As 2012 begins, I have three non-fiction article writing gigs in hands. One is for real money; one is for almost no money; one is for unknown money.

The no-money one of these is Suite101.com. This was starting to be an earner for me, until Google made major changes in their search algorithyms and ruined access to the site. I wrote 127 articles there on a variety of topics that interested me. I figure these articles amount to about 101,000 words. Back in January-February 2011, it looked like all the work was beginning to pay off, as ad-share revenue was finally amounting to something. Then Google screwed us, and did so again in August. Ad revenues are down to less than $5.00 per month average, maybe closer to $3.00 per month.

I haven’t written an article there since last February, though I remain a member in good standing, and could write there any time I want. The site is soon to go through a major re-vamp. I’m waiting to see what they do, and if anything I want to write on will still be suitable. I don’t expect to dedicate a lot of time to this site in 2012, though that could change as site changes unfold.

The one for decent money is Buildipedia.com. I’ve been writing there since about August 2010, a variety of engineering and construction article. Right now I’m writing a twice a month column on construction administration, something I’ve done a lot of in my career. I’m paid $100 for these 500-600 word articles, which take not too much time to plan, research, and write. I have one due Monday, and another two weeks later. It looks as if I’ll get contracts monthly so long as they like the results.

I could also pitch feature articles to Buildipedia. I wrote about 15 for them in 2010-11. The previous editor was starting to reject most of my feature article ideas, but I should pitch some to the new editor and see where they go.

The third gig is a site named Decoded Science. The owner/editor invited me to join and submit articles. I have one written, but have not yet taken time to complete all my paperwork. Their article submittal process is quite different than for the other two sites, and I suppose I’m holding off because I don’t want to learn a new system. But I will write for them, at least a few articles, and see how the ad-share revenue is. I’m thinking of writing some articles on low impact development, something I’m learning that is all the rage in site design right now.

Apart from these, I have no plans to plan, pitch, or write freelance articles this year. The one experience I had in 2009 with an article for Internet Genealogy was not fun. If all print mags are similar, I’m good writing for the Internet for less money. Actually, at Buildipedia it’s a lot more money per word, and I don’t have to beg them to pay me.