What Makes an Article Successful on Associated Content?

As you can tell, I had a hard time with my title on this one. This article is an experiment to see just what it takes to write something on AC that gets a good up front payment and also gets a lot of page hits ... and maybe even gets that elusive prize of being a featured article!

Looking back at the articles I've written, and looking at the page views, the ones that have generated the most interest in page views have been related to sex, making money, diet and/or exercise to lose weight, and makeup to prevent (or help with) wrinkled or aging skin, and product reviews. The second most popular topics are celebrities, decorating, babies / kids, weddings, local things to do, and health issues. The least popular articles have been on travel, pets, God, and restaurant reviews. I haven't even tried writing any news stories so I don't know how they rank in the performance realm.

I wonder if my experience is consistent with other writers on AC? Perhaps it's not the article topics ... maybe it's my writing style, or article promotion, or general interest in the topic I'm writing on at the time.

I've tried to recruit a lot of friends and family members to write on AC, but the most consistent comment I get from them is "I have nothing to write about that would interest anyone". I tell them that the world is their oyster and to just go for it, but so far none of them have taken the bait.

So just what does constitute a good article in the world of Associated Content?