I’ve been getting a lot of questions lately about where freelance writers can work online to actually make money. I’ve been writing for Examiner.com for about a month now and am already very pleased with what I see.
Writing for Examiner.com is fairly easy. You select a topic you feel passionate or informed about and that will make it even easier to create a solid body of content. Individual posts do not have to be very long so I can take one 600 word article I would have published somewhere like Suite101 and turn it into two or three posts for Examiner.
While they do ask you to publish 3 or 4 posts per week, I am able to write all my posts for the week in a single day, save them as drafts, and then it is easy to go and set them to publish every other day. The hardest part for me has been finding photos to go with my articles! *laughing*
What does Examiner.com pay?
OK – that sounds good, Angela. But what does Examiner pay? The exact rate varies according to what they bring in from advertising. They pay strictly based on page views, however, the exact rate isn’t known upfront. I will say, the amount of pay per page view hugely trumps what I am making at Suite101.com right now and after only 1 1/2 months writing there I have already earned my first payout at the $25 minimum.
What Rights Does Examiner.com Keep?
None! That’s the other thing that I love about Examiner.com. I can repost my material to my blog if I ever decide to leave, send a feature article to a print magazine, or compile the pieces into an ebook.
How do I Join Examiner.com?
Visit this Examiner referral page and apply for a topic in your local area that sounds interesting to you! If you decide to give it a try, please use my referral number #2287 when you join. 
See my Alternative Medicine Examiner Column.
P.S. For my Suite101 Friends – I am averaging about $10 for every 1,000 page views, or slightly higher.
Updates!! I’ve just posted a new blog post – Re-examining Examiner to discuss the changes, my findings and feelings after a year, and how I feel about writing with Examiner still.
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Angela,
Just wanted to thank you for this post. I have been an examiner for less than a week and my revenues far exceed my expectations considering the time period. By far one of the most lucrative gigs on the web.
Thanks!
Hi Angela,
I’m thinking about joining, and now that I see Annalise’s post, whom I know gives solid advice, I may go for it.
Whooooaaaa there…. Since when is making $25 in a month and a half a GOOD thing? How many hours did you spend writing to make that $25? Why wouldn’t you instead use that time to write stellar pitch letters to magazines, or a great cover letter for a frelance writing job?
You basically just made, what, $5 an hour? They are MILKING you for what amounts to alost free content.
I just hired a new proofreader, and anyone who had things like SUite 101, and Examiner on their resumes, I threw away, because if they don’t respect their own time, are they really going to respect my time? I know this is the same for many hiring writers.
Please don’t sepnd more than a month or two at these endeavors- enough to amass clips- then move on.
At my site, I have links to REAL, PAYING freelance writing jobs. I see dozens per day. THey are out there, still, and writers who are past the beginning stages are wasting their time with these cheap content sites.
sorry typos:( in a hurry.
Allena,
I know where you stand on sites like Suite101, etc. But I will tell you that my experience there has been VERY positive and I make several hundred dollars there a month. Yes, I also spend time querying, pitching, following up and pursuing both print and online jobs elsewhere. However, an article for Suite101, written on a topic of my choosing, does not take my very long at all.
Your calculations do not take into consideration the residual income potential of a site like Suite101. I do not get paid $5 per hour on an article in one month. I get paid for that article this month, and the next month, and the next month, and the next….I do the work once and get paid every month forever!
I saw the true potential of sites like Suite101 when I took an entire month off in September. I did not write a single article while tending my newborn (and two other children ages 4 and 2). Yet I STILL made more than enough money during that month-long hiatus to pay my mortgage payment! The power of residual income is brilliant – it’s like compound interest for your hard work.
Couple that with the fact that you retain full rights on your work, and the earning potential is far more than what you accrue during the first month.
I am well familiar with your opinion of “content mills”, however I would argue that Suite101 and, so far, Examiner.com are better than any of the others I’ve tried like Demand Studios and Associated Content (ugh). The difference for me is the issue of rights.
I have not found my resume to hinder me and my writing in any way. I have plenty of private contract jobs, and am in the process of building print magazine clips as well having had great success selling three articles off five queries before the birth of my son. If you chose to limit your search in such a restrictive fashion you missed out on some fantastic writers – Reader’s Digest writers, book authors, newspaper journalists, professional speakers, English professors, radio show writers, and other About.com writers - your colleagues! It’s a shame you allowed your old-school feelings about writer pay to limit the possibilities in such a fashion.
Let’s say your figuring is correct – it takes me about an hour to write the month’s worth of posts for Examiner. In one month I made $9. So that’s $9 an hour. The next month I made $25 so that’s $14 an hour. This month I’ve made $22 an hour. (that’s $22 additional since I continue getting paid for what I’ve already written) Next month??? By the end of the year I expect to be paid over $100 an hour if things continue at the current rate. At Suite101 I make HUNDREDS for my two or three hours of work a month there. (and indeed – in September I made HUNDREDS for ZERO hours work! *laughing*) The power of residual income, something you are failing to acknowledge in your post above, can be very powerful for a non-fiction writer.
Blessings, Angela <><
Hahahaha – Yes, I do the same thing when I’m typing in a hurry. A good reminder to all writers about the importance of editing, eh?
