Time to Move On

When I first started this blog, it was with the intent to help promote my articles on Associated Content.  Over the course of this blog, which has been running for almost 2 years, it has turned into an all inclusive help guide of sorts.  The ranking shot up, traffic has been fantastic, and I've met many wonderful people and writers through here.

But I think it's time to let this blog rest.  I may post every great once in awhile but it won't be near the frequency I have been.  There is a lot of information on here that I hope can help writers on the Yahoo! Contributor Network.  Because of recent events, though, I simply don't believe I can do an adequate job of providing the help and answers that writers are searching for.

My first reason is that there was a period of time earlier this month where I was without internet.  That time without internet taught me the lesson that I was wasting too much time chasing what ultimately would do me no good in the creative writing field.  This was coupled with the change in the FC program, so I was already feeling down in the dumps.  The fact remains, though, that if Yahoo! thought I was skilled enough to be in their Featured Contributor programs, they would have automatically asked me to stay like they did a select few contributors.

Even still, I had every intention of re-applying for my categories and perhaps even some new ones as soon as I caught back up on other things after my internet outage.  But this week has been terribly stressed as far as Y!CN is concerned.  Some of those who have applied are being given test assignments.  Some of those test assignments are accepted for their target Yahoo! sites but oddly aren't good enough to accept the writer into the FC program.  Still others aren't even being given the opportunity to turn in a test assignment and are being rejected outright.  Others whose articles are being rejected and reverted to Associated Content (now known as the failure Yahoo! site), are being given reasons such as:

-Very minor grammatical errors.  I do not exaggerate.  While I'm happy that Y!CN is finally buckling down on grammar issues, rejecting a piece for a typo which isn't common for that writer is crap.  No matter how long a person has been writing, no matter how professional a writer they are, humans make mistakes.  If they want perfect pieces then they need to either hire editors to correct content or they need to pay writers more so they can hire their own editors.

-Not having the Yahoo! "voice".  This is one of those things that you either have or you don't.  Telling fantastic writers that the quality of their work is exceptional but that they don't have the "voice" Yahoo! needs is contradicting.  I don’t understand.

-I can even dig that Yahoo! wants educationally qualified people to write in these Featured Categories.  But here's the thing; many who are educationally qualified likely have full time jobs and/or aren't going to want to write for what Y!CN pays.  But look!  They have writers who are qualified because of their track records in writing for the web in the categories they want featured.  These writers are dependable, they are experienced in content writing, they bring in the page views, and they write great.  But they are getting rejections, too.

There have been other reasons for rejections that I don't agree with but I'll leave these as the primary ones.  You know, what makes me think I have a chance in hell of getting in when the likes of those wonderful writers aren’t even making the cut?

Oh, the memories...

This reminds me when I was working management for an oil company.  When the company was small and local, my work with them was great.  Then that oil company sold to a bigger regional company and suddenly I wasn't so good anymore.  Whereas the old company dogs were talking promotions for me, I wasn't of much use to the new company.  This has been my experience between the Associated Content to Yahoo! change.

Right now, I'm focusing on my creative writing (*shameless plug alert* head over to my author site).  I'll still write for Y!CN where I'll keep up with my news beats for as long as they'll have me and where I'll still publish on Associated Content.

I'm going to leave this blog with this final thought; I still love Y!CN.  I do recommend it to anyone looking to get their feet wet in content writing.  If you have a passion for it, the opportunities since the Yahoo! change are fantastic.  Just because I don't feel like I can dive into it head first, doesn't mean you shouldn't try.  I'm sure they'll get this FC mess straightened out eventually.

Associated Content was my stepping stone into building confidence and honing my skills.  If it wasn't for writing for Associated Content, I wouldn't have accomplished half the things I have in writing, and that includes my creative writing.  I would have never been confident enough to put my fiction out there for others to read if not for AC and for that, I'm grateful.

Thank you for reading.  You can catch me on my author site to see what I'm up to.  For anything else, here’s my other site.

