“When one door closes, another opens” so they say. What
happens when two doors close completely and a third one is almost there? I
guess that three doors are waiting to be opened, or possibly windows. First the
announcement that Helium would be closing in December. That was a huge thing
for me because, in my viewpoint, they were the place that I started writing
online articles and the place that I felt most at home when it was a start-up.
It was also that place that eventually proved to me that business was sometimes
shady business in that writing world. I wasn’t sorry to see it go.
Next up was an announcement that Yahoo Voices, which started
as Associated Content, would be closing their doors at the end of July. I’m so
glad they decided to do it swiftly rather than making us wait for months and
months before closing and so very happy that writers do not have to reach a “threshold”
in order to get the earnings that they made through their writing. Unlike the
Helium closing, this one doesn’t leave me with a bitter taste in my mouth. It
was fun to write for in the early days but, it had run its course.
Most of the writers who started out on content sites appear
to echo the same opinions. The sites, though good in their time, were no longer
the route that they wanted to take anyway. Many have moved on to writing novels
full-time or are looking for work outside of the home (or have already found
it). Unfortunately, it’s not always as easy to find a job after taking off to
write for over seven years.
Yahoo also once ran the Geocities Websites where people
could make their own webpages just for fun. It was indeed fun and each person
in my family had their own Geocities site. Yahoo closed that down without very
much warning and most everyone lost their pages. I’m glad to see they have
learned a lesson from that and are allowing everyone to download what they have
on Voices. It’s been a fun run and though I probably should, I do not regret
giving it a go and writing for the sites. It was one of the best learning
experiences of my life and I met so many great friends and writers because of
it. I was also given the opportunity to complete and have published my first
novel, Danny’s Grace. That was somewhat of a coup for me.
Though I know very little about a very lot, I know one thing
for sure. My life and what happens next is in God’s hands and that’s something
to be very happy about. With content mills, menopause, and men in my rearview
mirror, I’m not looking back. ONWARD AND UPWARD!
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