To assume that a Suite or Examiner writer doesn’t respect their time is a bit of a leap, is it not?
Allena : Your comments are short-sighted, in my opinion. I project that I will be making $400-500 USD with Suite101 in residual income by this time next year. You can call that pocket change if you wish, but where I come from that is solid money to be receiving in your bank account every month.
You can either take the instant gratification approach (paid for individual articles only, like print publications) or slowly build a portfolio that continually pays off for you. I choose the latter. That does not mean I am wasting my time whatsoever – it simply means that I prefer to invest differently than you do.
While you may be knowledgeable in your field of expertise, that does not mean that notes of elitism come off very well. There are several Suite writers who gross more than you do with ease – do you see them lashing out at other methodology?
While I do like income to come in with little effort, I feel the initial couple hours tends to be a gamble with your time. I guess, if I am going to gamble with my time, I prefer to look for a bigger payoff, say a $400 magazine article, which also gives “residuals” in terms of a $150 reprint and the likelihood of more work (another $400 and $150 reprint) and etc. Those are the gambles I prefer to take, as my understanding, Angela, is that your experience is an exception, and not the norm.
But you say you do both of those things, which I guess is your call. I suppose the difference here is that we both have the same 24 hours a day, and you use your hours to do two things, whereas I will skip the content and double up on print or copy work, as I see it as less of a gamble and as more money.
As I said in email, you’re welcome to state your case through a guest blog at About.com, because, no I do not recommend these to my readers when they ask, other than a few beginners clips. Or perhaps I should just send them here- good education!
I do not think that Angela’s experience is all that unusual for suite101 writers. When I started write for suite101 I was skeptical about whether or not I would be able to make more than a few pennies a day, but it was fun and I was learning a lot so I kept at it.
I may not be currently making as much as some on suite, at around $300/month, but that is huge in my book for something I started just for fun. The interesting thing that I have found is that the more articles you have up (and it takes me about 15-20 minutes to write and publish one article), the more you end up earning, and the residual income that doesn’t stop is huge.
There may be other ways for me to spend my time making money with my writing, but suite101 works for me and for many others. At the same time, though, I won’t knock what you do either, because we need writers who spend their time in the venues that you pursue. Each person needs to make the decision that works best for his or her time and energy, and this works for me.
Allena,
I have to say that my experience with Suite, and Examiner for that matter, has been far from what your assumptions seem to be. I work as a freelance writer and web editor for a living. I work between 20-25 hours per week, but make a full-time income writing online.
Not only has Suite101 paid my bills plenty in the last year I’ve spent time writing for them, other legitimate (i.e., CNN, a large university system) outlets have initiated contact with me and contracted my work based on that Suite101 experience. And many more of my articles have gone on to be written for print, sometimes earning $500 here or $300 there.
Despite the fact that I work 25 hours a week, I still have plenty of time to pitch elsewhere or work on long-term projects. As Angela pointed out, that’s the beauty of residual income. I can take the two-week vacation and still get paid as if I were working full steam ahead. I have had months where I haven’t typed a word online and still brought in enough for the mortgage, the car payments, and the grocery and utility bills.
I think it’s also worth remembering that many people who write online don’t do it as a way to make a living. For some, it’s about earning enough to cover a date night, or exploring their love of writing. For many people, the income is just a small bonus. I know many people who write for free, because they just love the craft.
Either way, I don’t know that it is up to you to remark about what is and is not “worth” someone’s time. And the same for what is and is not respectful for someone else. That attitude comes across as elitist and is terribly off-putting.
When I first started writing, I was just happy to be writing and testing that waters, making sure I loved doing it day and in day out. The small income stream was enough.
To this:
Whooooaaaa there…. Since when is making $25 in a month and a half a GOOD thing? How many hours did you spend writing to make that $25? Why wouldn’t you instead use that time to write stellar pitch letters to magazines, or a great cover letter for a frelance writing job?
Do you not see the irony there? What did you make while doing that pitching? Oh, right. Zero.
I find it frankly insulting that you would be a snob who turns away people who write for Suite101, etc. You sound ridiculously old school. I have 17 years of experience as a writer, and I make good money writing for Suite101.
Here is my parallel. In print, you can spend months JUST on begging editors to get that $400 gig. You can also then spend many hours getting it to a level acceptable to an editor. You then wait to get paid on publication. You then wait about 30-60 days. THEN you only get paid once.
How much did you just make hourly for all of that? Pennies?
I have articles I wrote in 2002 that I still get paid for, that took a few minutes, and that I have literally made thousands of dollars off of. I have a print background and don’t even find it worth my time or trouble to write for print anymore. Print can’t AFFORD me at this point.
Dismissing web in the way you do would be like saying it’s dumb to write a book (almost exact same type of set up in function… make very little in the beginning, but make more later on work you haven’t written in ages).
Another little note for you: soon you will find that the print opportunities are drying up and those of us who are well-established in web writing (which requires much different knowledge) are the ones making great money. Shoot, I could sit back and NOT work for months and continue to make plenty of money. Try asking one of the magazines to pay you seven years later for a piece you wrote. See how that works out for you.
