Welcome to the team! I am excited to have you working as one of my writers.
The Writing and Editing Process
Upon joining the team you will be provided with a spreadsheet that will detail the articles you are assigned to write. Here you will find article outlines and the document link to deliver your article.
Please watch this quick 3 minute video running your through the spreadsheet and how to use it:
NOTE: You’ll also need to include 2-3 relevant internal links to other articles on my website. Here’s exactly how to find relevant articles:
Expect edits and revisions for your first few articles.
I like to work closely with my writers in the beginning to ensure that the writing guidelines are met and you understand exactly how I like my articles to be written.
This means your first few articles will likely have a fair amount of feedback and require some edits.
As you write more articles for me and we learn each other’s style most writers find that little to no edits are required on their work.
For good writers articles are fairly easy to create and ongoing work provides you with consistency of income.
PLEASE NOTE: I have quite a high standard and articles must provide THE BEST answer/solution to the search query. Poorly researched or poorly written articles do not make the cut and will not be accepted.
Use a Conversational Writing Style
Writing style is an important factor for me, but one that is difficult to convey. To put it as simply as I can:
I like articles that have a casual but informative writing style. I try to think about what I would say to a friend or what advice I would give them and how I would say it.
A line like:
“Thermos products, though sturdy on the exterior, require extra care when maintaining their internal materials. By regularly handwashing, avoiding harsh chemicals and utilizing proper cleaning utensils, you will be able to keep your thermos in like-new condition and increase its longevity.”
is NOT how you would explain something to a friend and it doesn’t read well.
A line like:
“Thermos bottles are made to be strong, but some harsh chemicals or abrasive cleaners can damage or scratch them, so it’s important that you clean them properly.”
still conveys helpful information but it feels more like something I might write to a friend who needed advice.
Include
- Casual but informative language
- Some personalization where appropriate. But don’t get too long winded with your stories
Avoid
- Being over the top with things. Don’t talk about how “this water bottle is so good it’s lifechanging” or “the first thing I look for in a water bottle is whether or not it is dishwasher safe”. Be realistic and honest.
- Overly formal and excessive language to describe things. An example of what NOT to do: “I have scoured aqua containers continuously formerly but realize that they yet never look scrubbed-knowing now I can throw my Yeti Rambler 26 ml container in the cleaner gives me the assurance that the container has reached the hygiene standards.”
- Fluff
Deadlines
When we begin working together you will decide how many articles per week you would like to write.
Articles will be provided at least 1 week in advance and have deadlines based on your assigned volume.
Failure to meet deadlines without communication to me and updates will result in those articles being assigned to another writer or the arrangement terminated.
Life gets busy sometimes and that’s fine, but all I ask is that you communicate with me so I can organize my content schedule.
The Payment Process
Payments are made via PayPal AFTER articles are submitted and any required revisions are completed.
PLEASE NOTE: Articles are not paid for until article is written and any required edits/revisions are made. I do not provide upfront payments prior to articles being written.
The quantity of articles you write will determine the frequency of payment:
- Less than 5 articles per month – Payment is made at the start of the month for articles written in the prior month
- More than 5 articles per month – Payment is made for each batch of 5 articles after they are completed.
- More than 5 articles per week – Payment is made at the start of the week for articles completed in the prior week.
To be paid you must send a PayPal invoice to ryan@ryanmclean.net. Once I have received the invoice I will make payment.
I have a large team of writers and pay them quickly and consistently. If you have any questions in regards to these payment terms please let me know.
For Trial Articles
For your first trial article, payment will be made after the completion of any required edits on that article.
Articles will be paid for using the following formula:
Cost per word x requested wordcount
For example if your cost per word was $0.03 and the requested wordcount was 1,000 words payment would be $0.03 x 1,000 = $30.
If you ended up writing a bit extra (saying 1,050 words or 1,100 words) payment is still based on the requested wordcount only. You cannot charge for words above the requested wordcount unless otherwise specified.
You will still need to send a PayPal invoice to ryan@ryanmclean.net as outlined above.
Communication
I communicate with trial writers through email and regular writers through Slack.
With regular writers I do not communicate via email (except for invoices) as this gets too difficult to manage.
Upon joining the team you will be sent a Slack invite link and we can communicate through the DMs there.
My Availability
I am not always available.
My main work days are Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday 8am-4pm (AEST – Sydney time). You should only expect revisions, payments and responses on these days.
I occasionally work Thursday and Fridays during school hours however sick kids, school holidays etc often interrupt this.
Every now and then I will jump on and do some work on weekends, providing revisions or responding to writers. However, this is infrequent and should not be expected.