I don't know how to write and create content. Need help.

by 78 replies
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This is my first post, so I would like to say hello to you all and thank you for taking the time to read this post.

Anyways, I have been reading on IM for about 2 years now but, I have yet to REALLY take off with it. I'm registered with clickbank, however, that's where it stops.

I know the internet is fueled by content but, the problem is I don't know how to write articles. It's hard for me to explain so I'm going to try my best...

I don't know how to research topics, take notes from the research to use in my articles, I don't know what to write about, I don't know how to organize all the info, I don't know how to put any of it into my own words etc. I am not an expert on anything and I honestly don't know enough about anything to even begin pumping out content.

Money is tight for my family and I so paying for content is out the question. I don't even know what my "passion" is to even have an idea on what I could write about.

I dropped out of high school and didn't pay much attention while I was there. I did end up getting my diploma through a home study program but, the reason I mention that is because I want you to have an understanding of where I'm coming from.

I work 40 hours a week at a dry cleaners, my job is being a counter person. So, as you can see it requires no brain-power whatsoever to do and it sucks because it is the only type of job I've ever had. Which means that I don't have much experience in anything to even start any sort of service business.

I have come on here for help because I truly believe you great people can help show me some sort of light at the end of the tunnel. I don't want to be stuck at this dead end job for the rest of my life and I cringe at the thought of going to some type of college. I want to be my own boss, call my own shots and control my own destiny.

So...any sort of help, advice, anything will be a blessing for me. Thank you again.
#main internet marketing discussion forum #how to be success online #how to write a blog #how to write articles #internet marketing advice
  • You just created content. Congratulations!

    Put pen to paper or fingers to keyboard. Easy.

    You don't need to make a big issue out of a small issue.

    Get reading, get ideas, get writing.
    • [ 3 ] Thanks
  • Look up PLR content. I suggest BigContentSearch. It's pretty awesome.
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    • What is your recommendation on how unique the PLR should be to post on a blog to avoid duplicate content issues? I've read anywhere from 30%-100%.
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  • Get information from article directories like EzineArticles.blogs, trends, Ehow and other how-to sites.
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    • Thank you all for your replies. I think it's all starting to sink in now. It did cross my mind about heading over to Ezine and checking out other writers articles for ideas but, I wasn't sure if it was something wrong to do.

      Obviously I won't copy word for word on what they wrote. So, now I just need you guys to help me out with this last part: So, I head over to Ezine, read a great article and I see a lot of great information that I would like to use in my article or blog post; do I just write down the main points of the article and basically rewrite them in my own words along with adding my own introduction and conclusion?
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  • sounds to me like lack of confidence in your own abilities is your biggest problem. What you just wrote is almost an article in itself. And even though you may deride your position, you must have good customer skills to have kept it for so long. Maybe you are a good people person? Since you joined clickbank, go through the topics there and see what interests you. What ebook would you buy if you had enough money? That would surely be your interest.
    You can easily outsource content writing for your website or use plr articles which are very affordable.
    • [ 4 ] Thanks
  • Check this out. The Art of Non-Conformity ยป How to Write 300,000 Words In 1 Year
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    • Hi Jason,

      First of all, imo, you are doing your research back to front.

      After picking a topic, I would start by asking myself the kind of questions that I would want to know if I knew nothing about the subject (which is very easy if I actually do know nothing about it, lol.)

      For example, if it was cycling, I might start with listing these questions:

      How much should I spend on a bike?
      What are the pros and cons of a cheap bike vs an expensive bike?
      What types of bikes are there?
      Which is the best bike for me?
      What other equipment would I need?
      Where can I ride?
      What is the best time of the day to ride?
      What are the road-rules for bike riders?
      etc...

      As you can see, you could easily keep going until you had a pretty big list of questions; Put yourself in another person's shoes, and think about what they would like to know.

      Next, picture someone you know who you would like to share this information with. Imagine that they are actually asking you each question, one at a time, and you are answering.

      Write down your answers exactly as you would speak to them... This will give your writing a more personal feel/tone. If you don't like to write, you could use 'Dragon Naturally Speaking' software, which will actually write it for you as you speak. Also, if you have Windows on your computer, you probably already have speech recognition software installed, for free! Just type 'speech recognition' into the start/search box to find it.

      When you don't know an answer, move to the next question. Once you are finished you will have a few blanks to fill in, and this is when you will need to research. Visit the top couple of blogs/sites for your niche to get answers for the things which you don't know. Over time, you will find your favourites, but you could start with Yahoo Answers, Warriorforum, Ezinearticles, Ehow, Amazon (read reviews and cheap ebooks), Wikipedia, whatever, as long as the information is accurate and reliable.

