Do You Write About Things You Know Nothing About?
By jswindell10
@jswindell10 (417)
United States
May 27, 2011 12:27pm CST
Yesterday, I got a generic message from a content company that I was being dropped a notch. Like anyone, I don't like rejection but with age, I've learned to look at things from a broader angle.
I've been with them for nearly two years, producing content every month with only two revision requests (one was not completed because I felt integrity was being compromised) and my ranking had increased by two notches since joining.
In the message they stated that for me to regain my ranking would be to take on more assignments. Problem is that they haven't had much work in the past month and I did complete one assignment with no complaints or revision requests.
Then toward the end of the message, they encourage that "demoted" writers take on subjects they are not familiar with. HUH?
To give an example, they have clients with the following needs - heavy duty machinery/construction industry, AA/Black hair care, home insulation, couture fashion, commercial computer systems and many other topics that require specialized knowledge.
And unlike most companies where you may have up to five days to submit, the most this company gives is 48 hours -- and that's if you check the system often, sometimes topics have less than 12 hours to complete.
My point is that if you spend too much time researching a topic, you will miss out on producing content for a blog or other opportunity. This was a mistake I made when I first began writing and when someone called me out for not having enough knowledge, I said no more.
Have you ever been pressured to write on topics you have no knowledge of? Was a lot of money involved?
3 people like this
11 responses
@jeanneyvonne (5501)
• Philippines
30 May 11
Been doing that for what? Two years? Please don't contact me if you want me to write a finance-related article. They are my Waterloo but I still write them anyway since it will give me an income or two. And to add, I have experience writing the same thing over and over again. I love my job but sometimes it makes me pull my hair, bang my head and weep.
I joined a similar site (but not active since I have been doing a lot of projects from here and there) in case I have a need to do something with my hands. I'm not thrilled with their rates but beggars can't be choosers and if money comes in rains, I won't even consider writing a single word.
I think that these sites(and some clients) assumes that researching for a topic is as easy as a walk in the park. It isn't. And the fact that you have to produce an original content for a batch of articles so it won't be flagged with plagiarism within a specific time frame is just hard. Plain and simple.
I am not a financial expert but I am good at researching. I try to do the best that I could do. It will just be tough luck if I can't find enough content to fill the word count. My original contact pays me a slight higher rates than the content site, which I am grateful for since there is a leeway in time frame. But the content is sometimes the problem.
As writers, we are sometimes are jack of all trades - knowing how to write something that we don't know. But we are masters of our craft. Rue the day that somebody or a certain content site take that all away from me.
@jswindell10 (417)
• United States
16 Sep 11
Jeanneyvonne,
I really don't know to this day. There is some explanation on HubPages but I just know a lot pf places that paid either OK or not-so-good (TextBroker) are beginning to make things a little too tough for the pay.
@jeanneyvonne (5501)
• Philippines
31 May 11
Yes, but sometimes I feel in my gut that I'm not giving a good quality content. As a writer online, I know that content is what people looks for and paid for. I don't want to receive some money if I know thta I'm not giving quality.
I am quite aware of the controversy but I can't seem to get the whole picture. Do you mind telling me what's the controversy's all about? Thanks in advance.
@ruby222 (4847)
•
30 May 11
That is very interesting. Writing content is hard enough in the first instance. If you have to write content regarding a subject that you know nothing about then it makes life even harder. In the past I have written about subjects that I knew nothing of but that means that you have to research it. You research the subject and then you write using what you have learnt from surfing the internet. So this means that you have gleaned the knowledge and written it in your own words. Fine if you are being paid well but researching does take a lot of time.
@jswindell10 (417)
• United States
31 May 11
Ruby, I don't have a problem with research. It's just that there are only so many hours in the day and you don't want to spend more than four hours researching a particular subject just to make less than $10 or less per article.
Right now, I have two clients. One is not my fav due to unclear instructions and weird subjects but they are paying by the hour. The other is paying a flat fee to ghostwrite an e-book on a subject I am somewhat familiar with.
Realize that to get the real money writing online means having specialized knowledge or be willing to do research as generic articles about insurance will only pay so much.
@jswindell10 (417)
• United States
5 Jun 11
Here's another bit I just remembered.
eCopywriters began asking established writers (more than 10 articles completed) to submit freebies for potential clients or upcoming projects. These were generally short (under 100 words) and required research but anyone who blogs for profit or even uses Textbroker will get something in return. I did this once and have ignored the ten or so requests to do this. Guess that's the price for not "playing ball".
Oh well.
@peavey (16936)
• United States
27 May 11
I've never been pressured to, but I think it depends on the topic and the length of the piece needed. I've done short articles about things that took a half hour or so of research, but didn't have to go into much depth.
I think they're asking too much unless you're getting paid quite well.
@laydee (12798)
• Philippines
28 May 11
This is the main reason why most companies would go for content writers instead of researchers. They don't want to spend a lot of money for someone who would need at least a few days to research about stuff. Instead, they'd like people who could write (through experience) about the topics they need with a much lesser amount to spend.
I think one should not really write about topics that one doesn't know about. I mean, it's tough enough explaining in words the things that we know of, how much more those that we have no idea about?
I did do article writing for a few times, the pay wasn't that much and the topics were just too far out for me. I mean, I know it's tough to write, but talk about something that doesn't even exist in the area where I am at?! Yet alone finishing it with a limited number of hours with a number of words/pages at that?! Whew that was tough!
I am truly awed by people who do this for a long time. It seems their either really resourceful or just plainly lucky that they have experience those things.
Therefore, I say I do not write about the things I know nothing about neither do I respond to topics here that I have no idea about either.
Have a great MyLot experience!