My Withdrawal from the Superfan Program

I haven't posted anything in awhile due to some hefty computer problems.  And it looks like they aren't even completely fixed even now.  I just hope it all holds up until I can get caught up with some assignments.  In the meantime, I haven't re-applied for the featured contributors new program yet.  I probably will eventually, but I'm trying to get some things caught up in both my online work and my personal life.

One thing I did do was withdraw from the Television Superfan program.  I was very excited about this when it first started but as time went on, it's been a series of glitches coupled with the realization that we still didn't have a time line on when we would be able to submit recaps or timely material.  There's only so much you can do with evergreen content on television shows.  The upfronts were nice but ultimately the page views weren't cutting it.  Trying to come up with quality evergreen content without cookie cutting the same idea for multiple shows just wasn't worth the time and effort in my opinion.  So I withdrew.  It got a nice invitation to return to the program should I change my mind in the future.

In the next few months there will be some major changes with this blog and with my online work overall.  More details will come soon.  I appreciate the continued support.

The New Feature Contributor Program / Google Hates Us

The two focal points of interest with Y!CN as of late: Google's big screw up and the changing of the Associated Content Featured Contributor program.

Let's get the FC program change up out of the way first.  I have not changed my mind about how unfair and time wasting it was to start from scratch; to accept some while telling other deserving contributors to reapply for positions they had already worked for... but since I already wrote how I felt about that, I won't go back into it.

Will I reapply? Yes.  But how many I will apply for remains to be seen. I still have bills to pay. (I originally typed "I have bill to pay."  Bill is my brother-in-law and as far as I know, I don't owe him any money.)

It's been a crazy and stressful couple of weeks. Which leads me to the next topic of Google trying to hold a monopoly over their search engines.

I don't understand all this search algorithm tech stuff.  Even though I understand the basics of SEO, I don't speak tech.  All I know is that Google has decided that since we are part of Yahoo!, they are going to shove us to the bottoms of search results, even if we have the information people want.  That's the short version.  Here's the long version.  In the meantime, contributors across Y!CN report record losses of page views.  And they report monetary losses of up to $100 or more. 

My page views are the lowest they've been in over a year.  Google has decided they only want to show content they have a vested interest in.  In the meantime, every place that they are blocking or pushing to the bottom that has Google Adsense... well, you don't have to speak tech to understand how that will eventually turn out.  It will end up biting them.  Whoever's brilliant idea it was to start this crap and to mess with people's paychecks, I hope they end up eventually losing their job.  Let's see how they like it when they can't pay their bills.

Whew.  Now I feel better.  If this continues, everyone is screwed, not just us writers.  Small businesses are screwed, too.  Just read through this article.  I guarantee you won't like it any better than I do. 

I'll keep y'all updated on the FC thing and hopefully Google will come to their senses.

Freelance Writing Tips: Your Client is Not Obligated to Please You

Should your client offer certain perks? Are there certain things you should expect them to do besides pay you? When freelancing, sometimes it can be difficult to figure out the roles played by you and your clients. Is the client asking for too much - or are you the one demanding the impossible? In freelance writing, my number one rule has always been that the client is not obligated to please you. In fact, you should be instead be providing what the client needs. If you can't or won't, let them find it elsewhere. Here's why.

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Y!CN Contributor Rissa Watkins needs bone marrow

Without it, the consequences could be dire.

Read up on the initial post I did on Rissa and how you can help her financially.

I woke this morning to this video.




Click to go to http://www.marrow.org and join the registry (if your health allows). You could save a life, maybe even Rissa's.

The Change in Associated Content's Featured Contributor Program

Yesterday was a pretty bad day for me.  Y!CN announced that the Featured Contributor program for Associated Content from Yahoo! was dramatically changing and that Featured Contributors would have to reapply for the program beginning March 1.

This change is understandable as Associated Content is no longer the main platform for Y!CN publishing.  Associated Content, while still a viable publishing platform, has become what I'd like to call the rejects of Yahoo!.  Yup.  It's given me a complex to say the least.  Since the change over to the Yahoo! Contributor Network, I've rejoiced in the fact that many pieces of my content have been used on various Yahoo! sites.  But then when one of my featured assignments would be reviewed and published on Associated Content instead of a targeted Yahoo! site, I almost view it like a failure.  I thought I was doing really well on Associated Content until Yahoo! came along.  I was just mediocre again.