      To decide between fact and fiction, you may need to spend time becoming more familiar with your subject, but it will be highly focused time because you know exactly what you are looking for; you wont just be collecting a big pile of research before having to sort through it.

      As far as the actual writing goes.. it is mostly discipline and practise. You need to do it everyday, whether you feel like it or not. Don't worry too much if you're not passionate about it at first; we all have days where we don't feel like it, but successful writers push through and do it anyway.

      I agree with writing 1000 words a day.. I do 2 X 500 words each day. The first is straight up in the morning, and the next is immediately after lunch. Work out the best time for you, but I strongly suggest doing at least one session straight away, while having your morning coffee. Don't stop or edit as you go... think of it like ripping off a band-aid; the faster the better. The first draft is usually horrible, but you can fiddle around with it later. Writing time is for focused writing only!

      Remember, if you find it difficult, that's ok.. it's WORK! Not much different to working at the dry cleaners, except you are creating an ASSET that will earn you $$$ 24/7 Hopefully you will also find your passion somewhere along the way, and start to enjoy it but, if not, you can always start outsourcing once you are seeing a return.

      To organize your writing (and research) I use and recommend Scrivener, plus pen and paper.

      Scrivener is free for 30 days of [actual] use, and then costs about $40, once-off. It is designed by writers, for writers, and also has some cool tools. For example, you can set a word limit for each session (eg. 500 words) and it has a bar that gets smaller as you type, to show your progress (if you know what I mean, lol.) At the same time there is another one showing how much of the entire project you have completed. Clever, and more motivating than you may first think!
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  • I think before you can write you have to figure out what your passion is, what your interests are. It's hard to write about something you completely know nothing about. It's hard enough for professional writers, worse if you don't really write for a living.
    My suggestion is to create a list of the things you like to read on your spare time. Do you like sports, finance, politics, hobbies? Once you find your interest, you'd be able to narrow down a niche you can work with.Once you have your niche, researching and creating content for that niche would be easier because it's something you're naturally interested in.
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  • Jason,

    Look right underneath your own nose my man.

    You have some valuable real world experience to offer loads of people who are now in the shoes you once wore.

    You mentioned dropping out of high school and getting a diploma through a home study program.

    There are hundreds of thousands of people ready to drop out, or already have done so, but would still very much like to advance their lives.

    This is a topic you can write quite easily on since you have 'walked the walk'.

    I would start right there with your writing. You would be a great deal of help to a lot of semi-desperate people.

    Good luck on finding your way.
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    • I give you a lot of credit for knowing your weakness. Many people aren't self-aware enough to admit to themselves that they have something to work on. Luckily for you, writing is a skill that can be learned. You should go to your library and check out some books on copywriting and salesmanship. I guarantee that they have some of the classics there. It will teach you the basics, and from there it's just practice.
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    • Jason, you're a great writer man. Your opening post is an article in itself. I think the hurdle you need to overcome is either lack of confidence in your skills or finding the right niche for you.

      At first it's overwhelming because there are so many areas to cover, but once you find something you like and know about, it gets easier from there.

      This post hits a great point as well:

      There's money to be made in the Education industry, Jason. And you seem to know a bit about it. There are tons of people that are where you were, and are looking for guidance.

      And since you've been there, you know what difficulties they may be facing, and what information they need to succeed. It'll also be much easier for you to come up with angles from which to market to them, as you've already been there.

      Sign up with CJ.com or other CPA networks and find relevant educational offers that you'd feel comfortable promoting and go from there.

      And you don't need to write article after article like everyone else. Be creative. Your job is to get your offers/valuable information in front of interested people. Since your target demo is probably in their younger years, use social media to your advantage. Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, ect..

      They're all great traffic sources if used correctly, and don't require hundreds of articles to be written. Although it wouldn't hurt either.

      Best of luck to you man, all the best.
  • If you have written essays in school you can write articles for websites. Practice makes perfect. I recommend starting a personal blog just to get used to writing articles.
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  • Like was mentioned earlier by somebody else here, you just created content. Therefore you do possess the skill to do that.

    As you an easily see here, you had absolutely no trouble writing what you wanted to say. That's really all there is to it. You just have to be creative and use your imagination and your brain to come up with ideas and possibilities that you can use to develop your content.

