Being a Writer: Earn Residual Income by Writing for Factoidz

Another Writing Site for U.S. and Non U.S. Writers to Earn Money At

Factoidz is a new residual income or revenue sharing site that I just started writing for. It has been quite nice and like Suite 101, the site has editors who review your articles before publishing them. till now, I’ve not had major editing changes made that affect my article. You could read the Top 5 Christmas Gifts for Him here to see how a Factoid looks and feels like.

Here is a quick overview of the site and then, I’ll go on to discuss some of the pros and cons.

About Factoidz
Essentially, writers can create articles or factoids with a minimum word length of 400 words on anything. Revenue is generated based on traffic or Page Views. You can read more details here.
From the site - Factoids are factual knowledge articles which describe a topic to a reader or explain how to do something

How does Factoidz Pay

Again, from the site - Factoidz pays between $1.00 and $5.00 per 1,000 impressions, based on the quality of your content

They pay through Paypal at the start of every month. Content is assigned a Payout Rate of High, Med or Low depending upon the topic, quality and quantity.

Pros and Cons

So, let me first outline the pros or rather the things I liked about Factoidz.

1. The fact that they pay through Paypal is what motivated me to sign up for them. That and the fact the few articles I browsed through seemed reasonably well-written and good to read.

2. They are OPEN for non U.S writers.

3. They have a great stats dashboard which shows your daily page views, revenues and all the other analytics to see how an article is doing.

4. They also have a list of High payout topics that could earn your revenues of $3 + per 1000 impressions. So, basically the SEO groundwork is done.

5. For writers who like social networking and bookmarking, there is a lot of voting, buzzing Factoidz up on bookmarking sites and all going on.

6. Editors who read and hopefully, edit articles before having them published, which means quality of content will be good.

7. Referral or Factoidz affiliates. You can sign up people using your link and earn money based on the factoidz they publish and the traffic generated.

Cons or the things I don’t much care for at Factoidz

1. Factoidz does not allow affiliate links, like eHow and Hubpages, which reduces revenue potential for writers with affiliate accounts.

2. Linking to outside sites is also not encouraged. So, if you’re looking for backlinks, this may not be a great idea. However, I've linked to a few relevant articles on Suite101 from Factoidz and they've stuck. On the Christmas Gift article, however, they were removed. I guess it varies from editor to editor.

3. For writers who don’t like all the voting and buzzing, this could be a potential irritant and may lead to lower revenues. I don’t much care for all the bookmarking, thanks to writing for Suite 101 which enjoys crazy Google love, however I do tweet, Digg and Reddit or Stumble my Factoidz.

4. Slower revenue flow than other established sites, like Suite 101 and eHow. However, I have seen better returns on my 2 Factoidz in 2 weeks than with my 7 articles on Bukisa. I know Bukisa is no standard but since both pay by page views, I thought of putting them together.


At the end of the day, I’m happy with how my factoids are doing and I will be putting in some more time and effort for this site as well and will keep you updated about how it goes.

Till then, if you wanna sign up, please use my link. Your revenue will not get impacted but mine may get a boost, thanks to your writing **smiling**

Is there a new writing site that you’ve started with? Do share and let us know your experience.

Being a Mom: How to Deal with Toddler Tantrums

Parenting Toddlers – The Issue of Tantrums, Howls and Screams

So, this is what happened. The other day, we were driving home after an extended shopping trip and all of a sudden, our toddler who was in the rear child seat, decided she wanted this little light thingy that was on the car dashboard. This was a small light that had a teeny bulb in it. I know what you’re thinking. So NOT a toddler toy. Unfortunately, for my husband and me, our daughter thought otherwise. It had a light. It was a toy. Simple. I said No.

And that is how it all started. The howling, screaming and yelling. A complete, first-for-me, toddler tantrum. Well, I ignored, shushed and soothed. Did it work? No. So, I got into the rear seat. We stopped the car. I hugged her, rocked her and did my best to calm her. Did it work? No again. Well, then I succumbed to the by now blood-curdling screams and handed her the light thingy. We started the car again. I stayed in the rear seat with her and we reached home, where we took the light away, which she had by then lost interest in.

This was the first time ever she had thrown a massive tantrum or any type of tantrum for that matter. It kinda woke me up to the fact that the ‘terrible twos’ are just around the corner. She is 20 months now. Anyways, since I felt that I did not handle the tantrum well, I decided to turn to my go- to toddler guide – What to Expect the Toddler Years

If you’ve missed my post raving about the What to Expect Series, please read it here.

