Professors and journal editors expect that all social science postgraduate students have mastered the art of literature review writing—an important component of academic writing that assesses, appraises, and interrogates past studies.

Sadly, not all post-grad students know how to research and write a comprehensive lit review that exposes gaps and positions their argument.
This article documents a system, a model, a technique for writing a professional literature review that improves your credibility as a post-grad academic scholar.

Let’s jump right in…


How to Find a Gap in the Literature?

Most of the so-called literature review experts, even among the academics and research consultants, are amateur lit review writers. When reviewing literature for a specific sociology topic, they usually follow a four-step process:

• Download 10 papers,
• Copy-paste relevant paragraphs,
• Paraphrase the copied paragraphs and
• Steal the “limitations of the study” sections of the papers they’re reviewing.

Well, here’s the cold, hard truth:

This is the wrong way to write a literature review. I call it the easy lit review model for lazy “scholars.” I call it so because the model doesn’t require any critical thinking and reading exercise.

When you follow that model, you’re not going to find any gap in the existing studies, because there’s no synergy between the literature that you’ve “reviewed” and your proposed research gap(s). If you borrow your sister’s smartphone after a thief has stolen yours, you can’t claim that you’ve gotten a new phone, would you?

Of course not: You’ve got to buy a new phone with your money—and that requires the hard work of making some money and then buying the phone. It’s the same with writing a literature review.

It’s not an easy task. It requires higher-order thinking—critical reading and thinking capabilities that will help you describe and analyze what other studies have said. It’s not a game of paraphrasing what other scholars have documented.
You need to do these difficult tasks:

• Download at least 30 quality research papers,
• Read these papers with critical eyes, and
• Critique the authors’ findings.

When you follow this difficult model, you’ll go beyond simply describing what others have said; you’ll also get the opportunity to add your voice to the ongoing debate in the literature.

How to Position Your Argument in the Literature?

Two simple steps:

Step #1: Describe.

Step #2: Analyze.
Step #1: Describe.

Start by providing general information about the work you’re reviewing to your readers. In doing so, mention the names of the authors, the problems they’re investigating, the location of the study, the methodology used, and the results of the study—before moving to analysis.

Step #2: Analyze.

To analyze is to critique, to evaluate, to raise questions. For instance, when analyzing a particular study, you can ask and answer the following questions:

• What’s the significance of the study?
• What’s the problem of the study?
• What’s my proposed solution?

You need to describe as well as analyze past studies to “establish the importance of your study,” according to John Creswell, “as well as provide a benchmark for comparing the results with other findings.”

“Great,” you’d say. “But how do I incorporate all of these in my literature review paper?”

Here’s a Practical Example [i][/i]

Suppose you’re writing a literature review on “The Sociology of Modernity.”

Your first order of business is to download 30 research papers on the subject.

Next, you should then begin to read the papers one-by-one.

How do you review this work?

1. Describe. Provide general information about the work to your readers.

You do this by paraphrasing the most important points or findings in the papers you’re reviewing. So, if you find the following texts (Figure 2) worthy of reviewing, do not copy them word-for-word. That would be plagiarism.

Instead, paraphrase it. Remember, in this step, you’re simply reporting or describing what the author says—in your own words.

Take a look at the example below:

In his qualitative study entitled, “The Consequences of Modernity,” Giddens (1990) studies the social processes and consequences of modernity. The British sociologist contextualizes his theory within the context of western societies. In the work, Giddens claims that time-space distanciation is a “disembedding mechanism.” The time-space “disembeddedness,” Giddens maintains, resulted in the lifting out of social relations from local to global and it enables people to connect with others outside of their local area. In other words, it helps in breaking geographical barriers between states (Giddens 1990).

2. Analyze. Answer three questions:


I. What’s the significance of the study?

You can write your answer as follows:

Giddens’ modernization theory is an addition to the sociology of modernity literature, especially in the ongoing debate about the movement of society from local to modern up to the era of postmodernity, as some sociologists claimed (Lyotard, 1984).

II. What’s the problem of the study?

You can phrase it as follows:

Although Giddens’ theory of modernity has provided broad sociological insights on the concept of time and space in modern times and discusses more on the concept and consequences of globalization, the theory has failed to answer one critical question—the question of how to address the social problems brought about by modern institutions not only in the west but in other non-western societies.

III. What’s my proposed solution?

Again, you can write something like this:

The current study examines how to remedy the social ills brought about by modernity both in western and non-western societies. As the world became largely driven by modern institutions, it is incumbent for researchers to not only investigate practical ways to alleviate social problems; sociologists should also expand their scientific investigations to finding solutions to emerging social issues of modernity, such as climate change, cyberbullying, and pornography, across the world.

If you incorporate all these answers into your review, your final work will look like this:

In his qualitative study entitled, “The Consequences of Modernity,” Giddens (1990) studies the social processes and consequences of modernity. The British sociologist contextualizes his theory within the context of western societies. In the work, Giddens claims that time-space distanciation is a “disembedding mechanism.” The time-space “disembeddedness,” Giddens maintains, resulted in the lifting out of social relations from local to global and it enables people to connect with others outside of their local area. In other words, it helps in breaking geographical barriers between states (Giddens 1990). Giddens’ modernization theory is an addition to the sociology of modernity literature, especially in the ongoing debate about the movement of society from local to modern up to the era of postmodernity, as some sociologists claimed (Lyotard, 1984).

Although Giddens’ theory of modernity has provided broad sociological insights on the concept of time and space in modern times and discusses more on the concept and consequences of globalization, the theory has failed to answer one critical question—the question of how to address the social problems brought about by modern institutions not only in the west but in other non-western societies.

The current study examines how to remedy the social ills brought about by modernity both in western and non-western societies. As the world became largely driven by modern institutions, it is incumbent for researchers to not only investigate practical ways to alleviate social problems; sociologists should also expand their scientific investigations to finding solutions to emerging social issues of modernity, such as climate change, cyberbullying, and pornography, across the world.

