Writing As a Side Gig: Blogging

Posted on March 2, 2020 by Christopher Tallon

Hey folks,

It’s been a hot second since I wrote a blog. Well…for my blog, anyway.

I started this blog for the same reason any unpublished-but-hopeful author who’s also trying to start a podcast does: to grow and connect with an audience. Ya know, that old chestnut.

But blogging can be a lot of things to different people. A lot of people write posts for fun. I wrote about the back-to-back NBA champs (’89 and ’90) because I love talking about them. I wasn’t too concerned with whether or not people would read it. Based on what people have and haven’t reacted to, I was pretty sure not many would, but it’s my blog, that’s what I wanted to write about, so what the hell, right?

Every now and then, I’ll put a short story or poem up. I recently put up some song lyrics I wrote, reshaped slightly as a poem. Often I write advice and tips for new/aspiring writers, called Behind “The Process”, with topics like: handwriting vs typing, rewriting, rejection, varying your sentences, and so on. Some of those posts are for sharing my experiences (of trying to get published) with other writers who are in a similar situation.

But all of it has been for fun, so far.

After writing my own blog for a few months, I was recently asked to write blog posts regularly for a podcast. If anyone is interested, you can check out the Threads Podcast: Life Unfiltered blog for more words chosen and arranged by me. There’s not much there yet, but follow it, bookmark, it–whatever ya gotta do. Then listen to a few episodes. I was a guest awhile back, but listen to one of the more interesting guests (of which there are lots) if you actually want to give the show a chance.

And if you blog, enjoy it, and think you’re halfway decent at it, look into blogging for others as a sweet little side hustle. You can network the old fashioned way, or look for freelance writing gigs online. (I’d love to hear from someone who has tried this!) Might as well put your free-time skills towards a professional use.

Or don’t. That’s OK, too. As long as we’re all having a good time…

Thanks for reading!

-CT