So, to continue, this is what I learnt and how I’m going to apply it.

Reasons Behind Toddler Tantrums

According to the authors of What to Expect the Toddler Years, toddler tantrums are “developmentally correct” and there is usually a real reason behind these meltdowns. Reasons include the need to assert themselves, the need to release frustration, the desire to communicate, hunger, boredom and exhaustion. There are also other reasons such as a genetic disposition, a parent-child personality clash as well as other problems.

Key to Parenting Toddlers - Prevention is Better Than Cure

As moms and dads, we love our li’l ones immensely and we know them the best. So, in this case as well, it is a good idea to identify potential tantrum triggers and stop them in their tracks. In the aforementioned situation, what I could have done was not miss my daughter’s snack time (bad mommy!) and also cut the shopping trip short, so that we could have headed home earlier and given her time to nap. She was just hungry and tired after being on a grown-up shopping spree and was simply communicating!

Anyways, What to Expect the Toddler Years has a great list of preventing toddler tantrums. It includes encouraging toddlers to release anger or frustration verbally, identifying a toddler’s personality and tailoring the routine accordingly, ensuring regular mealtimes, snacks and naps and many others. And if nothing works and your toddler does have a tantrum, read on for dealing with it.

Dealing with Toddler Tantrums

However, what does one do when faced with the full force of a howling toddler? Here are the two main ways that I found useful and will use the next time our daughter decides to have a meltdown.

1. Stay Calm and Speak Softly. This I find really useful even when for reprimanding. I’ve noticed that when I fly off the handle, she gets even more angry. On the other hand, when I’m calm and cool, she tends to cool down.

2. Distract or Ignore. This I have to try out once more. I did try distracting her the last time but it didn’t work. And while ignoring is difficult, it should work especially when a toddler is throwing a tantrum only for attention.

So, how do you deal with a tantrum? Distract? Ignore? Yell? Please do share what works for you. You know, it’ll help!

Pic Courtesy :meddygarnet http://www.flickr.com/photos/meddygarnet/3813825761/

 

Being a Woman : Louise L. Hay and Her Books

Why I Read Hay House Publications and Enjoy Them



As I’ve mentioned in many of my earlier posts, I love to read and while fiction, drama, crime and mystery do interest me immensely, I also love to read self-help and positive living books. Hay house publications has a ton of books on offer that fulfill our desire to live a better and more enriched life.

Empowering Women  is the last book I read written by Louise L. Hay . However, I own and frequently read Heal Your Body, You Can Heal Your Life, Gratitude and other publications by Hay House authors such as Wayne W. Dyer, Ph.D.

Every book that I have read so far is inspiring and uplifting. Whenever I’m feeling low or having a rough day (which can be oh so quite often!), I turn to one of these books, open a page at random and gain strength and inspiration. I also, find similar motivation, strength and inspiration from reading Holy Books like The Bible or Writings of Nichiren Daishonin; however Hay House publications can be somewhat lighter and easier to read when suffering from a bout of the blues.

Even when I’m feeling really good about myself (which, again, can be quite often!!) I find that these self-help books are great for learning ways to be grateful, helpful and truly compassionate.

So, what are your favorite “inspiring” books? Which author really lifts up your spirits when they’re downer than the dumps?? Do share!

Great Holiday and Personalized Gift Deals from Things Remembered

Gift Ideas and Offers from Things Remembered on Personalized Gifts for Everyone


I love receiving personalized gifts. You know, the ones with your name or a thoughtful message or just a few inspiring words, which, in part, accounts for all the gift ideas articles I thought of sharing with all of you.

Great Personalized Gifts for Moms is an article that will give you great gift ideas for mothers for all occasions and reasons.

New Baby Gift Baskets has tips on how to put together that perfect welcoming gift for a new baby.

Top 5 Christmas Gifts for Him has tips on buying Christmas presents for the guys in the family, and

Five Great Gifts for Dads will help you give fathers meaningful and thoughtful Christmas gifts.

Considering my love for personalized goods , I also thought of sharing this wonderful Free Shipping offer from Things Remembered which is a great site that has hundreds of gift ideas to choose from. You can personalize gifts for everyone in the family and show them how much you care. They even have a Make-a-Wish range, which has adorable products, and they donate $2 from every sale to Make-a-Wish foundation. So head on over to Things Remembered and have fun personalizing Christmas gifts for everyone!

So, how do you add the personal touch to gifts for Christmas, birthdays or any other celebration? Do share.