Search found 152 matches

by SJHillman
Fri Nov 08, 2013 8:00 am
Forum: Questions and Answers
Topic: Top 10 type articles
Replies: 3
Views: 3897

Re: Top 10 type articles

I've always preferred to avoid subheaders on shorter articles. For list-based articles, I'll usually just put it in paragraph form like an essay and craft the first sentence of each paragraph to really emphasize what other writers would put as the subhead. This format works best in shorter articles ...
by SJHillman
Fri Nov 08, 2013 7:55 am
Forum: Author Exchange
Topic: One 600-word article or two 300-word articles?
Replies: 1
Views: 4359

Re: One 600-word article or two 300-word articles?

In general, two shorter articles will make more money than one longer article of the same quality and sales appeal. It also has the added advantage of being able to sell one article while waiting for the other to sell. However, the roughly 500-700 wordcount range sells best; so if you split an 800 w...
by SJHillman
Thu Oct 10, 2013 10:47 am
Forum: Questions and Answers
Topic: Writing out measurements
Replies: 2
Views: 4075

Re: Writing out measurements

The most important thing to remember is consistency. If you abbreviate one unit, you should abbreviate all of them. Use "ft" and "in" or "feet" and "inches", but don't use "ft" with "inches". Avoid using the symbols (' and ") in this c...
by SJHillman
Thu Oct 10, 2013 10:37 am
Forum: Questions and Answers
Topic: What book do you recommend for better writing?
Replies: 10
Views: 15451

Re: What book do you recommend for better writing?

I recommend reading Stephen King's "On Writing: A Memoir of the Craft". It offers a mixture of insights into his history with writing as well as some style recommendations and suggestions for your self-editing process. It's aimed more at novel/novella/short story writers, but much of it is...
by SJHillman
Tue Jul 09, 2013 7:32 am
Forum: Author Exchange
Topic: Complaint from Private Client
Replies: 4
Views: 6865

Re: Complaint from Private Client

The issue could lie with either you or them. If it's you, it could just be you weren't on top of your game. It happens to everyone. Or your writing style may have been subtly influenced by a novel you've recently read. If it's them, they could just be in a bad mood or feeling particularly picky or t...
by SJHillman
Tue Jul 09, 2013 7:27 am
Forum: Questions and Answers
Topic: I am new, and confused.
Replies: 3
Views: 3483

Re: I am new, and confused.

You can write articles on almost any topic. Exceptions are mostly obscene topics, or articles with a heavy bias (especially for subjective matters). I suggest beginning with topics that you know about, to keep research at a minimum, such as hobbies. If you enjoy knitting, write an article about what...
by SJHillman
Thu Jul 04, 2013 1:01 pm
Forum: Questions About Rejections
Topic: My error. CC right to banish my account
Replies: 5
Views: 6110

Re: Extremely disappointed in Constant Content

Could you give details on how CC is tarnishing your reputation?
by SJHillman
Fri Jun 14, 2013 8:21 pm
Forum: Author Exchange
Topic: Write-offs for freelance articles?
Replies: 4
Views: 7242

Re: Write-offs for freelance articles?

Just to add to what SMichael said, you have to be earning enough of an income that it counts as a business and not a profit (or loss)-generating hobby. There's a few basic rules that I don't remember, but I wouldn't bother with trying to sort it all out unless freelancing is at least 10 or 20% of yo...
by SJHillman
Fri Jun 14, 2013 3:24 am
Forum: Common Place
Topic: Is the content business in trouble?
Replies: 4
Views: 35147

Re: Is the content business in trouble?

Article sales tend to be cyclic, so only looking over the last two or three months isn't enough to establish a permanent trend. From what I recall last year, March through May sold much better than June through August, then things ramped up again as we got closer to Thanksgiving and Christmas. It dr...
by SJHillman
Thu Jun 13, 2013 6:27 pm
Forum: Questions About Rejections
Topic: Should I ban the editor?
Replies: 2
Views: 4145

Re: Should I ban the editor?

Errors do get through now and then, as the editors are only human and reading article after article can take its toll. I wouldn't hold it against the editors unless you've never made a slip or oversight.
by SJHillman
Wed Jun 12, 2013 7:53 am
Forum: Questions and Answers
Topic: Consequences of Removing Article
Replies: 4
Views: 3934

Re: Consequences of Removing Article

There are no consequences for removing an article that I know of, but consider that you can list the article on other sites as long as you respect licensing. If an article sells for usage on one site, you can continue selling it for usage on another site (but not unique or full rights). Likewise, if...
by SJHillman
Sat Jun 08, 2013 4:01 am
Forum: Questions and Answers
Topic: Stupid question
Replies: 3
Views: 3856

Re: Stupid question

.Txt is, by it's nature, completely unformatted so none of the formatting is saved. If you wanted to retain any formatting, you would also have to save it as a separate .rtf or .doc/.docx file. EXAMPLE: If I wrote this in Word: " This is a sentence that I may have written in Word . It contains ...
by SJHillman
Fri Jun 07, 2013 3:54 pm
Forum: Questions and Answers
Topic: Stupid question
Replies: 3
Views: 3856

Re: Stupid question

.txt is just plaintext, and is supported by every possible word processor (including Notepad). Word can save as a .txt, but remember that it will strip out absolutely everything that's not a character, space, tab or return. If you save it from Word, make sure you open it up in Notepad (or equivalent...
by SJHillman
Fri Jun 07, 2013 9:22 am
Forum: Questions About Rejections
Topic: Ands and Buts, also British spelling.
Replies: 10
Views: 11343

Re: Ands and Buts, also British spelling.

I use "however" fairly often (but never "nevertheless"). "But" is a good alternative in many contexts that can save you two syllables, so I think it's best to choose whichever one suits the flow of your article better. Unfortunately, English teachers the world around ha...
by SJHillman
Thu Jun 06, 2013 4:38 pm
Forum: Common Place
Topic: I'm Scared..Is this site worth it?
Replies: 9
Views: 48436

Re: I'm Scared..Is this site worth it?

As far as the fear factor goes, remember that the forums are mostly for support and people tend to be much more vocal with negative experiences than positive experiences. The net result is that you will get a much more negative picture from the forums than actually exists. I'm not saying the editors...