The Bottom Line

As a postgraduate sociology scholar, you can’t survive in academia if you don’t know how to craft a great literature review; if you don’t know how to find gaps in the existing studies; if you don’t know how to position your argument in the literature.
As you can see from this post, literature review writing is not only about reporting what others have documented; it’s about describing and analyzing what others have said. And that requires deep critical thinking skills—analysis, synthesis, and evaluation.

• How much time do I need to master these skills? I WOULDN’T KNOW.
• Is there a shortcut for mastering these important skills? THE ANSWER IS NO.
• Can these skills be mastered with deep commitment over time? THE ANSWER IS YES.

My final words to you are these: To be a master, you have to start from somewhere. Just, as the legendary motivation expert Robin Sharma, says: “Cut your excuses in half and double the action you take.”

Most of the so-called literature review experts, even among the academics and research consultants, are amateur lit review writers. When reviewing literature for a specific sociology topic, they usually follow a four-step process:

• Download 10 papers,
• Copy-paste relevant paragraphs,
• Paraphrase the copied paragraphs and
• Steal the “limitations of the study” sections of the papers they’re reviewing.

Well, here’s the cold, hard truth:

This is the wrong way to write a literature review. I call it the easy lit review model for lazy “scholars.” I call it so because the model doesn’t require any critical thinking and reading exercise.

When you follow that model, you’re not going to find any gap in the existing studies, because there’s no synergy between the literature that you’ve “reviewed” and your proposed research gap(s). If you borrow your sister’s smartphone after a thief has stolen yours, you can’t claim that you’ve gotten a new phone, would you?

Of course not: You’ve got to buy a new phone with your money—and that requires the hard work of making some money and then buying the phone. It’s the same with writing a literature review.

It’s not an easy task. It requires higher-order thinking—critical reading and thinking capabilities that will help you describe and analyze what other studies have said. It’s not a game of paraphrasing what other scholars have documented.

You need to do these difficult tasks:

• Download at least 30 quality research papers,
• Read these papers with critical eyes, and
• Critique the authors’ findings.

When you follow this difficult model, you’ll go beyond simply describing what others have said; you’ll also get the opportunity to add your voice to the ongoing debate in the literature.

There are many benefits of literature review in research.

One is that it helps researchers come up with original work and the other is it helps researchers avoid duplicating studies. But more so, one of the most essential benefits of a literature review is its importance in sharpening graduate students’ critical thinking skills.

What you should know is that by reviewing literature, you are not only examining what other scholars have documented about your niche; you’re also interrogating what they have said, looking at areas of disagreement and issues in thoughts and methodology.

In conducting an effective review, therefore, you’re more likely to raise a question (“how does Enlightenment shape the historical development of sociology?”) or even question the question raised in the previous studies (“how significant is the Enlightenment project in the development of sociology?”)—an exercise that will help you improve your critical thinking, one of the most essential skills you need as a graduate students.

A literature review also helps you find a gap in the research.

The task of every research is to produce another original study that will improve existing knowledge in that topic. When you interrogate previous studies, you’re working towards finding new knowledge and adding it in the existing one. For example, let us assume that you’re writing a thesis on “the impact of the Enlightenment on the development of sociology.”

The task before you is to write a study that will improve the literature on that subject. You’re not simply regurgitating what has been written by a dozen other scholars on the age of reason; you are suppose to come up with a fresh perspective, a new angle, a new worldview that improves the subject.

Finally, literature review also helps you position your argument in the existing study. You might think that writing a literature review is just about writing words on paper. It’s much more than that. It is about coming up with a strong thesis (argument) and boldly sharing that argument in writing—in an ongoing discussion.

According to John Creswell, the research method guru, a literature review is “a written summary of journal articles, books, and other documents that describes the past and current state of information on the topic of your research study.”
Two things stand out from Creswell’s definition: Familiarity and summary.

• In academic writing, your literature review should demonstrate not only to your supervisory board but also to your readers that you’re conversant with your research area, and you’ve deep knowledge about your topic. It should demonstrate that you’re familiar with the ongoing debates in your chosen area and that you know the big, popular voices in your research niche.

• Only when you understand the ongoing conversation around the social problem that you’re about to write (information about your topic) you can be able to summarize that information. In doing the summary, your task is to synthesize the literature—examine the main argument of the individual researchers, and report the most relevant arguments related to your topic.

Understanding how to do these is vital because it will help you design a framework for crafting an original piece of research. If you don’t take literature review more seriously, you’re on your own…

Thank you for taking the time to read the post.

Contrary to what you might think (that writing a literature review is about downloading, reading, and reporting what past scholars have written about a particular topic), high-quality literature review writing goes beyond that.

The original lit review is about clarity. It’s about listening—attentively about what is being said. It’s about understanding and responding to previous studies related to your lit review topic.

Over the last 10 years in academia, I have tutored hundreds of college students about the science and art of academic writing and written and published tons of literature reviews and research papers—all without going insane.

I know. Deep inside your mind, you probably might be thinking: “That’s not for me. I can't even write a 500-word essay; how can I even dream of writing a lit review chapter? Don’t be scared.

Here are 3 smart tips to guide you:

Tip #1: What issues are being discussed among the group of researchers on this subject?

Your first task, when writing a literature review, is to research the topical issues that other researchers are discussing about your research topic.

Consider lit review writing as going to a technology conference in your local community. Upon your arrival, you meet several smart guys debating about a particular topic. You wouldn’t just open your mouth to join the conversation.
Why not?

Because you don’t fully understand the nitty-gritty of what they are debating. Before you chip in, you first need to listen to the ongoing conversation. The goal here is to familiarize yourself with the content of the discussion for it will provide you with the context that will help you respond in due course.

Also, as you listen to understand the meat of the discussion, you should try to figure out the most intelligent and respected guys in the room…so you can reference them later—when you’ll have joined the discussion.

