New to Steem Series #2: Blogging Your Way to Great Rewards

In this New to Steem series, I aim to guide new members to the quirks of steem based on my very own experience on the platform. The New to Steem series is an initiative of the "New Steemians" project. You can learn more about the New Steemian Project here: https://steemit.com/introduceyourself/@gaman/new-steemians-project-launch

---

Image Credit

In today's topic, we will be discussing on the tips and donts of submitting an article. Over the past few weeks I notice that there are certain pitfalls or certain tips that a new member should be made aware when writing an article. I will list them down here and hopefully, you can navigate it better than me when I was new here.

Don't plagiarized

Don't ever submit a plagiarized article. In steem, there is a bot which specifically checks if the article is plagiarized from somewhere in the internet. If it is plagiarized, it will write a comment that your article is similar to another article. Your article might be flagged and you might be blacklisted by another bot.

If you're article is flagged, you might lose all the rewards for that article. Your article will also be hidden due to low ratings.

So, do not ever take the shortcut. Write original good articles to build your followers. It may be hard and disappointing at first, but keep on doing it and you may succeed one day.

Here are some of the sample articles that were found to be plagiarizing:

1. https://steemit.com/all/@baghban1369/the-decision-making-guide-how-to-make-smart-decisions-and-avoid-bad-ones
2. https://steemit.com/all/@prajapatibnay/gathemangal-demon-festival-in-nepal
3. https://steemit.com/all/@kanggary/which-10-countries-have-the-most-beautiful-women

Introduce Yourself

If you don't mind revealing your real life identity and you're not shy, a good article will be to write about yourself.

Take a picture of yourself with a handwritten or hand painted steem with today's date. This makes sure that you are saying who you really are and its not just a stock photo. Write about your background, your likes and dislikes. Usually, people like to upvote these kind of articles. Make sure to tag your article with: introduceyourself and introducemyself. Also, remember to limit the use of these tags. You should only introduce yourself once and do not abuse these two tags.

These are some good examples of an introductory article:

1. https://steemit.com/introduceyourself/@odieode/fresh-outta-high-school-about-to-embark-on-my-college-journey-hello-steemit
2. https://steemit.com/food/@nickoskitchen/i-m-so-excited-to-join-the-steemit-community-after-10-years-on-youtube
3. https://steemit.com/introduceyourself/@kenshishido/hello-steemians

What Article to Write?

Of course, we would like to be rewarded for the articles we write. But what article should you be writing?

The best article usually draws from your own experience. But if you would like me to give you an idea what topic to write on, perhaps you can take a look at the tags that gather the most rewards. Check it out here: https://steemit.com/tags

Write in Dual Language If Possible

If you could have a larger audience, then your possible rewards will also be better. Make sense? That is why if you could write your article in two languages, your potential to earn more could be bigger. And also, do not forget to tag it appropriately. If your other language is Chinese, tag your article cn and kr for korean. Here are some examples of dual language articles:

1. https://steemit.com/travel/@sweetsssj/travel-with-me-80-a-visit-to-the-staniel-cay-yacht-club-and-enchanting-hidden-sandbar-beaches
2. https://steemit.com/travel/@ramengirl/stylish-home-furnishing-store-in-japan-or-ramengirl

I hope you enjoyed today's article. If you have comments or additional tips, feel free to comment below and I will update this article. Here is a list of the articles in this series:

1. My Number 1 Rule - Secure Your Owner Key. Failure to Adhere to This Rule Results in Massive Loss
2. Blogging Your Way to Great Rewards