The Hang of Online Writing Gone

After writing more than 500 (probably) articles online, my momentum has finally slowed down. The initial interest that has prompted me to write even more than 10 articles in a day has subsided. Nowadays, this seems to be just wishful thinking. I cannot write the same number of articles as I used to. My interest in writing somehow died down. The hang of online writing disappeared. Somehow its appeal was lost. And I don’t now if this interest will once again be awakened for some reason.

The prospect of earning online can motivate one to write a lot and see the benefits. While the usual earnings were just in very small amounts, like only about 3 cents for one article submitted, this somehow provided a newbie like I was before to keep on writing to aim for that a dollar a day target.

I, indeed, was able to achieve that dollar a day target at some point, and it seems to be easy nowadays with a site like the defunct Factoidz, now Knoji, which I joined in 2008. But Knoji has changed its payment schemes for paying well for a more than 400-word well-thought article. The site now remunerates more and encourages its writers to write product reviews, testing coupons, asking and answering questions about some company of their choice. Gone are the days of $8 dollar, serious article writing. That was the peak revenue I earned for writing well-thought, researched, and carefully crafted article (at least that’s what I believed). 

This is a difficult change probably because a habit, according to an author I encountered somewhere in the net, can only be changed with 22 repetitions of new habit. I am not oriented to write articles to promote some product I do not know, which, I might be guilty of promoting to unwary customers. I did attempt to do so for a writing site, but was taken aback when I read negative reviews about that site. Shall I promote a site that appears to take advantage of unwary or naive customers?

I dismissed the idea and went on to ask and answer questions just to test how the system works. But then, still, that interest is short-lived. I find myself looking for places to write serious articles even without the prospect of getting paid. I am looking for clean-looking sites that highlight articles instead of a lot of ads that pay the site for exposure. Here I am, back to Triond where I initially wrote a lot of articles. But of course, the ads are also here, to keep the site going. And I don’t mind because Triond accepts articles of any form like this one.

My original intention was to share information; the intention to earn might have been secondary in the first place. But I believe my articles are not well compensated for what it’s worth. So, just like the painter whose work is not paid for what he believed it is worth, it is better to give the work free.

I decided to write my more serious, well-thought articles in ArticlesBase.com which has a higher page rank than all the other writing sites. And I’m still looking for sites that emphasize content more than anything else. With continued search, I may find my home.

Or maybe, this is the time I finally try my hands in refereed scientific journals to meet another kind of writing challenge. I’m probably entering another turning point in my life. The hang of online writing is finally gone?

I wonder what happened to fellow writers who jumped from Triond to Factoidz then now, Knoji. Or probably back to Triond. Any thoughts? Do you still have the hang of online writing with you?