At times, your editor has been found face-down on keyboard, eyes glazed, the sudden faint causing yyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnn to appear on the monitor. Was it the result of a seizure? No. A drug overdose? No again. Sudden attack with a baseball bat? No, no, no. So what was the culprit?

Hurried submissions. That’s right–hurried submissions are enough to put the editor in a state of literary shock.

* * *

When I edit hurried submissions, I sometimes feel like Jennifer Connelly in The Labyrinth. Confused and frightened, and often downright exasperated, I wander through a surreal maze with only strange, half-helpful characters to guide me. Hogwart speaks absolute nonsense, the worm in the wall uses run-on sentences only, and David Bowie, in skin-tight pants and makeup, rallies his Grammar Goblins around as they toss language rules to each other without care for their delicacy or value. Oh, yes . . . the Bog of Eternal Stench still stinks – it will just stain you and me both forever with the inability to use prepositions correctly.

And believe me, I can smell a hurried submission a mile away. The marks of a hurried submission are many, but unappealing sentence structure, dubious word choice, incorrect punctuation, shaky organization, and improper grammar play large roles in the fate of the hurried submission.

While it is true that Constant Content can be competitive because Private Requests are often met quickly by authors, this doesn’t mean that writing more quickly will get you more sales because you “beat out the competition.” On the contrary, writing submissions quickly without checking them carefully for mistakes can put you at a disadvantage. Not only are you at risk for rejection, which means that you end up waiting longer for review and approval, but the customer may hold out for better organized, more creative, and better-quality writing.

Careful, quality work that sets itself apart from the rest because it takes an original approach, is well-researched, and presents information clearly will always win out over the competition in the long run. If you haven’t noticed, the customers at Constant Content are becoming ever more discerning, which means that your real competition comes in the form of writers who take their time and use their skills to their utmost ability.

* * *

Don’t put your editor in a state of shock with your hurried submissions. Take your time. Breathe, research, rework, and reword. Look up words, rules, or facts that you are unsure about. Take a different approach to the article that a dozen other authors are writing.

And please, if you get a rejection, this is your second chance to do what you should have done in the first place–go over your article with a fine-toothed writer’s comb and eliminated any snags. Giving your article another 10 seconds of consideration will onlyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnn.

Implement strategies to help you succeed as an author at Constant Content.

Write Regularly: Authors who write regularly for Constant Content will, by default, expose their work to customers more frequently. Whether your goal is three articles per day, three articles per week, or three articles per month, submitting content on a regular basis will increase your chances of selling your work.

Write Both for Requests and for General Purchase: Many authors at Constant Content find that they can make a reliable income by writing for Constant Content. This means both writing for requests when they are available and submitting content that has not been written for specific customer requests. Requested content may be purchased more readily, but you never know when a buyer who needs articles about Madagascar is going to snap up those 7 articles you submitted 2 months ago after your trip to said location.

Write Articles Loaded with Useful Information: Articles that are amalgamations of redundancy, abstract ideas, or obvious statements should not be submitted to Constant Content. Buyers want articles that are interesting for their readers, so their readers will be encouraged to stay onsite longer and return more frequently. Articles that don’t stimulate the reader, that are too esoteric, or that just repeat the same concept over and over will not do what buyers need them to do.

Learn from Other Authors: New writers to Constant Content too often jump in without looking. Browsing other authors’ works for clues about how to correctly submit work, information about what kinds of articles that have already been written, or ideas for new articles that have not yet been written can put you ahead of the game. Carefully taking note of the writing environment at Constant Content will allow you to more easily synchronize your submissions with common expectations.

Develop Interesting Introductory “Hooks”: Introductory statements and paragraphs should make the reader want to know more. Blah introductions like, “There are many reasons you should consider a Jack Russell Terrier for your next pet,” will put a reader to sleep before they’ve even finished the sentence. Think about your subject and what’s exciting about it, and then put that to work for you. “Have you ever wanted a dog that is both energetic and easy to train? If so, you may find just what you’re looking for in a Jack Russell Terrier.” (I have no idea if this is true, and a couple of minutes of research could tell me if it’s true. It’s despicable that I’m being too lazy to look it up, isn’t it? Another tip: Don’t be lazy.)

Want to succeed at Constant Content? Of course you do, or you wouldn’t be here! The following are five of the many ways you can help yourself succeed as a writing member of Constant Content.

