KBW’s Blogging Process

This summer marks eights years as a blogger for me, and I’m excited about everything I’ve learned in those eight years. The last couple of years I’ve put a lot of effort into my blog and seen a lot of growth. This year, I finally did a custom site design (which I LOVE!) and I’m going to my first big blogging conference (which I’m so excited about!). So I thought it would be fun to participate in this blog meme and share a little bit about my blogging process with you.

1) What am I working on? Mostly this blog, but I also write for 5 Minutes for Mom and The Untrained Housewife when I have time. For my blog, I’m almost always reviewing products (I have a couple book and CD reviews to write up now!) and looking for new things to share with my readers, as well as coming up with other post ideas. Besides writing blog posts, I also spend time sharing my posts on social media and networking with other bloggers.

2) How does my blog differ from others of its genre?  Hmmm, good question. I think  it comes down to personality. There are a ton of mom bloggers out there now (and I think that’s great), and we each bring our own personality to our blog so no two of us are the same. We each have our own perspective and ideas and I’ve learned so much from other mom bloggers and hope I can offer new ideas and encouragement to other moms too. Some of my “perspectives” include homeschooling, attachment parenting, Catholic convert, mom of girls, cloth diapering, out-door loving Canadian. 🙂

3) Why do I write what I do? Because it’s addicting. 🙂 I like the instant gratification of blogging—write something, publish it immediately, and get a response. More than that, however, I love connecting with other moms. As I learn and grow as a mom, I value the support of other moms more and more. I’m blessed to be surrounded by many wonderful moms who reach out in various ways to me and let me share my life with them. And I’ve discovered that happens online too—when I read a blog post and thing, “Yeah, that’s exactly how I feel!” or “That’s exactly what I needed to hear to keep going.” I hope that, just as I can sit down with a few friends and encourage them by sharing my life (and hearing about theirs), so I can do the same via my blog.

As I’ve researched Charlotte Small and read about other women in other eras, I’ve also come to appreciate the phenomenon of “mom blogging.” Women in almost every generation before ours (with a few exceptions) have been silent. In order to learn about Charlotte, I have to read between the lines of her husband’s business journals. She and David apparently exchanged letters, but none of them have survived. I wish she—and her fellow fur trade wives—had written more or that what they had written had survived. Maybe the blogosphere is transient and in a few hundred years we’ll be using another system of communication, but I hope that all the pages written by women of today will inspire the women of tomorrow just as much as it inspires this generation. Women are sharing their stories today in a way they never have before in history, and I’m proud to be a part of that.

4) How does my blogging process work? I’m always thinking about blogging. Whether I’m playing in the park, cooking, reading, driving, talking to a friend… I’m thinking about a blog post. My husband has even asked me, as we do something, “Are you going to blog about this?” Probably. 🙂

When I do get a chance to sit down and write, I generally check my blog planner to decide what to write. If I have a great idea that doesn’t fit in the blog now, I’ll write it down and come back to it later (or maybe write a draft post and save it for later). I love my blog planner because at a glance, I can see what’s happening on my blog… when reviews need to get posted and when I need to write other content to balance the reviews. I try to stick to a MWF blog schedule (sometimes shifting to an every-second-day schedule if I have a lot of content to post) and that also helps me plan what I’m posting… I like doing Wordless Wednesday posts and usually do reviews on Fridays and something mom-related on Mondays.

Now I’d like to tag three awesome mom bloggers whom I’m going to meet in person in a couple weeks at BlogHer14 in San Jose! In fact, these ladies are going to my roomies there and it’s been a lot of fun to get to know them via their blogs, so I’m really excited to meet them in real life!

Jessica Hugh blogs at Dear Jessica about motherhood, married life, cooking and more. She has two little boys and a husband in university (gee, I know what that’s like!) and operates a marketing agency from home. She likes reading, long drives, and exploring (just like me!). And I hafta say, I love her blog design—so simple and clean and pretty! She says, “More than anything though, I want to blog about the magic that is life.  I want to help others find their own voice and cheer them on.”

Shannon Fisher blogs at Truthfully about vulnerability, courage and mental health. She has a Bachelor of Education degree (and had a baby during her degree, just like me!) and taught for nine years before quitting that to start a business as a writer and content strategist. She says, “These days I blog about the things that make me feel isolated when I live them alone. I write for the me toos.”

Sarah Kertcher blogs at More Than Your Average Mom about motherhood, bento making, and DIY crafts. She is a full-time working mom with two kids and enjoys traveling, baseball, and photography. She says, “I believe everything happens for a reason, and will try almost anything once.”