Tip #2: Among this group of researchers, who are the most popular discussants, whose viewpoints are often cited?

Sure, a couple of hundred people are chatting at this technology conference that you have attended, but some guys just stand out from the crowd.

If you observe the room, you probably will notice that almost everyone who utters a word begins by saying one of these lines. “I agree with person A; what he says truly makes sense. I also experienced a similar situation back during my early college days… Or “I don’t agree with person A’s point of view; she’s being sentimental. The truth of the matter is that… Or “I think person C knows nothing about computers; how can he speak ill about Apple, given that…”

It doesn't matter whether persons A, B, and C are always correct; it’s just that their views are the most talked about at this conference.
Literature review writing works just like this heated conversation that’s going on at this conference. You must identify the popular talkers (studies), note their viewpoints (arguments), and start thinking about how to respond to them (your contribution).

Tip #3: While noting their key arguments, ask a critical question: What errors did these notable researchers commit?

You must go beyond agreeing with what everyone said about your research topic.

You must read between the lines, analyze the themes being discussed, scrutinize the methods used by the researchers, critique their reasoning, and question their research questions. Your task is to help the discussion and make it better—by offering an alternative view, not just reporting or regurgitating past studies.

Your literature review must contribute to the general stock of knowledge on the subject you’re writing.
If it didn’t contribute anything (by coming up with something new), then you’re not writing anything.

And no one will even look at you, not to talk of admiring your views, at that technology conference that you’re attending.

Saryea83: Yes, the site is loading nw!

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You choose on the topic you want. However, if you have no idea, or when our publishingg partners demanded a custom article, we can suggest one for you.

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Saryea83: I can't actually comprehend u! Are u to teach,while I pay or am to write while u pay me?
Besides,that website is not loadn/incorrect URL.

You're to pay only for the membership, and I'll pay you the very article - after some coaching.

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Try it!

Writing – whether as a hobby, school assignment, or for business – is as tough as its rewarding. The craft involves technical know-how, knowledge of English grammar, and some arty skills of style, tone, and voice.

And the writing market is competitive.

Today, there are more than a million numbers of freelancers in all the freelance marketplaces on the Internet. And starting anew in the industry is not an easy task.

We know … because we’ve suffered harsh critiques dozen number of times.
We know … because we’ve suffered the bitter taste of competition many times during our newbie days.
We know … because our works have been thrown in our faces many, many times.
We felt like giving up and quitting our freelancing career at some point but … we didn’t.

• What if you could benefit from the lessons we’ve learnt – and avoid falling into such terrible situations?
• What if you could get coached by expert writers – helping you not only to master the craft, but to discover your voice, style, and ideal subject areas?
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The program was built for you to relieve you of the many stresses involve in the competitive writing market.

It’s your opportunity to become a professional writer, and escape the hassles of rejections and client criticism until you’re ready to face the world.

WriteLearnEarn will pay, polish, and educate you for just N1, 500 a month.

The program launch date is 1st January, 2014. Anyone who signs up and pays before 1st January gets a 20% discount.

Just visit: www.haibtext.com for more details.

Welcome aboard.

pastorPETER: Wow' quite motivating and inspirational i must affirmed.
You've got some valid points there, those which re meant to spurred any Aspiring writter to work diligently and effectively (albeit am not left behind)....i gained something!
More ink to Your pen....!

Glad to know that you've pick something, pastor. That's exactly the aim of the article: to inspire.

Can't wait to see you on board ...

Thank you.

By: Suhaib Mohammed

Via Omojuwa.com:

http://omojuwa.com/2013/10/how-to-become-a-successful-freelance-writer-by-emulating-bella-naija-and-linda-ikeji-by-suhaib-mohammed/comment-page-1/

...

Every jobless Nigerian wants to create a successful business. The question is how will that be possible?

We have seen many success stories in Nigeria – from Aliko Dangote’s Dangote Group to Mike Adenuga’s Globacom to Jim Ovia’s Zenith Bank – but most of these stories are not much celebrated by the majority of the Nigerian masses because of the massive amount of capital injected in the businesses.

Recently, smart Nigerians begin to go into small home businesses powered by the Internet. Uche Eze – famously known as Bella Naija – and Linda Ikeji are some of the Nigerian success stories that started from the scratch and reach the top of the ladder.

These entrepreneurs started small and without delay, and didn’t wait for some stakeholders to invest in their startups. It’s worthy for aspiring Internet entrepreneurs to look at their stories, learn how they made it, and emulate them to achieve the same.

Bella Naija

Shortly after her graduation from the Richard Ivey School of Business in Western Ontario in 2006, the high-spirited Uche secured her first job…

Two weeks before commencing the job, she decided to start doing something to fill the “bored” moment she had. Uche has been passionate about fashion, and noticed that the niche was trending in Nigeria.

“I would come back every holiday [to Nigeria], and each time I came back, I saw how everything had grown,” the smart Uche told Ishay Sesay during her interview with CNN in 2010. “… The entertainment [industry] was vibrant, and I decided to start something that represents that.”

Immediately, Uche launched her blog and started posting scanned magazine content under a hiding identity. When her traffic grew to over a million visitors per month, she decided to reveal herself.
And in July of 2006, she showed up under the name bellanaija..com. Today, she’s bellanaija.com – a multimillion naira media company based in Lagos.

Linda Ikeji

Linda Ikeji hails from a “struggling” home in Imo State. She’s the second among the seven siblings of her family.
At the age of seventeen, the not-so-young Linda began to labor in the city of Lagos, working different kinds of jobs – such as ushering, bartending, and modelling – to help herself and her family.

“I would leave lectures, go to a hotel and sell beer from 1 pm till 10 pm...,” Linda recalled. “It wasn’t easy, but I had to survive.”

Shortly after her graduation from the university, Linda’s first start-up attempt was on journalism, a career she struggled so hard to jump-start. Afterward, she launched her modelling agency under the name Blackdove Communication.

