The "Hardcore" Freelance Writer. Teaches how to make serious money ($200k+), but her no-nonsense style isn't for everyone.
If Elna Cain is the kind teacher who holds your hand, Holly Johnson (Club Thrifty) is the drill sergeant who yells at you to do more pushups in the mud. Holly doesn't care about your "feelings," your "writer's block," or your "artistic integrity." She cares about Money.Specifically, she cares about you making a lot of it, very quickly, by destroying your own excuses.
She is perhaps the most polarizing figure in the freelance writing niche. Some view her as a "Capitalist Mercenary" who has stripped the soul out of writing. Others view her as the "Liberator" who finally taught them that being a broke writer is a choice, not a destiny.
This review will dissect her entire philosophy, her controversial "Club Thrifty" empire, and whether her "Earn More Writing" course is a ticket to wealth or just a ticket to burnout.
The Course Site No Longer Sells the Course
This record prices Earn More Writing at $497. That price now has nowhere to be paid.
earnmorewriting.com redirects off-site. Both the homepage and the deep product URL for the Pro course 301 to passivewp.com, an unrelated blog post about earning more from writing. The redirect chain was checked directly rather than inferred from a search result. Whatever the domain is doing now, it is not selling her course.
This is the third product in this database found to be priced and criticised after it stopped being purchasable, alongside Seth Godin's altMBA and David Perell's Write of Passage. It seems to be the normal end state for a course business rather than an unusual one, which is itself worth a reader knowing: the thing you are reading a review of may simply no longer exist.
While it ran, the terms were good. Her own page offered an unconditional window. "if you are unsatisfied with your purchase, contact us in the first 30 days and we'll give you a full refund": with no completion conditions attached. That compares well with much of this database, including the record directly above this one, which offers no refund at all.
One thing to know about the reviews
Earn More Writing ran an affiliate programme: "We'd love for you to promote 'Earn More Writing' to your audience, and we'll pay you a commission for each sale." Search results for the course still carry affiliate tracking codes in their URLs.
So the enthusiastic reviews a reader finds were, in many cases, written by people paid on each sale. That does not make them false. It does mean the volume of praise is not independent evidence, and it is the sort of thing this database exists to point out.
The Origin: From Mortuary to Millionaire
Her backstory is unique because it is so incredibly unglamorous.
- The Job:She worked in a funeral home. Yes, handling dead bodies. It was morbid, depressing, and paid poorly.
- The Debt:She and her husband, Greg, had tens of thousands of dollars in debt. They felt trapped.
- The Escape:She started a frugal living blog ("Club Thrifty") to document their debt payoff journey.
- The Discovery:She realized that other finance sites (like Bankrate, Credit.com, The Simple Dollar) needed content. They didn't just need "blog posts"; they needed "compliance-heavy financial content."
- The Scale:She didn't just write a few articles. She systematized it. She famously published income reports showing she made $200,000+ a yearjust from writing articles. This broke the brains of most writers who were struggling to make $20k/year.
The Strategy: "High Volume, High Fee"
Holly breaks the "Starving Artist" stereotype with a sledgehammer. Her strategy relies on three pillars: Niche, Speed, and Negotiation.
Pillar 1: The "Unsexy" Niche
Holly only teaches writing for niches that have Deep Pockets.
- The Logic:A "Gardening" blog sells $5 seed packets. They can pay you $50. A "Credit Card" site gets paid $100 per referral by Chase or Amex. They can pay you $800.
- The Lesson: "Follow the money." Holly writes about Personal Finance, Travel Rewards, and Loans. She does not write about "Feelings" or "Fiction."
- The Impact:This immediately alienates 50% of aspiring writers who want to write about their cats. Holly tells them, to their face, "Your cat doesn't pay rent."
Pillar 2: The "Word Factory" Speed
Holly is a machine.
- The Output:She can write a 1,000-word article in 45 minutes.
- The Method:She doesn't "craft" stories. She has templates. Intro -> Point 1 -> Point 2 -> Point 3 -> Conclusion.
- The Math:If she charges $400 per article and writes it in 1 hour, her hourly rate is $400. If she spends 5 hours "obsessing" over the perfect adjective, her hourly rate drops to $80. She maximizes hourly rate by minimizing time.