If you’d like to know more about why I think web is a much better pay model (for writers) then print, I suggest you read this on why I ditched print for web writing:
http://kelbycarr.com/why-i-ditched-print-for-web-writing/
As another Suite writer, I second the previous commenters who have appreciated the residual income from Suite in ‘off’ months. I’m not as successful as Angela, although her experience is by no means abnormal for Suite; but the income I get every month is invaluable.
Still, I agree that print writing has its benefits; a lump sum payment is always a good thing! For my highest-paid print article I’ll make more than I’ve ever made on Suite. So what I do is double up my time. I pitch an article to several magazines; when one accepts I research the article thoroughly, and use that research to write several very specific Suite articles (which has the benefit of getting ‘tangents’ out of my system so I can write a focused print piece). While I’m waiting the umpteen months to get paid for my print article, Suite quietly earns me money based on my articles, and continues to do so until the cows come home. How is that a bad thing?
I am another writer for Suite. I’d like to say that most of my articles have earned me hundreds of dollars…and I have almost two hundred articles. That adds up to a lot of money! Plus, I get paid no matter if I write another article for them again. I love that security. I can take a vacation and know that I’m still making money. It’s like I’m getting a paid vacation. Can you do that?
Let’s see: This week I received an offer from my agent for my 14th book. (All of the books have been publsihed by major houses: Crown, W.W. Norton, D.K., or by well known niche publishers and have sold more (I think a LOT more — I just lost track, frankly) than 500,000 copies.) My magazine work has appeared in National Geographic Traveler, Islands, Family Circle, Backpacker, oh yeah, and I’ve also written for the New York Times… I have received national writing awards, and have made my living as a full time freelancer for many years. And I am thrilled to be writing for Suite. But now I hear that some person named Allena, who I’ve never heard of, and who obviously doesn’t have a firm grasp of annuity math, won’t consider hiring me because I write for Suite.
Boo hoo.
Kelby said:
“Here is my parallel. In print, you can spend months JUST on begging editors to get that $400 gig. You can also then spend many hours getting it to a level acceptable to an editor. You then wait to get paid on publication. You then wait about 30-60 days. THEN you only get paid once.
How much did you just make hourly for all of that? Pennies?”
*hear hear*
I was thinking the exact same thing! There’s no money being made while you’re drafting a query, sending it out and waiting for a positive response, then sometimes waiting to modify changes, waiting for it to come out in print, and then waiting for the check!
I agree that print can bring in good money, but it isn’t a quick buck by any stretch of the imagination, and a lot of print mags are folding. Have you shared with people just how much tougher the print world is going to get ?
I think you have jumped the gun on this one and you need to play catch up with what’s going on out there.
I have been writing for Suite101.com for over 6 months and I really like what I see for residual income. I am definitely on pace with Alina, Angela, and Jennifer with only 70 articles so far. I have been able to write about what I love, have the freedom to pick and choose the topics of interest to me, and have honed my web writing skills while getting paid. I have never been turned away because I write for Suite101. But I can tell you this: I have watched local printed papers and magazines dwindle down to just a few pages, with mostly ads on them, because of the economy and because print is basically dying.
I, too, had reservations about this type of payment model. But after having spent countless hours writing queries with no guarantee of getting a job, I’ll take this model any day.
It is sad that Allena has decided to ignore the countless excellent writers who work for Suite101.com or Examiner.com just because they chose to get paid on a regular basis instead of wondering where the money for their next meals will be coming from. It just sounds like good old fashioned common sense to me, and who wouldn’t want to hire writers that are more savvy?
Thanks, Angela, for your great post!
What an interesting discussion!
I’ve been writing non-fiction part-time for thirty years, with over 150 print credits, including some national glossies. I’m not exactly a beginner. How odd that I should be passed over because of my work for Suite101.
Going full-time is part of my retirement plan, and I see Suite101’s residual payments as part of that plan. The future is never guaranteed, but five years down the road, I hope to have a reasonable income supplement from online writing.
In the meantime, I continue to submit to print publications, and I’m actually having a lot of fun writing shorts for Suite101. My time is my own, and I’ll spend it as I choose.
I too am a professional writer with plenty of credits, including dozens of magazine articles and a book under my belt. I write for Examiner and love it! I am towards the top of the earning scale because I happen to have a popular topic in a popular area. My audience builds day by day, and I’ve also been invited to many media events as a result of my Examiner work. I even represented Examiner at Disney’s American Idol kickoff, where I got to hobnob with the winners and a ton of other Idol celebrities at an after-party. Allena might not hire Examiner writers, but I’m not too worried. I have plenty of print markets already, and plenty of organizations seem to regard Examiner as pretty darned legitimate.
[Edited to remove some personal comments]
As for making money from any of these content sites, don’t let these type of comments bring you down. I started by writing very low pay articles. I’ve been in a few small magazines, some trade publications, ghostwritten, and run my own websites that bring in a decent amount.
Money is money. Ever notice how much there is after saving your change for a while? Passive income is wonderful.
Interesting discussion. I started as an examiner covering snow skiing about a month ago. No, you won’t make a huge amount of money. I don’t think I’ve made $20 yet. My real job is as a freelance television producer/writer. My college degree from UNC-CH is actually in journalism and I did work in print almost 20 years ago. I’m just an avid skier and it’s kind of fun to pull out my old AP stylebook (maybe I should get the updated edition
).