Later, Linda delves into print media and founded FM & B – a magazine she called “her true passion” in her first blog post in 2006. But that magazine was short-lived after a successful release of two issues.

In that same year, following a blog post about her story on Bellanaija, Linda launched her own blog out of her love of beauty and fashion. She’s rich and famous, and she’s one of the amazing success stories in Nigeria.

The Entrepreneurial Mindset

By committing to changing their lives, notwithstanding the challenges involve in crossing the thresholds in their broken country, these great women succeeded in realizing their dreams based on the entrepreneurial approach they used. Let’s look at what they are:

1. Needs

Both Uche and Linda had needs. Uche was bored... unsatisfied with her condition, and needed to do something to change that. Linda, on the other hand, had bigger needs: she wants to cover her school’s expenses and help her poor family.

2. Coming with solution to satisfy the needs

Rather than waiting for miracles to happen, or an angel investor to pour in millions into their start-ups, these smart entrepreneurs come up with solution to satisfy their needs.

3. Resisting the difficulties

Despite the condition of the country, especially the broken infrastructure and insecurity, the women set forth their journey of hard work to achieving their dreams.

4. Tapping opportunities as they come

They tapped into the little opportunities they had in their midst (the Internet), packaged their natural endowment (their passion), and created a business out of it (their entertainment blogs).

5. Satisfying the needs

This is the stage that every entrepreneur wants to reach. But the truth is you have to work hard to get to this point. Bella and Linda will not become what they are if they had not kick-started their ideas seven years ago, and work hard to grow it.

Their mindset embodied many of the basic elements of successful freelance writers. It was beneficial. It was educational. It was about creativity, not a big business investment.

People identify with them. Even if you don’t love them, you’ll tell yourself that being a Nigerian doesn’t mean that you cannot build an online business. If Uche and Linda can do it, you, too, can do it, right?

That’s effective Internet home-based business, and you don’t have to be a woman to do it right. You don’t even have to love fashion and entertainment to go into it. There are many online businesses you can do... One of the most lucrative ones is freelance writing. But why would you go for freelance writing?

Because the Internet is driving by words...

Businesses have to fill their web pages with relevant information about their products. And with the recent Google Panda and Penguin updates, that means cheap, crappy content won’t do. Therefore, a professional writer is highly needed to craft valuable copies that attract traffic and generate sales.

With the rise of the blogosphere and social media marketing, people start to realize that content is the groundwork of all the effective online marketing. From the charm of building relationship with potential customers to Pay-Per-Click strategist to white papers to smart copywriting art – content is what works.

How to Develop Uche’s and Linda’s Mindset to Kick-Start Your Freelance Writing Business
Let’s analyse Uche’s and Linda’s mindset and see how you can incorporate them within the framework of what I called the 5 D’s of Freelance Writing Success.

1. Decide

You’re about to enter into the freelance writing business... but what is it all about? What do freelance writers do? What level of writing expertise do you need, how can you learn the art, and what tools do you need to start the business?

When you’ve got a clear picture of what the real business is, you’ve got a road map on how to go about it. More importantly, your motivations will begin to kick off.

This stage allows you to measure your capabilities in relation with the business model, and finally decide whether you’re a good match with the business or not.

2. Devote

You’ve digested and dissected the business venture already, and now you’re here – totally devoted to champion it.
This is where you’ll hone your writing skills (assuming you already have the passion for the craft) or devote to learning the art (if you don’t have the skills).

You’ll begin to learn hard at this stage, and that means getting trusted learning resources from credible sources to get you through.

There will be challenges in form of critiques and rejection of your work in this stage. Don’t weaken down by negative feedback; instead, get motivated by them and commit more to learning the craft.

3. Dedicate

Dedication comes in when you invest heavily in the craft. This is where you begin to buy the necessary tools for your freelance writing business, such as a computer or a Blackberry, word processor and Internet connection to get started.

In the dedication stage, you’re preparing to package your service and put it into real action. In order words, you’re beginning to refine your writing style, find your writing voice, and chose a niche that suits you. Your writing is no longer your hobby in this phase; it’s your serious business.

4. Discharge

This stage marks the release of your product. In order words, you’re beginning to hit the marketplaces to offer your writing service. You’ll present yourself professionally in this phase by creating a comprehensive profile and crafting compelling writing portfolio.

Here, you’ll start to network with people and businesses in your industry. You also need to create a website or a business blog, at this stage, to maximize your chances of landing more writing gigs.

5. Do Well

The Doing well phase is a gift that results from your initial decision of starting the hard journey to helping yourself. In essence, you’ve not only satisfied your needs, but reach the level of contentment you never imagined.

That means you take yourself to the world of Bella Naija and Linda Ikeji through writing. It’s important to note that arriving at this stage doesn’t mean you should relax. Don’t stop learning. Don’t stop pitching for more jobs. Don’t slow down on your writing efforts because it’s easy to fall from grace.

Instead, be like Oprah. Diversify. Start blogging, become an author, or a digital media producer… you’ll be wealthy. And more than ever, you’ll be proud of your successful, happy life.

Over to you…

Any freelance writer in the house? Do you have other entrepreneurial mindset that you use to succeed in your career? Are you aspiring to start freelance writing business but don’t know how? Share your thoughts in the comments below:

……
Suhaib Mohammed is a professional freelance writer. He’s the founder and Editor-in-Chief of Haibtext. Subscribe to his blog today and receive high impact articles on writing, everything you need to know about freelancing, and step-by-step guide on how to set-up your freelance writing business… for FREE. Connect with him on Twitter at: @Haibtext and Facebook at: http://facebook.com/haibtext

Although this is a newsletter for my subscribers, It's for anyone willing to venture in freelance writing business.

Here's the newsletter:

It’s been almost three months now since I started this blog. I have posted more than 20 articles on the system. And grow my writing skills even further … but all these couldn’t be possible without YOU.

YOU – my loyal subscribers – are my heroes – you make haibtext happen.