Pillar 3: Aggressive Pricing
She refuses to write for pennies.
- The Rule:She teaches students to never accept $20 articles.
- The Pitch: "I am an expert. My content ranks on Google. My rate is $500."
- The Result:She gets told "No" a lot. But she gets told "Yes" enough to make $200k/year. She teaches you that "No" is just noise.
The Course: "Earn More Writing"
I have analyzed the curriculum of "Earn More Writing" extensively. It is fundamentally different from Elna Cain's course. While Elna teaches you to "Join the Industry," Holly teaches you to "Raid the Industry."
Different Philosophy
- Elna: "Here is how to set up WordPress and pitch a nice mom blog."
- Holly: "Here is how to pitch Bankrate and demand $600."
Module Breakdown (Standard Version)
This is not a fluff course. It is dense.
Module 1: Establishing Your Brand
She skips the "Cute" stuff.
- The Focus:Creating a "Hire Me" page that screams Authority.
- The Tactic:She teaches you to list your "Specialties" immediately. If you are a Nurse, you are a "Medical Writer." If you are a Mechanic, you are an "Auto Industry Writer."
Module 2: Breaking into the Industry
- The Portfolio:How to create samples that look like they were published in Forbes, even if they are PDFs.
- The "Expert" Positioning:Fake it 'til you make it? No. Frame it 'til you make it.
Module 3: Finding High-Paying Clients
She ignores low-hanging fruit.
- Cold Pitching:She provides the exact email scripts she used to land clients like The Simple Dollar.
- Social Media:How to use Twitter and LinkedIn not for "Engagement," but for "Headhunting" editors.
Module 4: The Perfect Pitch
- The "Idea" Pitch:Pitching a headline that is so good the editor has to buy it.
- The "Introduction" Pitch:How to introduce yourself to an editor who doesn't know you, without looking like spam.
Module 5: Defending Your Rates
This is the most valuable module.
- The Script:exactly what to say when a client says, "We only pay $0.10/word."
- The Walkaway:Holly teaches that the power to walk away is your only leverage. She shows you how to say "No" in a way that sometimes makes them come back with a "Yes."
Module 6: Organic Marketing
- Guest Posting:How to guest post specifically for SEO juice pointing back to your site.
- Networking:How to make friends with other writers who are too busy and will hand off work to you.
Module 7: Increasing Your Income (Scaling)
- Speed Writing:Techniques to type faster and think faster.
- Outsourcing:When to hire a VA to do your invoicing.
Module 8: Your Own Blog
- The Bridge:How to start your own site (like Club Thrifty) so you don't have to freelance forever.
The Good: She Proves It's Possible
Most writers think adding 6-figures is impossible. Holly shows her tax returns.
- The Mindset Shift:She forces you to treat writing as a business, not a hobby. "If you aren't getting paid, you aren't a professional."
- The Transparency:She posts her actual pitches. Seeing a pitch that resulted in a $1,000 assignment is worth the course price alone.
- The Network:She actually shares leads. Occasionally, she will say, "I'm too busy, here is an editor looking for someone."
The Concerns: The "Survivor Bias"
Holly has a very specific personality: Type A, Aggressive, Extroverted, Thick-Skinned.
- The Problem:Her method works if you are like her. If you are a sensitive creative who needs to "feel inspired," you will fail with her method.
- The "Burnout" Factor:Writing 4 articles a day about "Best Credit Cards for Bad Credit" is soul-crushing for some. Holly can do it for years. Most people burn out in 6 months.
- The Niche Limit:She writes in the most lucrative niche (Finance). If you want to write about "Parenting" or "Art," you simply cannot charge $800/article no matter what she says. The market cap isn't there. She implies anyone can do it, but really, only business writers can do it.
Deep Dive: The "Club Thrifty" Business Model
To understand Holly, you must understand that she is not just a writer. She is a Publisher.
- The Ecosystem:She writes for big sites (Bankrate) -> They link back to her site (Club Thrifty) -> Her Domain Authority increases -> She ranks for "Best Travel Credit Cards" -> She makes affiliate commissions.
- The Synergy:She uses her freelance clients to build her own SEO empire.
- The Revenue split:She openly admits that while she makes $200k from writing, she makes millions from the blog.