And this is coupled with the fact that this was my first month as a featured parenting contributor.  Now I have to change all my damn bios again.

Forgive me for being doom and gloom today.  If you read back through my blog, I'm not usually like this.  While I have been hard on Y!CN at times, I am generally one of the first to ask that contributors take it in stride and give things a chance before they start drawing storm clouds above their heads.  I usually point out that AC/Y!CN has shown themselves to be above game in times like this.  But I'm not going to say that this time (although keep in mind, I'm not dismissing it either).

The main thing I have to take into account how things have worked at Y!CN since the change over.  Even though there are great higher paying opportunities, there are a ton of tech/help issues, some of which are costing contributors page views.  Everything from botched notifications, to lagging page view updates, to articles in limbo, to having to sign in sometimes two or three times (and then click back to the article) to leave comments, *to not being able to switch from one site to the other on our profiles, and more... never, since I began writing for this site have I seen such a dragging of issues not being fixed in a timely manner.  Let me reiterate; issues addressed, yes.  Fixed, no. 

*ETA: Since I published this post, I can now switch from one site to the next on my profile page. Hurray!

Second, I don't see where this is the best solution.  The troubles with the old FC program was that there were too many people who weren't following the guidelines as an FC (not a professional byline or picture, not submitting assignments, etc).  You don't have to shut down the entire program and start from scratch to weed out the ones who aren't doing what they are supposed to.  This, in my opinion, is a complete waste of time on both the staff and the contributors and it's caused an unnecessary amount of frustration and worry.

Third, and this was the kicker for me yesterday as I read through post after post of discussions on the subject, there were people who were/are FC's who were told that they didn't have to reapply for their positions.  Everyone else would.  While I'm happy for those contributors who do not have to reapply, I did NOT receive such a message and I am pissed about it.  As if I didn't already have doubts when my work isn't chosen for a Yahoo! site, here I'm going to have to reapply for positions that I already have.  So here's my funk; I've never missed an FC assignment.  I may have had one decline toward the beginning of the program when I got categories confused but have otherwise done very well... or so I thought.  I write consistently, I write well.  I get descent page views.  I realize I don't write as much as some because I have two little ones still under school age but I have always thought I was doing pretty good.  Shows what I know.  To sum it up again, I suppose I'm not as much pissed as I am crushed.  I know there are others out there who feel the same way.  In a way, it's degrading.

I don't think I would be so upset had events unfolded differently.  When AC still had category editors, I was specifically asked by a staffer to be a category editor; I didn't even know that I could be a CE.  Only a few short months later, they scrapped that program and introduced the Featured Contributor program.  I didn't apply for awhile but I kept getting messages urging me to do so.  So finally I did and was accepted very quickly each time I applied.  Now that's being scrapped and I have to reapply... while others are able to write without having to worry.  I guess I'm so upset because I feel like I put so much effort in, I work my ass off, but it seems a bit in vain now.

I am very fortunate and thankful for the TV beats and the new news beats that I've gotten.  That is probably the only thing that keeps me from being a total gloomy gus about this whole thing.  I'm going to apply for what I can when March rolls around and just sit and hope that it's good enough to go through.

So I leave you today with this final thought:  In order to have (and keep) some form of happiness writing content for any site, don't expect anything.  If you have beat assignments, enjoy them while they last because you never know when something will change.  If you don't expect to keep them forever, you won't be so quick to be down when they are pulled.

And that's all for now.  I'll update when more information comes my way.  Thanks for reading.

This post brought to you by All Holidays Fever.

Articles Vs Blog Posts '" What's the Difference?

As a mentor of my writing peers, I am often asked to discern the difference between a blog post and an article. When submitting work to clients and content sites, how do you know if your writeup should have gone to your blog instead? Blogs can certainly be professional and articles can definitely be conversational. However, even though you can publish an article on your blog, it's not very wise to submit something that should have been a blog as an article. In some cases, it may even hurt your career. So what's the difference?

