Important Information Concerning Blogging

Wow, do I hope that got your attention. If I learned anything while doing PR, it’s that a catchy press release title really works. I also learned that the folks over on the creative team had a lot more fun than I did, but now I just sound bitter. I read (and chances are that many of you did as well) recently that bloggers can be at a health risk. I’d say that I feel obligated to weigh in on this matter, but I really had nothing else to write about today and let’s be honest, just throwing up a Podcast of me singing Elvis’ ‘Do the Clam’ kinda seemed like taking the easy way out. Plus, you might laugh at me.

It turns out that a tech blogger recently died while covering a tech conference and a few other bloggers who write for tech type blogs have all had health troubles. Apparently, in the world of 24/7 blog writing, these bloggers feel much more pressure to come up with good stories and the newest scoop so that they can continue getting paid for their blog writing.

Hit the brakes for a second! Paid for blogging? What the hell? Wait a damn minute here, NOW I feel stressed. You can get paid for blogging? I was just content with nice comments about my writing (and by nice I mean any comment, even those spam ad comments because it makes me figure that at least someone is paying attention), but people give out money to other people who blog? We’re talking real money here, not Dwight Schrute bucks or Monopoly bills, right?

More importantly, some of these people actually make enough money that all they can do is blog, which leads them to be stressed about coming up with more blog content? This means that they can essentially make a career out of blogging? If you haven’t sensed it yet because I’ve been downplaying my astonishment, I am having a really hard time accepting this. Huh, money for blogging. Go figure. What’s next, being able to grind coffee beans in your own home? I suppose you’re also going to tell me that celebrities are adopting babies from foreign countries, aren’t you? Have you ever had that feeling that you are on the outside looking in? Like you accidentally discovered that your coworker threw a BBQ for everyone in the office but ‘accidentally’ ‘forgot’ ‘to’ to ‘mail’ you your invitation? Well, I offer that last scenario purely as a hypothetical. Fortunately, I made it up and have NO idea what that feels like. But if that HAD ever happened to me, it’s exactly like how I feel right now learning that others are making money blogging.

I guess I can understand the stress they feel about having to come up with new ideas or stories to blog about. I feel that way every day (even more so when there isn’t some half-baked holiday I can pretend to celebrate) and I don’t make a dime from my blog. If I was getting paid for it and had no story idea, I would feel a lot of pressure. (Note to editors: that last sentence is not meant to imply that I could not handle the stress and pressures of coming up with content in the event that you wanted to pay me to blog. In fact, for the right price, I am an idea machine. Let me offer you an example - two words for you: flying reptile warriors. See, I just gave you three words and I only planned on two. I’m telling ya – idea machine).

Since blogs and all other forms of internet news or information translate into what is essentially a 24/7 ongoing operation, the flow of information and the need to continually out-provide someone else causes tremendous pressures. This is especially true given the fact that most paid bloggers are paid by what they write or how many readers they can get and some are supporting themselves and their families with that income. Gheesh, just imagine how all those people who operate CNN’s news-ticker at the bottom of the screen feel. They must be jitterier (I swear that my spellchecker thought that was a real word. Bonus points awarded to everyone who works that into their daily vocabulary) than an air traffic controller standing in front of the soda machine when they notice that all the energy drinks are out of stock.

So, I guess with my questionable heart I should consider giving up blogging. Like I said, I already feel the pressure to get daily blog content WITHOUT making my livelihood by the key stroke. Can you imagine how difficult and stressful it is to try to be the first to post my blog everyday so that I can beat out all those other bloggers writing about walking into walls, deep frying things you never would have thought of or trying to compose the perfect sentence-ending double entendre so that you can insert a ‘that’s what she said’ after it (which I must add leaves me giggling like a 12-year-old school girl for the next 3 hours)? It’s hard I tell ya (oh hey, that’s what she said)!

Wow, I feel better now. But not as good as I could feel if I had been paid for this post (894 words if anyone out there wants to pay per word, or whatever. I’m willing to negotiate).