    Sure you will need to do research and stuff like that, and going on Ezine Articles isn't a bad thing to do. You can find a lot of really valuable information there on just about any topic imaginable. So if I were you then, I would go there and start with that and then branch off to other sites such as blogs and other directories that provide good content that you can devour and learn from.
  • Nice topic, helped me a lot too. I'll be needing to do this stuff as well, as i am in a similar position with regards to learning things from the beginning.

    Keep the work going, it'll pay in the end.
  • Your content doesn't have to be Pulitzer Prize winning. Just write from the heart and keep it casual and down to earth. If you can speak you can write. The message of what you want to say is more than important than how you say it.
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  • Jason,

    I have been doing SEO/Blogging for 3.5 months. The last 2.5 years, I have been cleaning houses to pay my bills. The difference between you and me is that I graduated college at a very young age. The moral of the story here: It doesn't matter what job you have or what education you have gone through. At the end of the day, it's how you handle it.

    I want you to train yourself to take excuses out of your life and put the frustrations of your history aside. Until you're working 120 hours a week, 40 at the dry cleaners, and 60 online, you don't have the means to say "you've failed." There is no failure.

    From now on, you need to find a way to educate yourself. Do you have an ipod? Do you have a means to download podcasts and listen to them at work? I know that it could be loud where you work, but even if you could listen to one podcast a day on a certain subject, you're getting something in your noggin. If you go onto itunes, click on the itunes store, and then the tab at the top and the right that says itunes U, there's your college degree. On there is an unbelievable amount of high-level college courses recorded from universities like Yale, New York University, even Harvard. Simply type in a topic and go. Then you can download the courses (even some coursework if it is provided) and play them on your computer or transfer them to a phone, ipod, ipad, etc. Take some earphones and absorb. It's nice to go to school without the stress and pressure of grades.

    As far as content building, you have great communication skills and grammar etiquette, so that doesn't seem to hold you back. The key is to have points and fill it with information that challenges, inspires, informs, persuades, and encourages. If you're talking about the benefits of social marketing, share what the benefits are and why. Start with an introductory paragraph, make a point and defend it, do it for the next ones, maybe throw in a small conclusion paragraph and you're ready to go. Try to do it in the 850-1000 word range.

    Check out quicksprout and neil patel's blog as well as seomoz. They provide great points on the things that would apply for you.
  • Don't start writing with cliches "Hi, this is my first post". Don't thank people for taking the time to read your post. Expect them to read it. Expect them to be there. I think it's a matter of confidence. You'll get through it.

    Just get a bit more ballsy with your writing. You know what to do!

    PLR's a laugh, isn't it!
  • Start with what you know already, like someone mentioned above: 'you got experience'...
    Start writing about stuff you know a lot about and just go from there.
  • Hey Jason,

    Writing can be difficult for me at time but other times I can sit down and write nearly 1000 words without taking a break.

    The key contributor here is passion.

    When I find something that I am passionate about, I don't mind sitting down and writing for hours about it.

    Give me a boring topic and I would rather scrub my toilet than research and write about it.

    I suggest finding something you are passionate about and just writing whatever comes to mind.

    It sounds like you are passionate about starting your own business and being your own boss.

    Maybe start a blog around that topic.

    You can make blog posts about various things like: starting your own business, increasing productivity, getting traffic, etc.

    Researching and writing about these topics will teach both you and your readers new concepts that will help strengthen your passion.

    You don't have to be a perfectionist. Your writing doesn't have to be professional. Just start writing and get your point across. Don't worry about the small things.

    A fun exercise I like to do is find a YouTube video that inspires me and post it on my blog and just write about it.

    Write down your thoughts and feelings and maybe a brief summary of the video.

    This is an easy and fun way to strengthen your writing skills.
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  • Jason,

    Is there anything that you love or a hobby? You could write about that you can always work in a business in about anything your write.

    Also when you write get a picture of someone that you can talk to easily or think about them in your mind and just talk to them. All the research and stuff is great and I don't discourage that at all but most people want to read you not a bunch of facts. You see those they can look up for them self.

    Your personally is what will attract the people you want. Good luck and if you need any help shoot me a message or however you contact on warrior I have been a member for a while now but haven't been in very much I'm changing all that

    Sincerely,
    Susan
  • Jason,

    In the end you have stated something that you would like to achieve in your life. And in the beginning you say the internet if fueled by content.

    But you have made an enormous leap from the beginning to the end.

    Apparently you have the idea that somehow by "pumping out content" you will be able to be your "own boss" and control you "own destiny."

    How will that happen, exactly?

