demand Studios although I am going to count income from any other clients in as well. I am going to be really limited in the time I can write and most of my work will have to be done at night and on the weekends.

I also want to add at least 10,000 words to my book this month, but that is a secondary goal. The writing that pays me right away is what is most important right now.

I would love some company on this months goal, so if you want to set your own goal as well, please do! I will be happy to share the journey with other writers through emails, instant messages or just right here on this blog, so leave me a comment and let's hit these goals!!

Complete Randomness

Things are going a bit better, I am recovering slower than I would like but I am getting stronger every day. However, I am quite unhappy about this annoying drain that the surgeon left in me. The rest of the pain is pretty bearable but the hole in my abdomen where the drain tube is just stings constantly. Its not serious pain, but it being so constant just drives me nuts! Oh well...hopefully Tuesday he will remove it.

I am really trying to get back into the swing of writing. I am getting a little more done each day but slow review times are really keeping me unmotivated. I don't have a choice but to keep going, this is the only income we have...but I sure do want to curl up somewhere with a good book and just not think about working for a few weeks.

Ok, that is all the whining I am going to do...it's not going to make anything better!

I have decided to start reviewing books on here once in awhile. I love to read so I think that telling others about a good read or warning them about a not so good one would be a great addition to this blog. I won't do this until next month though, somewhere in the middle of the month most likely.

I have also decided that I like branching out a little bit. I find it so hard to concentrate lately that I keep bouncing around on the Internet to various writing sites rather than focusing mainly on Demand Studios like I usually do. I have written a few articles this week for a new private client. The pay was lower than what I am used to, but the work was super simple and the pay was really quick for the first batch. Still waiting on payment for the second batch but I am confident that I will get it. It is the weekend so most people aren't working.

I also wrote an article for textbroker. I have been with them for quite awhile but never really put in an effort. Once again, the pay was lower but the article was easy as pie and was accepting in less than 30 minutes. Demand Studios is still my main squeeze but it is nice to have other places to turn to when I need something simple to do! Maybe it is time to pick up a few more private clients to fall back on when I get into a rut.

Goals are a good thing!

Setting this goal for April has already shown quite a few benefits, even after only 9 days. I can't wait to see what the rest of the month holds!

Both my writing partner and myself have noticed that we seem to have more time, even though we are producing more content. Because we are so focused on writing what we need each day to hit this goal, we are focused and get right to work. No more playing around on the Internet or doing things around the house until work is done. As a result, we actually have more hours in the day to do those other things.

The other day, the kids got a new movie from netflix. Normally, they would watch it while I sat at the desk and worked. This time, I was almost done with my daily goal so I was able to sit down and watch the entire movie with them. It was great to snuggle up on the couch with them and not feel like I was losing money because I chose to spend time with my munchkins!

It was stormy and icky here for most of the day yesterday. I spent most of the day battling with my Internet connection, and it won. I got two articles written yesterday and only one submitted. Before setting this goal, that would have made me feel like giving up from frustration. But because I have been pretty good about writing what needs to be written each day, it's not that big of a deal. I am back at work this morning, the sun is shining and I will be caught up in no time.

I will definitely be setting a goal next month as well! Did I mention that it is Spring break at my house? And yet I am still doing what needs to be done with a houseful of kids, because I am focused.

Here is my slightly behind ticker for the day.



Hopefully it will be a lot higher by tonight so that I can take a few hours off tomorrow and go watch trucks play in the mud...the boys in my life are dragging me to a mud bog. Some days I really wonder how a girl who grew up in the city fell in love with a country boy and ended up living in the woods, driving a pickup and going to mud bogs. Life is funny sometimes.

Todays Progress

Today I wrote 20 articles for Demand Studios, leaving me with only $1700 left to make for the month. At this rate I will be done in 6 days.....





You do know what the date is, right??
Sorry, I have not managed to fool anybody yet today, so I had to get someone. :)

In reality, thanks to glitches with Demand today, combined with sunshine flowing in the window and causing me to spend precious time gazing out, I have written 5. Of course the day isn't officially over for me yet, but I wanted to post on here before I was completely drained of energy. Whatever else I write tonight will be added in tomorrow. So here's my ticker:




Not all that impressive, but it's only day one. And I do intend to knock out a few more tonight, once I let the frustration wear off a little bit. I have no patience for tech glitches.

My first article was accepted at Examiner, and is actually doing quite well. I thought it might, because Savannah has a lot of dog enthusiasts, but it did better than I expected. Especially since I didn't think it was very good. I am my own worst critic though, so I try not to listen to myself. I would love opinions on it though, it is the Savannah American Amstaff Examiner. I want to interview some shelters as well as some owners of rescued Am Staffs sometime in the near future.

For now, I am off to write some more for Demand Studios. I still have a lot of money to make this month!

My April Goal

I mentioned in a previous post about setting a goal to make a certain amount of money in the month of April. I have been giving serious thought to what that goal should be. I want it to be something that I can accomplish without killing myself, but I also don't want it to be an easy goal. If I can do it without trying hard, its not really a challenge.

And I had to consider the fact that I will not have a lot of help around, and will have a 3 year old at home. Hubby has been really busy with his fire department lately, and may be going back to work soon. If he does, he will be working 12 hour days, so no help from that direction.

I have decided to set a goal to earn $2000 in the month of April, with just one company. That company is Demand Studios, and I have made that amount in one month with them before. But only a few times, and only when hubby was home and doing pretty much all the kid stuff and cooking. To do it next month, with everything else that is going on, will be difficult. But hopefully not impossible. And if I get to stressed out about it, I can always go walk in our woods....



I love our woods, just me and my faithful canine sidekick in blissful silence, surrounded by trees. It is heaven on earth. Sometimes I walk, and sometimes I just find a comfortable log and sit....pondering life, love or nothing at all. I want a little shack back there, with nothing but a comfy chair and a notebook. The things I could write in a little hideaway like that! Until I got my first visit from a snake, then I wouldn't like my hideout anymore. Country life does have its downfalls.

And, I would miss out on this....



My littlest munchkin is snoozing on my lap as I type this. Moments like this make motherhood worth every minute.