I have received a couple of warm emails from some of you, and have studied them closely to help you better.
Some of you are asking me “to put them through.” While the whole concept of haibtext was meant to help you – my Nigerian counterparts – learn the art of writing and use it to make money online – I began to think of coming up with a more in-depth training to serve you better ...

I’m thinking of creating an editing course for you. Not just sharing articles, eBooks, and writing materials but coming up with a more personal encounter where you’ll write articles, submit it to me, and then I’ll edit them, highlighting where you err in red, correcting any grammatical issues, re-structure you articles, and comment on your weaknesses and strength.

The aim is to get your writing skills polished enough to write for clients worldwide.

After you graduated (which is just in a matter of weeks), I‘ll get you writing project from the marketplace to not only build your writing portfolio, but get paid on that. It’s like you’re earning while learning. Of course, I’ll take care of the final editing, structuring, and all the intricacies. I’ll handle the submission, and send your hard earned cash immediately.

What do you think? Do you think it will make a difference to you?

To send your replies, please connect with me on Facebook here:

http://facebook.com/haibtext

Like me and drop your messages. I’ll respond to you as quickly as I can.

Thank you.
...

Suhaib Mohammed is a professional freelance writer. He’s the founder and Editor-in-Chief of http://haibtext.com Connect with him on:
Facebook - http://facebook.com/haibtext
Twitter -- @haibtext

vaniesexy: Hi,open your link above,i love your articles,i want to start writings too,please will appreciate if you coach me as a newbie. Thank you n please reply and want to know if you are on whatapp will prefer a chat there

Hi,

Nice to hear that you love the articles...

If you haven't subscribed to my blog, you need to. Fresh content will be sent directly to your inbox if you sign up.

I don't use Watsapp.

If you got questions, email me here:

suhaib@haibtext.com

I'm more than happy to coach!

Edmomd: Thanks for the good 2 points you raised. Please do you have good sites that offer freelance writting jobs and pays with visa or master card?

No! Not that I know... But Elance.com pays via wire transfer. In order words, if you have a GTB domiciliary account, you can withdraw directly to your bank account.

Read this article. It explains everything:

http://haibtext.com/2013/08/23/guaranty-trust-bank-gtb-your-safest-option-for-online-funds-transfer/

litetias: Do you have your articles published on print and online media?

I have published a couple of other on Weekly Trust. They're on the paper. They don't post all articles on their site.

I have many articles published on numerous websites and blogs. Take a look at these:

1. www.modernpoliticians.com/as-mali-seeks-foreign-aid-us-offers-drones/

2. www.omojuwa.com/2013/07/mr-president-unlock-the-power-of-politics-to-provide-peace-and-prosperity-by-mohammed-suhaib/

3. www.ekekeee.com/no-this-is-not-islam-by-mohammed-suhaib/

If you're looking for article on freelance writing business, I have tones on my blog here:

http://haibtext.com

As I mentioned here on nairaland earlier, the online writing business, known as freelance writing, doesn’t require much to setup, whether it’s capital (in form of money) or resources (in form of tools and items).

One of the biggest things that the business requires, in my opinion, is commitment. If you can commit to learn and write, then you’re half-way done. Now to complete the other half, you must get these two items – only 2 items – to kick-start your writing career:

1. Blackberry

I know it sounds odd to run an online business with a Blackberry phone, but I really started running my freelance writing business with my Blackberry Bold.

The good news is that, you can now buy a London-used one at just N15, 000 or N17, 000. Because freelance writing doesn’t require much Internet data or sophisticated computer software, you can just subscribe to the weekly or monthly BIS and get going.
The Smartphone has an amazing DocumentToGo, a mini MS Office app, which let you write, edit, and submit content to clients on the go.

2. Room or Office

Writing and distraction don’t match. That’s why one of the things to consider before subscribing to freelance writing business is whether you have safe environment to run the business.

Most freelance writers today, especially those from the First World – US, UK, and Canada among others – rent small offices in their cities to operate their businesses. To this day, I run my writing business from my room; I just make sure that my friends aren’t around to watch Premier League whenever I sit down to write. That’s why I write in the early morning hours (6-8 AM).

If you can operate your writing business safely from your room, you’re good to go. If you have enough to rent an office, that’s excellent. The key is to be productive… become prolific. If you have the talent and remain dumb, still, and inactive, surely, you’ll hate yourself later.

There’s no better time to explore the Internet advantage and succeed than today – in this technologically-driven world.
Got questions or anything to add? Drop them under the thread, and I’ll answer. Any freelance writer in the house? Please, jump in and share…
……

Suhaib Mohammed is a professional freelance writer. He’s the founder and Editor-in-Chief of Haibtext. He offers A-Z learning resource on freelance writing. Subscribe to his blog here: http://haibtext.com and receive free, fresh update directly to your inbox.

Consent: Im quite interested in this,but your link is not opening.pls send me details here :akpabaunyime@gmail.com. Thanks

I have e-mailed you, Consent.

pabon: Nice write-up OP.I like writing too and I'm addicted to the internet.Maybe I'd start writing more.I own a wapsite buh all I really do is copy and paste.I think from now,I'l start writing my own piece.
THANKS

Hi,

Warning: Stop copy paste! Google will catch you and penalize you for that.

You should start writing seriously... Don't even give it a second thought.

If you have any question getting started, including how to set-up your bank account so you withdraw you money from the marketplace, you can ask here, or visit my site. I have written an article extensively about that.

Thank you for the compliment.

iamskiigii: cool. but errm, who pays 4d write up?

Hi,

The clients. Companies, webmasters, or people who owns blog pay for write-ups.

For example, a small business owner selling tourist cars can seek the service of a freelance writer to write a 500-words article for him about their business.

Hope you get the drift?

What’s the engine that drives the Internet?

AOL Inc., the American multinational mass media company, in collaboration with Jakob Neilsen, the web usability consultant, say it’s the content. In their recent study, they revealed that content is the backbone of all the online activities.

