Voices of 2013. Overnight success.

On Friday night I went to the Voices of 2013 party. It was wonderful to see so many bloggy friends again - I swear the friendship is the best thing about blogging. Everyone was so very lovely on Friday night - gosh it was good to see these ladies (and very few men) over champagnes and canapés. The ladies in the room were all so glamorous - it was fun to frock up!

(With Christina from Hair Romance and Andrea from Fox in Flats)

I was lucky enough to be a finalist in the personal and parenting blog category - with Naomi, Kate, Tricia and Kelly.

I was also lucky to be in the company of these wonderful winners (who were all so excited to win!):

House of Humble - overall winner

Whole Larder Love - best food blog

Smaggle - best style and beauty blog

House Of Humble - best creative blog

My Darling Lemon Thyme - people's choice

cake crumbs & beach sand and Cook Republic - sponsors' choice winners.

 

It was an absolute surprise to win another award. These past three weeks have been the biggest, most overwhelming ever. Just wow. Thank you to Kidspot for running this competition, and all the classes and parties. I've loved it.

I've been thinking about the work we do as bloggers, and how it's finally being recognised as real media. And there's as much work in blogging as in other occupations.

As bloggers, we are writers, editors, marketers, bookkeepers, taste testers, food stylists, photographers, fashion stylists, social media managers, comment moderators, researchers, pitchers, financial negotiators and digital strategists. Often this is done on top of our day jobs - or it is our day job. We put ourselves out there, inviting support and criticism.

The blogging world has changed - for the better I think. Of course, there always seems to be the issue of the moment (monetisation, sponsorship anyone?) but the community is thriving more than ever. Competitions like Voices give prominence to the lesser known bloggers - so many of the top 100 said how much Voices has boosted their profile and also connected them with the community - online and offline. When I was blogging back in the early 2000s, there was an online community only. This time around, the online blogging community has moved offline, and I am so grateful for that.

(With Heidi from Apples Under My Bed)

I also think that there is an expectation from newer bloggers and those that do not blog that blogging is a get rich quick scheme. I can tell you that I've made $750 on sponsored posts this year, plus around $100 on ads. This year I have written and published 186 posts and I've had the biggest stats ever. It took me just over three years to reach a million hits, and almost a year to clock up another half a million. And yet I've made a bigger splash away from my blog.

(Melbourne Carlys represent - with Smaggle)

I laugh when I see TV characters taking up blogging - Julie Rafter on Packed to the Rafters and most recently, Sonia from Neighbours come to mind. They are quick to become leaders in the blogging community and quick to get a newspaper column and paid opportunities. TV character bloggers are overnight successes. It just doesn't happen.

I've spent almost 1460 overnights blogging on this blog. This has been a particularly successful year for me - of which I am so proud, but it's certainly not been an overnight success. It's a huge amount of work - and with very little pay via this blog for me. I do it because I love it, to have a voice, and for the chance to build up a writing portfolio. I now write with the view to be published elsewhere - it does save time.

(With Nathalie from Easy Peasy Kids)

So what advice do I have for new bloggers? Be persistent, be authentic and consistently your best (you don't need to write every day but when you do, put your best out there), and get involved in the blogging communities. And write well.

I believe great blogging comes down to good, engaging writing. The bloggers who I consider to be good writers (or talented photographers) engage me the most. Good spelling, grammar, punctuation and vocabulary make for a blog worth me reading - and it can be within any genre. And I think, if you want to make a go out of being a blogger, write like you want to be published, employing good writing. A strong story is so important for me as a reader, but if it’s not written well, I feel like the strong story may have lost its impact.

There is no overnight success with blogging. It's a slow build, and monetarily, may be considered as slave labour. But stick at it and your blog's reach will grow. You will grow too, and it will be one of the best, most rewarding hobbies you've ever started.

(With Pip from Meet Me At Mikes)

 

Retreating from the blog.

(That picture is ironically giving more away about me than this blog post suggests. Note - I was playing dress ups with Mum's glasses (my vision is 20/20), and no one ever sees me in my dressing gown. You are now.)

When I blog, I look inside myself. I reach for the shiny bits, the full heart – bursting with love for so many things - and the darkness. When I blog I come to know myself. I work things out and pick myself up. I stretch myself. I create opportunities. And I make connections. I find myself through words.

Sometimes writing is therapy. I shed my skin in a literal way, and I shed my skin through writing. My blog is an extension of me - another body part, if you like. So it’s no wonder I feel like I grow thicker skin, shed my skin and feel fiercely protective and proud of my words.

The irony of spending so much time inside, writing about myself for the outside world, is that I am now connected to more people than ever. I love meeting people this way – connecting with like-minded people and also those I'd probably never meet if it weren't for their words on my screen.

Lately, I find myself retreating, giving away less of myself than I used to do. I used to be all about writing about the every day, and writing the very personal. There was a time I felt that I lived to blog. I’d go to concerts with a notebook, not immersing myself in the glorious music experience, and stay up all night to ensure my review was the first online the next day. I’d share a lot. But I don't want for the day to come when I tell one of my closest friends to go read about me on my blog.

I've always been about putting the best of me on show. But I have had the urge to put less of me on show. I've become more self conscious of baring my soul online. Some call blogging brave, others call it stupid. Many call it narcissistic. I don't want to give so much of my soul away anymore.

