Hi everyone. This is Elizabeth from Strange Ago, and today I am going to do something a little different and talk about how I became a history writer.
One of the most common questions I get in my inbox is how a history lover can make money researching his or her interests, since I somehow managed to do just that.
The easy answer to this question is to just start doing it. Do the research, do the writing, and start sending submissions to editors.
Writing for Listverse
I had been the bread baking writer for About.com for several years, but in 2015 I came to realize that I wasn’t going to be writing about this subject forever. I began checking out other websites that paid writers for articles and I found Listverse.com.
Immediately, I began writing and sending submissions. At first, my articles did not get accepted, but I kept at it until they accepted my article on 10 Jobs from the Early 1900s that Totally Sucked and 10 Strange Methods of Birth Control from History.
By 2017, I was writing articles about cannibalism, Russian gulags, and the Great Plague of London when a casting associate contacted me about auditioning for a host position for a new web show on the History Channel.
While that is a story for another time, I distinctly remember realizing that I had stumbled onto a whole new career.
I Started a Blog
That same year, 2017, I started my blog, StrangeAgo. The original goal was to simply post articles that did not get accepted and to post interesting old newspaper articles where I could find them again. I never expected people to find the blog or to start linking to it and using it as a reference resource. but that is what happened, and I am grateful that so many other people enjoy exploring history the way I do.
Your To Do List
- So, the steps to begin a new career as a history writer are:
- Choose a history niche or a favorite subject.
- Research
- Write articles specifically for the websites you are interested in – choose high profile websites such as Listverse and Cracked.
- Start a blog.
- Build a LinkedIn profile that showcases your work.
- Start a podcast or YouTube channel.
I will be posting more articles on working as a history writer and how to earn money as a historian in the coming days.
