Attention all you Open Salon writers. You've proven your ability to write posts that punch our buttons. You know how to whip up a post that gets us seething, laughing, crying, or just leaves us speechless.

Now you have a chance to make some money with your talent. No, this isn't about Tippem (how's that working out, by the way?). This is a site called FieldReport.com, which awards monthly prizes for non-fiction essays. October is their first official month after being in beta testing since June. So far, they've awarded dozens of $1,000 prizes, several $4,000 prizes, and one $20,000 prize.

Every month, $1,000 prizes are awarded in each of 20 categories, such as On the Job, Friends and Family, and Oddball Events. Another monthly prize of $4,000 is awarded to the highest rated story overall. And all the prize winners are entered into the contest for a Grand Prize of $250,000 to be awarded on January 1, 2009.

To enter, you become a member of the FieldReport. You read, rate, and review other members' entries. When you've rated at least five essays, you are eligible to submit an entry of your own. It's read, rated, and reviewed by other members, and the top rated entries win the prizes.

In the beta test, 54-year-old postal worker Murr (short for “Mary”) Brewster from Oregon won the top prize of $20,000 with an essay about a woman she encountered on her postal route.

When FieldReport started, the main problem was that people thought it was a scam. When the prize money was actually awarded, that helped to convince some people. And learning the story behind the founding of FieldReport lay some suspicions to rest. The fact that there is no entry fee makes it easy to take a chance and submit an entry. And the potential $250,000 grand prize payout makes it hard to ignore.

Entries must be no longer than 2000 words, so keep it short. Read some of the winning entries to see what makes a highly-rated essay. As long as you keep rating other entries, you can enter as often as you like. Your entry may not have been published except on a personal blog or in a print publication of fewer than 1,000. You must retain the copyright. I am not sure if that means you can use material you've already posted on Open Salon or not. Probably not. Although you do retain copyright, does your Open Salon blog qualify as a personal blog?

The next prize award date is November 1, so get cracking! I've read some of the winning entries on FieldReport and they're good, but Open Salon bloggers are better. And if you win, don't forget where you heard about FieldReport. That Tip button isn't there just for decoration.