    The reason you have a job is because someone invested their resources into developing something that was of value to others.

    And it was of enough value that others were willing to pay for it.

    And they were willing to pay enough so that there was adequate income to hire workers. That is why you have a job.

    Now, if you are capable of doing the same thing in some area of life -- providing something of value that others are willing to purchase from you, and doing this at a profit -- then you can control your own financial destiny.

    If your product is the written word -- a product for which the competition is razor sharp -- then you will achieve your goals by "pumping out content." But this is by no means guaranteed.

    You are on a marketing forum. You might give some thought to what that word means. The dictionary is a good place to start, and there are books on the subject.

    And then after that take the time to examine the ways in which others use the tools of marketing to achieve their goals.

    Apply these tools to your own life in an intelligent manner and you will increase your chances of success enormously.
  • Brother if you want to write more content and quality content, you have to be passionate about it and you should must have knowledge about it. You should read more and more posts within your niche so that you should get more knowledge.
  • I hope I can say this without offending anyone.

    Jason, your grammar and sentence structure are better than the majority of the people here on Warrior Forum

    Having said this, a great way to learn how to create content is by consumer content written by others. A good resource for this would be an article directory such as EzineArticles.

    Focus on articles written by Platinum and Diamond authors. Pay attention to how their thoughts flow, and how they transition from one paragraph to the next.

    If you do this for even only a day, you will get an good idea of how to develop content of your own.
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  • Just by reading your post, it is obvious you are literate! So you CAN write!! I was stuck in a rut for almost 4 years because I felt I couldn't write content for my site.

    You need to stop researching stuff you really don't have interest in and just write about what you already know and love!! You might think, "oh, no one would be interested in that" but they are!!

    When you can be completely honest with yourself and just write, it comes a heck of a lot more naturally than if you are trying to force it!

    Go and read a book, listen to an inspirational message and then go write about it! Do this for 90 days consistently and you will be surprised at how easy it becomes to write!!

    Good luck!!
  • Hey Jason, I just got back from the future, and the WSO of the day on this forum read ...


    "How I Went From A Dry Cleaning Counter Person To Best Selling Author Of the 21st Century"


    Cheers !
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  • You did a pretty good job talking about your current position. I think you would do a fine job writing and producing content. If you aren't comfortable with your current ability it would hurt to find a free source on article marketing and how to write articles.

    Remember that for the most part, nothing is new. It's not your place as a marketer to be an expert, rather an organizer of information. Learn how to organize quality information without plagiarizing and you will have good content.
  • Hey All....


    I think too many people complicate the process. As a newbie, the very best thing that you can do is take action. Create a blog and just start writing. Content creation can be as easy as writing an email or talking to a friend.

    JoeMack
  • Jason,

    Congratulations on having the courage to ask for help. Many people have offered excellent advice. I would simply like to add that you said you have been reading about internet marketing for two years now.

    Why not take some of that and simply re-word it for your own small report. After two years you have learned quite a bit about IM. Share some of that for those who are just beginning to learn.

    There are always people who you are one step ahead of. Help them with what you already know.

    Good luck to you!
  • See if this helps you any dude.

    http://www.warriorforum.com/main-int...420-words.html
  • You could write about some of your own experiences. For example, 'How to Complete Your Diploma While Working 40 Hours A Week'. The next one could be 'How To Get Going With Clickbank'. There are thousands of people in exactly the same boat as you that would be interested in reading that sort of stuff.
  • I'm confident that you have it in yourself to write some good content. Look at what you wrote in this post! Lol... the good thing about writing content is that you dont have to follow conventional rules of grammar that you learned in English class. Write how people speak, and also consider something called "Dragon Naturally Speaking Software". It can handle your content creation issues in a cinch.
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    • I received a great tip over the weekend hidden inside a video marketing strategy.

      Use the search function in this forum and enter a general term, such as WordPress or whatever interests you and see what questions are getting asked with of course the answers in the thread.

      Then you can expand upon the answers given in your own content and with the person asking the question in mind.

      Get to know your target audience and it will become obvious what you have to write.
  • Japles gave you great advice.

    It all starts with passion. And passion is the foundation for everything you do and create.

    Writing just for the sake of getting practice is not going to help you. Your writing (and communication) skills will effortlessly grow - as you casually talk about people, ideas, circumstances and perspectives that get your juices flowing.

    Don't focus on structure, like writing articles. Allow yourself to get into a stream of consciousness.

