Glad to hear of your renewed enthusiasm!

Best,
Lynn Terry

When I think about all the blogs I read, the ones I come back to and enjoy are the ones who are so obviously passionate about their topic. You can feel the excitement and joy outside of the writing, and that is the fun part for me as a reader.

I’ve learned more about blogging in this past week, since being chosen as a case study here, than I have in the last 3 months. AND, I’ve met some really awesome bloggers. Thank you again all for your advice and support.

Stephanie ;-)

So of course the pressure will start loading up. I don’t think you’re experiencing a new problem at all, and think you could look at many other creative people in other industries to find out how they deal with the pressures you feel, and how they capitalize off that pressure.

Blogging for money is a tough deal. Making money on what you love can only go so far due to time and interests. At some point unles you can become wildly successful, you’ll have to traipse through the minefield of buying content and doing the old blog and ping dance. The mantra is build, build, build. And when you do, the joy of blogging will all but be gone.

Personally I’ve had very little success and no joy in spamming the web with more useless unreadable content. I’m going for quality, much like your own sites. I prefer the blogs to be personable now, as well. Keep up the good work. You’ll find success.

I’m curious if you’ve ever read “Think and Grow Rich” by Napoleon Hill? I find that it gives me a huge sense of balance and purpose, and go back to this one again and again. If you havent read it yet, I do think you would enjoy it – especially at this point where you are balancing the maintenance of the present, and an investment in your future.

(You can download this book free all over the net, by the way)

I’m glad to hear you are passionate about the whole network of blogs! It would be a shame to see the others disappear.

Wishing you all the best!
- Lynn Terry

Beyond staying focused on the quality of my writing, a crucial thing that I am learning about blogging is the importance of reaching out to others. I am finding more and more that bloggers are really open people. It’s a commonality that has a very strong bond. Perhaps, that is a reason many of us stick with blogging.

My dream is to get my mini blog network going again because really that is where my heart is. So, the challenge now is to do that while holding a full-time day job to pay the bills until the blogs can support me. It’s balancing reality with aspiration. I really admire those who have done it.

Writing for all 4 blogs was getting tedious, and I was dreading the writing. The Mole was spot on. Your readers can totally smell your lack of joy. My priority is quality over quantity, which is what drove me to cut back to only one blog for the moment. I’d rather have one awesome blog than four so-so blogs. In the long run, I know I have to do multiple blogs to generate bigger returns. For now, I have to figure out how to balance. I’m open to ideas.

Again, thank you all for your advice and support. I’m very appreciative!

Stephanie

First, I’d just like to say that the Back in Skinny Jeans blog is phenomenal – you have a new subscriber. I look forward to reading along!

You have received some great advice already. Try to focus on YOUR passion and goals for the project, and put blinders on to the publicity and monetization factors – try to ignore the audience and focus on the thoughts and words.

You’ll do well, no doubt. You already have an incredible foundation!

Best,
Lynn Terry

Great ideas for blogging. I’m still searching for a few good ones myself, but consumer items are just not my forte.

Seriously though, keep her going… make sure you are in it for the long haul. The hardest part of blogging I think is content… You need to find what gets your creative juices flowing and do that on a regular basis.

What I do is when I find I am full of energy and ideas are flowing is I stock up on blog posts. For instance I write several blog posts in one or two days and save them. Then I publish them later. Sometimes the stress of knowing you need to get a blog post out there immediately really hinders the creative side. Blog ahead of time knowing full well you aren’t planning to publish it to the web in at least a few days. The pressure to publish can be overwhelming…

Good luck on your blogs..
Steve

Very inspiring…

Also, on the writing end of things, sometimes taking a day or two off of blogging can help take your mind off the pressure or the grind of posting every day. That really helps me when I get too stressed.

Finally, don’t blog for the money. If you focus on writing to make more money you will lose your passion and it will become a job. Blog for fun and your own enjoyment. If you aren’t having fun writing, then people won’t have fun reading what you write. People can tell the difference whether they know it or not.

Anyhow, you have a cool blog that deserves the success that it’s received. Good luck!