Anyone interested in being paid to write articles for DG?

We have published over 100 articles this year at DG and the feature is hugely successful.

http://davesgarden.com/guides/articles/

We're about to double to number of articles we're publishing (two per day) and we're looking for additional writers! If you enjoy writing about gardening subjects and would like to earn a small amount of extra money, please dmail me.

Writers will be given broad discretion about the subjects they write about, although I often provide a list of subjects I'd like covered.

dave

Dave,

Would you possibly give a list of subjects for prospective articles/writers? Will all articles be garden related or expand to cover other forums/interests?

Dave - although I consider myself fairly articulate with a good vocabulary, I have read many of the articles posted and would not consider myself a writer worthy of that honor. Not to mention the fact that while I also consider my research skills competent (post subjects and I will gladly research) I may also be lacking in this area. I do enjoy a challenge though and right now, until medically cleared to return to work, I have lots of time.

The articles will be focused on gardening, nature or related somehow to gardening (this is a gardening site, after all!) The articles add value to the site for the members, and they also help the site grow by attracting new readers who are not currently DG members. So we try to cover as broad a spectrum of subjects as possible.

The article subjects change over time as needed. For example, in the coming month I would want a few of our writers to write an article about growing and cooking with lentils, perhaps making wreaths from your garden, and growing poinsettias. This way we'd have those kinds of articles for the seasonal aspect of the year...

Beyond that, there's a long roster of subjects I want articles for. a sampling:

Growing sweet potatoes
Growing cole crops (broccoli, cauliflower)
Growing celery
Fun projects with pinecones
How to eat a pomegranate
Preparing your garden for the winter

We also want to cover specific plants, like:

African Violets
Apples
Beans
Cannas
Clematis
Coleus
Corn
Crepe Myrtles
Daffodils
Daylilies

and so forth.

I pay $50 per article written.

Hope this helps!

Dyson, hopefully the example list provided above gives you an idea of what kinds of subjects we're looking for. It wouldn't hurt for you to join the team and give it a try. If it doesn't work out, you can easily back out and there's no hard feelings. :)

dave

Dave - Thank you

Thank you very much for elaborating Dave. I'm hoping more people will be brave enough to step up and try it and thought listing some subjects and ideas might encourage more people.

Dave, are you looking for members who can write these things from their own personal experience, or is it okay to research and write an article?

Thanks,
Dee

Writing from experience, as well as researching information for an article are both great things and I'm looking for writers that can do both!

Thanks for the quick answer Dave. I'll consider trying my hand - can't hurt to submit something, can it? Thanks!

Great, send me a dmail then. :)

Do we need to know any fancy computer stuff?

If we did, then I'd be a complete failure!

The articles are submitted through DG and use a system very similar to the forums.

Dave.. how does it work? Do you assign 2 people each day to write articles. Like one's due at noon and the other due at 6pm?? Or something similar to that?? Or is it a voluntary system like 5 people submit and they all get posted eventually??

I'll give it a go, too

Resin

We write articles ahead of time and schedule them for publication weeks and sometimes months in advance. So it's not paced in a daily environment.

Resin: Thanks. I dmailed you.

Okay then.. I'll give it a go.. I'm cruising around DG here anyways.. Might as well do something constructive with my time browsing here.. :) DH will be much happier with me spending time here.. :)

I might give it a try! Would you d-mail me, too?

Dave, can you d-mail me with whatever information you have, without me giving you a commitment? I would like to go back and read some more of the past articles, to get a grasp on what you want.

chris

Suggested length/word count??

Darius
500 words and up.
Pictures are a must.

Paul

The final word on all this is Dave's, of course, but here's my input, FWIW.

I thought the minimum was 400 words, but I think it's generally more of a challenge to get an article down to a manageable size than to meet that minimum. The suggested maximum was 1000 words. Dave has mentioned recently that it's OK to exceed that, especially for a how-to article, but keep in mind that these articles are meant to be a daily read, perhaps something to enjoy while you sip your morning coffee. Anything much over 1000 words, and most people aren't going to stay with you for the whole thing. If you have a great deal to say, then consider breaking it into a series of articles.

You have to have at least one photo (the thumbnail image that appears with the article title) in order to submit an article. Additional photos are encouraged but not required. They do not have to be your own images (images from PF and other sources can be used, with credit given as appropriate).

As an DG writer, you'll have access to the writer's forum where all this and more has been discussed. It's a great place to float topic ideas and ask questions. So if you're sure you want to write but aren't quite sure how to start, my advice would be to come aboard! You'll figure it out as you go along.

Wish I had the talent to write, but alas ... that is not my forte'. I do, however really enjoy reading and look forward to everyone's articles!

Just a thought I had. At 730 articles a year, aren't you all worried about running out of topics and the articles becoming redundant?

I had to edit to add that I'm only asking because I've been thinking about this, but not ready to commit myself. I'm worried about being able to come up with fresh material.

This message was edited Nov 13, 2007 7:51 PM

The only thing I know much about is Gourds... any need for this kind of article? Jo

Dave...I'm in.

Mike

Oh, I so wish I had more gardening experience! I cut my gardening baby-teeth right here on DG about four years ago, so it's unlikely I would have much to offer... though I do have a pretty nicely stocked pantry these days thanks to great veggie gardening advice and tips...

I'll just be a cheerleader for now, and quietly submit ideas for future articles that I'd like to see. ;) The next few months are going to be fun. There is so much talent here!!!

Jo
Make me a gourd birdhouse.

Paul

Great response! Couple notes:

1) If you want to be a writer and haven't talked to me via d-mail, please dmail me! (Don't ask me to dmail you, but please initiate a dmail with me). Be clear in the dmail that you want to join the writers team. :)

2) I'm heading out of town for the rest of this week leaving the site in Terry's capable hands. So please be aware that I won't be available to answer questions until next Monday.

best,
dave

Roadrunner/Jo ... I would love to read an article about gourds!


..... oh, and I collect Birdhouses too! :)

How can there be 730 articles a year when there are only 364 days in the year and there is only one a day? Or am I missing one?

lol missing about half! Dave is about to start publishing two a day. So, rounding up an article, oh and next year is a leap year-makes 730! I had to think about that. Lol!

Dave said in the first post of this thread that the number of articles were going to be doubled to two a day.

I thought there were 365 days in a year?

Oh wait. Apparently I didn't think hard enough! Eek long day! You are correct. So a leap year has 366?

LOL I *think* so, and I hadn't even considered it being leap year.

I am not a writer; however, I am a heck of a good propagator and take good pictures. This challenge I will have to think on for a week or so. Sometimes good growers are not good authors. That would be me!!

Often good writers know very little about actual plants.

Unless they are authors/gardeners - perhaps writing for gardening magazines and publications and do lots of research about the subject/plant they are writing about.

Hello, Lin!

Don't worry as I could never write an article. I rarely complete two sentences in a row. (LOL)