Working at WoW Insider
WoW Insider's staff of contracted freelance writers creates one of the largest World of Warcraft blog, news and information sites on the internet. We are always on the lookout for good work and occasionally have staff openings. Here you can find out more about how to become part of the WoW Insider team, what contributing to WoW Insider is like and the answers to frequently asked question about the entire process.- Our contributing staff
- Life as a WoW Insider staff writer and columnist
- Current openings
- Staff writer application process
- Columnist application process
- Guest post/Guest writer program
- Previous guest writers/guest posts
- Frequently Asked Questions
Our contributing staff
WoW Insider contributors are divided into four groups.Staff writers The first group of contributors are called staff writers. They are under contract through Aol. These writers post the latest news and opinions every day.
Columnists The second group of contributors are called columnists. They too are under contract through Aol. These writers post at least once a week in their given area of expertise.
Guest writers The third group of writers are referred to as guest writers. They write for us via Aol's Seed program, where they submit pieces based on specific critera which we lay out. We typically will make a call-out for guest posts once every week or two.
Editors Editors are senior staff members at WoW Insider who post content on the site, work on long-term projects and coordinate the daily activities of other staff members. We are not hiring editors or other managerial staff.
All contributors are paid for their work. We do not accept volunteer non-paid work. Please do not send unsolicitated submissions, we cannot accept them and they will be immediately be deleted without review.
Life as a WoW Insider staff writer and columnist
WoW Insider staff writers and columnists are responsible for helping the site expand its coverage in numerous areas. Each day, there are multiple stories to be told and posts to be made based on the latest WoW news and views happening around the community. Working as a team with the various writers on staff, staff writers are often the very first to know about things happening in the World of Warcraft universe, and have a passion for getting this information out to WoW Insider's large audience.Staff writers and columnists are freelance contractors of Aol, and they often work at other jobs in addition to writing for WoW Insider. Because of that, they have the flexibility to work on the site at any time of the day or night. When they've written a piece that's ready to be go, staff writers and columnists then work with one of the editors to publish the piece on WoW Insider.
Our publishing process is very collaborative and has extensive review. It helps us all create some of the best World of Warcraft content around.
Current openings
Staff writers- None
Guest writers/Guest posts
- None
Staff writer application process
Read all instructions before submitting your application. If you cannot follow instructions, you cannot write for WoW Insider.Basic requirements
Please be sure you possess the following basic requirements before applying as a staff writer.
- Solid writing ability Basic spelling and grammar are required. Leetspeak and obsessive use of acronyms is not acceptable.
- Commitment to writing We need people who can commit to writing on a regular basis. For staff writers, this means we need people who can commit to a minimum of 50 posts a month. This works out to about 1.5 posts a day.
- Basic tools Possess a computer and a reliable internet connection. Have the software and knowledge to create and do basic manipulation of photos and screenshots.
- Blogging know-how Know a little bit about HTML. Our content management system is all WYSIWYG, but you may occasionally need to make minor tweaks in the source code.
- Age and residency You must be at least 18 years of age or older, and you must be able to legally work where you live.
- Availability Be reachable outside of Azeroth -- email, IM, Skype, phone, etc.
- Send your completed application to apply@wowinsider.com.
- Absolutely no attachments. Please include all information in the body of your e-mail.
- The subject line of the email must be formatted as YOUR NAME -- Staff Writer (example: John Doe -- Staff Writer)
- Do not format your email with different fonts, text size or images. You may use bold and italics to separate sections of the application.
- Full contact information, including:
- Full name
- Full address
- Phone
- Any instant messenger names we can reach you at.
- World of Warcraft background
- Main character armory link (include any other level 80 characters you have as well)
- When did you start playing?
- What are you doing in game now?
- Three sample posts about World of Warcraft, in the style of a typical WoW Insider post
- Three links to posts on WoW Insider that you feel exemplify our best content
- Three suggestions for improving WoW Insider
Columnist application process
Read all instructions before submitting your application. If you cannot follow instructions, you cannot write for WoW Insider.Basic requirements
Please be sure you possess the following requirements before applying as a columnist.
- Solid writing ability Basic spelling and grammar are required. Leetspeak and obsessive use of acronyms is not acceptable.
- Commitment to writing We need people who can commit to writing on a regular basis. For columnists, this means we need people who can commit to writing at least one 1,000- to 1,500-word column each week. Columnists can write other posts on WoW Insider if they are able to continue their weekly column at a high level.
- Basic tools Possess a computer and a reliable internet connection. Have the software and knowledge to create and do basic manipulation of photos and screenshots.
