Any Suite 101 writers out there?

stldenise · Mar 31, 2009

Hey guys! I just got approved to write for Suite 101 and I've got a question. Not sure if anyone would even know, but I thought I'd try.

I typed up my first article. Polished it. Tweaked it. Hit send to editor (per instructions)...and it vanished. The log in screen showed up.

Do you think it's sitting in an editor's email box, or did I just send it to the void? I can't find any trace of the article on my home page. Ugh!!

Now I've got a headache. At least I saved the body of the article in Word. I'll just have to remember my opening if I have to rewrite it.

blueobsidian · Mar 31, 2009

If it isn't listed on your "My Articles" tab on the "My Suite" page, I think the internet may have eaten it. As I recall, I could still access my first article while I was waiting for the editor to approve it.

lostwanderer5 · Mar 31, 2009

Hi! Welcome to Suite. I am fairly new there myself.

I would think it did vanish if your log in screen popped up. Usually, when I submit my articles, I go back to "my suite" screen.

If your article was submitted, your screen should say waiting Editor's approval. If that's the not the case then it's not there.

stldenise · Mar 31, 2009

Argh!

At least I've got the long part saved. Why do they make you put it in so many little boxes?

Guess I'll go try it again before (knock on wood) the April 1st virus takes down my computer.

~Denise

zoomusic · Mar 31, 2009

I understand the frustration...it's never happened to me at Suite, but it's happened to me in enough places that I just go ahead and write the whole article--title, greenbox stuff, and all--in a Word doc, then cut and paste.

Sorry this happened to you...

jenngreenleaf · Apr 1, 2009

I've been writing for Suite101.com since 1999, and have experienced my share of frustrations with this, that, and the other thing over the years. Trust me, it gets easier.

I've found that typing directly into the boxes is a good way to lose things, so I save every word before sending anything in. Otherwise, headaches...frustration...and all that will be on the horizon. My biggest issue has been with posting pictures, and this has been the case for a LONG time . . . I hope that is resolved someday.

stldenise · Apr 1, 2009

I pieced my article back together this morning. Had to write a fresh opening paragraph, but that's not such a bad thing. My brain is working a little slow with this cold...Now I'll just wait and let an editor tear it to pieces!

I wasn't feeling very inspired with this first one, but wanted to make a nice impression, so I reworked a piece I wrote that appeared in the Post-Dispatch. I hope I changed it enough!

stldenise · Apr 2, 2009

http://primaryschool.suite101.com/article.cfm/fingerprint_id_for_student_accounts

Ta Da!

The editor who worked me over...uh, worked on my article, asked that my keywords come from the title, subtitle and bold title what ever those are in the text. Is that normal at Suite?

blueobsidian · Apr 2, 2009

It's good SEO practice in general to make sure that your best keywords are in those areas, and Suite definitely stresses it. Have you read all the handbook information? It's super helpful while getting the hang of house style.

Thrillride · Apr 2, 2009

No worries - if you go over the House Style pages you really get the picture...plus after a while it's second nature! In fact, I have to fight the impulse to write like that everywhere!

stldenise · Apr 2, 2009

How about summary paragraphs at the end? And saying that an interview was on the phone and at such and such date? Are those common across Suite? My first article was in Education, but I'm thinking most of my others will be in parenting.

I haven't summed up an article since I wrote for school. I tend to write inverted pyramid...newspaper style.

I'll go read the manual again...I was kinda excited the first time so I skipped around a bit.

Thrillride · Apr 2, 2009

stldenise said:
How about summary paragraphs at the end? And saying that an interview was on the phone and at such and such date? Are those common across Suite? My first article was in Education, but I'm thinking most of my others will be in parenting.

I haven't summed up an article since I wrote for school. I tend to write inverted pyramid...newspaper style.

I'll go read the manual again...I was kinda excited the first time so I skipped around a bit.

I don't do a lot of interviews, but I haven't seen anyone mention a time and a date for when they actually did the interviews.

The end summaries aren't hard. They just don't want the article to end abruptly. So, say I'm doing a how to make a container water garden...

so, I can talk about how cool it is to have one, etc...easy to do, etc...enhances the yard, etc...what you'll need. to do it, etc...how to do it...watch out for this, etc...where you might find cool pants ..blah blah...
then I can sum it up by saying something like:

Container water gardens add beauty, movement, and dimension; a welcome addition to any garden or yard.

Or something like that. Simple, but it ties up the end.

stldenise · Apr 3, 2009

I haven't interviewed anyone yet for a strictly web writing piece, but for that first article I pulled out something I did for the newspaper and re-slanted it for a national audience. I paraphrased a quote I used for the paper.

Maybe she wanted me to state plainly that this was an actually interview that I did, and not just some random quote I stole from another source.