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Succeed in Freelance Writing by Making Goals More Attainable

It's time to pay the bills but your freelance writing hasn't pulled in nearly what you need. Staring at the figures in black and white may make you cringe if you're a freelance writer who hasn't quite reached your ideal goal. Maybe you haven't even touched the surface. But don't give up hope. Perhaps you just need to change your strategy. If you have all the tools and talent, but still can't quite get there, try making your goals more attainable. It's easy to set goals and expectations too high or make the possible impossible by over analyzing. If you aren't meeting your goals in freelance writing, it's time do a complete overhaul of your strategy.

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Yahoo! TV Superfan program - First round of cuts

If you were in the Yahoo! TV Superfan program, you should know by now that the first round of eliminations has been completed.  (This almost sounds like a TV program in itself.)  Some beat writers were cut for various reasons, many stayed.  I’m happy to report that I survived the first elimination for all four of the shows I’m covering which is “Criminal Minds”, Blue Bloods”, “House”, and “American Idol”.  Our submission limit has been uped to 2 per month and on our assignments, we’re still being instructed to write evergreen content.  While I’m glad that our limit has gone up, I’m discouraged that we’re still having to do just evergreen.  Recaps get more page views (if they are indexed quickly and are on the right feeds, that is), but from what I understand, if we survive the next few rounds of cuts, we’ll be able to do those recaps with a mixture of evergreen content.  (I have to wonder if by then, some of the seasons will be over!)

Another big change in the program is that upfronts have gone down on these assignments slightly.  Most people I have talked with actually expected this change and aren’t that concerned about it.  While I’m okay with getting a lower upfront, I hope it doesn’t get to the point where we’re only making a couple of dollars a piece on them.  I'm not sure any lower upfronts would be worth the research for evergreen or be worth the long review time.

Congrats to everyone who made it through the first round of cuts.  May you all have a prosperous month and happy writing!

This post brought to you by TV Slugs.

Why You Should Be a Proud Content Writer

You may have seen some articles or blog posts around the web about a little thing called content mill writing. Essentially journalists and print freelance writers feel that sites such as Demand Media, and others are

 nothing more than content mills. The question is, why is that a bad thing?

To understand what a content mill is and what they are looking for is the first step in making a living as a content writer. Also it is important to realize that you have no need to be embarrassed or feel any shame for writing web content for pay. You aren't doing anything wrong and if no one was looking for the content that content mills produce, they wouldn't be able to be such huge successful companies, and they sure wouldn't pay you to write it.

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Contributor Spotlight: Theresa Wiza

I don't usually do this; highlight a contributor that is.  I mean, occasionally I'll share a link to something relevant to writing for Y!CN but I don't often spotlight contributors.  Maybe it's something I need to do more of, I don't know.  What I do know is that I want to share this one.

Theresa Wiza  (right) has been a contributor for over two and a half years now.  In September of 2009, she learned she had breast cancer.  She is still battling it and will be for a long time.  In the meantime, she has provided her readers and friends a journal on Associated Content that details her experiences with the disease.

An excerpt from Diagnosis: Breast Cancer - Part 1- 

"We [a dear friend and I] talked about how I could now use breast cancer to excuse myself from having to do anything I didn't want to do:

Sorry, can't mop up that mess. I have breast cancer. Sorry, didn't hear you - my breast cancer is acting up. Sorry, officer, I was in a rush to beat my breast cancer. And on and on.

From that point we went off on a tangent to discuss how my grandchildren could use the breast cancer excuse too. Sorry, couldn't make it to class today - my grandma has breast cancer.

Am I delirious? Possibly."

I came across these in part because I remembered someone saying that Theresa had breast cancer.  My next fiction piece centers on a woman with breast cancer.  Since I didn't know anyone close to me with the disease, I asked Theresa if she would mind helping me in my research.  She continues to answer questions that pop up as I write the story.

