San Francisco Chronicle Article (and a bit about my love affair with this job)

Look guys! There’s an article about my blog and some of my favorite things in the SF Chronicle yesterday (read it online here). Crazy, right?!? It’s a little surreal to turn a page in the newspaper an see an article about you. Also, when they mentioned a full body image they were not. joking. around. I could almost make a cardboard cut out outta that (tutorial in the works!!).

I’m still amazed that this hobby that turned into a full blown career. I feel really lucky to be where I’m at. People are always so curious how it works so I thought I’d break it down for you, earning an income being a professional blogger that is. It’s a little piecemeal, but enough of an income from the sum of the parts that my husband was able to quit his job a year ago to have a little sabbatical and live off my income.

For those of you that are curious, as a professional blogger about half of my income comes from sponsored campaigns with brands through Federated Media. You know, all those this post is sponsored by____” posts, like this one. A small portion of that is banner ad sales as well through FM. The other half of my income comes from writing I do for other sites like Babble, Euro Style Lighting, Apartment Therapy, and the consulting work I do running the Julep site for Minted. I also serve on a couple advisory boards for brands (a new thing). Another kind of small, maybe 10% of my income each month, comes from selling small ads on my site bar + reviews/giveaways for small companies. Not huge, but for a long time that was where all of my income came from, and it’s a great place to start. Then came the writing for other sites, then came the sponsored campaigns and brand consulting- in that order.

And the best part of this work is that I truly love every part of it. Even cleaning out my inbox or paying invoices. In the article I mentioned that the worst part of blogging for me was keeping track of finances and invoices but since that interview one of my new years resolutions was figuring out a better system and now I use Freshbooks which I love and makes the process almost enjoyable (it’s true! and not getting paid to say it!). It costs $20 a month but is totally worth it guys if you have income and expenses all over the place.

One of the best parts recently has been working with a wonderful company like Minted to create Julep. It’s helped me re-evaluate my own blog, collaborate with a team, and see things in a big picture way as we start from scratch with all the knowledge I have from running this site for 6 years. It’s nice to get that experience too, who knows where/what blogging will be in a few years and if I’ll still be part of it or want to be a part of it? More and more brands are looking to bloggers to help with their own sites and I’d highly recommend doing it if you have the opportunity (and please email if you do- happy to walk you through it).

Thank you all for being so supportive as this hobby has transitioned to a job. I know it hasn’t always been smooth, sometimes it’s hard to figure out how to incorporate all these different pieces into the site, this it is still the wild west for bloggers! But bringing in an income has allowed me to hire on a team of writers, assistants, photographers, stylists, and work a lot on improving on my photography/styling (which is probably my favorite part!). Hopefully I’ve created something you enjoy to visit every day. I certainly enjoy working on it every day!

Anyway, I got sidetracked! You can read the whole SF Chronicle article right here online or keep reading: I took up close pictures if you prefer to read it all formatted pretty for print (kind of silly, I know, for someone that works on the internet but there’s something about PRINT still don’t you think?)…

PS A little behind the scenes picture from the photo shoot right here.

Comments

I’m impressed, I have to admit. Seldom do I come across a blog that’s
both equally educative and amusing, and without a doubt, you’ve hit the nail on the head. The problem is something which not enough people are speaking intelligently about. Now i’m very
happy that I came across this during my hunt for something regarding this.

Hi there everyone, it’s my first go to see at this web site, and post is really fruitful in favor of me, keep up posting such content.

Hi Liz,

I’m very new to blogging and i love hearing how much you enjoy what you do! I think it totally comes through and is what makes it enjoyable to read. You have such great ideas. Also, what a lovely craft room with a truly amazing view.

Congratulations, Liz. I love your blog and I got really inspired by your success. You deserve it!

Famous!! Love that article. Two things: you inspired me to finally start a (semi-profesh) lifestyle blog with yummy juicy pictures (I’m saving for that 50mm 1/4 lens!), so thank you! 2. I borrowed that book (understanding exposure) from Jared and am still using it….I’ll get it back to you soon! xoxo

foggydress.wordpress.com

Liz,
Loved the article, love your blog and have taken a class from you which was also wonderful! I think the one thing that always stands out when I visit your blog is that you are the most generous person. Always sharing your knowledge from the business of blogging to your great ideas about life stuff. I can imagine that your report cards as a child said “plays well with other.” and of course I mean that in the most positive way!
annie

Congratulations, Liz!
I’ve been wanting to ‘interview’ you in my mind about the hows and why of your site and the blogging world. It’s not hard to find quality and beautiful sites like ‘Say Yes,” – It’s so well-done. I’m happy to see SF Chronicle had the same idea! And thanks for your thoughts on your journey and for being so open – it feels a little less ‘wild-west’ because of it.

Liz, it’s wonderful to read about your success and happiness! I’m a newbie blogger and also a college senior. I’ve wanted to start a blog for the longest time, and I’m finally finding the time to do so. Thank you for your advice in this blog post! I know with hard work, anything is possible 🙂

WOW huge congrats on the fantastic article. I didn’t know you have a background in counseling psych, i’m a family therapist. amazing how you made a transition to something so creative and fun

yay 🙂 this is so awesome and exciting and inspiring, Liz….big congratulations!!!

Congratulations, Liz! Great article and photo! I’ve had you on my little blog roll for several years now, so it’s fun to see how your business has taken off.

I would love to read more about how you got gigs writing for other blogs. 🙂

Hey Shannon I think the best thing to do to get gigs writing for other bloggers is networking and getting to know the editors. Conferences like Alt Summit and Mom 2.0 and Camp Mighty are great for that!

How awesome! Thank you so much for sharing how you were able to turn your blog into a business. You are such an amazing inspiration, I can’t wait to see what’s next.
P.S. – That picture is super cute!

Congrats Liz – you look gorgeous in card board cut out size 🙂 Thanks so much for breaking down how it all works – I’m dreaming of going full time one day too. You are such an inspiration with the quality of work you produce. Looking forward to seeing all the amazing places you go wih SYTH in the future.

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