2 Writers Needed for Business Journal
Requirements:
- Seven 500 word, well-researched articles per month (accuracy and fact checking important)
- One 2500 - 3000 word resource article per month
- Pay $450/month (rate of $30/500 words)
- Preference will be given to the writer who has has relevant higher-education experience in business
- Writing samples and resume required
2 Writers Needed for Health Journal
Requirements:
- Seven 500 word, well-researched articles per month (accuracy and fact checking important)
- One 2500 - 3000 word resource article per month
- Pay $450/month (rate of $30/500 words)
- Preference will be given to the writer who has has relevant higher-education experience in health
- Writing samples and resume required
Send writing samples and resumes to ryan@college-startup.com
January 21st, 2008 at 12:30 am
Thirty bucks for well-checked 500-word stories? Below market.
January 21st, 2008 at 12:35 am
I disagree Star. For the web it’s pretty generous. $450 per month for 7 articles a month is practically unheard of in the web content age.
I worry that if we start nit-picking every job posted here people will stop posting their ads. Deb’s posted some lucrative gigs here lately so let’s not scare them away with negativity.
January 21st, 2008 at 12:42 am
I agree with Kate M. A week or two ago there was a whole discussion about the travisty of $2 and $3 article jobs, wahm’s job boards, and all of that. Remember the post about the ridiculous place, Big Wow or something, that was paying $.10 an article??
I’ll take $30 for one 500 word article any time. With proper planning, each one would probably take an hour or less to pull together. $30 an hour is a pretty respectable part time gig in my book.
January 21st, 2008 at 1:09 am
It’s not bad, but I wouldn’t agree that it is generous either. 450 for 7 articles isn’t bad I agree, but don’t forget a 2500-3000 word article is also included in that 450.
January 21st, 2008 at 3:29 am
Star it’s well below some print market standard - but the web market is a whole other ball game.
January 21st, 2008 at 3:33 am
Also - as Kate pointed out above - I’d rather not criticize the gigs people ask to post here, it will discourage others from posting their jobs in the future.
Also - I told Ryan this was a good rate. I said that for web writing the average article pays between $15 and $20. Ryan went a little higher.
January 21st, 2008 at 3:52 am
I don’t think the rate is too bad for the seven 500 word articles, but there is a 2500-3000 word article every month as well. Depending on how that is structured and how it relates to the shorter articles, that may require a significant additional time commitment.
January 21st, 2008 at 4:00 am
Guys-we’re not doing our math. Ryan is paying $450 per month. He’s looking for 7 500 word articles $30 each - that’s $210. The 2500 - 3000 word piece has also been taken into account and is obviously more money.
The rate isn’t $30 per article it’s $30 per 500 words.
January 21st, 2008 at 4:22 am
Doh! Brain not working on Sunday.
January 21st, 2008 at 5:05 am
Good luck to everyone interested in these positions. Ryan is a great person to write for and IMO he’s offering an awesome pay rate.
January 21st, 2008 at 5:09 am
Thanks, Deb. I just sent off my cover letter and resume.
January 21st, 2008 at 5:51 am
I applied too.
January 21st, 2008 at 5:21 pm
You know, last week I applied for half a dozen jobs through this site and each time the person came back to me saying they’d had an offer from another writer who said they’d love to write for him/her and were even willing to work for less than the stated price and would I be willing to match their lower price. The last one was supposed to be $20 for a 500 word article which I was happy with - just found out our chimney liner is cracked and I’m desperate for cash now. The person that wound up winning the job offered to work for $5 per 500 word article and I was asked to match - which I wouldn’t do. So out of the 6 jobs I applied, I lost five to someone who went after it for what appeared to be a penny a word.
For that reason, I wouldn’t knock either of these jobs!
January 21st, 2008 at 5:53 pm
If someone is comfortable with the rate stated, fine. But how many hours will it take to write a “well-researched” article. I write a lot in financial services and business, have contacts that will call me back in a heartbeat (if I get voicemail), so I could probably research these articles more quickly than many. I do type slower than some others have stated, but still it would probably be about $15 an hour for these. Once you figure in taxes, overhead, etc., we’re talking close to minimum wage on a net basis.
There are better paying gigs out there, though it takes work to find them. Again, the rate above is still better than some and is better than just twidling one’s thumbs. But it’s still extremely low.
January 21st, 2008 at 6:57 pm
Ann, I’ve had a similar experience before. I applied for a gig which claims to pay $30 per 400 words. They got back to me and we were already finalizing details when the client stopped responding to my emails. He admitted later that someone offered to write for $10 per.
January 21st, 2008 at 6:59 pm
Last night I checked this thread before going to bed because it was so interesting. I had saved the email address because it looked like something I should apply for. Then, I realized that at least 2 others (right here on this thread!) have already applied. Good luck to us all!!
I’m a fairly new writer, but I am refusing to go the way of $5 an article. Ann, you go girl! It’s sad that some folks doing the hiring are willing to undercut a perfectly good candidate desiring the *stated rate*.
I’m a real rookie writer here, and absolutely no expert in big business economy. But here is my hunch. It appears to me that there are a few key differences between the magazine writing market and the internet writing market. The internet is very fluid and “reactive,” needing fresh content on a regular basis. Magazines are well planned for many months in advance before anyone sees it. Upside - internet has way more opportunities with generally less competition for each “position.” Downside - generally less pay per position. Upside - magazine has much higher pay per article. Downside - long waits and higher chance of rejection.
I’d love to get paid more for an article, and there are certainly gigs that will do that. Like Phil said, it takes work (and good clips) to find those. No reason I can’t write $30 per 500 words while I’m looking.