I do feel a little guilty because sites like examiner can devalue the credibility and journalists’ “gatekeeper” function– as they loved to say in J-school– in that it’s certainly not solely the work of trained writers and journalists. We’re in an age of “Wiki-truth” rather than checking sources. It is kind of funny doing print articles again, because the web wasn’t really around 20 years ago when I last was in print. I could see where it could be a crutch and abused. Then again, it’s amazing the original documents and such you can find so quickly.
As far as devaluing the MARKETPLACE for writers/reporters, I think that might be overblown. Obviously, newspapers and such are in big trouble. However, somebody has to do real reporting and writing out on the pavement, at city hall, courtrooms and whatever. Bloggers and part-timers at their computers can’t really provide that. I even wouldn’t be surprised if we see a slight shift back to quality over quantity of information. At some point, readers will want RELIABLE facts.
The bottom line is that if you’re writing on a topic you’re passionate about and you have some extra time, it can be enjoyable. I probably spend more time on it than I probably should. Even if it’s basically for free, I still take pride in my craft. I wouldn’t depend on it for any meals though.
I enjoyed the back-and-forth on Allena’s site, but her comments here were a bit more off-putting. It’s one thing not to recommend a particular freelance strategy, but to throw away resumes because other people have chosen a different path? Those comments communicate a snobbishness I haven’t seen as clearly on her site, and that I hope she learns to temper because arrogance undermines credibility for this reader.
Angela, I live about a hundred miles from the nearest market covered by Examiner. How much local knowledge do you really need to be successful? The pieces I looked at in your column didn’t seem to hinge on local knowledge much, so I’m curious.
I live a little more than 100 miles from Oklahoma City. I have been able to capture some upcoming events and feature those, and I hope to be able to do some first hand reviews later, but I also want to make sure there is a strong body of content and information to link back to when I do local pieces. When I was hired I spoke with my channel manager about the situation – the truth is Oklahoma City is a drive we make probably once a month or so – having the Examiner column makes that trip a tax write off which is fantastic for me.
I’ll research several articles worth of stuff in one single trip and get a lot of information written down and ready to go for future posts.
Angela <><
Hi Everyone.
I’m a newbie on the block and have been following the various posts. Primarily from Allena’s Freelance writing blog.
I see the top risidual payers are Suite 101 and Examiner.com. Can anyone tell me of any others? To give me a list to start reviewing.
I sign-up with eHow and demandstudios.com, but have not posted anything yet, because I was skeptical about would I really make any money. Anyone have any feedback on these and other sites?
Also, can you post articles written for suite or examiner on other sites such as your own blog, eHow, demand stuidios.
I’m not sure how all of this work.
Thanks everyone!
Crystal
I write for Examiner.com/Hartford. I’m “undecided” whether to continue with Examiner because I’ve been with them since Dec. 08 and have yet to be paid… Yes, I have accrued the initial $25 and them some and am still waiting.
Anyone else experience this with them?
I can see why professional writers turn their noses up at this kind of site. You are working for basically nothing and this undermines their industry. It’s kind of like when I was in the Graphic Arts field, I despised low price Freelancers and Interns because they basically destroyed the standards of the field. Now there are none and that field is dying…
I’ll be back to let everyone know when I get an answer from Examiner.
What is their method of payment (e.g. PayPal)?
Does Examiner also pay residually? (Like Suite 101)?
Oh my! I just had to add this blog to my Google reader. The replies to Allena are wonderful. I feel I’m in good company! Blessings to all writers making a living through means they choose, not by those pushed by others. Isn’t freelance about doing things your way? Cheers!
Yes – You continue to earn on every article, every month.
Angela <
I receive all of my payments through PayPal. Angela <
I have never heard of anyone not getting paid – remember that their pay is a month behind. So you have to reach the payout threshold one month (say Jan 09) in order to get paid on the 20th of the month the NEXT month. You are always at least a full month behind. You may have reached $25 total THIS MONTH so that pay will come later.
You will likely see that pay on this month’s pay period. Angela <
I’ve enjoyed reading these posts. I was concerned about how I would be perceived by the university I adjuct for or my fellow MFA alums. But the marketplace is changing ,and I thought it would be wonderful to write about subjects that are apart of who I am. I became the Milwaukee Green Living Examiner about 6 weeks ago ,and it feels like the right choice. I will be thrilled to see my checks grow, and I think they will. My readership grows every day. In the meantime, I’m working on a book, freelancing, and seeking a teaching position . Oh and I also run my own website at ww.anthologiesonline.com. All the posts here help me to reafirm I’ve made a valid choice. Even the negative post was good, because it evoked encouraging responses.
Here’s my two cents. I write for Suite101 (1 yr) and Examiner (1 month) and am happy to be in a position that my writing can earn some residual dollars to help make my golden years….golden.
We’ve been searching for years for a multiple stream of income. I’m tired of mutli level marketing schemes, tired of part-time jobs, tired of full time jobs without any freedom. So…..I write. And my writing is beginning to prove to me how I’ll retire one day whether or not my 401K or IRA has failed …my writing continues to earn more money every month, month after month,
I place my bet on S101 and Examiner. I’m happy to be a guinea pig on the web. And if someone like Allena wants to look down her nose at me, I don’t mind one bit. I’m happy in my work!