“Internet users shared twenty-seven million pieces of content everyday…,” the AOL report says. “More than 53% of time spent on the Internet is directly attributed to content consumption… and nearly, more than one-quarter of all social media messages contain links to content.”

Is it possible to read your favorite blog post, update your Facebook page, and post that tweet without using some form of content?

… NO!

The Internet without content is like your body without water: it dies.

Unlike the traditional brick and mortar business, where you can’t set-up without injecting huge amount of cash, or soliciting for an angel investor to back you; home-based Internet businesses allow you to start with little or no capital.

Think of Linda Ikeji – the celebrity blogger – who started small with a free blogger platform and build a million naira online company out of it. She didn’t have professional certificates under her belt before launching her blog. She didn’t wait for rich investors to partner with her. She just identified her talent, used it, and, lo and behold, a million naira business was born.

If you want to become your own boss (and who doesn’t at this point); then online business would be a perfect match for you. If Linda Ikeji can make it, you can make it, too, right?

There are many Internet home-based businesses. One of the marketable ones is freelance writing.

The Writing Business is Lucrative

If you have writing talent, or are willing to invest some time and efforts to learn the craft, you can start a freelance writing business… in no time. The business is not just simple and salesy; it’s profitable and lucrative.

Here are three big reasons why:

1. Content feeds the Internet technology. Web pages are full of valuable content that attracts attention and promote businesses. Censoring online content = Internet blackout.

2. Content is what makes the Internet work. From the need to rank on the search engine to product promotion to social media sharing – content is what works.

3. Google makes content more effective today. The recent Google Panda and Penguin update necessitate the need of quality content. In order words, Google penalize low-quality, keyword-stuff content that lacks relevance. It only allows for high quality content to rank well on the Search Engine Result Pages (SERPs. That means a webmaster or a small business owner must pay good money if they want to rank well on Google.
Think about that.

Start Freelance Writing Business Today!

Let me tell you my story…

After graduating from university three years ago, I started the hard task searching for job… from paying N20 naira to read job openings on The Guardian newspaper to paying N150 (when I have them) to buy 1 hour air time to apply for jobs online – I did all what I could to secure a job… but to no avail.

Maybe because I didn’t have N500k to buy an offer. Or maybe because my legs weren't long enough to tap one from Abuja. So, I began to think… And one day I said to myself:

“Hey, I love the Internet. And I love writing. Isn’t there something for me online?”

That little chat I had with myself was the kindle that ignited the light of my career today. So, I went on to discover that “something” for me. Every night I would load N200 naira Etisalat voucher, get 15 MB and hob onto my sofa to Google for that “something.” I really had no clue what it was; but was just optimistic that it was there, and it was going to be remarkable.
Think of faith… hope…

And one night, I discovered that “something.” It was the freelance writing business. And, without any hesitation, I went for it. I had no writing experience beyond the assignments I used to write back during my university days. But I love the craft. And with some practice over time, I horn my writing skills.

Later on that same year, I registered with elance.com – one of the most reputable freelance marketplaces on the Internet – and got my first writing job there. Then I joined scriptlance (now freelancer.com). And things continued to get better. On elance, I keep getting writing projects to this day…

One of the most amazing things about freelance writing is that you can start with your Blackberry. The phone has a DocumentToGo app, a mini MS Office, which you can use to do all your writing assignments.

Today, I’m proud to say that I’m earning a decent income, and don’t give a damn to hunt for any job in Nigeria. I’m never been happier…

My advice to you, my fellow Nairalanders, is this: don’t stay idle, waiting for miracles to happen. Don’t buy into popular get rich quick scams, letting someone deceive you to believe that you can make $1,000 every day without doing anything.

Shine your eyes… In fact, shine your brains.

If you’re one of the 170 million jobless Nigerians, don’t wait till you get old to achieve your dreams. Wake up and help yourself… Instead of chatting non-stop with random boys and girls, turn your Blackberry into a moneymaking machine!

If you have any question on freelance writing business, drop it below, and I’ll answer. If you have other online business ideas, please, share.

……
Suhaib Mohammed is a professional freelance writer. He’s the founder and Editor-in-Chief of Haibtext. He offers A-Z learning resource on freelance writing. Subscribe to his blog here: http://haibtext.com and receive free, fresh update directly to your inbox.

Picture a world where a million dollar business can be launched by a single individual with zero experience...

Imagine a world where a business means a simple idea. A passion. Your hobby...

Imagine. Envision a time period where a university graduate or even a drop out student can start a business from their room without a million naira shop, or an angel investor to back him up...

Close your eyes and dream for a moment: do you pretend to project a technology-driven world where your Blackberry phone is all what you need to start a lucrative business?

Stop imagining. Stop conjuring. Stop dreaming. The 21st Century is here...

Now you can invest less without depending on a million dollar investor to kick-start your business...

Now you can start an online business – one that you don’t need to buy or rent a hundred thousand naira shop...

A graduate, college student, a drop out, or even people who never attend formal education – anyone with a bright idea can start an Internet home-based business and succeed.

But what kind of Internet business can you start?

You can start freelance writing business because the Internet is driven by valuable words that attract attention, generate traffic, and build businesses.

... And you don’t need a computer to start this lucrative venture...

With as less than N20, 000, you can purchase a fairly used Blackberry phone and begin your online writing business... in no time.

We got something for you to aid your heroic journey...

Subscribe to: http://www.haibtext.com

we share FREE newsletters with you TWICE a week about everything you need to succeed in the writing business.

Welcome On-board...

Nice one.

I guess the moral of the story is to be careful of the types of people around your business.

You can easily fire the ones that over do their thing, or just ignore other ones.

Saved the article for future use by the way.

You want a girl to be your honey, but you don't have
money.

I laff o!

Thing is, love goes fine and good with money, no doubt. The question is, is love driven by money?

Poor boutique sales Man! Clearly, he didn't know Oprah. If he did, he'll give the handbag to her... then snap picture with her.