    A few days ago, I posted an old writing exercise in the copywriting forum. It's about writing a letter to "an old friend." You're telling him or her about something new in your life, a big idea you had, a new experience you created, etc. Learning how to casually "talk" in your writing is going to get you WAY further than articles. No debate.

    On a personal note...

    I've got you beat. I'm a 4th grade drop out. I've been self-taught since I was 10 years old (except for 3 or 4 months when I had a math tutor.) I don't even have my high school equivalency.

    I knew when I was pretty young that if I was going to create the ideal lifestyle I wanted, it was going to come from being a self-starter.

    I've taught tennis at some of the most exclusive country clubs in San Francisco, ran my own massage/bodywork business for 8+ years, worked for the WWE (when it was the WWF,) created my own products and successfully helped lots of people make money in their businesses. Nobody taught me how (except for the brilliant people who wrote the books I've enjoyed oh so much.)

    So take it from me...

    Your level of education is NOT an indication of what you can or can't achieve in your life - on any level.

    However...

    If you want to get out of the dry cleaning business, it's not just about writing content/copy, it's knowing what you feel passionate about and creating products or participating with business owners (e.g. affiliate markeitng) who reflect your vision and values. You've got to figure how to create an impact in people's lives (who resonate with your passions.)

    Start there.

    Mark
  • "Look Over My Shoulder As I Show You Step-By-Step How A High School Drop Out, Down On His Luck Dry Cleaning Counter Employee Turns A Pennies On The Dollar Writing Side Business Into A $163,787 A Year Publishing EMPIRE"

    Has a nice ring to it, no?

    Dude - you can do it. People with much less have done much, much more. Doesn't have to be about writing, I think you get the point.

    The only advice I have for you, because there is a ton of amazing advice in this thread already, is keep going.

    Do not give up on yourself and just keep pressing on.

    Become the bull.

    If you hate the job you have right now, you can either change the job, or change they way you think about the job.

    So start creating something, anything.

    Your life is good my man. It could always be worse. It's all about how you approach it.

    This guy married his dream girl.

    You can make money running an internet business.

    Just start and then keep going.
  • Here are 3 of my favorite ways to create content fast and easy...

    1. Scour the web for signs of emotionally important content...what I mean by that is topics, subjects, words that trigger many comments on blogs, many feedback messages on Amazon, many reads and responses on discussion forums, etc... show that a topic matters to your marketplace. Above all else, in today's OCEAN of content, this helps you be relevant.

    2. I look at the questions being asked about that topic area - what are people frustrated with, what do they want to know? Starting with a question is SO much easier than trying to write something from scratch that is meaningful...give it a try, it's worked for everyone I have ever suggested it to.

    3. Study the market leaders...I have a shortlist of "market authority leaders" blogs, facebook posts, Twitter posts, forums, etc...in each market we operate in. I study them daily for interesting content - often I will read their "take" and then immediately jump to my own take on the same topic - then use that to inspire content. Trick here is to let their coverage guide your thinking, but then make sure you have your own take on that particular topic.

    Hope that helps,

    Jeff
  • Don't panic! You're a good writer - I can tell from your post.

    Your post had an introduction, body, conclusion. Your writing kept me engaged and focused. You can form complete sentences and your grammar and spellings are sound.

    I wouldn't worry about it. :-)

    You had an idea for what you want to say. You explained to us in the beginning of the post what you wanted to accomplished. You backed it up with information to support your statement (why you think you have trouble, why you need the money) and then you made a nice conclusion.

    Say what you're going to say, say it, and then say what you just said. That's writing (and speech giving - I think I learned that in the context of giving speeches but it works for writing, too)...

    Keep at it and you'll succeed.
  • The ability to write better articles is not going to pave your path in gold. It's no different than someone learning how to play guitar. Then what?

    What exactly is your goal? Can you point to someone or a website that you admire? That will tell you what direction to go in.
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    • Hmmm,

      The OP hasn't been logged in for nearly a month but hopefully the suggestions posted here will help some others needing some guidance and advice too.

      Terra
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  • I'm new here, too, but I say you are a great writer and you don't realize it. Your original post was excellent!

    I heard something recently on a WSO that I thought was an interesting point. The IM'er suggested watching Youtube videos in your niche and making an article out of the spoken audio in it. Write and pause, write and pause... Edit the finished article a little to make it unique and presto! You've got an article on a niche. Could be anything from buying a smartphone, to developing a list.

    I don't know if this is frowned upon or not, but I thought it was a great idea to get people like us started. At least until we start getting comfortable writing our own stuff.
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    • I'm sorry, but that is not only frowned upon, but in my opinion, is stealing as a derivative work.

