I Made $500,000+ by Writing on the Internet — Here Are 50 Lessons I Wish I Had Learned Sooner
On creativity, reader psychology, mindset, and much more in ten minutes
If you had told me I'd end up making money by typing words on my computer a few years ago, I would've laughed—a lot. Yet, here I am — having published more than 600 articles on the internet, making a living by writing online and teaching others how to do the same.
That's the beauty of life: It's unpredictable. I never thought I was a great writer (I still don't), and I've never been particularly creative. I studied business administration and quit in my final year because I wanted to do my own thing.
Writing was one of many side hustles I tried, but the only one I really liked. I loved how independent I was. I loved that I could write anywhere, at any time of the day, let my thoughts flow, and share my ideas with people from all corners of the globe.
If I had to start all over, I'd give myself a little notebook with these 50 lessons to keep in mind. I will summarize them under seven headings to make it easy for you.
1 — On Getting Started
In the beginning, your writing won't be good. As a new writer, you'll have lots to learn, but that's okay. You can experience quick progress if you're dedicated and consistent. Just don't expect your work to be amazing right away. Writing is hard, and learning takes time.
Octavia E. Butler says, “You don’t start out writing good stuff. You start out writing crap and thinking it’s good stuff, and then gradually, you get better at it.”
As a new writer, be mindful of anything you read. Why did you click on a headline? Why do you (dis)like a sentence? Dissecting other people's work is a great way to learn what you want to sound like. You'll discover your own voice and style by analyzing others.
You don't have to feel like a "real writer" to start writing. Most of us feel like imposters most of the time. You're a writer when you write. Ignore labels. Just do what you want to do. The results will follow if you do it for long enough.
Ask yourself these questions to find out what you should write about:
What do you talk about on a Saturday night?
What are you excited, angry, upset, or inspired about?
What's something you find easy that others find difficult?
2 — On Consistency
Consistency will beat luck any time of the day. As a new writer, you'll need lots of reps to improve your writing, sharpen your ideas, and attract an audience. Every piece you publish is a shot you take. The more shots you take, the faster you'll see results.
Being consistent is easiest when it feels right. Find out when and where you create your best work, and stick to a writing schedule that allows you to consistently do your best work.
You might fail to be consistent sometimes, even if you have a perfect schedule mapped out. What matters is that you can get back up and start again.
3 — On Improving Your Writing
Great writing = Great ideas + Great editing. Building an audience and growing a digital writing business is mostly about clearly articulating your ideas and relentlessly editing your work to be clean, clear, and compelling.
Learn from those you want to imitate. Don’t pay someone to teach you if their strategies and approaches don’t align with your desires. If someone publishes lots of content daily, they’ll likely teach you how to rely on quantity over quality. Don’t follow their advice if that’s not what you want to do. Look for other mentors who are growing their audiences in different ways.
Put important words at the beginning or end of your sentences. This is particularly important for headlines because we subconsciously pay more attention to the first and last words of a sentence.
Creating value is only half of the battle. Growing your audience is about emotions and stories just as much as it is about value. You can “create value” within seconds by using tools like ChatGPT. But you can’t replicate human connection, emotions, and personal stories.
Writing is a lonely job. Connect with peers who are excited to support you.
Don’t publish your writing without reading it out loud. If something sounds weird, it needs editing.
Editing tools like Grammarly and Hemingway can help improve your work, but not all suggestions make sense. You’re allowed to disagree with tools and rely on your gut feeling to develop your unique voice.
Your writing will be better when you remove clutter words & phrases.
Every sentence you write needs to get your reader excited about the following sentence. Think of your reader sliding from one sentence to the next one.
Malcolm Gladwell said, “Good writing does not succeed or fail on the strength of its ability to persuade. It succeeds or fails on the strength of its ability to engage you, to make you think, to give you a glimpse into someone else’s head.”
When you write long-form content, compare the first and the last paragraph. Do they match? Do they make sense? Did you deliver on your promise or get lost along the story?
Your writing should be a combination of meal & candy. When you deliver a big meal, share some candy for fun. Don’t make your content hard to digest. Make it easy and nutritious but also sweet.
When you give advice, tell your reader exactly what to do. Most educational content is useless because it’s too vague. Be so specific that it almost feels too simple. It’ll feel simple for you because you’re the expert. Your reader will be grateful you went the extra mile.
Your writing won’t be perfect. There’s no such thing as perfect writing. Even the world’s best-selling authors have dozens of 1-star reviews on their books. Do your best, but don’t obsess over writing something perfect because you won’t succeed.
As Dita Von Teese says: “You can be the ripest, juiciest peach in the world, and there’s still going to be somebody who hates peaches.”
Study the principles of Ethos, Pathos, and Logos to write persuasive content. If you want to be a better writer, listen twice as much as you talk.
4 — On Creativity
If you want to write for a living, you have to treat writing like a job, not a hobby. You can't just write when you feel inspired. You have to train your mind to constantly discover exciting ideas to write about. And you have to sit down to actually write.
According to E.B. White, “A writer who waits for ideal conditions under which to work will die without putting a word on paper.”
Your experiences, voice, and style will make your writing unique, even if you write about popular topics covered by thousands of other writers. As Cormac McCarthy says, “Books are made out of books.”
You don't have to reinvent the wheel. Do what works. Repeat messages that obviously resonate with your readers. Don't be afraid to repurpose your content and drive traffic to resources you created months ago. Most people haven't seen most of your work. Work smarter, not harder.
Build an idea management system and take notes of every (writing) idea that crosses your mind. Don't judge ideas immediately — store them so you can evaluate them when it's time to write. I use Trello to manage my writing ideas and workflow.
5 — On Building an Audience
People are sick and tired of generic and repetitive content. They're desperately looking for interesting and unique ideas that make them stop scrolling.
Your competition is loud but also lazy. Most written content on the internet isn't worth reading. Standing out isn't hard if you're consistent, thoughtful, and deliberate about your practice.
If you don't care about your audience, you don't deserve one. I still reply to most of the comments and answers I receive. These conversations help me stay connected to my audience and get useful feedback on my work.
Your ability to write click-worthy titles and hooks will determine most of your success. If your first few lines suck, you won't get a chance to impress readers through the rest of your work.
Structure and formatting can play a huge role. Make sure the formatting of your content is aligned with the platform you're publishing on. Most readers are looking for content that's easy to digest. Long walls of text are the opposite. Each platform has its best practices, and it won't take you more than an hour to study the rules.
Your bio/profile should tell your readers what you can do for them. Remove irrelevant credentials and tell us why we should pay attention to your work.
Being vulnerable and honest is the most effective way to connect with your readers. We're all sick and tired of boring, robotic content, and AI tools just made it worse.
6 — On the Business of Writing Online
To make money as a writer, you'll have to do things that lead to cash. You can't expect to magically get paid if you don't do any "money activities." There are a gazillion ways to make a living by typing words, but you have to pick your path and focus on money-making as much as you focus on improving your craft.
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