I admit that I didn't realize what I was getting into when I first came up with the story idea.  I knew very little about breast cancer, treatments, or the toll it takes on those afflicted.  But it's the best part of being a fiction writer; researching and seeing an entirely different side to life. Even when the topic is an unpleasant one, the knowledge that comes with researching the personal side of things is often eye opening and emotional.  And it's thought provoking in a way that helps you understand the world around you and appreciate people and their struggles more.

If you'd like to read Theresa's breast cancer journal, the links are below.  It's a bit long but well worth the read.

Part I
Part II
Part III
Part IV

Here are some other links where you can find her:

Theresa's Yahoo! Contributor Profile
Weird Dreams
Your Blog Connection
Help for Single Parents
My Heart Belongs to You
Writer of Blogs


You can find my fiction site at www.PamelaCaves.com

10 Online Tools for Better Attention & Focus

I'm putting this article out there for you because this is something I have a problem with sometimes.  I log in a lot of time writing and it's hard not to get distracted by emails and Facebook and all that jazz.  If you have a problem, too, then take a look at this article by Jocelyn K. Glei.

____________________________________________________

If only finding focus were so simple. With a tidal wave of information coming at us daily, focus is rapidly becoming the scarcest commodity of the 21st century. With this in mind, I’ve rounded up a handful of the best apps for fighting back against the constant distractions of our digital lives.

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Which Article Topics Earn the Most Money at Y!CN?

As a journalist and writing peer mentor here at Y!CN and elsewhere, I get asked often which topics are the best to write. What brings in the best upfront payments? What topics pull in page views? What topics does Yahoo!

want to see before giving high paying assignments? Overall, which topics make the most money?

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2010 Year in Review on Associated Content/Yahoo! Contributor Network

A year of learning

It was around this time last year when I decided that I'd had enough of struggling through Associated Content.  I'd been writing for them for about a year at that time and was making mere change.  In that year, I'd gotten 56,000 page views.  That's an average of 153 page views a day.

Today I have over 357,000.  A huge leap, right?  That's an average of roughly 825 views a day. So what made the difference?

I stuck with it and I continued to learn.  It wasn't like I read a bunch of articles on SEO and suddenly my page views went up, it was a combination of listening to the advice of more experienced writers, reading material on the subject, and simply learning by doing.  When you're just reading about SEO, page views, and all that jazz, the topic seems so daunting and frustrating to the inexperienced content writer.  I, personally, learn better by just doing.

One main thing I learned, though, is that different tactics and methods work for different people.  Some people find their best income is earned through upfront payment, others through page views only.  Some people do well by on hitting on a lot trending topics, others by evergreen content, some by writing on a variety of topics, others by cornering a niche.  It all depends on your style, what you enjoy writing, and a basic grasp of what content writing is about.

There is no one formula for success.  Every person, every goal, every factor is different.  You need to find what works for you.  One proven way to fail is by giving up on it before you've allowed yourself enough time to get a feel for it.  If you're impatient with it and expect to be making a descent chunk of change after only a few months, you're going to be disappointed.

My Goals for the Year

I'm not making any yearly goals, just short term.  I'm going to continue to write, continue to work, and continue to learn.  Happy New Year!

Helping Fellow Writers

Rissa Watkins

I've come back after my little hiatus over the holidays to discover that one of my writer friends, Rissa Watkins, from Y!CN has been diagnosed with Acute Lymphoblastic Leukemia.  It's a nasty illness that will make for a harsh and trying time for her and her family.


A community of togetherness

One of the best things about Y!CN and content writing in general is that if you network yourself, you get to meet a variety of great people.  We come from all walks of life, have many different backgrounds, and while many of us are from North America, we are sprinkled all over the world.  And it never ceases to amaze me the sense of community, the acts of kindness and helping one another that our freelance, content writing circle makes.  It gives me warm fuzzies.

So as I began reading up on this, I began to see Risa Watkins name on lots of different articles and blogs.  It makes me so happy and proud to be part of this wonderful and kind networks of writers.

How you can help

I had a big paragraph of what you could do to help Rissa out but I just watched the below video from theBarefoot that lays everything out neatly for you.  Please help if you can.