      Are you aware that some people actually write an article or copy, record it, mix it with the video animation, or power point presentation, post it on YouTube and include that script in article form along with the video on YouTube?

      Do you realize that article could be already in print on their website accompanied with a voiceover audio as as a choice for their readers? I know that some do as they have hired me for that voiceover audio accompaniment to their article.

      If you just transcribe that audio into content even with just a little change here and there, you have just entered the world of thievery and infringed upon copyright and broke the law.

      Not wise at all in my opinion.

      Terra
  • Be yourself. You are writing lovely thoughts here so continue to do that! I like to use speech recognition software - I talk my content. Try it!
  • Hi Jason,
    Don't worry about duplicate content - that's only a problem if it's duplicated on the same domain.

    As for gathering info from other articles, that's fine, and then do this -

    write what your article is about, that's your intro.
    Then simpply imagine you are explaining your point to a friend over the phine. Dont worry about editing, just keep typing.
    Then at the end, make sure you summatise your point.

    Now, go back and edit, check spelling, tidy up here and there. Leave to simmer, preferably at least overnight, then when you look at it again, you'll probably see more edits.

    That's it - an article!
    Once you practice, you'll get better and quicker, but you have to put in the practice!
    Good luck!
    Gordon
  • I like goindeep's initial response. Content is anything that exudes from you - good or bad, it's your personality and thoughts digitally expressed. There's no wrong way to do it. That said, certain "formulas" for content will convert and drive your visitors better than others.

    So, focus less on what to talk about and rather HOW to talk about it.
  • You don't know how to write but just did

    Your post is almost 400 words (an article)

    Just find a good training course on writing and take action..

    You'll get better with practice.

    I started with Jason Fladlien course on article marketing (write an article in 7 minutes)

    Don't know if it's still available though.

    Cheers,

    Gary


  • First of all, you absolutely CAN formulate an article....you just did! Anyone can become an expert in anything, you just have to have an interest and a desire to learn about it. And writing for the Internet is different than the kind of essay writing you would have done in high school. It's more conversational like you're talking to your friend, much like you wrote this post. Just don't be so down on yourself, I'm sure you have more skill than you realize. The learning curve for making money online can be a little steep at times, it's like that for all of us newbies. You're not alone at all, just don't give up on trying
  • one of the best ways to create content is doing what you just did. go to a forum. find out what people are talking about. if a lot of people are talking about it, then a lot of people are searching for it. I go to forums daily to look at what others are talking about and will thus write and article about how to write articles!. thanks.
  • Your post is well-written. You should try re-writing some PLR for practice. It'll get easier with each article you write.
  • Jason,

    The easiest way to create content is really a simple 3 step process:
    1. Find content about the topic you are choosing to write about, ideally 3-5
    different articles
    2. Pull out the main ideas from each article and ask yourself "What question
    was this article trying to answer?"
    3. Write an introductory paragraph and then use a summary, or a rehashing (in
    your own words) of each of the article for your paragraphs.

    Doing this requires the least time commitment from you and allows you to realize the maximum benefits. I would suggest looking into Centerpointe Research Institute's meditation CD, the PhotoReading course from Learning Strategies, the Genius Code from Learning Strategies, the Million Dollar Vocabulary from Learning Strategies, the Eye-Q from Infinite Mind, and reading as many books as you can.

    The best way to learn to become a better writer is to become a reader, preferably a voracious one. The more you read, the more you understand how sentences are meant to be structured, how grammar works, and what format styles will best catch the eyes of your readers.

    I wish you luck in your journey as I myself have had to overcome quite a bit to get to the point where I am today. I am a traumatic brain injury survivor and the above listed tools are the ones which I have used to build myself back up to the point of (almost) being as good as I was before.

    If you need anything further you may contact me through my website ObtainableFinancialFreedom.com | Finally earn what you are really worth!, God bless you sir!

    Sincerely,

    John Weaver
  • This is what I do

    1. Use the free Google Adwords traffic tool to find popular keyword phrases, look for those with about 5000 hits a day, that way you're not targeting traffic that will be super competitive.
    2. Type those keywords into an article site like Helium or Ezine Articles and find articles that match.
    3. Structure your article with similar (but not the same headlines)
    4. Write your content drawing on their article ideas but substantially different enough not to breach copyright

    Enjoy writing and treat it as a passion as well as a business All the best
  • Try to use speech recognition software to write articles. Then just edit the final articles.
  • Give up. If all you've done in 2 years is read and make a Clickbank account.
  • You have two choices:

    1) Just write whatever and wait until you fall into the "flow" of it all (you will, don't worry).
    2) Pay someone $40 for like 10 articles and be done with it.

