If there is one thing that I learned from content sites, it
is that I never want to write for one again. That’s not to say that I will
never write another article, but it won’t be for places like Helium. Instead, I
have chosen to write my own blog. Here are the reasons why.
TOS (Terms of Service)- Unlike content mills, my terms of
service will never change for myself. I will not be required to give the rights
to my work for any amount of time to anyone else, EVER. Writers got dizzy on
the merry-go-round of changing TOS at Helium.
Standards- Standards, in Helium-speak, is how many words you
write and, well, that’s about it. Those were constantly changing as well and to
be honest, scraping out and extra 250 words because the standard changed is
just not what most writers are willing to do. Doing so usually means a lot of
extra work and it doesn’t pay a nickel more than you already made on it; that’s
to say, if you made any money on it to start with.
Special Algorithms- I don’t know what an algorithm is and I
don’t want to know. That’s what Helium and other sites often refer to when they
try to convince us that there is some special formula writers should use when
writing. The problem with that is, they want you to write something that does
not naturally fit but make it sound natural. Enough said. My idea of algorithm
is that I like to write on subjects that I enjoy writing about, just like most
other writers, and Google can find me or not. It’s whatever.
Topics- Helium spent so much time trying to figure out the
algorithms that they put out titles that didn’t make sense half the time. Other
times, the titles were so basic that writers had to wonder how dumb the reader
would have to be to actually read something so mundane. The thing is I don’t
like to write about how to open a checking account. In fact, that’s easy enough
to find out when you go to the bank. I like to write about other things that
hold interest for me. Somewhere out there, there is a geeky, weird person who
likes to read about old, abandoned buildings and stars of the seventies. It does
not make a ton of money, but they are fun to research and write. Topics like
child abuse aren’t bad either and I get to choose them when I want.
Editing Rights- The single worst problem for writers on
Helium was the fact that they were not allowed to edit their work. Don’t think
the article should be out there anymore? Too bad. Missed a comma? Too bad. If
you leap it, you might be able to get that edit in. With a blog, writers have
the power to edit or remove any article they feel no longer fits and they don’t
have to ask anyone’s permission to do it.
Writing is meant to be done with your tongue sticking out with anticipation
It’s all about control over our own work. It may be harder
to get cash rolling in when a blog is used instead of a writing site, but I
believe the effort could be well worth it. Another thing I learned from writing
sites is that it takes time to build up viewership. When the viewership rises,
so do the earnings and that is something that can last a very long time. It might
even take thousands of blogs before any real money begins to come in. I don’t
know yet because the journey has just started with me. I’m not going to give up
just yet though. I remember seeing a few pennies in my Helium account and
getting excited when I did it as a hobby. Those pennies eventually turned into
dollars and the truth is, I never got rich, but it did provide an extra boost
to my income. The difference between then and now is that I have complete
control over it and for writers, that is the best and only thing that matters.
I see slow growth right now and that means that it is working.