@jswindell10 (417)
• United States
30 May 11
Agreed and this is probably the reason why some of the newer companies coming out are making prospective writers go through an extensive questionnaire just to make a few dollars per article that we may or may not own. Freelance writers should not be penalized for knowing our limitations.
@SpikeTheLobster (6403)
•
27 May 11
It sounds like the company you're working for has a badly-flawed system. Demoting writers who don't spew out content on demand, without thought? No thanks.
As for unfamiliar subjects, I've done a few in the past but always made sure I have a longer deadline and that the subject isn't too profound. In other words, I'll happily write about dog food or kids' beds (which are both easily researched) but not about particle acceleration physics or specific psychological treatments. If the client's not happy with that, too bad - no point in writing something rubbish and upsetting them even more.
May I ask what the job system/site is that you're using in this case?
@jswindell10 (417)
• United States
27 May 11
It's ecopywriters.com, which is funny because they have very few projects (press releases, sales letters, landing pages) that would be considered copywriting. In a sense, they are no different than most content companies.
Yeah, if they want to broaden the kind of writers they want to bring on, that's one thing but to encourage churning out something that has potential to be flawed at the tune of .02-.07/word is insane.
@EstiiBabii (685)
• United States
28 May 11
Yea, I've done that before and the site was paying 3.50 for the articles. I don't think that was a mistake because I got to learn new interesting things. I think that it's a good thing to research the things you don't know about and write an article about it because it presents some sort of challenge.
@jswindell10 (417)
• United States
30 May 11
I have no problem with research but if you there is something you never gave a thought because you don't have reason to and you choose to not produce content based, you should not be penalized. I've found some writers don't know the difference between curiosity and greed.
@jswindell10 (417)
• United States
27 May 11
Chances are if you don't remember the pay, it was less than $100 US. My point is that research takes time and energy and if all you're going to see is a couple of dollars, then why should a company penalize writers?
@meiliyeppuda (173)
• Philippines
27 May 11
I also experienced accepting a task which requires me to write something which I don't have much knowledge and experience so it ended up to be trouble. Though it pays a lot of money, I didn't finish the challenge because I couldn't produce words about the subject even if I researched a lot. I think it's better to write on your own or write something that you know because you can write spontaneously.
@jswindell10 (417)
• United States
27 May 11
Exactly, there is no rule that says we as humans cannot be multidimensional. However, if you are a fashion writer who also happens to write copy, is writing about machinery a good idea? Even if said writer is low on money, it's easier in the long run to not force industry speak and other terms.
@jpso138 (7851)
• Philippines
3 Nov 11
I have done some article writing but have not joined those that provides some writing assignments and with pressure. Its more of just fun for me and only during my free time. So of course the payment is not that serious. In your case, I feel the pressure. Its not that easy to do such most especially if you do not have the slightest background about the topic being asked. The research alone would take some time for you to come up a good, informative article.
@scheng1 (24650)
• Singapore
28 May 11
Hi Jswindell, I think this company just wants writers to write with enough keywords, and does not care about the content.
I think you can take it both ways.
You are taking it negatively at the moment, with the view that writing about something you do not understand is not worthwhile, since you would spend more time on research.
However, if you think about it positively, about how you can widen your knowledge, and earn money as well, that is a different picture.
I think most articles are just short articles, meaning about 400 words or less.
There is no need to spend too much time on research.
There is also no need to have specialized knowledge.
@jswindell10 (417)
• United States
30 May 11
Hi,
With all due respect, I have to disagree with you. Realize that keywords=money and if that were my weakness, I would have not made it to six months. When I say content, I mean the number of articles that have produced without flaws, which to this day has been near 60.
You sound like someone who writes for fun as copywriting entails having knowledge about a product - even if you never heard of it, say a week prior. This is why copy and technical writing jobs pay well. Though TextBrokers does not pay that great, writers will be given some time to write extensively or use a certain format so that everyone is happy.
Now, there is a difference between 'widen knowledge' and taking in way too much. Many of us writers use past jobs and interests to create various articles.
For example, a farmer from the Midwest will have many opportunities based on their industry alone. Add in personal interests that may be related to farming, even more so. However, if he visits a content site that continuously has articles for haute couture or technical positions related to the entertainment industry and he chooses to pass, he/she should not be penalized if they've made money for company for some time.
@Arkine (216)
• United States
27 May 11
Yes, I've been pressured to write on subjects that I have no knowledge of and no, it was not for a lot of money. I spent several hours researching topics and composing my articles. While some others of the group were churning out huge numbers of articles ... either they had the articles ready before hand (but I'm not sure how that would be possible) or they were simply tweaking articles that they found on line, or they are really, really good at writing articles really, really fast.
I stopped doing that article writing because the time I spent on that, verses the amount I got paid simply wasn't worth it. I determined that I'd be better off writing my own articles and submitting them elsewhere.
Not that they were bad people, mind you. It's just I couldn't do what they wanted, and I'd rather research subjects that I'm already interested in. Maybe that's why I'm not making the "big bucks" but I'm also not stressed out anymore.
Some people have no limits as to what they are willing to do, or put up with ... others of us have our limits.
My 2 cents. ;)
@jswindell10 (417)
• United States
27 May 11
Article spinning software has become popular in recent. In my copy and proof. class, they say that translators are not always effective and to not expect any software to do all the work, as human eyes still have to see before going to publish. I have a client right now that encouraged I use a spinner.
Occasionally, I put a spin on my old articles using onlu a thesaurus and maybe updates. It's not that I'm lazy but of all my hobbies and interests, there are some things I will pass on.
I remember when I started out back in 2006, this lady I met on craigslist was a lazy copywriter who outsourced her work for practically nothing. It was a nice workout but when I told her that I would pass on gaming devices...talk about hitting the e-roof. LOL