    Depends on your means and whether you think it's worth it or not worth it to pay for it!
  • Hey Jason

    I encourage you to visit stronglifts.com and grab a copy of Mehdi's free ebook. Though the ebook is based on his strength-training program, there IS a section in his book where he talks about how he got to where he is in terms of making money with what he does.

    He just started writing on a topic he knew something about. As he wrote more and more articles, his knowledge grew, and he got better at writing articles. And now he's raking it in.

    I'm no expert in anything either, I simply picked a topic that I already knew a few things about, and started writing about it.

    I think the main criteria when it comes to picking a niche, is not whether you already know a ton about it, but rather, whether it is something that interests you, something you would LIKE to learn more about.

    A couple of other important criteria are that there have to be LOTS of other people who are also interested in the niche, AND willing to spend money.
  • Becoming an expert and finding a mission is the only way to create value for your customers. Read, listen, watch as much content as you can for 30 days. Take notes and right down how you feel along with facts about the subject. Once you have a good understanding of the subject find a mission. Figure out what value you want to give people. Have a purpose. This will help you find unique ways to solve real problems and you we'll be rewarded for it.
  • I normally outsource, but the trick is to get them to write good stuff that is hot at the moment. Wanna know the best way?

    Go to your local newsages, stand there and have a look at the friggen gold mine of content you can see instantly. There is so much cool stuff in there, and just look the newsagents never run out of magazines, new content, new ideas, new brainstorming all the time.

    In our main niche I use this, and about once every month some of our content goes viral, and the amount of traffic, subscribers and sales always goes up. Its my fun time cause I get to go out and hunt for good content! and not waist my day. YEY! try this, you will get some great ideas, from doing this I promise.
  • I may not know much about internet marketing, but I do know about writing. I just cranked out 5,000 words today on my latest book. On average I write at least 1,000 words per day.

    As with anything, you get better with practice. You wouldn't run a marathon without a lot of training. First you start with short runs and then you run longer and longer. The same theory applies to writing. Start simple and just keep doing it. My suggestion would be to start with a blog. The act of posting regularly acts as practice as well as helps you find your voice.

    Posting on forums is also a great way to practice your writing. You don't have to write a War and Peace novel to make your point. You can also interact with people in your sphere of interest and learn from their questions (and answers). I've found that I learn more from the questions people ask on forums because that gives me something to write about on my own blog or even create a product based upon a question relating to a problem I'd never thought of.

    As you write, open a thesaurus so you can play around with words. Not every day, just once in awhile. Practice using words that you're unfamiliar with. Have fun with language. I like to concoct new metaphors as they always engage people and make them think. Here's one I just came up with: "He was as friendly as a con man walking an old lady to the bank."

    Hope some of that helps.
  • I think you're selling yourself VERY short.

    Judging from your post, I'm quite sure that you have content creation skills (i.e. writing) better than a large proportion of those already working in those jobs.

    Have a look at a few different freelance writing guides - tom ewer of leavingworkbehind and allena tapia at freelancewrite.about both have excellent FREE and comprehensive guides that will get you going in the right direction.

    There's a LOT of information on freelance writing and content creation, the only thing you have to do is to enter those terms into google and click the search button

    "Click"

    That was easy, wasn't it?
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  • The only thing you have to do if you want to create content is sit down and start saying what you have to say. Whatever it is, someone wants to read it. You'll get better as you go. If you simply sit and say what you have to say, without worrying about spelling or grammar or punctuation or any of that, then you'll produce hundreds of words in just a few minutes.

    So what about the dreaded "writer's block" where you have absolutely no idea what to write? Write anyway. Stop worrying about whether you are saying the right thing and just concentrate on getting words down. Make the words into sentences. Every sentence you write should have exactly seven words.

    Seven word sentences are easy to write. See how easy it is to do? You can do it all day long. You don't have to be fancy and smart. Just say what you have to say. Just write seven sentences with seven words. All together, they make a full paragraph.

    This is a mental trick to get you out of the writer's block. It is designed to disengage your right brain by diverting blood flow to your left brain. Counting to seven is a left-brain activity. Your primary activity is writing, which is a right-brain activity. The increased blood flow to your right brain is causing you to second-guess yourself and imagine that you are no good at this and what the hell is wrong with you.

