I Have 10K Followers on NewsBreak
My Newsbreak journey: 10K followers and over 400 stories in under 2 years
I began writing on NewsBreak from a tip from a Medium writer in December 2020, and I’m so glad I gave it a shot.
My 10K followers aren’t even that many for NewsBreak. There is potential to go viral on stories there, and when you do, you can pick up many followers. I’ve seen writers that focus more on national stories develop followings of tens of thousands on NewsBreak rather quickly.
I decided to take the local track, however, and though it may limit my potential reach, NewsBreak has other ways of rewarding local writers.
I try not to overly obsess about meaningless things such as follower counts. Still, I couldn’t help but get excited about 10K followers.
How I did it
I began writing for NewsBreak in December 2020. I started by submitting articles I had previously published on Medium. These regurgitated Medium stories didn’t get many reads. It wasn’t until I shifted to writing about happenings in my local area that things began to take off for me.
Everyone’s journey is different, but here is how I’ve managed my work on NewsBreak.
I write local stories about a large metropolitan area.
I’ve seen others have success writing about national topics. Some of them have written about it on Medium. Their NewsBreak articles went viral with hundreds of thousands of views. I haven’t had that kind of luck with national stories. The stories that tend to do the best for me are fresh, local pieces about the area where I live.
I don’t just rewrite news articles, NewsBreak frowns on that, but I look for new topics to cover, mainly in lifestyle, dining, and entertainment.
I’ve formed relationships with publicists in my city.
When a new business opens or holds a special event, I sometimes get an email from a PR rep with a press release and images before it hits the news. I also signed up at PRnewswire.com for alerts on stories in my city.
No opinion pieces.
I save the opinions for my Medium stories. On NewsBreak, I stick to short, newsy-type articles, usually with quotes from sources.
I have heard from others that NewsBreak will accept opinion articles if you add “opinion” in the headline. But be careful with inserting your opinion into a news article.
I write regularly.
Unlike my Medium writing, where I sometimes write in great flurries and then abandon it for weeks, I try to stay consistent on NewsBreak, publishing a new story almost every weekday. Since NewsBreak favors short-form stories, even as short as 250 words, this isn’t hard to do.
I keep articles short and sweet.
NewsBreak is not Medium. NewsBreak readers aren’t looking for heartfelt advice, long essays, or deeply personal stories. I sometimes throw in personal items but usually keep them brief and light. My top articles are generally around 400 words. I try not to go over 600.
I submit articles to NewsBreak campaigns.
NewsBreak runs many competitions with varying prizes. I know it’s possible to win a cash prize in these campaigns because I’ve won them multiple times. My latest win was last month for a “top story” with the topic “Summer Fun.”
The current campaign NewsBreak is running is Back to School, with a top prize of $200 for the article that wins Editor’s Pick. NewsBreak allows multiple entries giving you extra chances to win.
I avoid topics NewsBreak doesn’t want.
You can publish on almost any subject on NewsBreak as long as you follow their Content Policy. However, NewsBreak is transparent that they are not looking for articles on health (especially Covid,) weather, or crime.
I follow the Content Policy.
This one is a big one. NewsBreak reviews every article before publishing and will reject any article that breaks the rules.
How many views can you get on NewsBreak?
Of course, this varies. My best article in the past week garnered 16K views, and my lowest for the week is sitting at 746 views.
How much money can you make?
I hate to talk about making money on NewsBreak, mainly because I’ve signed a contract promising not to. But also because earnings can vary based on a lot of different factors. I can tell you I get higher rates for my local, unique stories.
NewsBreak says this on its website about monetization,
“We offer different monetization options and you should review your specific monetization terms in your portal.”
You do need to apply first, get accepted, and then meet their conditions (number of followers and published pieces) before you can begin making money on NewsBreak.
Are you writing for NewsBreak? What are your tips for getting views on your articles?
If you haven’t written for NewsBreak, but would like to give it a try, you can sign up with my contributor referral link. (I do get a one-time bonus once you’ve published your first story.)
To unlock unlimited stories on Medium, you can become a Medium member for $5 per month. If you sign up with my referral link, I’ll receive a small commission at no extra cost to you.