- The Lesson for You:She teaches you that "Freelancing is a trap" if you do it forever. Authentically, she views freelancing as Paid Practicefor your own business.
Red Flag: The "Financial Advisor" Controversy
Holly gives a lot of financial advice.
- The Grey Area:She is not a Certified Financial Planner (CFP). She is a "Financial Writer."
- The Critique:Critics argue that she simplifies complex financial products (like high-interest credit cards) to make a sale/commission.
- Her Defense:She is transparent about her debt journey and her results. She frames it as "Education," not "Advice."
- Your Risk:Be careful copying her content style in the finance niche. Compliance laws are strict. What Holly got away with in 2015 might get you sued in 2024.
Holly's true product is not writing advice. It is Confidence.
- The "Imposter Syndrome" Cure:She cures imposter syndrome by yelling at it.
- The "Money Blocks":She constantly talks about how "Money is good" and "You deserve to be rich." This appeals heavily to women who have been socialized to be "nice" and "undemanding."
- The Cult of Personality:Her Facebook group is intense. You are either "Team Holly" (Aggressive, Capitalist) or you are banned.
Holly Johnson vs. ChatGPT: The War for Content
Does AI kill Holly's model?
- The Threat:AI is very good at writing generic "Best Credit Cards" articles. This is the exact content Holly produces (Informational).
- The Defense: Authoritativeness.
Google needs* a human face to trust "Your Money Your Life" (YMYL) content. Holly teaches you to become that Face. AI can write the article, but it cannot be the Accountable Entity if the advice goes wrong.
- Her Pivot:She is pushing E-E-A-T (Experience, Expertise, Authoritativeness, Trustworthiness) harder than ever. She tells students: "Stop writing about credit cards generally. Write about how YOU used the Sapphire Reserve to fly to Paris for free." AI cannot hallucinate a plane ticket (yet).
Pricing: The "Premium" Product
- Price: ~$497 (Standard) to ~$997 (Pro).
- Is It Worth It?
If you land ONEclient at her recommended rate ($400), you pay off the course in 2 articles. If you are too scared to pitch, you wasted $500. * The ROI depends entirely on your Courage, not your writing ability.
Final Verdict: The Advanced Class
- Beginners:Go to Elna Cain.
- Intermediates:Go to Holly Johnson.
- Goal:If you want to make $30k/year, Elna is fine. If you want to make $100k/year, you need Holly's aggression.
The Bottom Line: Holly Johnson is not nice. She is effective. If you are tired of being broke and are willing to treat writing like a factory job that pays $100/hour, buy her course. If you want to "express yourself" and "share your truth," stay far away.
Score: 8/10 (For "Hustlers") Score: 3/10 (For "Artists")
Holly Johnson operates primarily on Club Thrifty, where they have built an audience of 50K+ followers. The "Hardcore" Freelance Writer. Teaches how to make serious money ($200k+), but her no-nonsense style isn't for everyone. Their content focuses on online income strategies delivered through Club Thrifty-based courses and programs priced at Earn More Writing was $497, but earnmorewriting.com now redirects to an unrelated blog and the course is not sold there; while it ran it carried an unconditional 30-day refund.
Holly Johnson charges Earn More Writing was $497, but earnmorewriting.com now redirects to an unrelated blog and the course is not sold there; while it ran it carried an unconditional 30-day refund for their program. When evaluating whether this price is justified, consider: What specific, actionable outcomes does the course promise? Are there free alternatives covering the same material on YouTube or blogs? Does the price include ongoing access, community support, or mentorship? Many Club Thrifty educators offer similar content at lower price points, so compare before committing.
Holly Johnson has a trust score of 4.2/5 and a scam score of 1/5 based on our independent analysis. Always verify income claims independently, check for a refund policy before purchasing, and look for verified student results rather than testimonials alone.
Instead of paying for Holly Johnson's course (Earn More Writing was $497, but earnmorewriting.com now redirects to an unrelated blog and the course is not sold there; while it ran it carried an unconditional 30-day refund), consider starting one of these free side hustles with our step-by-step guides:
Before spending Earn More Writing was $497, but earnmorewriting.com now redirects to an unrelated blog and the course is not sold there; while it ran it carried an unconditional 30-day refund on Holly Johnson's program, consider these free learning resources: