Five Sites that Pay to Publish Content

While there are many websites that will help you get your content into print, this article will review five of the more popular content publishing sites and discuss the pro's and con's of each one. For each of the listed websites you will find pertinent information about the rate and convenience of payments, types of content published, the editorial process, content review times and site specific information that can help you, as a freelance writer, decide where to publish your material.

1.
Associated Content
Associated Content pays it's content producers both upfront and performance based payments. The site accepts submissions that are both factual or creative in nature. Associated Content allows contributing writer's the freedom to submit material for non-exclusive publication, thereby retaining the rights to their own work. Writer's may also choose to submit material for a specified period of time, a privelege not afforded by other on-line content publishers. Writers submitting material to Associated Content for exclusive publication can expect a wait time of one to two weeks, while articles are reviewed for publication. If the article is accepted as exclusive content, Associated Content will offer an upfront payment price. The writer has the option to accept or turn-down the quoted price for their submission. Articles not accepted for exclusive publication or upfront payment are still eligible for performance payment only publication.

Freelancer.com
Freelancer.com acts as a middle man, connecting writers to those who need a wide variety of content produced. Most of the content is assigned to writers in large chunks; clients often request 10 to 20 short articles revolving around the same subject. Writers bid against one another in order to obtain writing jobs. The bidding wars, which often begin the minute a new job is posted, can make it difficult for freelance writers to earn a reasonable income from work obtained through this site alone. On the other hand, many clients that post jobs on this site are looking to hire writers on a permanent basis. If you are willing to perform a posted job at a lower pay rate, this site can help you generate a steady income rather quickly.

Helium.com
Helium.com is a community rated Internet publishing site. Helium pays performance payments to all of it's contributors. Those who have high ratings among peers are also able to generate additional income. Helium sponsors writing contests and offers special, higher paying assignments to it's "starred writers". The Helium website is filled with thousands of topics on a wide variety of subjects. In order to write for this site you simply add your own original content to a title. In most cases the titles will already have several articles associated with them. Your material is then compared with content already under the title, and rated by other writers, as either better or worse. In theory the articles that are deemed "best" will float to the top of the category, while those that are of lesser quality will sink to the bottom. This would mean that the best writers on the site would earn the most money and recieve the highest marks from their peers. Many Helium writers, however, have identified flaws in the rating system, noting that often the articles which are the most poorly written somehow manage to float to the top of the proverbial pile.

BrightHub
Bright Hub offers two main publishing options for freelance writers. Editorial channels allow freelance content producers to select from a list of titles. The writer then submits the material to a group editor, who reviews, revises and requests changes. When the content is accepted for publication, the writer is paid an upfront flat fee and is also given performance payments for the life of the piece. Another option for publication on Bright Hub is self-publishing. Content published in this way generates performance only payments for writers. Bright Hub hires only experts, although this may be in a variety of fields. They recruit experienced writers with an established on-line presence. Bright Hub allows new writers (for the first 30 days) to publish five articles per month in editorial channels. There is no limit to the number of self-published articles a writer may submit.

Demand Media Studios
Demand Media Studios provides writers with thousands of topics on a wide range of subjects. Writers select content, write the article in the given format and submit it for editorial review. Review times vary from one to five days, with an absolute limit of seven days. Articles selected from the que pay a flat fee, which ranges from $3.00 to $15.00, depending on the format of the piece. New writers start out with a maximum of three articles. An editor works with new writers to ensure that the material is publishable. Once the new writer has produced three publishable articles their personal limit is raised, allowing them to claim additional assignments. DMS employs thousands of content producers and thousands of copy-editors. The main problem identified by writers on this site is the difficulty with editorial consistency. While DMS provides authors and CE's with guidelines for publication, these guidelines are subject to personal interpretation by both writers and copy editors. After an piece of content has been reviewed for publication a copy editor has the privelege of asking for corrections or revisions. A writer has one chance to bring the piece up to the editors standards. If the rewrite has not met with the editors approval, the article is automatically rejected. Many DS writers find it difficult to work with such a wide variety of editors and editorial styles. On the other side of this, however, DMS publishes at least 80 percent of all submitted content, and pays it's content producers twice, weekly.

Links:
Associated Content:http://www.associatedcontent.com/join.html?refer=66736

Helium.com: http://www.helium.com/users/112485/show_articles

Demand Media Studios: http://www.demandstudios.com/

Freelancer.com: http://www.freelancer.com/

Bright Hub: http://www.brighthub.com/