It does sound like a pretty old-fashioned idea to discount anyone who writes for Suite or Examiner. I have written for more sites than I can count, and I don’t at all consider Suite to be low paying for the amount of work that I put into it. It just takes some time to build up a base pool or articles that will keep bringing in traffic. That patience can pay of quite well for anyone willing to do it. There are some sites that this isn’t true for, but it is for Suite.
I agree with the commenter who said that print writing couldn’t afford them. Working in print news was some of the lowest-paying work that I’ve ever had, and I can’t afford to ever do it again. Writing freelance for print sources pays higher per piece, sometimes much, much higher, but it’s actually a bigger time gamble than Web writing and ends up paying less.
The old-fashioned bit comes from not realizing that the larger pay from a print piece comes at the expense of time that could be spent working on Web work that could earn a lot more for the same time put in. I can spend 10 hours writing a print article that may never see the light of day, plus more hours for querying, or I could spend that 10 hours writing Web articles for clients and the websites that I write for and make a few hundred plus residuals that keep paying for years. IF the print article ever makes it to print, and there are no guarantees, it might make more, or it might not. Not all print markets pay that well. It will never, however, keep paying in residuals. And, I never have to query my work or wonder if it will be published.
I actually read this blog post and the comments with interests because I think I was guilty of doing something that I see Allena doing- not understanding exactly how something could work for me. I was offered a national Examiner position last year and I turned it down because it didn’t sound like it would make much money for me. I may have been a little too hasty in my judgment of the site. If it has the potential to earn like Suite101 does, it could have been a nice sideline.
Hello!
I read this blog because I recently joined Examiner.com and I just wanted to know about other people’s experiences with them. I’ve been there for about a month and I am not doing too bad, I already have over $50 accrued.
As I read the blog I saw that many of you also write for Suite101. I actually applied with them and got declined about 3 months ago… I wanted to ask you if it’s a good idea to try again and if the money made there is as good as Examiner. If so, what would you suggest I do to get accepted?
I also write for Associated Content and Helium, but their pay is so much lower than Examiner and I rather use my time to write for the ones that pay better… but I still submit to them every once in a while.
Anyway, any advice would be great!
Thanks!
update – I reapplied to Suite101 and….. I got accepted! I used articles from Examiner as samples for the application, I guess the experience there has helped.
I’d still love to know how others are doing there. It does seem like a good place to write, get some income and experience…
Hello. I just applied for examiner.com and was wondering how long it usually takes to hear back from them? It’s been a week. Any help would be appreciated.
Thank you!
Some applicants have reported a wait of several weeks because of the influx of new writers. You should hear back from them within the month though so hang in there!
Angela <
A post I read not long ago from another forum by a publisher, “self-publishing” is the future”. To learn web writing now and earn continuing income with writing articles is great. This is the future now. There is news everyday of another print newspaper or magazine that has ceased.
Opportunities are coming to many more writers, like the singers Susan Boyle or Jamie Pugh on Britains Got Talent receive – they may never have received. Online entities like Suite101 assists so many more great writers like myself to contribute their expertise and make income every month; we may have never had this chance before (as we may get overlooked my Allena).
A second benefit, it is creating more internal jobs to keep up with the writers they are hiring. 3, readers learn new things. Thank you Suite101.
Wait… Hold the phone… I think I missed something. Doesn’t About.com pay its writer a residual monthly fee? And isn’t Allena a guide at About.com? And don’t they buy all rights to the Guide’s work? So why is she giving all the Suite 101 writers the heat? (I’m not with Suite, but I like this post).
I know a few Guides who said writing at About was a total waste of time, that they put way more into the try-out, building the site, adhering to editorial guidelines and policies, and promoting it then they ever saw in return. I also saw they recently lowered the monthly minimum payment down to $675 for the first 2 years as a Guide. After that it’s $500 a month minimum after that.
However. I still think that’s great money, and I would certainly consider applying if the topic was right and work to promote it to make more. The exposure would be nice a well.
But let’s break this down. With About.com’s required 4 articles a month and 1 to 3 blog posts a week, that’s upward of 16 pieces in a month. If you’re only making the minimum $500 payout, that’s only about $32 an article. Sounds like people here have made similar if not much more than that per article at similar sites.
And yes, I know many Guides probably make more than that and they say the average guide makes something like 1-2k a month.. But the former guide I knew didn’t. She made just above the minimum payout. But my point is…..
Aren’t you essentially “wasting your time”? Let’s be realistic. It’s nearly the same residual income model! I’d love to see you try Suite 101 for a month and post about it on your About page and assess the difference.
Btw, Crystal — When my writing work dried up and I was waiting to hear back on assignments, I used Demand Studios. I made about $400 a week part time and I still do it some to keep up my income. They do make you start with 10 articles at a time and then gradually bump you up. So you can’t just have a run at 100 articles if you have the time to write them.
400 word articles run $15 and I can write 2 to 2.5 in an hour averaging about $30 or more an hour. I get paid weekly by paypal and have never had an issue. I also don’t get many revisions, and when I do it usually takes 5 or 10 minutes for me to fix.
I personally don’t care that they buy all rights. I just don’t care about selling all rights to articles on ‘how to pick out a snowboard’ or ‘how to do a duck dive on a surfboard’. I have no desire to resell that. However, I do care about using my own name. I prefer to use a pen name. And because of the specific writing jobs and positions I apply for, I don’t include working for Demand Studios on my resume.
