Wife, Mother...Writer? a True AC Success Story

Associated Content fell into my lap at a difficult time in my life. I'd lived overseas for a year, and the honeymoon period had worn off. I'd also just returned from a month-long visit to the states to see my family, and my return was more difficult than I'd anticipated. Though I'd always loved writing, it had fallen by the wayside and lost its place in my day to day life. I was suffering from depression, having a difficult time parenting my two small children, and arguing with my spouse. In short, I was in a bad way.

When an online friend mentioned Associated Content, I was intrigued. At first, I was doubtful. There was no way a website would pay money for articles...would they? And could I, a lapsed lover of writing, actually write something that anyone would be interested in reading? I wasn't, after all, a real writer.

I researched Associated Content, and decided to give it a try. I knew that I needed something for myself--something unrelated to my children, my husband, and my house. Perhaps AC could be that thing in my life.

I started off slowly, writing about parenting and the travels that we were doing overseas. These were things I'd already researched, lived, or read, so I felt confident that I could write 400 words about them. I knew that I was a fairly decent writer, and could probably put together something readable.

Knowing nothing about keywording, search engine optimization, and writing web content, my first articles didn't bring in much traffic. But it didn't matter. Writing for AC, I felt alive and excited for the first time in months. I wrote whenever my girls were asleep, whenever they were entertained, and whenever my husband was playing with them. I felt so proud to be contributing to our family financially, and so excited to be a "real" writer.

The more I wrote, the more I learned. I spent time on the AC forums, and picked the brains of several amazing writers there. I kept writing, and more people read my work. I did have articles rejected, and my upfront payments started to decline. I was disappointed, but didn't know what to do next.

When AC introduced the Calls for Content system, I was incredibly excited. I knew that while my work was well written, it wasn't something the Internet masses were interested in reading. I figured if Associated Content could tell me what to write about, I might be able to bring in more traffic.

It worked. Slowly but surely, the traffic to my AC articles increased. I ended 2007 with an average page view per article of less than 250. My goal for 2008 was 500. I'm at just shy of 1,000 page views per article now, with 4 months to go. I write for Associated Content partner sites on a regular basis, have learned to write news articles that get picked up and rank high on Google and Google news, and I still write the occasional travel and parenting piece, as well.

Associated Content came to me at a difficult time in my life. It became a catalyst for change, helping me realize I needed to do something different. I'm a happier wife, mother, and person because I write. What more could anyone ask for?