Type-A Mom Conference – The Blogging Payoff – Understanding the Long View

We’re here at The Blogging Payoff – Understanding the Long View session featuring Angela England and Joanne Bamberger.

Thanks to WorldWinner for sponsoring me at the Type-A Mom Conference!

Joanne recently got a book contract! We all applauded. Mothers of Intention was something she started writing about during the  2008 election, about moms who didn’t think they were political, but advocated for their children, etc. She approached a publisher about making it as a collection of essays, and they decided that they wanted it to be more. She’s still writing it.

Three of us raised our hands to admit we may our  full-time income via our online efforts. None of us raised our hands when Angela asked if we made a full-time income off our blogs.

Angela said she made 26 cents during her first month online. This year, she was able to pay a roofing contractor in cash from her online income. Some online writing outlets, you get paid once and never again. If you want to make more money, you have to write more articles. If you write a book or post on a Web site like Suite 101, you can collect royalties long after you’ve finished doing the writing work.

Joanne has often been frustrated by her blog, wondering if it was worth continuing. But she wouldn’t be getting the calls from CNN and other media outlets if it wasn’t for the support of all of the wonderful women who discovered her through her blog. She has done some work with MomsRising, which led to work with Huffington Post. In the long term, she tries to remember all of the women who have helped her along the way, and how everyone helps each other.

Sometimes you want to quit, but just keep going!

Suite 101 and About.com have very strict writing styles. Title, paragraph, subheading, paragraph, subheading… etc. You can learn a lot of SEO by writing for these sites. (So true! That was my first stint in SEO writing.) Every content site is different and has its own rules and style requirements, so you have to figure out what works for you. Associated Content rates are not competitive, and they take away all of your rights. (Angela is not a fan of AC, and neither am I.) Don’t sign away your rights for $15.

Angela talks about ghost writing. She charges a premium for that.

[Lost my Wi-Fi connection for a bit.]

The writing community is very self-policing. If you’re good, we know. If someone is just copying and pasting press releases on their blog, we’re going to call them out.

“Find what you’re going to do and do it.” – @MaryBabySteps

Legitimacy. “Oh, you’re just a blogger.” A lot of sighs and groans in the room. Joanne says she doesn’t deal with the judgmental nature of such comments well. She struggles with it.

Where Angela lives in Oklahoma, people don’t even have an email address. “You make money doing stuff online?” She leans forward conspiratorily. “With your clothes on?” Laughter. Legitimacy isn’t just an issues among other writers, it’s with other people. Don’t be apologetic. You’re allowed to say you write for a living. You’re allowed to say you’re a writer. You’re allowed to say you’re good at it. Don’t hem and haw about what you do. Take yourself seriously, and other people will take you more seriously. And that’s great for your writing career.

Once you get paid, you feel like you can call yourself a “real writer.” But you don’t have to get that first paycheck to see yourself as a “real” writer. Own it!

Corporations are starting to see the power we have. The power of the  written word in the hands of mothers.

What do you do when you plateau? Look at your passions. See what you can do to pursue your passions online. “Do what you know. Do what you love. and don’t be afraid to take that to the next step.” Angela talks abotu how she started Unntrained Housewife. She had to ask for help with what she didn’t know how to do.

Joanne admits that she’s hit that plateau over the last few months. She’s been beating her head against the wall. But she’s been trying to find other women that she finds inspiring, and that has helped her to keep going.

When you have that person to bounce ideas off of, it can be very helpful. Sometimes you need to purge the things that are holding you back. Have a five-year plan. Know what you’re trying to achieve. What are you doing that’s not helping you get there? Let go of what’s holding you back so you can let it go in order to move ahead. Your  goal is not always a straight line. It’s okay to be dynamic. Things change, and that’s okay. Roll with it.

How do you figure out what to let go? So hard. It can be scary. (Amen to that!)

We need to support each other and not be afraid to ask for help with that support. Use each other as resources to figure out our long-term goals.

Christina Gleason (976 Posts)

That’s me: Christina Gleason. I’m a writer, editor, and disability advocate. I'm a multiply disabled autistic lady doing my best in this world built for abled people. I’m a geek for grammar, fantasy, and casual gaming. I hate vegetables. I cannot reliably speak, so I’ll happily conduct business over email or messaging instead.