Subscribe to the Barefoot's YouTube Channel







Merry New Year! There's lots going on. Forgive the fast-talk, but I was trying to stuff it all into one video.
Oh, shirt! http://thebarefoot.spreadshirt.com
JPLnews - What's Up for January 2011? http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HvIHDw...

Buy a leukemia tee shirt & 100% of the profit goes to help Rissa fight her cancer:
teeBarefoot Charity items - http://ow.ly/3wUfm
Another shirt for Rissa from Angel Sharum http://ow.ly/3wUf7

Read. Simply read. Yahoo pays Rissa for every page viewed:
Rissa Watkins at Yahoo/AC http://ow.ly/3vX77

Make a purchase from Twin Trinity Media (http://www.shop.twintrinitymedia.com/).
$1 from every book and 25 cents from every e-book sold goes to Rissa

Send messages of encouragement:
http://www.RissaWatkins.com
Rissa's Facebook profile http://www.facebook.com/rissa.watkins

I was accepted into the Yahoo!TV Superfan program

The results of the "Superfan" for Yahoo!TV are back.  I'll break down the articles one by one to give you an idea of how this happened in my case.

I submitted five articles for the test assignments:

"Blue Bloods" - This article was a recap of a particular episode.  It wasn't reviewed or published in a timely fashion (which is key when doing recap articles) so it published on AC.  I was accepted into the program to write for this show.

"NCIS" - This article was another recap. Like the "Blue Bloods" article, this article took a very long time to publish. Unfortunately, for this one, I wasn't accepted into the program.

"Criminal Minds" - This article was a best quotes type article and even though it was more evergreen than a recap, it was published on AC.  The format slightly screwed up within the article which makes it look bad, but it's getting page views at least.  I was a bit worried about this one.  It was the last to be reviewed.  I'd been told by an AC staffer some time ago that quotes don't count toward total word count on an article, however, the assignment details specifically stated that "Best of" quotes could be a theme idea for the test article.  Even though this article was published on AC, like "Blue Bloods", I was accepted to write for this show.


"American Idol" - This article was in a format of "Where are they now?" which I've had published on Yahoo!TV before.  This one focuses on the past 3rd place "Idol" contestants and what they've done since AI.  It was published pretty quickly on Yahoo!TV.  The funny thing is, while I have followed AI for many seasons, I actually had no intention of watching it again because of all the changes.  But I was actually accepted to write for this show so I will be watching it. It's a pivotal season for them and I am sure there will be many interesting things to write about!

"House" - In my opinion, this was my best article out of all of them.  I did a comparison of House on Vicoden vs. House on Cuddy.  It was delivered to Yahoo!TV but sits in limbo land waiting to be published.  I wonder if they are waiting on a string of new "House" episodes before publishing it.  But anyway, I was also accepted to write for this show.


Not quite what we expected

Several Y!CN members began their excited chatter about what shows they were going to write about and we discovered that it wasn't quite the exclusivity that we thought it would be.  I'm not the only contributor who will be writing on the shows I was accepted for.  It wasn't that I thought it would be exclusive but I actually didn't think that SO MANY people would be dipping into the same shows.  "American Idol", for example, has so many writers on board that I wonder how productive it will be for Yahoo! to pay upfronts for so many articles focused on the same episodes.

In addition, there were contributors who claimed some of the test assignments but for one reason or another, ended up releasing them instead of submitting them.  Some of them were accepted into the program.  I know, say what?  But it gets better.  There were a few contributors who said they never applied and were accepted.  This concerns me.  It makes me feel like the hard work I did on mine was for nothing.

ETA: Now I'm being told that some acceptance emails were sent out in error.  Y!CN is working to correct the problem.  I'll update about this program after the first of the year.

Looking forward to the experience

Even though it isn't what I expected, I'm still excited about it and will be putting on my game face with each assignment that comes my way.  I'm going to enjoy it as much as I possibly can.

Congrats to all others who also made it into the program! Let's look forward to the beginning of our assignments in 2011.


Seasons Greetings and Happy New Year!

