Hello everybody,
Continuing with my freelance writing series, today I have a more approachable option for rookies and aspiring writers out there: Toptenz. So, allow me to introduce you to "life on a short list" as the website describes itself.
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Truth be told, things appear to have change quite a bit since the days I used to write for them. I don't see a "write for us" page anymore there, which could possibly mean that these guys don't accept work from freelance writers these days, but instead pay a team of writers to do all the "dirty work."
Also, I see that they have a YouTube channel with more than a million subscribers and most likely their videos make them more money than the text articles. Well done, Shell.
Interestingly, one of my text lists has become a YouTube video with more than 432k views (not bad, but those are nothing compared to the numbers I scored with List25)
One way or another, congratulations Shell. You worked way too hard and you deserve all the money you probably make right now ;)
Compensation and Exposure
If I remember correctly the standard paycheck per list used to be $50 back in 2013-2014. There were occasional bonuses for the more successful and viewed writers, but that's something not to be discussed publicly as it was between the owner and the writers. Not sure what's going on these days, but you can always message them on Facebook if you're interested in writing for Toptenz (here) and ask for such details. Most importantly, ask if they accept material from guest writers (because they may not from the looks of it).
Pitching Procedure
Pitching and eventually writing for Toptenz used to be way easier than pitching at Listverse and Cracked. Even though the websites's quality and posts were as good (if not better in several cases) than its counterparts, thanks to the personality of its owner (Hola Shell Harris), things were so much smoother and less complicated during pitching. Like I said, if they still accept guest writing, I would suggest it as a first choice to pitch your work, as long as you come up with something really good.
My "Stuff" For Toptenz
I discovered Toptenz right after I was done writing for Listverse back in the summer of 2013. I was going through a period that I was looking for something more stable than just freelance writing and after coming in contact with Shell, I spent about five or six months writing for them and Gunaxin (I will talk about Gunaxin tomorrow).
I truly had fun writing for Toptenz and I produced some "classics" during our cooperation. Not sure about the number of views my pieces have made there, but I know I did well based on the controversy I was causing with some of them. If you see the comments of my list titled 10 Non-White Actors Who Played Previously White Characters, you will understand what I am talking about.
I am very proud for my work, however, because unlike most (if not ALL) fellow major writers of the industry (mainly from the US and the UK), I dared to touch topics that usually end careers. And I am not talking about ranting on Facebook or Steemit that you and maybe your mama will read; I am talking about websites that millions of people read on a daily basis. It takes "cohones" of steel to write such pieces when you do that thing for a living, eh?
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Anyway, that list of non-white actors stealing white roles was meant to be the last one I wrote for Toptenz for obvious reasons (don't let the chronological order of my lists deceive you; Shell just republished at some point a couple of my most successful lists). I wrote in total 17 articles for Toptenz and I don't regret a mothafuckin thing. Here's my author's page there....Enjoy!
https://www.toptenz.net/author/theodoros-ii
Once again, if you're interested in launching a real writing career, because let's be serious here, Steemit ain't no writing platform and you will never get any real credit writing for your 50-100 friends here (maximum), Toptenz definitely worth a try. You got nothing to lose ;)