Online article marketing is one of the common marketing strategies used by many people to market their blog or online businesses.

Article marketing is cost-effective and simple to use. It basically entails writing an article about anything you want to publicize or promote: yourself, your business, or your product, and advertise it online.

Here are tips to guide you on how to effectively use article marketing to boost your online business.

Quality Article Writing

Whether you’re a small or big business owner, article writing can be an essential tool for your online marketing. But your article has to be useful and of high quality. It has to be unique, fresh, and 100% original to captivate your readers and/or customers’ attention.

Also, a high quality article must be informative and educational to your prospective customers. When writing an article for your business, your readers should be the target of your writing.

Focus on them. Tell them what they need to know about your product, and do it in a way that answers their most critical question about your business.

Write Articles Relevant to Your Site and Your Business

Don’t allow your web site become bored with irrelevant content that don’t mean anything to your prospective customers; draft a powerful article about your business for your website visitors.

If your business is about selling a Dolce & Gabanna clothing line; for example, your article content must not only focus on clothing, it should specifically centers on D & G designer. Your articles should be on the latest trends of D&G designer. Focus on the current styles of the designer.

If you’re writing during a summer season; for example, focus on summer dresses that fit your prospective demography. This will capture their interest and will let them share the resources with their friends and families.

Include Links in Your Articles

Online article marketing has a formula for success and that formula is link sharing. Whenever you write articles about your business, make sure to include links in your articles. The link will be to your website. Having your site’s link in your article will let your prospective customer click to your site.

A great way to market your business using online article marketing is to visit various forums within your niche and post about your business. This will let your business expose over social media platform and help generate many customers to your market.

Add Social Media Buttons to Announce Your Articles

You need to add some social media buttons like a Facebook or Twitter button at the bottom of your articles; they help announce your article to millions of people in a short time. Doing this will expose your business via the social media platform and generate many traffic to your blog.

As you can see, using articles to market your business doesn’t require a lot of experience. Online article marketing is easy and effective to promoting your business. Follow this article marketing guides and apply them on any online marketing business of your choice – it will help grow your business successfully.
…
Suhaib Mohammed is a professional freelance writer. You can follow him on Twitter (@Haibtext), and visit his blog here: http://www.haibtext.com/

It’s clear that the Nigeria we live today is filled with raging atmosphere of conflict and disunity. This article offers a road-map towards establishing unity in Nigeria.

I believe, like many eminent Nigerians do, that Nigeria's unity is being woefully threatened by sentiments, ethnicity, and militarization and these forces of threats are signaling the nation towards separation and downfall.

Only a united Nigeria can overcome these ongoing rages of dissent and conflict.

The Federal Government must address the real issues - right now; little has been done by the Federal Government to address the formidable challenges of a broken Nigeria. Anywhere we look, from militarism to religious and ethnic conflicts; the Federal Government has done little or nothing to resolve the raging situation.

Even when committees are set up to address fresh violence, the investigation remains inconsequential. In Jos, for example, where a line of demarcation is set up, separating the Muslims and the Christians, reminiscent of the apartheid South Africa in 1950s; the government is yet to come up with a solution on how to resolve these issues.

The Federal Government must be committed to finding out the major causes of these conflicts and disunity and have strong, standard policies with a view to resolving the overall conflicts and division in the interest of our great nation.

Nigerians must prioritize - the burden of establishing a united Nigeria shouldn't just be shouldered by the Federal Government (although a greater weight has to be shouldered by her); Nigerians too have to come-in to ensure that peace and unity reign in the country.

But they have to prioritize. Issues that are foremost must be address first.
The compounded problems that loom large day by day in our Republic are enormous, and they are being handled nonchalantly by the Nigerian authorities.

Nigerians should put all hands on deck to prioritize on how best to tackle the problems of our beloved country.
This can be done through running Community Development Programs and delivering seminars to enlighten the general public towards a better Nigeria.

Brotherhood - this is a necessary virtue in a fragmented nation like Nigeria. Nigerians of every ethnicity, gender, and religion must come together and join hands to move forward.

Rivalry and ethnic sentiments must be stopped if Nigeria must survive as a multi-ethnic nation. The kernels of brotherhood should start from our homes. Parents must step-in to orient their kids on the importance of equality among Nigerians by virtue of a full measure of love.

Putting the country first - Yes! Nigeria’s interest should be put first before anything else, as Mallam Nasir El-Rufai, the former Minister of the Federal Capital Territory, Abuja, often says: “I'm a Nigerian first before being Hausa.”

This is the general creed that every patriotic Nigerian must have at the back of his or her mind. Nigeria as a nation belongs to us - Nigerians and that for us to live a better Nigeria; we have to be our brother’s keepers, our country keepers, and our nation builders.

Now is the time to stop being sentimental on personal issues and begin to join hands to move forward.
The road-map to Nigeria’s unity is possible. The Federal Government must run a background check on the forces that are overwhelming the Nigeria’s unity.

Nigerians too have to come by to prioritize and unite themselves as Nigerians first before anything else. If brotherhood triumphs sentiments in Nigeria, I believe the Nigeria we have in our midst, today, will be stronger and more united, and the government of the people by the people and for the people will flourish peacefully in the country.
…
Suhaib Mohammed is a professional freelance writer. You can follow him on Twitter (@Haibtext), and visit his blog here: http://www.haibtext.com/

Listen. You’re a human. You’re unique. You’re brilliant. But you probably don’t realize that you have a talent, or haven’t taken any path to discover it… yet. What you need to understand is that no one can find your talent – but you. So, heed these 5 easy steps to discover the natural abilities in you!

1. Focus

As you begin the search for your natural aptitude, don’t make it hard on yourself, nor go into extreme to figure out the innate endowment in you… slow down.

Don’t try to compare yourself with others, or force yourself to do something just because it’s lucrative or popular.
If you make the process complex, you’ll lose focus, begin to wallow in shambles, and end up hating yourself. Instead, love yourself and trust yourself, and focus only on finding the genius in you!

