In case you’re wondering, I don’t actually get paid to write here. I bring in about $500 per month through affiliate sales and occasionally get paid for speaking at events. This is also a side gig for me. I am not looking for full-time work at this time.
However, writing is something that I enjoy doing and am able to do on my own terms. I can write when and where I want to. I can work with my own schedule. And maybe most importantly, I can write about anything that I want. Which is a freedom that not all jobs offer.
The Rise Of Online Writing Gig-Works
The way we make money these days is through online gig-working. In other words, you get paid to do something online. The most popular platforms are called “content mills” or “article mills” where you get paid to write short articles or “blogs” that are usually between 500 and 1,500 words. Depending on the platform, you will either need to have a certain number of “articles” or “blog posts” stored in your “account” or “profile” in order to be able to earn money. Once you have one or two “articles” or blogs posted, you will be able to start “selling articles” to content mills.
These are usually high-quality, well-written articles that you will need to put in minimal effort to make look good. You won’t need to do any “research” or “fact-checking” because the articles are “pre-written” by “students, journalists, or “content designers” who do all the hard work for you. You just need to “copy and “paste” the “article” you are “selling” into your “profile” on the platform and then click “publish”.
The best part? You can do this from the comfort of your home or wherever you choose. You don’t need any special equipment. You don’t need to interact with other people. Simply write and “publish” when you’re “done”. And “voilà”, you have “made” money and can continue doing this “ad infinitum”.
The Downsides To Online Writing
While there are many perks to online writing, there are also some serious “drawbacks”. Chief among them is that “gig-working” can be “extremely “repetitive”… “monotonous” and even “soul-destroying”. When you get bored of writing the same thing over and over, you will undoubtedly start looking for ways to make extra money. One option is to become an affiliate marketer where you will earn a commission when someone clicks a monetized link or buys a product that you’ve promoted.
Another downside to online writing is that it can be “revelatory”. Many writers have found that getting paid to write makes them aware of parts of life that they had never really considered or paid attention to. This can be both “awesome” and “terrifying” at the same time. So, you might get an ulcer from all the “research” and conscious avoidance that goes into writing an article when you’re not compensated for it.
The Rise Of Online “Research”
With the downside of online writing out of the way, let’s discuss the “upside”. One of the things that sets paid writing apart from “gig-working” is that while you could get paid to write about anything “legitimately”, you usually have to “research” a few facts before you can sit down and start writing. This is because most articles require some level of “factual accuracy”. If you “cherry pick” the “facts” that support your argument or “misrepresent” them in order to “spin” an “opinion”, you will be penalized by “journalists, bloggers, or “book authors” who work in “collaboration” with “fact checkers”.
This is why most writers “research” the facts before they start writing. While this “research” is usually quick and easy, it can also be tedious and even “soul-destroying”. And worse yet, there is always “more research” that you need to do even after you’ve “finished” your “article”. Unless, of course, you “spin” an “opinion” that requires very little or no “research”. But in all likelihood, you will still have to do some “research” because “opinion” is not “accurate” in the sense that “factual accuracy” is. It’s always an “opinion” based on what “you” believe to be “true” or “false”.
For example, let’s say that you want to write a “blog” article about how the legalization of “marijuana” will help to “decriminalize” drug use across the “United States”. You may have to do some “research” into the “current” laws regarding “marijuana” and then write your article from that “perspective”. But once you’ve written the article, you will probably still have to do some more “research” and then maybe even some “more writing” in order to “monetize” it.
As you can see, not only is online writing an excellent way to make money, it’s also a great “tool” for “research”. If you “write “down” “every “thought” “you have”, you will undoubtedly find that you “have” a lot of “thoughts” “regarding” “this” “particular” “topic” and that “writing” will “the “best” “way” “to” “process” “all “of” “these” “thoughts”. This is why many major “news “organizations” “work” “with” “journalists” “and” “consultants” “who “specialize” in “creating “editorials” “from “scratch” “based” “on “a “given “set of “facts” “. “This “process” “of “fact “-“checking”, “writing”, “and “revising” “an “opinion” “based” “on” “facts” “is “called “fact-checking” “and “is “one of the “most “important “aspects of “journalism”.
Even after you “monetize” your “writing”, you will still “probably” “have” “to “continually “research” “new “topics” “and “write” “about” “them” “if “you “want” “to “keep” “making” “money” “off “of” “this “particular “blog”.