Demand recently started a new queue of articles where you get paid $5 upfront per article and then earn residuals. I haven’t tried that yet.
I’d say give it a shot if you need the money. But if it feels tedious or requires too much research, then try something else instead.
This article has encouraged me to apply for an examiner position.
Question–on the application it asks for your insider info on “your selected city,” but if you are applying for a national position, how do you respond?
I would just mark on it “National” instead of entering a local city then. I do know, however, that they really want to fill in the local area spots.
Thanks, Angela. The local spot is already taken, but the national spot is open. Are the national slots significantly more difficult to break into?
Hi,
Very interesting discussion! I was wondering if Suite 101 and Examiner take on writers not located in the US (and not US citizens)?
Thanks
Suite101 accepts writers from outside the United States, however right now Examiner does not.
Angela
If you’ve found a gig you love, pay attention to the way you feel. Ignore the negativity. (Allena, you’re throwing away resumes? Well, I wouldn’t work for anyone who can’t bother to use spell check. First impressions, honey.)
I’m a full-time freelance writer and an author and editor. In other words, I’ve been around the block a couple hundred times. Examiner recently hired me, and I love writing for them. (Picked up by Suite 101 around the same time, but left because Examiner is more fun for me and they pay better.) I get my money from many writing sources, and Examiner is one of them.
hey guys, i read through this, (its all interesting) but i still have a question. i started writing for examiner.com, its been almost a month, i love writing for it because i write about what i really love and its so much fun, but so far, i haven’t been paid. i wanted to know (without emailing them directly lol) when should i expect to be paid and how much? i will appreciate any help.
Examiner has a $10 or $25 minimum payment threshhold, I forget exactly which it is. They will pay you on the 20th of one month for the revenue you earned the month before IF you’ve reached the minimum. So if you earn $9 the first month you will not get paid – say in May. Then in June you reach $28. So the 20th of July you’ll be paid for the revenue you earned before that.
Suite101 pays usually around the 6th or 7th for what you earned the month before. Each site works a little bit differently with the timing on stuff.
Angela <
I write personal essays, much like Erma Bombeck did- would these be of interest to Examiner? or do they have to be ‘How to’ oriented? I am an at-home mom and was considering filling out an application.
Thanks Angela! i really like writing for them, but it would be even better to get paid for it. They said in the beginning that the pay is quite competitive, but it doesn’t seem like it is. But I guess it’s the writing experience that counts, I need some extra clips. I think its $10, btw.
Um, Nice article but you are working for a penny a page view while Examiner is charging $150 per 1000 impressions (not clicks) to their advertisers. Then they get the Google AdSense $$ on top of that. Do you think you are contributing to a lower payscale for writers by encouraging people to work for peanuts?
I agree that you can make good money at examiner.com. I’m set to make over $300 this month and it is only my first month with Examiner. However, you do have to treat it like a job, instead of a hobby if you plan to make money. I try to post 3 to 4 times a day because I quickly noticed that traffic dropped the day after I skipped a post.
Wow! This article and comments had me engaged! I thought I would be in and out. But GOOD GOSH!
There were some really excellent points being made from Angela and Allena as well as others. Your site is bookmarked on my end.
Thanks for the 411 on Examiner which was the reason for clicking on your link through Google. I have been seeking for a more wiser strategy of making money writing online. Recently, I joined up with HubPages, but only did four hubs. LOL. The concept of residual income with a one-time article submission is right up my alley. So, maybe I can get on with Suite101 as mentioned here and other sites like it.
Thank again.
All The Best.
I writer for the Examiner and for Ehow and simply love the residual income. I have been writing for the Examiner for about three months and have made $167.00 so far. The key with Examiner is to write more than the required 4 articles a month. If you write about 2 small articles a day you can gross about 80 a month. With Examiner your articles are posted on Google News. That means, your articles lasts as long as a news cycle. So, if you write on a current news topic, your high views may last about two days. I have made most Popular Examiner over five times. On Ehow I am making a few hundred dollars a month.
Fantastic thread!
I’ve had a number of people ask me abour Examiner, and from now on I’m sending them here, lol. You guys said it much better than I’ve been able to!
I write for Examiner for several reasons.
1. It has the potential to generate a residual, perpetual income stream that can grown exponetially, with an exponential increase in work for me. Examiner is only a fraction of my writing income (I’ve only been with them a couple of week) but I feel like the potential is worth the risk.
2. As I keep all rights to my posts, I can use the 300-500 word articles I write there, to either string together, or fatten up for future magazine articles. As is, they make great query content.
3. It’s really nothing more than I’ve been doing on my own blog for years, maybe just a little more focused in subject matter. The difference is: nobody pays me for every person who views my blog. I reap the same benefit of building readership for my platform (Parenting) and getting feedback on my writing, but recieve a minimal (at least for now) compensation for it as well.
I think that another thing to keep in mind is that seeing a thread written mostly by people who have had a positive experinece is rare. Most of what you find or hear online is people griping about how LITTLE they made the first week and how they quit in disgust soon after.