I've been blogging more about the issues that matter to me, employing some of the journalism skills I was taught, seeking others' opinions, and writing with the purpose of future paid publication. I'm more vocal that way.

Recently I experienced verbal abuse because of my skin by a taxi driver. I wrote about it on my blog – it was the most personal piece I’d done in a while – and then I was asked to write a piece about it for a national news site. I received an apology, and my story was then picked up on a national news site. My story and picture was top story for two days. The response has been quite positive. But there were readers who were nasty. They judged me for my reaction. I wanted to jump in and say, "but you don't know the whole of me". They read a short story about me and arrived at my blog out of context. And then I remember, I haven't given them everything. They only know me in two dimensional form from a 300 word news story.

(There's more - contact received that has truly scared me - but I won't write about that here.)

People read my blog with no back story. No context. Others know every word I write. And then there are those who will defend me because they know me as a whole. They know more about me than what I share on my blog.

This post was originally written for the Voices of 2013 blogging competition, which I am a finalist in.

 

The roundup: Thank you, Uber, MS Australia conference, Voices of 2013, You Am I.

What a busy few days! I'm exhausted! There's been a bit happening, hence the roundup title of this post.

Firstly, a big thank you for all the support you gave me following the taxi driver verbal abuse incident. So many friends, strangers and people in the media have shared my story. While I do encounter many rude people, the amount of lovely people I encounter, often because of the rude people, is multiplied tenfold. I was commissioned by Daily Life to write a personal account - you can read it here. Writing that article is contributing to my savings account for my next big trip (which I am planning for next year). There have been many silver linings. I am, however, still baffled that 13Cabs have not responded to my tweet or Facebook post. While I logged a formal complaint on Saturday, I expected their social media team to at least acknowledge this incident and advise that my tweet has been escalated. Not good enough.

Also, Uber, a luxury taxi service, has given me some credit to ensure I get home safely in future. I used Uber the night before I received verbal abuse in a 13Cabs taxi. I downloaded the free app to my iPhone, registered with Uber including inputting my debit card details. When I was ready to be driven home, I booked a car, and received notification of the driver's name, photo, car registration and estimated time of arrival by SMS and through the app. When the car arrived, I was excited that it was a luxury limousine, and even more impressed my lovely driver opened the door for both Tash and I. He dropped Tash at her destination and drove me home, making interesting conversation along the way. The car smelled nice, the driver was friendly and I got home safely - without being questioned about my skin. Uber is currently in Sydney and Melbourne and also in America. The Uber service is a little more expensive than a regular taxi service, but I highly recommend it. (Please note - I rode Uber complimentary last Wednesday night after attending a media launch, and Uber also contacted me on Twitter after a few friends suggested I use them following the abuse in the taxi. They offered me further credit so I can ride safely.)

On Friday I gave a talk about resilience and my skin at the Multiple Sclerosis Australia conference. I spoke to around 35 people - and while I had a prepared speech, I winged it, talking a lot about the difficult encounters but also how I live life to the full, despite. After my speech, I presented a master class on blogging, and after a presenter shuffle, I talked the group through the basics of social media - so they too can be online activists. I think I convinced a few of them to start using Twitter and even to blog. Debra Cerasa, CEO of MS Australia - pictured below, has been chatting to me on Twitter for about a year, and it was so lovely to be invited to speak, and also to chat to her and Kathie Melocco (conference facilitator) at the dinner and the conference. Debra has a cooking school, and I can't wait to go with my Mum.

I am very excited to announce that I'm a finalist in Parenting and Personal category of the Kidspot Voices of 2013 blogging competition. It's really nice to be recognised in the blogging industry, and to stand with some prominent bloggers - Kelly, Naomi, Kate and Trish. I had a piece published on the Voices of 2013 blog last week. I'll also be writing a few original posts for the competition, so look out for those. Thanks for supporting me, Alex, Bron, Pip, Sam and all at Kidspot, plus you lovely readers.

I went to see You Am I play at The Forum on Saturday night. They played their Hourly Daily and HiFi Way albums live and in full. I think Tim Rogers is the hottest man in Australian rock and roll.

My only regret in life is that I hadn't seen them live until recently. They were so full of energy, so tight and so fun! Tim Rogers works that stage, demading respect (asking the audience not to throw stuff after two pairs of undies were thrown at him) and swaggers sexily. I loved his jumps and arm swings. The new kid in the band, Davey Lane was such a star too, emulating Tim's riffs perfectly - and Tim was ribbing him about his youth, hair, dress sense and cheek bones. There were a few moments where Tim was heartfelt and vulnerable - talking about how much he's given up because of music, how he misses his little girl, but then realising that everything good in his life has come out of You Am I - including his little girl. At the end of the show, he looked physically worn out. He sat down on the drum podium, resting and reflecting. He looked around at the audience, swigging a drink and thanking us. I got a nod and a thanks after I mouthed thanks to Tim. Chrissie Francis took this photo - she was the only photographer in the pit, standing next to me. I love how it captures Tim's vulnerability and his humility. You can see more of Christine's photos here.

Again, thank you to everyone for your support. I feel very loved, and so lucky to have so many wonderful people in my life.