Submit Your Best Work: When you submit your best work to Constant Content, you let editors and buyers know that you are a serious writer interested in providing quality content. This means that regular sales, few rejections, and a good reputation can be in your future. With that said, it is also important to note that the kinds of content that you submit to Constant Content will be different from what you may submit to some print publications.

Proofread: Proofread. And proofread again. One more time now. Careless errors, awkward wording, disorganization, grammar and punctuation mistakes . . . these not only mean getting rejection notices in your inbox, but may mean that customers will pass you by when they search for articles. There is no excuse for preventable mistakes like typos, misplaced punctuation, or clarity issues. Spending 4 hours on one article that is well-written is worth 2 articles that took two hours apiece to write. So maybe you spend 15 minutes researching an interesting point or looking up a word–these add value to your article and boost your image as a professional.

Learn From Mistakes: If you’ve made an error and receive a rejection notice, take it as a lesson learned. Every one of us can make improvements to our writing. Maybe you’ve been using a semicolon incorrectly for years . . . and maybe, without you knowing it, it cost you article acceptance from publications in the past (and therefore sales). If you correct this error in your writing once and for all, you will increase your likelihood of making sales. The professional writer will admit when a mistake has been made and seek to correct it. Writing well is the ultimate goal if you write at all. If you aren’t writing as well as your favorite published author, you still have improvements to make. And just think–that person is probably striving to improve his or her own writing, so the upward trajectory is endless.

Price Content Fairly: Don’t undersell yourself, but don’t try to ask an unfair price for an article, either. Slapping a $5,000 price tag on a 500 word article is laughable in most of the writing world. However, asking $5 for a 5,000 word article may indicate to buyers that you don’t value your work and that you’re willing to slave away writing content for pennies.

Visit Forums and Blog: Writing may take up most of your time, which is great! However, sometimes writers need to come up for air. Visiting the forums can allow you to interact with other writers who work just as hard as you do. Reading the information contained in the blog can answer questions you might have had (but never thought to ask) and alert you to changes that are happening on site.

A couple of days ago, I posted a blog entry about SEO, or search engine optimization. Many content writers will force keyword phrases into their articles, sometimes to the detriment of the article itself. However, if you write clear, quality articles with narrow focus, SEO happens more or less naturally.

Imagine you’re writing an article about chaise lounges. A clear introductory paragraph that focuses narrowly on the subject might sound like this:

Okay (clear about subject matter without being redundant):

Have you ever thought of introducing an uncommon, yet stylish, piece of furniture into your living room? Consider a chaise lounge. A chaise lounge can add panache and a touch of the unexpected to your space and suggest luxury and sophistication. Meant for a single person, a chaise lounge acts as a counterpoint to group seating. Chaise lounges are perfect replacements for worn-out recliners, can be used as honored guest seating, or can provide a special place for you to relax with your favorite book.

Not Okay (not clear, too many pronouns, inconsistent with pronoun usage):

Have you ever thought of introducing an uncommon, yet stylish, piece of furniture into your living room? Consider a chaise lounge. It can add panache and a touch of the unexpected to your space and suggest luxury and sophistication. Meant for a single person, it acts as a counterpoint to group seating. They are perfect replacements for worn-out recliners, can be used as honored guest seating, or can provide a special place for you to relax with your favorite book.

Not Okay (redundant, irritating, spammy, and unprofessional):

Have you ever thought of introducing an uncommon, yet stylish, piece of furniture into your living room? Consider a chaise lounge. Chaise lounges can add panache and a touch of the unexpected to your space. Chaise lounges suggest luxury and sophistication. Meant for a single person, a chaise lounge acts as a counterpoint to group seating. Chaise lounges are perfect replacements for worn-out recliners. Chaise lounges can also be used as honored guest seating. A chaise lounge can provide a special place for you to relax with your favorite book, too.

The best paragraph sounds natural, does not leave the reader wondering what pronouns refer to what nouns, and yet still includes enough uses of the keyword phrase to indicate to search engines that it is relevant. The second paragraph only mentions the topic once. The third paragraph mentions it way too many times for it to be useful to either readers or search engines.

And that is why you should concentrate more on writing good articles that writing articles that are SEO’d for phrases that may or may not be what the customer needs.

Sometimes, a customer will request articles in which the author has used SEO. SEO stands for “search engine optimization.” SEO is an important aspect of drawing readers to websites, because it means that website content has been written in such a way that it becomes attractive to search engines. Search engines are the number one way by which readers arrive on a website, so having content that ranks well with search engines is essential for websites that count on traffic for revenue.