Thrillride · Apr 3, 2009

stldenise said:
I haven't interviewed anyone yet for a strictly web writing piece, but for that first article I pulled out something I did for the newspaper and re-slanted it for a national audience. I paraphrased a quote I used for the paper.

Maybe she wanted me to state plainly that this was an actually interview that I did, and not just some random quote I stole from another source.

True. Also, if you do take a quote from somewhere else (I have) say where it came from and quote it exactly. "Bob Williams states in his current book review on his website...blalabla.."

Scrawler · Apr 3, 2009

The first article usually goes through an approval process before it shows as posted. Subsequent articles will be posted as-is, with feedback (changes required) from the section editor following within the week. If you don't hear back on your first article within a few days, contact them. Sometimes things get stuck.

I suggest you write your articles in MS Word (or whatever) then cut/paste it to Suite when you're done.

The rigamarole about the keywords, subtitles, etc. can be annoying but once you get the hang of it, your articles we be posted without any issues.

The summary paragraphs at the end of mine are generally about 50 words to wrap it up.

I'm assuming you used quotes when you included your interview? What I typically do is say, for example, Ryan Derousseau of FORTUNE Small Business says, “You want to show a personal touch when contacting prospects for your company" and I have linked that to the article.

Have fun with it.

Thrillride · Apr 4, 2009

Scrawler said:
The first article usually goes through an approval process before it shows as posted. Subsequent articles will be posted as-is, with feedback (changes required) from the section editor following within the week. If you don't hear back on your first article within a few days, contact them. Sometimes things get stuck.

I suggest you write your articles in MS Word (or whatever) then cut/paste it to Suite when you're done.

The rigamarole about the keywords, subtitles, etc. can be annoying but once you get the hang of it, your articles we be posted without any issues.

The summary paragraphs at the end of mine are generally about 50 words to wrap it up.

I'm assuming you used quotes when you included your interview? What I typically do is say, for example, Ryan Derousseau of FORTUNE Small Business says, “You want to show a personal touch when contacting prospects for your company" and I have linked that to the article.

Have fun with it.

What Scrawler said - and don't forget to take it from Word and paste it into Notepad first before you move it to Suite's tools...learned that the hard way.

Skyraven · Apr 6, 2009

Is the pay worth it to be on Suite 101? I've wondered that for awhile.

stldenise · Apr 7, 2009

No idea on pay yet. (My first & only post has 18 hits and 38 cents, posted 7 days ago.) I've put Suite on the back burner since I've got other things that need attention right now. Like my freakin' taxes. And a Cub Scout craft I'm doing at 4:30 today that I haven't prepped for...

On that quote - it gave me trouble because the quote was from someone I interviewed myself. She wanted me to state that it was a phone interview from such and such date. I was re-slanting an article I did for the Post, and it seemed stupid to quote myself from the paper. It worked out ok:
http://primaryschool.suite101.com/article.cfm/fingerprint_id_for_student_accounts

Laurie PK · Apr 7, 2009

I've been writing for Suite for 2.5 years now, and I love it. I can't share exactly how much I earn per month, but it's several hundred dollars (not too close to $1,000 per month yet! But that's my goal). I write one article a week, and it usually takes less than an hour.

Here's my Top 10 Reasons to Write for Suite101 article -- at the end is a bunch of comments from Suite writers, sharing their thoughts. http://theadventurouswriter.com/blogwriting/quipsandtipsfreelancing/86

stldenise · Apr 13, 2009

Oooo, that's encouraging! Laurie, about how many articles do you think you have? 100+ I'm guessing - if you write one a week?

Edit:
Had to add that I just read your Top 10 Reasons to write for Suite 101... and this quote needs to be on a t-shirt:
As a full-time freelance writer, sometimes I have to write about things that make me want to drink gin straight out of the cat dish. ~Anne Lamott

Laurie PK · Apr 15, 2009

Glad you liked the Anne Lamott quote - she's great! (she didn't actually say that about freelance writing, but she did say the gin thing, and I melded the two in the article).

I have over 400 articles posted on Suite.......when I first started, I was writing 2-3 per week. Now I go back and tweak the older ones to make them better. Humbling! And amazing, to see you own old, bad writing and be able to fix it

ishtar'sgate · Apr 15, 2009

Over 400! Wow. I'm pretty new and only have 12. Although the money isn't great yet, it's fun to check page views and watch my little nest egg grow.

GAM · Apr 26, 2009

Suite 101

Does anyone have any information on Suite 101? Their website says it's an "on-line writers network" for freelance writers.

blueobsidian · Apr 26, 2009

Check one forum down (in the SEO/Content Network section). Many of us are writers for Suite.

Laurie PK · Apr 27, 2009

I love writing for Suite; been doing it for 2.5 years! Wrote an article called Top 10 Reasons to Write for Suite101. If you have any questions, fire away

Any Suite 101 writers out there?

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