January 21st, 2008 at 8:40 pm
I just reread the email I sent to Ryan for this position. I guess I’m out of the running, but I thought you’d get a laugh, and a reminder to always triple check! (although I did triple check and still missed it)
“My writing is credible and I high high standards for being accurate and current.”
January 21st, 2008 at 9:12 pm
@Erika-
I think part of my problem is that I’d spent the past year working for a company that was paying $80 an article for web content. These were all topics I excelled at - travel guides for towns/cities in my own state. I could whip out an article in an hour and knew the material was up-to-date. (Vermont’s not that big so I’ve been to all areas in the state numerous times.)
That company sold themselves without warning and opted to not pay writers for jobs completed - though I did finally get paid after some threats. Many of us were working on jobs when they sold, so those projects were scrapped completely. Now finding anything even remotely close has been a struggle. Going back to $20 articles after a year of earning $80 articles has been a bit of a shell-shock.
So for the newer writers, I have a word of wisdom - don’t get to complacent about your writing jobs. Your best paying ones might disappear without warning. I know Deb had posted about this before, and while I had back-ups in place, the pay difference has hit hard! Then to learn our chimney liner is cracked at the same time the propane company announced they were upping rates to $4.90 a gallon - I’m becoming depressed with the entire economy this winter. I went after a job this morning only to learn that the guy though he posted “Excellent wages” was offering $7 for an 800 word article.
January 21st, 2008 at 9:43 pm
Kati:
I had to laugh at your comment… I’ve done that plenty of times, too!
Good luck… you never know!
January 21st, 2008 at 9:44 pm
There are some decent paying “writing for the web” opportunities, too. A few months ago I left a job where I was writing 800-word reported articles for nearly $200. I’d usually get five or six assignments a month.
January 21st, 2008 at 10:41 pm
I stand by what I said. If this is a writing community, why can’t we state our opinions? If these would-be employers are so tender they won’t post, oh, well. It’s OK if you want to leave the better paying jobs for me–thanks! Those positions pay less than a dime a word–and involve health and other somewhat sensitive subject matter. I think they were ridiculously low. Mileage may vary.
January 21st, 2008 at 11:11 pm
Just as you wouldn’t want to discourage guests from visiting your home, I don’t want to discourage guests from posting jobs on my blog.
I have no problem with a rates discussion as long as we’re civil. I wouldn’t post any jobs to this blog I feel are insulting. I don’t want to scare away people who want to post jobs here either. They’re giving our community the first shot at the gig, don’t we owe them at least a little respect for that? Or would we rather they give another community first shot?
And what happens if the same person posts a higher paying job in the future? (Indeed, Ryan posted a job at Performancing yesterday paying $1,000 per month. ) A higher gig may be more to your liking, but if the people who post the jobs remember you as a chronic malcontent, they’re not going to hire you.
You’re welcome to say whatever you like on your own blog, I’m just asking everyone to treat the people who post jobs here with the same respect as someone visiting your home.
January 22nd, 2008 at 12:42 am
Ann - Good advice to stay as involved as possible with the well paying gigs. Looks like I should watch for the ups and downs to keep coming. I’m sure if I was getting $80 an article, $20 would be a big downer for me, too.
Deb - I also appreciate the variety of what is presented here. I haven’t always had as much luck finding something that fits to even apply for, much less get hired for. I think this is a great writing community right here, and I am confident I’ll get hired for something good if I just keep looking and getting more experience. Please keep everything coming!
Kati- That’s pretty funny! I don’t feel so bad now - I know I’ve done stuff like that, too.
January 22nd, 2008 at 2:54 am
I think for online writing $30 for a 500 word article is very good, especially compared to the under $5 dollar gigs!
So sorry Ann to hear about you losing out. Let’s hope you get some good luck soon, and don’t forget that if you’ve got the skills to transfer into another good gig, then go for it girl! Even if the gig isn’t article writing but something that would benefit from your background and experience
January 22nd, 2008 at 2:59 am
I just wanted to add that even though some companies may say another writer is willing to accept a ridiculous low fee, it pays to be wary as it may not be the case with some people who advertise for writers. Some may just say it to get a cut down rate.
January 22nd, 2008 at 6:07 am
I agree, Shell. When I checked the web site of the almost-client a full three months later, no content was to be found at all.
January 22nd, 2008 at 8:56 pm
Star said:
You may not approve of the low payers but that doesn’t mean there aren’t plenty of us who appreciate this offer. I may not like the food sometimes but I’d never crap where I eat.
January 23rd, 2008 at 7:22 pm
I’m curious…Has anyone who applied for one of these gigs heard anything back?
January 23rd, 2008 at 7:24 pm
Nothing here.
January 23rd, 2008 at 8:34 pm
@ Fiona: Ditto over here.
January 23rd, 2008 at 8:40 pm
I haven’t applied, however, some companies may take a week or so before contacting prospective writers. Sometimes they get back quick and other times they don’t.
I expect there was high volume submissions.
Let’s hope either way they will be in contact.
Good luck folks!
January 23rd, 2008 at 9:54 pm
I applied for something else earlier this morning and got an e-mail a few minutes ago acknowledging that they had received my resume and sample. I did appreciate that.
January 25th, 2008 at 12:19 am
From what I understand, Ryan is still narrowing down the candidates. Too many good people, I guess!
January 25th, 2008 at 3:52 am
Yes Jodee, that is very good. I always appreciate that too.
Hope you get it!
January 25th, 2008 at 7:48 am
@ Shell: Thank you!