But how do search engines rank websites or web pages? Search engines use algorithms to calculate how relevant a page is by the content and other information it contains. Websites may also be considered more “valuable” to search engines if they are well-established (i.e., older) or have a lot of links pointing to them from other sources. However, this is the website owner’s problem, not the author writing content for that website.

One way in which a page can be made to seem more relevant to a search engine is by using keywords or keyword phrases. These are words or phrases that a person would input into a search engine’s search field to produce a list of results. For example, let’s say Maybelline has discovered a lump on her nose, and she wants to figure out what it is. She types into the search engine of her choice, “lump on nose.”

The search engine brings up a list of pages that include the words “lump” and “nose.” If Maybelline has included quotations marks around her search, the search engine might also list results for that particular phrase.

Now, if you were writing an article about lumps on noses, you would want to include variations of the phrase “lumps on nose.” Search engines will usually ignore some words for the sake of relevance ,and these days they are smart enough to return results that use both singular and plural versions of the search phrase, so “lumps on your nose,” “lump on my nose,” “lumps on noses,” would all be okay phrases to use in an article that has been search-engine-optimized for this topic.

Articles on this topic might include:

• Causes of Lumps on Noses
• What To Do About Lumps on Noses
• What If I Have a Lump on My Nose?
• Types of Lumps on Noses: Pimples, Blisters, Spider Eggs, Bug Bites, Alien Babies, Broken Noses, Too Much Alcohol, Poison Ivy, Moles

The article should contain enough uses of this phrase to allow the search engine to notice that it is relevant and useful, but not so many that the search engine identifies the article as spam. Search engine algorithms change all of the time, and search engines are starting to develop a sense for more natural-sounding writing that is not written specifically to increase search engine rank, so the number of times a certain phrase should be used varies. Website owners usually know what percentage of keyword density they prefer, and if they post a request for SEO articles, they may specify.

Does this mean you should be producing SEO content? Not really. Customers are all looking to optimize for different phrases, and they can do this to articles themselves if they purchase the articles for full rights or request content optimized for specific phrases. However, it is good practice to include particular phrases that are relevant to the topic for both SEO and clarity purposes. For example, if you’re writing an article about “pink pillows,” it’s better to use the phrase “pink pillows” in sentences rather than continually using a pronoun like “they” to refer back to “pink pillows.”

Once in awhile, I’ll get an article submission that reads as though the author has been using what I like to call The MySpace Elements of Style. Maybe it includes “emoticons” (smileys), multiple exclamation marks after individual sentences, or the cringe-worthy abbreviation “LOL.” My ultimate peeve is using “u” for the pronoun “you.” Really, are you texting in your submission? I don’t think so.

Remember that, just because you see it on a cat macro (see left), use it in a forum discussion, get it sent to you in a text message, or use it in a casual email to friends, that does not mean that it is equally acceptable in a submission.

If you use the kind of language popularized by the above, I will have to see you in my office. I are serious editor.

When writing the short summary or including keywords in your photo submission form, think about the types of information that would be useful to a potential customer. In addition, refrain from including information that doesn’t add anything to the usefulness of the photo.

Include:

• The geographic location in which the photo was taken (Colorado, Moscow, Near the Eiffel Tower)
• A description to help the viewer make sense of what he or she sees (antique buttons, homemade lasagna, geese flying south)
• Any particulars that will make the photo more useful – species name, cocktail type, dog breed (Scottish Thistle, Martini, Cairn Terrier)

Do Not Include:

• Irrelevant information (When I took this photo, I was so happy.)
• Information that isn’t particular enough (I found this flower in my back yard.)
• Information that states the obvious, without going further. (This is a photo of a dog.)

Think about what kind of information will encourage the user to know they are choosing the right image for their website, article, advertisement, or other publication. Let’s use the owner of a gardening site for example. This person has an article on wildflowers of Ohio, and he would like to spruce it up with some relevant, meaningful, and illustrative photos.

His choices are:

1. A photo of a wild orchid, that may or may not be a Lady’s Slipper, a rare wildflower that grows in Southern Ohio – the photographer doesn’t give the type of flower or the region where this photo was taken.
2. A photo of a white flower, growing in a shady area that the photographer specifically states is a Trillium that was photographed in John Bryant State Park in Ohio.

The website owner who desires to present accurate information that will respect his readers’ desire for accurate information will choose the second photo. The photographer has confirmed that this image is right for an article about Ohio wildflowers.

