by Doreen Martel

Created on: August 11, 2010   Last Updated: December 17, 2011

With the number of online content websites available online, freelance writers might be wondering how to earn a living writing for online content sites. The answer to this is actually not as difficult as you might think. You must be determined to succeed, you must select your sites wisely and you must create and stick to goals. There are some steps that you should take to find the right online content sites to submit your work.

Finding sites

There are a variety of online writing sites that offer freelance writers the opportunity to earn a living writing for content sites. Each freelance writer must identify the sites that work best for them and make the most of them. Here are just a few of the available online writing sites that freelance writers can use to earn a living:

Helium is good for those who wish to explore the assignment system. Earnings are awarded based on the best written article in the topic and may pay between one and three dollars per article. In addition, writers who maintain rating stars are able to earn ongoing revenue share. Content Source publishers often post articles for writers who are interesting in bidding on higher paying articles. Contests and other promotions can also add to earnings.

Crowd Cloud is a micro-task site that offers writers the ability to be paid per task for writing, editing and translation.  Additional sites include Examiner, Skyword and Textbroker, all which offer writers the ability to earn money in various ways. Examiner writers are assigned a single topic where they have high knowledge. While they do not pay upfront premiums, ongoing revenue share can offset the time that is spent crafting articles. Textbroker and Skyword are assignment based systems. Skyword has specific categories which writers must be approved for and pays a combination of upfronts and revenue share.

Setting goals

Writing high quality articles takes time. When setting goals this means that you must be realistic. Freelance writers can easily burn out if they set unrealistic expectations. Set your goals with a firm grip on reality so that you do not burn yourself out.  While a good quality article may take less than an hour to write, this does not always mean that it will be accepted (especially on editor dependent sites) and re-writes might be necessary.  Keep your goals high enough to be realistic but low enough so that you are not burning yourself out.

One of the best things about writing for online content sites is that you are not specifically answering to a client. You are answering only to yourself and perhaps an editor. Freelance writers have several opportunities to earn a living writing for online content sites if they understand their own limitations, set appropriate goals and submit high quality work.

Learn more about this author, Doreen Martel.
Click here to send this author comments or questions.