2. Listen to yourself

You’re the main character who can help discover the hidden talent in you. Simply, try to watch your activities everyday to detect and dissect the personal powers in you. But how can you achieve that?
Ask yourself the following questions:

• What do you admire?
• What are the things that make you happy?
• What comes easily to you?

Find answers to these questions – your talent lies within them.

3. Listen to what people say about you

As you dig deep into yourself, in an attempt to discover the hidden treasures in you, listen to your friends, family members, and business associates – what are they saying about you?

When next you design that ribbon and hand it over to your love, write an e-mail to your colleague, or help a neighbor with their wedding plan, listen attentively to what they say.

If they report positive feedback about your creativity, be sure to envelope it, wrap it, and seal it carefully: it could be your natural talent.

4. Pay attention to the things you like doing

Is it writing art, hand-made craft, or making videos? What are the things you like doing? Be very curious in figuring out what they are. Pay attention to your activities at home, in office, or at your business place.
As you discover the things that derive joy to your mind when you do them, grab them. They might be your natural proficiencies.

5. Face your fears

Don’t let your fears come your way in your journey to uprooting the natural endowment in you. Overcome them! Just try to ascertain your potentials and move forward to adopt them.

Once you’ve discovered what they are, go for them. Envision them. Understand that your talent isn’t just your personal hobby, but a dream you want to realize.

You can’t discover your talent if you’re not thinking over it. Relax, think, and reflect to uncover and harness the hidden gifts in you!
...
Suhaib Mohammed is a professional freelance writer. You can follow him on Twitter (@Haibtext), and visit his blog here: http://www.haibtext.com

PCs, laptops, and tablet computers like iPads, are most commonly used gadgets for online businesses, such as freelance writing and eBay. But did you know that you can use your Blackberry to do freelance writing online?

If you’re a writer who is freelancing, it may be easier to produce work from your Blackberry than to use an overpriced laptop that burns your lap and sucks your savings.

The reasons for using the Blackberry Smartphone to do freelance writing online are clear: the Blackberry Internet Service (BIS) subscription is undeniably cheap, your e-mails are easily within your reach, and most importantly, you have DocumentToGo – a mini Microsoft Office – in the palm of your hand.

Understanding how to operate your phone is important before you take your first steps in using it to do business. Firstly, it’s highly advisable to free up at least 30-50% of your phone memory to avoid any unexpected freezing. Otherwise, the sluggish nature of your Operating System (OS) and the slow browsing will cost you a deadline – the last thing you need for a start up.

The following tips will help guide you through:

Subscribe to BIS

Your Blackberry phone is of no use if you’re not subscribed to the Blackberry Internet Service (BIS). This is a data plan that you can register from your provider for a fee, depending on your location.

BIS charges differ, of course, from country to country. But overall, the rate is relatively lower compared with the amount of money we would otherwise be spending on broadband, dial-ups and Wi-Fi internet services.

In some countries where broadband internet is scarce and costly, a writer’s best option is to use a mobile device. Using your Blackberry to do all your writing assignments has never been easier.

Use Opera browser for faster, easy research

Don’t use the in-built browser on your Blackberry because it’s slow; especially when the website you’re loading comprises large images and graphics. Using a slow browser might ruin any chance you have of meeting your deadlines. Instead, try using a one that’s safe and fast like Opera mini browser.

You can get Opera by going to the “Blackberry App World” on your home screen and by typing “Opera mini” on the space provided. When conducting your research, you’ll be astonished to see how fast the browser will carry your searches and rank them up swiftly on the Search Engine Result Pages (SERPs).

And if you’re going for a recess, you can bookmark more than10 web pages in that tiny, but powerful browser to save your work successfully.

Turn off your network connection

Many people believe it’s not possible to do business with Blackberry, simply because the phone is a host of distractions: the BBM PING; the e-mail alert; the incoming calls; and the seduction of social media amongst others.

Well, that’s absolutely true. It’s a well-known fact that writing and distractions don’t go together. So, how can you, as a freelance writer, scale this out? Here’s how:

Shut down all your network connections before you start writing. Blackberry has a useful “Manage Connections” option, where you can turn off all your network connections to keep all interruptions at bay.

The good news about this feature is that your web pages are visible. You can put your phone on “silent mode” while searching, and then switch off all your network connections afterwards. Just switch them back again whenever you need to refer to the Internet again.

Write and edit with DocumentToGo

With DocumentToGo, you can write, re-write and edit with your Blackberry on the go. Blackberry has made this amazing app available on almost all its models. DocumentToGo is a pre-installed “native” Microsoft that gives a Blackberry user the luxury to have Word, Excel, PowerPoint and PDF at hand.

Now more than ever, you can write your ideas as they bounce into your head instantaneously with DocumentToGo. Try brainstorming in an open space like at the park or at an internet café.

This gives you the freedom to think as the world goes by while you relax and free up your creative juices. Or head to somewhere far from public distraction where you can unlock the terrible nausea of writer’s block.

Whether you’re a newbie, or a professional freelance writer, Blackberry Smartphone, together with its useful applications, gives you all what you need to write well and to submit content online.
....

Want you launch your writing business online?
Subscribe to my blog for free, fresh high impact training about freelance writing:

http://www.haibtext.com

Anyone who has ever tried to run an online business will tell you that organic traffic - visits from people finding your site through a search engine - is vital to success. And to get lots of organic traffic, your site needs to rank well on the engines, especially Google. That's why search engine optimization (SEO) is so important.

In the last couple of years, Google has made some significant changes to their ranking algorithms: they started with the Panda update, followed it with Penguin and finished the trio with EMD. As each update was implemented, the changes affected some critical areas of SEO.

So what does this have to do with freelance writers?

... To read the full article, go to:

http://haibtext.com

You can also subscribe to the blog to get free freelance writing training: master the art of writing and turn it to make money online... Free of charge!