Remember, just as you write very narrowly focused articles for Constant Content, so are webmasters providing narrowly focused articles for their readers. Therefore, they need photographs that are specific. When the image doesn’t speak for itself, the photographer must fill in the details.

Your article may have been rejected because you included a web address or link. Please do not do this. Why? The question can be answered very easily if you look at the article through the purchaser’s eyes.

A website owner wants readers to come to their website and stay on it. If you include a link off-site, the reader may click on it and be sent away from the website on which the purchaser of the article wants them to remain. The buyer of an article wants the reader to click on links within his or her own website. This means that readers linger longer, giving them greater opportunity to click on relevant ads or purchase merchandise. Any time a reader does this, the website owner makes money.

Any time a reader clicks away, the website owner doesn’t make any money. Buyers want articles that make them money! Don’t include website addresses or links!

If you must, remove the “http://www” in front of the address, even if you use websites for references.

The English language is an organic system. Words take on new meanings and usages almost daily, especially with the Internet acting as a tool for global communication. However, that doesn’t mean that words can take on whatever meaning we want them to. Words must be used in ways that are understandable to a broad group of people and convey meaning accurately.

Because of the English language’s indefatigable vocabulary, accurately conveying meaning can be an art. Synonyms are not necessarily interchangeable, as many words with similar interpretations are imbued with subtlety of meaning. Using the right word out of a set of synonyms can can put you head and shoulders above other writers who are haphazardly choosing words that seem to fit. Or worse, some writers try to make words take on meanings they were never meant to, simply because they think they can.

For example, take the verb “to decrease.” M-W.com defines this verb as “to grow progressively less.” Synonyms of this word are given, but their subtle differences described. “Lessen suggests a decline in amount rather than number.” “Reduce implies a bringing down or lowering.” “Dwindle implies progressive lessening and is applied to things growing visibly smaller.”

For example:

• Marianne lessened the size of her debt. (She lessened an amount rather than number. Marianne didn’t lessen her bank balance, which is described as a number.)
• Marianne reduced the size of her debt. (Her debt did not reduce, unless it reduced her ability to spend.)
• Marianne’s bank balance dwindled when she paid off her loans. (Marianne’s bank account didn’t dwindle–this wouldn’t make sense; the account is where the money is held. And Marianne’s money didn’t dwindle because money doesn’t get visibly smaller.)

If you try to use these words completely interchangeably without acknowledging their subtle differences, you can hurt your writing. Sentences will sound awkward and may be unclear. Give your reader credit for being sensitive to the language that they speak, read, and write. You don’t want anything to distract the reader from you article, and using the wrong word certainly can. Remember–wanting a word to mean something that it doesn’t won’t make it so. Language is a system where the individual has very little autonomy, and it grows and adjusts to the collective users.

If your article has been rejected for “accuracy of expression,” you may not understand what this means at first. Let me try to explain.

Accuracy of expression is how correctly you’ve used the language to describe your thought or idea. When your article needs revised for accuracy of expression, it’s possible that you have used words incorrectly or used the wrong words to convey your meaning.

For example, a couple of days ago I went to a seminar about anger. The speaker had a Ph.D. and was also the director of a college department. When he began describing children who have been beaten, he said, “You see these children, and they have whips on their arms.” (The point I wanted to make about this person having had obtained a Ph.D. – it means nothing when it comes to language usage, really . . . and maybe unfortunately.)

Whips on their arms? Really? Not whip marks, lash marks, welts, lesions, switch marks, or red marks?

Now, for those of you fellow pedants, M-W.com does include “a stroke or cut with or as if with a whip” in its definition of the word “whip” as a noun. But this is the stroke itself, not the resulting injury.

Maybe it’s just me, but a child with “whips on their arms” conjures up vision of the newest Heroes-like character (a pretty lame character who wouldn’t last an episode–swords or poison daggers would be much cooler).

There are endless examples I could cite. I’ve blogged before about “regime” vs. “regimen” and “comprise” vs. “compose.” One person I was talking to about this subject recounted a story in which he was told to “back up” while driving a U-Haul. The speaker meant “go forward.”

The speaker did not use accuracy of expression. In fact, the speaker didn’t use good communication at all. And really, there is a very fine line between inaccurately expressing an idea and just plain bad communication. And writing is all about communicating, and communicating well. So we should all strive to improve our accuracy of expression. The differences between a boy having welts on his arms and whips on his arms, or the difference between backing up or going forward are great. Say what you mean . . . and in any case when you aren’t sure, look it up!