On that note, this will be the last post of the year on this blog for me.  I'll come back in 2011 with new helpful information concerning the Yahoo! Contributor Network.  Merry Christmas, Happy Holidays, Season's Greetings and all that jazz.  Here's hoping you don't get too wasted on New Years!

How to Be a Productive Forum Member at the Yahoo! Contributor Network

So, you just joined the Yahoo! Contributor Network and want to take advantage of the forums? There are a several things to keep in mind when participating in this (or any other) online forum. From simple etiquette, to

following guidelines, and even reporting issues, here are some things I have learned from being a long-time member of the Yahoo! Contributor Network forums, as well as many others.

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My Yahoo! Contributor Award Nominations

Today is the day when I opened my schedule and decided to do a day of reading.  Everyone has their own special criteria for nominating and mine consists of a variety of factors which I'm not gonna waste time listing.  So let's get right to it, shall we?

There are only three award categories this year (which has shrunk from years past).  And here are my nominations.  Have fun reading and nominate if you wish.

Outstanding Contributor of the Year

Alice Clair Gunkee - She writes a lot of television related items, many of which require lots of research and time.  It isn't easy sitting down to make out long schedules of programming, compiling items from all across many networks, but she stays on top of things and even goes after the holiday specials viewers search for.  She's an A+ contributor.

Angie Mohr - Her articles are highly focused and very helpful.  She writes on a variety of subjects but specializes in finance, food, and wine.  She's more than helpful to a great number of fellow contributors.

Jennifer Wagner - She publishes a lot of quality content mostly focusing on home improvement and decorating.  Her articles are always helpful, creative, and well written.

Jolie du Pre - She's hard working, and produces lots of great quality and entertaining content.

Katie Sharp-Dierks - A great and helpful contributor whose main focus is on pregnancy topics.  

Lyn Lomasi - She is the hardest working writer I know.  Not only does she find time to write but she finds time to promote and help others on a regular basis.

Marie Anne St. Jean - I'm not big on crochet (even though I do enjoy reading about it and looking at new creations) but contributor of the year, in my opinion, isn't always about the content. Marie Anne has proven herself time and again as someone who will spend valuable time helping other contributors. She is more than willing to go out of her way for another contributor.

Lisa Mason - Not only is she kick-ass when it comes to content publishing but she spends time promoting and helping other writers.

Rookie of the Year

Kyla Matton - She produces good regular content which is hard to find in a new contributor. She's a "Rising Star" as well.  It also helps that she's a sweetheart!

Sylvie Branch - This newbie writer has blasted onto Y!CN with full force.  She has over 400 pieces of quality content, has a "Rising Star" award, has a Hot 100 badge, and is already sitting at Clout 9.

Kay Balbi - A "Rising Star" and Clout 9-er with over 400 pieces of content, too, Kay writes on a diverse range of topics.

Content of the Year 

When You Find a Breast Lump, Fear Takes Root - by Angie Mohr - This piece resonated with me because I am one of those women who is dealing with an unknown lump.  This article portrays exactly how I feel. 

Why Sunless Tanning Pills Are Dangerous - by Ann Olsen - A look at a dangerous trend.  Ann outlines exactly why you shouldn't take these pills.  It's eye opening. 

Stan Lee interview with Associated Content - by L. Vincent Poupard - From my perspective, I really shouldn't have to state why I nominated this piece; the headline speaks for itself. Larry has taken his status as a Yahoo! Contributor and taken it to the next level by interviewing the one and only comic book legend, Stan Lee. 

Homeschool Tips: Coping With Sending Your Kids to Traditional School - by Lyn Lomasi - This was a personal piece for Lyn as she dealt with this issue first hand.  As a mom, I understand this.  This article isn't all inclusive to homeschoolers, though.  My oldest will be in kindergarten next year and a lot of the points in the article pertains to that situation as well. 

Why Few Men Teach Elementary School - by Sterling Beaumont - This male elementary school teacher touches on a subject that isn't often thought about... unless you're actually a male elementary teacher.  It's a good perspective on a topic that doesn't get a lot of attention. 