People who obviously had no idea how a system like Examiner works, nor how to successfully market your artciles online to build a loyal readership. Instead they post thier articles into “the void” somehow believe that hundreds of people a day will just “happen upon” their site. Sadly, if they had put the time and effort into their articles and marketing, that they did in blaming someone else for their failures, they might not have failed.
Squeaky wheel syndrome.
Uninformed, impatient complainers are more to blame for the jaded opinions of sites like Examiner, (and plenty of other topics) than any supportable facts..
The rest of us are too busy working, to talk about our work.
LOL,
-Perry
Portland Fatherhood Examiner
I totally love Examiner and think that they’re upfront and honest about the whole process. I literally made my RENT MONEY from them last month.
Pam I thought your post was helpful!
What I would like to know…If you are working for the examiner.
How many articles to do you need to have published to earn over $200 a month?
What topics do you find readers gravitate to?
I have been writing for Examiner and Suite101 for about a month and have not had great monetary success. Is it typical for the first month or so to be slow?
If any seasoned Suite101 and/or Examiner writers can share some tips on how to increase success, I would greatly appreciate it!
Some interesting comments on here. I recently got a gig with the Canadian edition of the Examiner that’s set to launch pretty soon. Exposure was the main reason I decided to apply ( and the fact that I love to write about politics), but it’s also good to know that it’s possible to make some money as well.
Well, I found this when looking for something else. Responding to these discussions are one thing that is not worth MY time.
BUT — just for fun, I will.
Then I’ll complain about what I got paid for writing 300-400 words — nothing.
I just love these freelancers who complain about sites like examiner. Try it and if you don’t like it or it isn’t worth your time, just don’t do it. It’s pretty simple.
Allena, I would throw your resume in the trash, not if you worked for examiner, but simply because you’re not that good. Anyone, go look at her Web site and read it.
If you were, you’d have better things to do than build yourself up by ignorantly attacking people who may be writing a blog for reasons you don’t understand.
I’d never work with someone who doesn’t have the intelligence to understand that each situation is different and for some people, these sites may be a benefit. A lot of people write a blog just for fun AND the visibility. Some of these blogs make nothing on their own, so I suppose $20 is an improvement over that. Examiner gets pretty high on the search engines and some people use this to drive traffic to their own Web sites. If it works, do it, if not, don’t.
By the way ,don’t reply, because I’ll never see it. I have actual work to do. I don’t go around posting my face on discussion boards and trying to make other people feel bad for having a little fun and making some pocket change in the process.
Get a brain (even if your’e blonde) folks. It’s the economy that’s driving down prices, not freelancers writing blogs for fun.
You’re blaming a group of people who are not the cause of the downturn.
Maybe the economy and your crappy work is the reason.
And Allena, I want you to stop driving down prices by writing for sites like About.com.
For the record, $600-$700 a month is less than one-half of what a Times staff writer would make in a week.
You should be ashamed of working for an organization like that at such a cut rate, LOL!
Hi Angela
I’ve been looking into applying to write for the Examiner for the past few days, finding your page has answered my concerns. I teach Con. Ed. (2 writing courses) at a local college, write fiction with a few mag. Articles, book reviews, small columns thrown in. I have day work (self-employed painter, small renos) 2 kids 4 and 9…but thought a little more writing work would be fun.
(Examiner) Do you chose a category and find a niche within, or is it more controlled?
Thanks
Jeff
Great Thread Angela! I’m a new Examiner and wanted to see what others have experienced and this posting did not disappoint. I’ve been writing legal and tax related articles/blog for over 6 years and was posting them on my someone else’s website a s a column (I got paid nothing but the exposure was good since the site gets over 1 million hits a month) and then most recently to my own blog (again for free). I’m a practicing attorney so I’m not looking for the writing to replace my income. I simply love to write and it helps to send clients to an article that I have already written on a particular topic. It’s like inexpensive marketing for my business.
I’m piggybacking on Gina’s question. As a new Examiner I’m looking for ways to increase traffic to my site. Is it more a function of posting more articles a week (more than 3?) writing shorter articles? writing on current topics/events (within the last 72 hours)? Any tips from you seasoned examiners would be greatly appreciated.
Thanks
Shannon Nash
Los Angeles Nonprofit Business Examiner
Re: “residual income potential” AND “the fact that you retain full rights on your work.” Did you read the terms and conditions? I mean REALLY read them?! I just finished doing so and with regard to retaining full rights to your work… sure BUT not really because at the same time you are granting them “non-exclusive, perpetual, irrevocable, royalty-free, worldwide license to” do anything with all of any part of your works as they see fit and that they can extend this license to third parties without notifying or compensating you (and you may not do the same) AND they can terminate you without notice and without cause and still retain the license that you so generously granted them… I really wanted to participate in this venture for a lot of reasons knowing that I wouldn’t likely see much money from it but after reading these two items in the terms and conditions as well as the rest of what I would be agreeing to (and yes there is MORE and it IS Significant) I can’t in good faith sign away my current rights as well as any of my future rights and still feel as though I have done the best that I could do for all parties involved. This agreement is heavily weighted to benefit the company in all respects monetary, intellectually and up to and including responsibility. Oh AND they can “use… your name, image, likeness, and biographic information in connection with the exercise of the rights granted herein” again even after you are no longer associated with them
Lana – Thanks for sharing your opinion. I can tell you that in the last six months I’ve made more from Examiner than I have ghost blogging at a minimum $40-$75 per post up to $275 per post. When I ghost blog for a company I am giving them full rights forever, and in many cases aren’t even allowed a byline or confidentiality agreements prevent me from pointing other clients to their site. LOL! With Examiner I am making more, with more flexibility, am allowed affiliate links, incoming links to my other sites, etc. So there are definite trade offs to be aware of. Even if the pay weren’t comparable (and so far, for me, it is) those other benefits should be taken into consideration. A great deal depends on your goals and desired outcomes with your writing too. I enjoy the increased exposure and ability to include affiliate links – something I can’t do at some other sites. So it’s worth it to me. If you were in it strictly for the writing, there might be other platforms more suitable for you. Which is part of the reason why I try to highlight the pros AND cons of several different websites – the ones I am personally familiar with and have tried out for myself – so I can speak to them honestly.
