5 Awesome side jobs for online article writers

So, you write articles for a living? How does that pay? Well, sometimes it's very lucrative. Sometimes it's not. What can you do in between article assignments to make a little extra cash? You can write a little more. You don't have to write articles. Write other things. Use your online skills to generate a little extra cash. Here's a few ideas to get you started.

Social media management

Managing Facebook and Twitter accounts for local businesses or fellow writers is a great way to make an extra buck. Some larger companies pay the equivalent of a full time salary for these services. They have a business to run. They don't have time for social networking. You do. It only takes about an hour out of your writing day. It's a win for both of you.

Writer website building and maintenance

Surely you have a website for your writing business. Did you build your own website? Many authors haven't a clue how this is done. You have a large writing community network. If not, you should. Advertise writer website building and maintenance on Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest or wherever else you have a social presence. Once a website is built, it takes just a few minutes a day to maintain it.

Blog management

Most savvy business owners have blogs on their websites. Unfortunately, they know a lot about their business, but very little about writing . That's where you come in. They feed you current events and topics related to their business. They tell you some personal stories. You blog about what they're doing. It's ghost writing, personalized.

Editing for dummies (No offense intended)

Have you ever gone to a business website, read their articles and sighed? Why not offer your services to beef up their grammar, formatting or punctuation? You do it every day with your own articles. Every website has a contact form. Use it. Who knows? They may have been waiting for someone like you to help them out.

Writing E-Newsletters

Some companies put out monthly or bi-monthly newsletters to keep customers interested and informed. Your word program likely has newsletter templates that will allow you to easily format them. Email the finished newsletter to your client. They forward it to their contacts. Charge a per-word fee. It's that simple. Advertise this and other extra services you offer on your writing website and social media pages. You never know until you try!

Online writing tips – How to gain a reputation as an expert

Becoming an expert on your pet topic increases readership. Writing about your interests is probably the simplest way to build a reputation as an expert. Within your topic of interest is a vast library of information. Accessing this information on a daily basis can provide you with the material to become known as an expert in your field.

Repetitive research can make you an expert.

You may not know everything about your chosen subject. If you write about it enough, that could change. You probably remember how repetition helped you learn in grade school. Researching the same or similar subjects over and over gives you an informal education. As you do research to write your articles, you learn more and more until you are considered an authority.

Impeccable research will reinforce your expertise.

Just researching isn't enough to give you a good education in your subject matter. It's important to do quality research. Check to see that the sources you learn from are reliable and unbiased. Bad information does not constitute expertise. It just makes you look foolish and ill-informed.

A history of writing on specific topics can make you an expert.

As your writing history takes shape, your name will come up in searches for similar topics. That makes you an expert in the eyes of search engines. The more you write on a specific topic, the better your search value will be. If Mr. Smith from Washington DC searches for information on your pet subject, he'll soon see a vast array of articles by you. Voila! Instant expert.

Your article base can make you an expert.

What happens when someone goes to your page or website and types in a search for your pet topic? All your articles on that subject come up to stare them right in the face. In their eyes, you are an expert on that subject. You have the experience and background researching that subject that they are looking for. Now you become a reliable source.

Your readers might already consider you an expert.

Your regular readers know what you write about most. They learn to come to you first for answers on your favorite subject. They might even message you for advice. What happens when they do?

Give the best advice you can.

When people ask for advice, double check your research. Don't just rattle off the first piece of advice that comes to you. No way. Research the answers to people's questions just as if you were writing an article. Better yet, write a follow up article. That way they get the best advice possible and you get an education to further your expertise.

What is a writer?

I seem to be in a philosophical mood today.

Society often dictates the attachment of labels on things and even on people. So what classifies someone as a writer? To me, a writer is simply someone who writes. Whereas, society suggests that to be a writer or an author, one must first be published.

My opinion, for what it's worth, is that if one is inclined to write, enjoys it, has something or even nothing much to say and an urge to put their thoughts down on paper, that person is a writer. Now granted, I'm not much into lofty ideals. I could care less whether I am ever published. For me, it's about the pure train of thought that comes pouring from my brain and onto the paper.

I don't care much about perfect grammar, unless of course, whatever has been written is completely undecipherable.

I don't care much for using big words, either, even though I know a heck of a lot of them. No. I prefer that my writing be easily understood by anyone who cares to read it. After all, that is why one writes, isn't it?

Well, no. That's not why everyone writes, actually. Some people simply write for their own entertainment. That is, because they enjoy the act of writing. I pretty much lean in that direction, myself, although I do enjoy it more when someone reads my writing and enjoys it for whatever reason.

So there you go. I say that a writer is simply one who writes. Society dictates that in order to be classified as a writer (or author if you prefer the loftier term) one must be published. But honestly, they're all just words, you know,. We made them up.

So I guess they can mean whatever we choose them to.