My Story: Pelvic Inflammatory Disease After Childbirth - by Jan Corn - Many people have the misconception that PID can only come from having a sexually transmitted disease.  Not true. I also experienced this after giving birth. A great article and helps debunk a popular myth. 

What I Want You to Know - a Letter to My Daughters -  by Rodney Southern - This brought tears to my eyes and I think it will hit close to any parent. 

Business Alert: Terry's Complete Renovations - a Contracting Business in Scottsboro, Alabama (Video Link Included) - by Pamela Gifford - I'm nominating one of my own. I worked hard on this piece not for pay but so that no one else in my area would be pulled in by the shady contractor displayed in the article.

Using the "Resources" section to your advantage

When I first started with AC, I would often bypass the "Resources" section unless I found a link that I felt compelled to share.  Now that much of my work focuses on similar topics, I learned how I could use that section to place links to relevant or similar articles that I'd written. 

For some reason, though, it took me awhile to realize that I didn't just have to put the links there.  You can't use HTML in the box so it looked like the only option was to just have a link.  And not many people are going to click on a link without a headline of what it is.

So here's a little tip I picked up a while back: you can include the article title and then follow that with the link.  Click here for an example.  Scroll down and look on the right hand side under the tab "Resources".  You'll see how I'm able to utilize that section for previous articles I've written on the subject by including the headline and link.  I just wish I'd realized sooner that I could actually work it that way.

November 2010, Month End Review

So for the past two months, I've been whining about my page views on AC.  There's a sweet spot where if I pick a topic that gets good views and stick with it throughout the month, I do well.  For September and October, I never hit it.  November was a bit different and my page views once again increased enough for me to make a descent amount in performance pay before Christmas.  I've even managed to get my Hot 500 badge back! (It now says "Hot 500 Yahoo!" and is no longer a cute little flame, but that's cool.)

My Profile

But there were many more things that went on in November.  First, entertainment contributors were offered the opportunity to apply for a regular Yahoo!TV gig.  We opened an application window, told them what set us apart as television contributors, check marked what shows we kept up with on a regular basis and sent it in.  A short wait later, we received descent paying assignments that would test our ability to write for those shows on a regular basis.  For me, it included five shows, "Criminal Minds", "House", "American Idol", "NCIS", and "Blue Bloods".

As of right now, I've had the "NCIS" article and "Blue Bloods" article, which were both episode recaps, published on AC.  Now, I'm not sure if that means that I won't get those spots.  Recaps were allowed as part of the test articles but their timeliness in publishing is what makes page views.  The staff did not get around to publishing them until they were a few weeks past air date so inevitably, they went on AC and page views suck because they weren't timely.  Going to Yahoo! TV was more evergreen content.  My "American Idol" article has already been published over there and my "House" article, which is a comparison of House on vicoden vs House on Cuddy, was delivered to Yahoo! TV yesterday but hasn't been published yet.  My "Criminal Minds" article, which was a "best quotes" type thing, is still sitting in my queue waiting review.  I'm anxious, as I'm sure everyone who applied for the positions is, to see who gets the gigs.

November also saw the change from our status as an Associated Content contributor to the Yahoo! Contributor Network (has a nice ring to it).  There are still glitches to be worked out but I have confidence they will be remedied.  As long as I can publish and I'm getting page views and am getting paid, I can live with the glitches without getting too upset.  Annoyed at no notifications, yes.  Angry, no.  There's no point to it.  This was a huge roll out and was inevitable.  It still can't compare to the disaster that was Examiner.com's "upgrade".  After that, I can deal with the stuff YCN is going through.  (Once I hear back from Yahoo! about logo use, there will be a change in this blog's header, too, hint, hint!)

So November was a rising point for me.  And I continue on.

Be looking for an upcoming special post within the next week or two about the Yahoo! Contributor Awards.  Check your account page on YCN if you have no clue what I'm talking about.  I am planning a day devoted to reading and nominating my choices for these awards and I will post my choices on this blog in case you'd like to nominate them, too.  :)

I hope all the U.S. contributors had a lovely Thanksgiving.  Hope your Christmas (or whatever you celebrate this time of year) goes well.

-Pamela