- Blogging know-how Know a little bit about HTML. Our content management system is all WYSIWYG, but you may occasionally need to make minor tweaks in the source code.
- Age and residency You must be at least 18 years of age or older, and you must be able to legally work where you live.
- Availability Be reachable outside of Azeroth -- email, IM, Skype, phone, etc.
How to Apply
- Send your completed application to apply@wowinsider.com.
- Absolutely no attachments. Please include all information in the body of your email.
- The subject line of the email must be formatted as YOUR NAME -- Columnist Position (example: John Doe -- hunter columnist)
- Do not format your email with different fonts, text size or images. You may use bold and italics to separate sections of the application.
- Full contact information, including:
- Full name
- Full address
- Phone
- Any instant messenger names we can reach you at.
- World of Warcraft background
- Main character armory link (include any other level 80 characters you have as well)
- When did you start playing?
- What are you doing in game now?
- Ten sample topics you will explore. For each topic, include a sentence or two explaining what the topic is and why it's compelling content that WoW Insider would want to produce.
- A sample first column of around 500 words. Even though we require our columns to be at least 1,000 words, 500 words will allow us to get a feel for your writing. We get many applications -- please do not write a novel.
- Write a 500- to 1,000-word pretend letter to the WoW designers enumerating the changes you'd like to see happen to your area of expertise. While the letter will not be sent to them, we are looking for professionalism, no "QQ" in the letter, and clear thoughts and ideas concerning your area of expertise.
Guest writer/Guest program
In addition to hiring normal staff writers and columnists, we also maintain a guest writer program through Aol's Seed.com. Seed is a new site designed to allow writers submit work for publication on many of the blogs Aol owns (in this case, WoW Insider). WoW Insider uses Seed in two primary ways: first, to do call-outs for anyone to contribute a post on a specific topic, for which we'll choose the best for publication; and second, to ask specific writers whose work we're familiar with to write a guest post here on WoW Insider.In order to write a guest post for WoW Insider, you must be signed up through Seed. Registration is free, and the email you provide is not used for non-Seed purposes. Go to Seed sign-up page and follow the directions to begin the sign-up process. Only after you have created a Seed account can you view details about the WoW Insider guest posts.
Once you have a Seed account, submit the post following the guidelines listed in the individual post's directions. Please be sure to include contact information at the bottom of your posts so we can easily get hold of you! Failure to do this may result in your writing being rejected.
Please be sure to observe the deadline for Seed post submissions. Follow all instructions exactly as written.
FAQ: Frequently Asked Questions
How much do you pay? For staff writers and columnists, payment and other contract details are disclosed during the contracting process and are considered confidential terms.For guest writers/guest posts, we pay between $10 and $50 per contribution. Details are listed on the Seed page for the individual guest post, as well as on the announcement post made on WoW Insider. Exact payment amounts are dependent upon what we ask you to contribute (i.e., we might pay $10 for a couple of paragraphs, $25 for a dozen photos of BlizzCon costumes, or $50 for a 1,000-word feature article).
Is Seed open to international residents? At this time, you must be a U.S. resident 18 years of age or older to contribute content to WoW Insider via Seed. This is a limitation of Seed and not one imposed by WoW Insider; however, we are told that international writers will eventually be able to contribute to the site via Seed. (There are no geographical restrictions for contributing editors.)
How old do I have to be to contribute to WoW Insider? You must be at least 18 years of age to contribute to WoW Insider either as a staff writer, columnist or guest writer via Seed.
Have you received my application? Can you tell me how I did? Each time WoW Insider announces an opening for a staff writer or columnist, we receive hundreds of applications. Unfortunately, we are not able to respond to all of these or acknowledge receipt. If you sent your application to apply@wowinsider.com and your email did not bounce back to you, you can be assured that your email was received and reviewed by the WoW Insider management team.
One of my posts was selected for publication via Seed. Can I submit other posts? You are welcome to continue to submit articles via the Seed program. Just because your work was published once does not disqualify you from having another article published.
Do you seek out individual authors to write guests posts for WoW Insider? Occasionally, WoW Insider will contact individual authors whose work we are familiar with for one-off writing opportunities.
I'm applying for a job as a staff writer or columnist. How often am I required to post? If you are contributing a column to WoW Insider, you are generally required to write one edition of your column a week. If you are writing general news and information posts as a staff writer, you will be required to post daily.
I have other questions. Where can I ask them? Feel free to leave a question in the comments of the post that directed you to this page.
Last Updated: 9/19/2010
