Now I write for Demand Studios. I can typically make around $800 or so on that site per month if I keep pushing out the articles. Given the hours I put in to create quality work, it isn’t exactly a high wage. But I enjoy what I do and I can work from the comfort of my home. It’s priceless not having to stick my poor kids in day care.

In effect, editor’s will now be able to supply an already dumbed down American reading public with pure dreck cranked out by English-speaking foreigners who (likely) have no direct experience with the subject matter as it may relate to current/local events, geography, climate, regional jargon and idiosyncrasies, etc.

This should go over big during the writer’s strike. If Leno’s monologue suddenly fills with cattle and curry jokes, you’ll know where he bought them.

I don’t believe writers are the new slaves, but I do believe that there are a great deal of people who now want to make their living from writing and who don’t think they need experience, qualifications, or real skills. Those are the people who take the $2 SEO jobs, and low paid blogging jobs.

The reality is that you can easily set up a website of your own, place ad units on it, and make your own income stream. I don’t even look to write for other people anymore because writing for myself is infinitely more lucrative and provides an ongoing income stream.

I now see blogging jobs as being suckers of my potential earnings, for a measly couple of dollars I hand over my work, my ideas, to someone else who makes many times what they paid for them. It makes no sense to do that.

We’re still learning and it’s tricky. Now that we have experience, and the credibility that goes along with it, we’re getting closer to the ideal rate for us.

I recently completed my first assignment for Demand Studios, and it was the easiest writing experience ever. Once you read the instructions carefully and understand them (which isn’t that difficult, by the way, particularly if you’re already experienced with writing for the Web), completing the so-called eHow “articles” is actually a breeze. The more you know about the topics you checked off on the application, the easier it becomes.

The posts at eHow.com amount to little more than lists of five or so steps, with a brief introduction and an optional brief closing. I come up with topics while I’m watching TV, grocery shopping, riding the bus, using the bathroom, eating, etcetera. Then, I spit out the main text, fattening short steps with relevant clarifications.

I completed the ten “articles” in my audition assignment in less than one day. Yes, the uploading process is a pain because of all the different boxes you have to cut and paste into. But, even that goes faster once you get into the swing of it.

The pay was definitely worth the time spent–there’s no complaints at all from this writer. Now that I’m past the first hurdle, I can also write about whatever I want, within the guidelines, of course. Sounds good to me.

Danielle, about Helium. I did a rant about this recently at one of my blogs. See Bursting the Helium Bubble – This Freelance Writer’s Review of Helium.com.