    By forcing yourself to engage in a simultaneous right-brain activity, you cause the brain to divide its resources, which leaves less room - and hopefully no room at all - for your left-brain imagination to sabotage you. There's not as much energy left for that, because you need to count words and sentences.

    Write constantly for twenty minutes. Literally, set a timer. You must keep writing. If you get stuck, drop into seven-word-seven sentence mode and keep going. At the end of twenty minutes, you will have roughly 1200 to 1500 words.

    Roughly a quarter of them suck. Go back through and fix them. Some should be different words. Some are in the wrong order. Some of them should not even be there at all. Figure out which words suck, why they suck, and what to do about it. You should now have about 1,000 to 1,200 words.

    Now, as far as research goes, all you have to do is write down the questions you have and look up the answers. Let's say you're writing about electrolysis. The first question you ask is "what the hell is electrolysis?" and you have to look it up. Then you have to ask "do I want to write about metal plating or about hair removal?" and come up with an answer to that. Just keep going. When you have a question, write it down. When you find the answer, write that down.

    After you write down all of your questions and answers, go back through and read them. If you have more questions, write them down and go look them up. Continue until you are satisfied that you understand the answers to all of the questions.

    Now put away the list of questions and answers, and go write. Don't even look at it while you're writing. Spend the same twenty minutes just writing what you want to write about all the stuff you just looked up, and then go back through to remove the quarter of your writing that sucks.

    Now, obviously, you will want to take your writing and make sure it has correct spelling and grammar and punctuation. There's no shirtcut to that. You just have to learn how to spell and what the rules are.

    And yes, I said "shirtcut" on purpose.

    This should get you started pretty well, and you should be able to start cranking out content... well, now. It won't be as good today as it will in a week, and it won't be as good in a week as it will in a month, but it will be content and it will suck less than what you've done in the past.
  • Start a blog, PLR content, yep all things that will get you to the top in no time flat, NOT! Find your interest and passion and get an education first! Entrepreneurship is not a job choice it's a vocation. Do you really have the financial resources to learn by trial and error?

    And please, please, don't think I am trying to pitch you on my business because I routinely filter out people that I know won't be able to do it in the field but have you considered this?

    You have experience at a Dry Cleaners, do you think it would be a benefit to the customers if the cleaners sent a text alert letting them know that their special dress or suit is ready for pick up. How about following up with text based coupons that allow 2 shirts for the price on one etc?

    Content writing, blogging, PLR, affiliate marketing, the odds for making a six figure income in a few months is about the same as making it as a pro athlete in the NFL.

    You have skills as a dry cleaner, leverage that. Hope this helps and the very best of luck to you. Be prepared to work harder, longer, and smarter, than everybody around you and you will be successful!
    • [1] reply
    • I do too.

      I don't even think the guy needs to write.

      I worked in a dry cleaner years ago and it is really monotonous.

      Anyway, I'd find some kind of offer that might interest those coming to pick up their laundry, and stick a paper on their orders with a link to a website.

      Dude has FREE traffic coming in! Kill 2 birds with one stone.
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  • You don't need to be able to write the next Hamlet to articulate your message effectively. In fact, I understood your entire post! Practice makes perfect! Just keep writing and you'll get better at it! Having said that there's a good book called On Writing Well by William Zinsser, you might want to check it out. Good luck!
  • Jason, I can truly relate to what you are saying my friend.

    It sounds like you have a Case of "Scatter Brains".

    I once had this too, let me explain....
    Let me guess. You heard about the Internet Marketing Life-style and you realized that this could be the escape that you have desperately been looking for. So you have bought a few products that turned out to be DUDS and a waste of money that taught you virtually nothing.

    Right?

    I was the exact same way when I first started online.

    But right now, It seems as if you are trying to tackle everything all at ONCE and out of order.

    Ask yourself.... Why do you need content?

    Are you trying to make a product?

    Are you trying to Drive Traffic?

    Well for whatever reason, you can create content if you don't first have an idea WHAT type of content you are going to create.

    Are you going to Write about Penguins? Zombies? Cars? Cats?

    You must narrow your focus to a particular Niche (category) and then we can go from there.

    You don't have to be a genius on a topic to create good content.

    You can simply scower the web for existing content and then just Regurgitate the information in your own words.

    So to Reiterate:
    1. Find a Niche
    2. Find a Product
    3. Drive Traffic to Product(free or paid)

    This is the easiest way to succeed online.

    If you are willing to put in the work, I am confident that you can and WILL succeed in this industry

    Good Luck!
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