Comments on: WordCount Q&A: Helium.com CEO Mark Ranalli

By: Helium's $10,000 hands-off-our writers clause | WordCount

Helium's $10,000 hands-off-our writers clause | WordCount — Mon, 22 Aug 2011 21:46:14 +0000

[...] detail. The writer was an editor at Helium, a content site I’ve written about extensively here and elsewhere, debating the pros and cons for freelancers of working for it and similar [...]

By: Thu Nguyen

Thu Nguyen — Tue, 24 Aug 2010 18:16:36 +0000

Just having joined the site for less than a month, I find that it helps me with my writing. As a blogger I get to say what I want but as a Helium writer I get to as well but with a community that constantly rates your work, you find that you’re challenged to write better. Rating also helps you with that as well. Overall, I’m glad I’ve taken the plunge. Now there’s no turning back.

Thanks for the interview.
Thu

By: Perry McCarney

Perry McCarney — Mon, 31 May 2010 20:25:30 +0000

I write at Helium and earn about $40 a month plus close to $10 a month to various charities from donated articles. Somewhat more when I try my hand at the contests. My top 10 earning articles have made $91.54 so far this year.

I see it as a nice bonus for getting what I want to say out there. The money is more an indicator of how much my articles are being read than a livable income, unless I move to a 3rd world village.

A number of my articles appear on google’s first page when searched and that’s good enough for me. It’s all a matter of what you are after.

By: Msday

Msday — Fri, 31 Jul 2009 21:27:11 +0000

I also like Helium and find it addictive as well. There are some awesome writers on the site and I enjoy writing and receiving the feedback. I didn’t join to become rich. I think if anyone joins any site to become rich, they are setting themselves up for failure. However, I don’t doubt that there is money to be made there.

By: Gerard Coulombe

Gerard Coulombe — Tue, 28 Jul 2009 00:35:24 +0000

Who are these writers @ $500 & $5,000
& who paid $300. for an article?

And are you sure Hearst will run to renew its contract?
It’s not as if they are using just loads of Helium filler.

I like Helium. It is addictive. It doesn’t cost anything, although people could have a real job and still write in theis spare time.

It’s a lot of pie in the sky, too. [Work and pray, live on hay,
You'll get pie in the sky when you die.] Joe Hill 1911

By: Anita Bartholomew

Anita Bartholomew — Sat, 18 Jul 2009 01:35:03 +0000

Helium exploits writers. Period. Ignore the hot air about what top writers have gotten. Most, apparently, earn too little to buy a pack of Doublemint gum.

I know that there are people, eager to break into writing, who believe that this is the way to do it. I speak as someone who has made her living as a writer and editor for more than 20 years: writing for Helium (or Demand or other exploiters) will get your career exactly nowhere.

If your writing is good enough to publish, it’s good enough to get paid for. If your writing is not yet good enough to get published in a paying market, then keep working at your craft until it is.

Meanwhile, please see the blog posts I’ve written about such exploiters here:
http://editorialconsultant.wordpress.com/2009/07/01/file-under-is-that-pay-rate-a-typo-or-just-an-insult/
and here:
http://editorialconsultant.wordpress.com/2009/06/09/pay-the-writer-damnit/