No worries, I just was alarmed by what I read in the terms and conditions and was worried that someone might read comments saying that one will retain the rights to their work and be somewhat mislead by that statement as it really needs to be followed up with acknowledgment of the rights that you are granting to them regarding your work by agreeing to the terms and conditions including giving them the right, now and forever, to use your name, image and likeness even after you so choose to separate yourself from them if you should choose to do so
The bottom line is that realistically AT BEST a freelancer can expect to make hundreds per month on the content mills. These websites make a mockery of the idealism which has driven so many young writers to believe they could actually make a *career* out of their passion. Instead they’re being reduced to making less than the most menial of service industry peons.
When people mumble about making a couple hundred dollars per month as some sort of significant residual income, that someday perhaps will contribute in it’s pathetic way to a retirement nest-egg, it’s apparent we’re dealing with the self-deluded. Sites like Examiner and Suite are the freelance writing world’s equivalent of pyramid schemes. The brainwashed idiocy being regurgitated by all the true believers in this thread is bitter testimony to that fact.
There IS definite potential with residual income because at some point the effort you DID put in, outweighs the effort you are currently putting in. Last summer I wrote the bare minimum for S101 and made enough to put a new roof on the rent house. Yes, potential. Sure – I could make more per article with a private contract, and I do a lot of that as well. But it’s nice to have the steady income provided when I don’t have as many private jobs…it’s easy to fill in with something like S101 and Examiner.
I really like examiner.com and I find other examiners are quite helpful. When I asked the community about my article I got lot of positive and some negative feedback. One lady showed me how to increase visitors to the website. Since I joined I have been the top examiner for Ottawa all but one week so far. (examiner.com expanded to Canada in late October) Its not that big of an accomplishment since the Ottawa section is only a couple months old and I am only one of 3 examiners recieving there first payment in January. (I started November 30th).
I don’t like that you don’t get to know what articles are preforming better than others.
If you really did find a working formula that made you, say $1,000 a week online on average and it kept producing income no matter what, would you want to sell that idea to a bunch of noobs for $47 a pop and expect to retire on the proceeds? No way, man! It does not compute. It does not add up. And it does not make any sense to do that. I certainly don’t go shouting from the rooftops how I make my money online. Hell, I don’t want the competition taking a slice of my pie and neither would anyone who really does make good cash online.
“I agree that you can make good money at examiner.com. I’m set to make over $300 this month and it is only my first month with Examiner. However, you do have to treat it like a job, instead of a hobby if you plan to make money.”
I think this is false, and if not, I would like some insight into how this person has gleaned so much money from Examiner. In this person’s FIRST MONTH, when they have absolutely no readership, they made $300? How is this possible? What market do you write for? To compare, since the beginning of this month (it’s been half a month, so extrapolate), I have made $3.31. I don’t have an incredible amount of page views, but it is still 50 over the average for my area (a major media market; Long Island, NY). I know that I need to write more articles, I have been working with Examiner for about a month myself, and have to adapt my style, as I tend toward longer, more in-depth pieces (this type of writing is not conducive to making money for Examiner). However, there is QUITE a difference between $7 and the $300 this person has claimed to make in her FIRST month. Even as a National Examiner with a HOT topic/field, I simply don’t see this happening. If somehow it did, THIS IS NOT THE NORM (unless perhaps click fraud is involved).
To those that are thinking of making money for Examiner, it can happen (to some degree), but don’t expect it to pay the bills. I started with Examiner (and also recently got accepted for Suite101) with the hopes of building up a writing resume and “getting my name out there,” not to make money. It is virtually impossible to break into print with no published experience, thus Examiner and Suite101. Also, if you want to make money with Examiner, pick a field that is much more generalized and popular. I work in an extremely niche market (Heavy Metal Music; Long Island Heavy metal music), and there simply aren’t that many people searching for the things I write about. However, it is what I love, and gives me the credentials to approach a band and actually get them to do an interview with me or a review or whatever. Examiner is also working to get press credentials for their writers so they can attend events for free (for me that would be concerts, festivals, etc.); obviously a huge perk that makes you forget that you are literally writing for pennies.
So I’d tell writers to write for Examiner (or Suite101) for the experience, to build up a resume and put out published work, not necessarily to make money. I am glad that some of you who have been writing for Examiner for a while are doing well with the residuals and such, I am looking forward to that in the future.
Continuing the Discussion