March 2009 Premium Content Challenge - Who's in?

[Celeste Stewart]

In a different thread, another writer mentioned that shooting for landing an article in the premium content section is one of her goals. What an excellent goal that is! Sure, we all have our bread and butter articles but sometimes relying on bread and butter deadens our taste buds just a tad. Who wants to whet their appetite and go for a more sophisticated entree just once this month?

Here's the challenge:
Write at least one article with the premium content section in mind. It doesn't matter if the final article actually lands in the section because. . .

Here's your reward:
By writing with the premium content section in mind, you will be more likely to craft an article that shines! You will do additional research, expand on your ideas, structure your article in a more meaningful manner, and proofread, revise, proofread, revise, and proofread and revise some more. Do you see the benefit? This additional attention to detail reinforces those good writing habits that we may have let slide in the pursuit of productivity. It also forces us to look at our own writing flaws and conquer them.

The Judges:
Ed is considered a judge as Ed decides which articles are approved or rejected and which ones officially land in the premium content section. Customers are also considered judges as they are the ones who reward us financially for our words. However, the most important judge is you. An article may or may not be officially accepted or marked as "premium" by Ed, but if you are satisfied that you nailed it, then give yourself a pat on the back. The main point of this challenge is to improve our own individual performance based on our own individual benchmarks. If you learn even one new technique to improve your writing, you are that much further ahead for your efforts. Your future submissions will improve based on pushing yourself to a higher level.

Winners:
Anyone who gives it a try!

Losers:
There are no losers in this challenge.

Who's in?

[HayleyWriter]

I'm in for sure!

Hayley

[Elizabeth Ann West]

I'm in and it's funny one of my run-of-the-mill articles I was just recently working on cloth diapering turned into a commentary about the resurgent cloth diapering industry utilizing old-fashion cottage industry techniques to provide a modern product transformation. As I was writing, it developed very organically and I quickly spotted a pattern (Yes, sometimes I write and article and have to go back and rework my thesis to match where the article ended up). I realized modern cloth diapering is a prime example of a product improving through technological advances, but still being environmentally sound, fostering strong business ethics, promoting home country manufacturing, and cost savings to consumers over alternatives. Once I was finished, even my husband read it and thought it was a very interesting read since many people know very little about modern cloth diapers.

Sorry, still on my high of "Wow that was really neat and fun to write..." The funny part is in editing I noticed I used a few unconventional grammar configurations (I used a semi-colon to make my introduction stronger and less watered down) and had a blast taking long run on sentences and breaking them into short pops. One of my favorite sentences was "Snappis also protect active babies from popped-pin pokes." The sentence sounded to me just like the idea of a diaper pin popping and a sharp point at the end.

I'm officially a writing dork. But great idea Celeste.

[BarryDavidson]

Elizabeth,

I too have to frequently change my thesis statements because the article takes on a life of its own. I start writing with one or two ideas in mind, but my mind and fingers are always arguing. My fingers will be slowly typing the original while my mind tries to interject more.

My biggest problem is that I can sometimes jump from point to point too quickly. Luckily my wife, who has been editing for over twenty years, as beaten the ability to spot that into me - most of the time anyway.

I can't promise I'm in on this challenge, but I will keep it in mind. My wife and I are currently house shopping, plus I have a few assignments from one of my customers.

[Celeste Stewart]

Glad to hear you guys are in :) Today's my day to draft an article that I think may be worthy for the premium section. I already have the title and my keypoints jotted down. I'm not sure why I picked today of all days to tackle it though as Wednesdays are half days at my daughter's school. So I have half as many free hours as normal. Plus I have a few other things I need to do. But I'm inspired to write this, so there you go.

[Ed]

Hi - I haven't overlooked this thread or forgotten about it. I'd like to revisit and reiterate some of the things that I look for for the Premium Articles category so that we're all on the same page. I just haven't had the opportunity to dig up my previous notes or respond in full.

