Quantity vs. Quality

It seems obvious that for an online writer to be successful, they would need to publish  often. It stands to reason that the more online articles available to readers, the more page views the writer should be able to have. That can cause lots of problems. When writing a large quantity of online articles, it is quite common for the quality of those articles to begin to slip. Just another fine line we online writers must walk. We have to get our work out there and still maintain the highest level of quality possible. Online writers can't just "throw everything against the wall" to see what sticks. We must carefully plan our work.

I'm a "quality girl." I will always believe that one well-written online article will do better than 10 poorly written articles. Unfortunately, the numbers do not support my theory. Many writers do not care if their name is associated with poor writing. They are making money off those substandard online articles and not much else matters to them. My name is my brand (that is another topic all together; for more information click here) and I don't want my readers to see me as a poor online writer.

Truth be told, most readers do not notice the "little mistakes" that online writers make. Because of the informal style of most online writing, the rules of grammar can be bent some. (I think that actually physically hurt me to admit.) Of course, the "screaming mistakes" do get noticed. What is the difference in little mistakes and screaming mistakes? Not a clue; they all scream to me.

Will mistakes, of any kind, drive your readers away? Depends on the specific reader. Some do not mind. Others will be reading something else as soon as they spot the first mistake. It also depends on the type of online writing you are doing. When you are coming across as an expert in a specific area, mistakes will not help you appear to be an expert. If your are writing a "fun read," mistakes may not matter that much. (I felt another pain.)

So, which do you worry the most about - quantity or quality? Both. You must produce the highest quantity of articles that are of the highest quality. The fewer mistakes the better. Of course, all the information must be accurate. For me, it isn't worth the chance. I'd rather write few online articles than to have a reader refuse to read my work because of my mistakes.