Starting new

It makes no real difference to earnings whether you start discussions or only respond to and comment on other people's discussions. The most important thing is the QUALITY of your participation. If you start a discussion, you have to ensure that it is of sufficient quality that you are able to maintain it by posting good quality comments (replies) to the people who respond to it. You don't earn ANYTHING at all when people respond to your discussions ... YOU only earn for what YOU type! Having friends can make a big difference if you choose friends who have similar interests to you and who are prepared to be active. First, they are likely to start discussions in which you will be interested and able to make good quality responses to and, second, your discussions are likely to be of interest to them and, hopefully, they will respond to your discussions. That is why you should build up your friends list slowly by inviting people who seem to you to be interested in the same things as you and who always post good quality responses and comments in the discussions they are involved in. By having friends who are active and interesting, you will also be encouraged to be active and interesting. Be sure that you have read and understood the Guidelines. If you do not understand and follow them, you are likely to have many discussions and responses deleted. Moderation is good here! You will not earn anything at all for posts which are deleted, so understanding what is likely to be deleted is vital both when you post a discussion AND when you respond to discussions.