by Karon Brandt

Created on: April 18, 2009   Last Updated: February 05, 2010

All articles become stale with time; even reference books need to be updated once in a while. Newer material will leave your out-dated article anchored in the bottom of the Helium pond.

It's time for a leapfrog! Looking at your article with fresh eyes, you might notice some simple typos or grammatical errors. Perhaps some new information has come to light that makes your work outdated or irrelevant. You might notice a misspelled reference. Maybe you could use subheadings or numbers to make your points clearer.

You chose to write to the title because you felt you had something to add to the topic. Did you check out your "competition" to see what earned the top positions?

Some wit observed that there are very few new topics in the world; most are just recycled information about existing topics. The top ranks are awarded to those who can present "old" information in the clearest, most engaging way.

Readers search for topics of interest to them. (Raters are given selections from among the channels which they have written to, so they should have some knowledge of the topic.) Make sure your article is search-engine-optimized by using keywords in the first sentence or paragraph.

Helium is the place "where knowledge rules" because it's creating a web library of fact-based articles for a world-wide readership. Although Helium provides space for fiction, creative writings, politics, debates, memoirs, poetry and recipes, its reputation is maturing as a reference-worthy article directory.

Fact-based articles earn Upfront pay (for the first five submitted) and the larger portion of revenue shares so those are the articles you want to keep in the top quarter of the ratings. That's what earns you blue stars; that's where you want to prioritize your leapfrog time.

Content is of prime importance and presenting that content engagingly is the writer's challenge. A quality magazine bases its reputation on its content, its factual integrity, and its trustworthiness.

Reliable, oft-quoted magazines are fact-checked for accuracy and are vigilantly edited. Quality magazines are printed in standardized, pleasing formats. Helium aims to be the best and largest "virtual magazine" - with articles that can be updated as needed - which are constantly reviewed (edited/critiqued) by a self-monitoring community and staff.

Helium is like the "Reader's Digest" of the Internet; it wants well-written articles on topics of importance to a general population. All articles should be on-topic and condensed

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