Pick a Topic You Love and Turn It into an Intriguing Yet Easy-to-Read Article

 … And You Might Get Paid $200 for Your Effort!
By Sandy Franks

Getting paid to write about a subject you love …

What’s better than that?

In this article I’m going to show you how easy it is to complete this freelance writing project AND get the chance to win $200 for your effort.

You’ll also end up with a “polished” sample for your portfolio and the first piece of content for your very own Money-Making Website.

All you have to do is follow the writing instructions below!

What’s this all about?

Well, it’s AWAI’s way of showing you just how easy it is to start your own Money-Making Website that will give you a way to make money from your writing, without any clients.

These are simple websites where you share articles with readers on topics you love or subjects that are close to your heart. Or on a random topic you simply know a lot about — or want to learn a lot about! … Like growing tomatoes!

Think I’m kidding? Let me introduce you to AWAI Member Kathy W. A simple conversation led Kathy to a brand-new source of “spare time” writing income. Her husband had been looking over his tomato plants and found spots he didn’t recognize on the plants.

When their online search efforts to identify the problem led to a frustrating lack of information, Kathy realized she could create an informational website that would help fellow gardeners.

Her Money-Making Website “TomatoDirt” on planting and growing tomatoes was born.

Starting with modest web traffic and building up the site in her spare time, Kathy realized one day that the income she was generating was paying enough to cover her son’s expenses in law school! After his graduation, the income then paid for her daughter’s expenses in medical school. With both children now done with school, Kathy’s got a number of ideas for how to spend that “extra” money. 🙂

And Kathy’s not the only writer creating “extra” income from her informational website, either.

There’s Andrew M., who wanted the means to finance a dream of travelling with his wife full time around the Australian Outback. Andrew created “TopWireTraveller” to fund and share their adventures. They have the freedom now to do whatever they want, wherever their travels take them!

If Kathy and Andrew can do it, so can you. And that’s why AWAI created this writing contest to show that getting started is simply a matter of picking a subject matter you love and writing an intriguing, easy-to-read article.

If you send that article to us, you could be one of three writers awarded a check in the amount of $200.

I’ll share all the details on how to turn in your submission in a minute, but let me give you a few tips to help make sure your article is one that readers will find irresistible. These tips come straight out of The AWAI Method™ for Becoming a Skilled, In-Demand Copywriter …

Writing tip #1: Focus on the Power of One. Every good article focuses in on one compelling idea. Too often what happens during the writing process is that writers get excited about several ideas, which is normal.

But then they put all those ideas together in one article. That ends up making it difficult for the reader to stay interested in what you’ve written. In their minds they’re thinking something like, I’m not sure which of these ideas matters the most.

When this happens, they stop reading altogether. That’s why it’s important to stick with one idea throughout your content.

Writing tip #2: Craft a headline that draws the reader into your article. Once you’ve got your one idea in place, it’s time to write a headline that gets the reader interested. Headlines don’t have to be lengthy, they just have to pull the reader in. Luckily, you can use the four U’s AWAI developed over the years to help you do this. The 4 U’s are

• Useful: how does headline help the reader?
• Urgent: how does the headline move the reader to act?
• Unique: how does the headline surprise the reader?
• Ultra-Specific: how does the headline give details to the reader?

Writing tip #3: Make it about the reader. Whenever you are writing about something you love, your natural instinct is to make the article about yourself. But that’s really the last thing your reader wants to hear about. They are interested in what the thing you love has to do with them. So as the writer, you have to make it all about the reader.

One of the easiest ways to make the reader feel as if you are writing to them is to include the word “you” several times throughout the article. This isn’t to say you can’t use the word “I,” but at some point (and preferably sooner rather than later) you’ll have to transition to the word “you.”

How do you do that?

A simple transition technique is to craft a line such as “You probably know what I mean,” or “You might feel this way too,” or even something like “In just a few minutes, you’ll understand why this subject is important to me.”

Writing tip #4: End on a good note. For everything you write, there’s always the starting point, the middle, and the end. And when you get to the end of your article, you’ll want to make it meaningful or memorable for your reader.

You’ll want to write your ending so that it feels natural instead of forced or obvious. By that I mean avoiding endings such as “In summary,” or “In ending this article, I’d like to add,” or “That’s all, folks.”

Give the reader some kind of takeaway … an important point you want them to ponder, remember, relate to, or recall. This will make them feel that the time they spent reading your article was worth it. And the next time they see your name in a byline, they’ll be eager to read what you wrote.

Now that you have a few tips on writing an article on a topic that you like but also is relevant to your reader, it’s your turn to try it.

Here’s where you get the chance to win $200.

The Project

Write an article in 500 words or less.

Be sure to add a headline for your article (that is not included as part of the word count).

You’ll also want to have an ending that leaves the reader feeling good about what they’ve just read.

About the Product

Pick a topic you know well, or a subject that you are passionate about or have a deep interest in. Maybe you like lake fishing, or enjoy sail boating, or cooking a healthful meal is your thing, or you are passionate about helping your local church or community.

Whatever topic you choose, just make sure you know it well enough to write about it. (If it’s a new topic, then you’ll want to do some research in advance of writing the article.)

Once you’ve picked a topic, it’s time to write. You’re going to turn that subject into an article that readers will find interesting and useful.

When you’re done, you can submit your article to us. The AWAI editorial team will review the submissions, and based on what we see, we’ll pick three winners.

And those winners will each be awarded a check for $200.

Guidelines for Writing Your Article

Get familiar with the AWAI style of articles by reviewing previously published articles on our website and here in The Writer’s Life.

That will help you get a feel for the target audience as well as how to structure your article.

Then use the criteria I shared here to help yourself write an article that captures their attention

The Rules for Submitting Your Article

Rule #1: Make this all your own, original work. No copying, please.

Remember, the real value here lies in practicing and improving your craft.

Rule #2: You have a deadline.

Submit your copy by 11:59 p.m. ET (one minute before midnight) on June 17, 2022.

AWAI will announce the three winners on July 2.

Submission Details

This contest has ended. Check out the winners, here.

Do you have any questions? Let us know in the comments.