In brief, Premium articles usually:
Are fun to read
Introduce the subject in a surprising/different way (Starting your article out with some variation of "there are many reasons why you should . . . and here they are" is effective for basic web writing and short articles, but is boring)
Are in-depth treatments of the subject matter that offer new information to a reader who probably already has basic knowledge about the subject

While some formulaic articles have made it onto the Premium list, formulaic is not the way to go. Let your idea percolate, study up on it, consult unlikely sources, and then let it percolate some more. Writing about subject matter that you have cultivated an interest in (or will as you research) is the best tip I can offer.

As always, proofread and proofread again. Structure your sentences in a variety of ways. If you want to use a punctuation mark you aren't sure about, look it up.

Looking forward to your in-depth, fun-to-read articles.
Ed

[Celeste Stewart]

Thanks for the reminder :)

Not sure mine is going to be fun to read in that the topic is a bit disheartening (what to do before the pink slip arrives) but I know what you mean.

[Elizabeth Ann West]

Alright I have my first contender for the contest ;)

It all started with me getting completely ticked off at my TV. I was watching "Real Time with Bill Maher" a show I do not always agree with, but enjoy it because it provokes my thoughts. One of the guests continually started to blame record savings rates as a big reason why the recession keeps lagging and how government won't be able to do anything about that (Yes this guest was a politician, go figure right?). Then, I was watching MSNBC and I heard a similar sentiment from another pundit. The final straw was when I was reading that American Express is paying people to pay off their balances and close their cards. This is the dumbest thing I've heard in a while, and actually dangerous to suggest to families IMHO.

So I just wrote a piece titled "The Current Conflicting Story on Saving Money." Just shy of 1,000 words, I actually enjoyed making the trip from why the economic pundits are blaming the savings rates, outlining the problems with relying on credit lines as emergency funds, and then explaining how saving money is actually the best thing for all of us in the long term.

I know I can't post the article obviously, but I truly enjoyed writing it and will do final edit and submittal tomorrow. Right now though I am thrilled with breaking out of the formulaic article rut (Which this idea actually started as, but that format didn't work for the information) and love my last sentence: "Be selfish, save your money, and help rebuild the American economy from the ground up."

It's fun to spin a popular topic onto a completely different corner.

[Celeste Stewart]

Yeah, it's the paradox: what's good for the individual (high savings rate) isn't good for the economy when all of the individuals are doing it. But, hey, you gotta look out for number one, right? Let us know when it's posted so we can take a peek before it sells :)

[Celeste Stewart]

Note to self: Always save a copy of the short summary on your computer! LOL. Ed had a great suggestion about using the short summary which was punchy and interesting instead of my more ordinary intro. Drat. All I can remember from it was Paul Reverve dashing through the streets shouting "The pink slips are coming!" and alas, the article (and the short summary) has been "purged." Oh well, the new intro is better than the old one.

[Ed]

I actually saved a copy in case you didnt. I'll place it here. When you grab it, delete it.

[Celeste Stewart]

You're the best!
I'll grab it. I like my new one too, but this helps. Let me go tweak my revised submission.

[Elizabeth Ann West]

Alright, my submission is in. I wrote one as a premium article, and I also wrote a formulaic credit card article with the common research. I'm excited because I found out my local library (I live kinda in a rural area) FINALLY has wifi AND access to DISCUS. So I am dreaming about tackling some hard angles on universal health care as I think that is going to be a very hot topic here soon.

I might even get in touch with my journalism roots and do a hard look at my local CHIPS program. Hmmmm..... I'm really enjoying this new desire and passion to my writing since I'm focusing more on quality instead of the quantity of money coming in ( I finally accept the second issue follows naturally when the first is satisfied).

[Celeste Stewart]

I think this is a terrific exercise and am glad to see you inspired! Finding a good balance is important, too. I believe that by pushing ourselves periodically, the quantity-type articles will naturally improve.

PS - Thanks Ed!

[jak]

I see yours made it, Celeste. Not your first premium of course. But congrats on this one.