My answer?  Both. But only for some people.  And hopefully for me – someday soon.  And here’s how I came to that conclusion…

My blogging evolution began in the summer of 2004 when I posted my first confessional prose on Myspace. Back then, in my capricious youth, I blogged about my Mid Summer’s Night escapades, the boyfriend I was trying desperately to get over, and the boys I was using to get over him with.

Once my public blogging got me embroiled in some typical Myspace drama, I decided to make my blogs private; viewable only to my trusted, selected friends. One might ask why I put my private thoughts online anyway, and the answer is that I love keeping a diary of my life, I think it’s important, but I’m no good at keeping up with a paper journal.  One reason I’m terrible at keeping a hand-written diary is that I can type far faster than I can write with a pen.  I also felt like publishing something in a space where I could get comments and feedback would keep me motivated to maintain the journal.  There’s nothing exciting about saving your thoughts into a Word document.

Then, in the summer of 2007, I discovered that people had stand-alone blogs that weren’t on Myspace (up until then, I really didn’t know such a thing existed.)  Well, I knew one guy who had been writing a regular blog for years, but I had no idea how that thing was run, and since he was the only guy I knew writing one, I kinda figured he had the market cornered.  Oh, I had so much to learn.

So, with this post, I decided to unleash my thoughts into the public sphere.  I even went back and imported all my older posts into my new blog.  No censoring.  No hiding them.  Full disclosure.  That’s been a scary journey, especially since my philosophies on a few things have changed dramatically in the years since I was a single gal in her carefree 20′s.  I did wrestle often with how honest I’d let myself be on this blog, but what I’ve found is that honesty is what gets (and keeps) the readers engaged.  The honesty really gets people saying “You too?!?  I’ve been there!” way more than any posturing can.

And make no mistake, I’ve even said some dumb shit.  But seriously, haven’t we all?  That’s the risk you take when you decide to grow up on the internet.  In fact, if your views haven’t evolved at all since you started blogging, I’d wonder if you’ve grown or learned anything at all in that time?  None of us are the same people we were a few years ago, and I think that’s a good thing.

Of course, nobody paid much attention to my blog at first, and why would they?  I was nobody.  I could publish things and not be terrified at the reaction because it seemed like I was invisible to all of the internets.  But that all changed when I posted my birth story in May of 2008.  It became somewhat famous across the birth-activist-circuit, and that post single-handedly opened me up to a new audience of thinking women.  It’s not like every one of my new visitors stayed, but it certainly started a momentum rolling.

Then Twitter Happened.

Somehow, though I’m not exactly sure how, I seemed to really find my tribe through Twitter.  And with that came more traffic to my blog. Suddenly, the things I said were being read and commented on by a surprising number of people.  I joined Twitter 1 year ago this month, and I can safely say that my traffic has increased many times over since I found that handy little tool.  That’s not why I did it though – I just wanted to connect with people.

Then I decided to start a Facebook Fan page.  Why? I dunno – it seemed like everyone else was doing it, and I’d better join the party or get left behind.  At that point I also started to feel like I really had a “message” to send, and that my particular “brand” of writing was appealing to a certain subculture.  I think that’s worth something.  In a few short months, I’ve racked up 713 Facebook fans, with more than a dozen new ones joining each day, which to me means there are a whole lot of feminist breeders out there!  And here I thought I was alone.  Not so!

I’ve also had a pretty stellar year in terms of highly trafficked posts, with my post from last Friday already seeing 2,500 views in just 3 days. That’s kind of overwhelming to think about – though it pales in comparison to the millions of visitors Dooce gets each month.  Compared to her, I’m not even on the blogger D list.  For further comparison, I believe that Cecily Kellogg gets around 100,000 per month and Babble didn’t even put her in their list of Top 50 – so I don’t know what a girl’s gotta do to be considered “high profile” in this blogger biz.

But all the while that my blog has been bringing in more and more visitors, I have wondered, how, or why, should I make money on this?  The thing is, I used to work in display advertising.  Selling ad space on a website is what I did 8 hours a day.  Well, I didn’t sell it, I built the ad spaces in a major automotive website that auto companies like Ford, GM, and Toyota would pay millions (MILLIONS!) of dollars a year for.  I understand exactly why one should sell the traffic on their site.  It can be a win-win for both the site owner and the user.  Highly targeted ads can be helpful for users who come to your site looking for expert opinions/information, and clearly there is the financial benefit to the owner of the site.  Most sites cannot function without ad revenue.  That’s why the interwebs are free, folks!

But isn’t a blog different?  Isn’t a blog just a personal online journal that should be free from annoying ads?  Well, I’ve grappled with this and my answer is No.  The people behind those blogs often work for hours researching and writing the content that their users enjoy.  If someone’s willing to read it, shouldn’t somebody be paid to write it?  Especially if it’s good?  Last week I had a school in California use one of my posts as a part of a homework assignment on gender roles in society.  Now I’m providing classroom material!  For free!

I’m not saying I’m the Mozart of prose or anything, but if people are reading me, then clearly I’m offering some sort of output that people enjoy.  I don’t write to make money… I blog because I have to.  I can’t not blog.  Besides the catharsis it gives me, and the connection to the community that I so enjoy, I also think it helps me hone the skills I’ll need in my career.  But jeez, is it too much to ask to find a way to get paid for something I’m already doing?  I don’t think so.

Then I wondered, “But how much traffic do I need to make a buck off this thing?” I looked around, and even asked around, and I could never get anyone to give me  a straight answer on how to make some money through ad networks or sponsors, or if I even have enough traffic to interest a sponsor.  When it comes to this stuff, I’m completely clueless.

Then, the lovely Amber Strocel posted her own article on this subject last week. Go read it when you’re done here. Seriously, it’s good.  She reveals exactly what I’ve been wondering about, but couldn’t get anyone to share with me.  Amber tells us,

“On average, I have made around $25 USD per month from my ads. Still, it’s $25 for something I’m doing anyways, and with no effort on my part. Over the 6 months I have been paid for so far, I averaged around 8000 page views per month”

DING DING DING DING!!!! This smart mom is getting paid on 8,000 page views.

What this tells me is that, with her method, I could have made $75 this month off my blog.  That’s right – I’m sitting at 25,289 page views in the last 30 days.  If I was monetizing the way Amber is, this blog could have paid my electric bill!  I know that doesn’t seem like a lot to some people, but it’s a lot to me. I am ever thankful to Amber for offering up that proprietary information because it really helped me see that I’m missing out on some opportunity here.

Unfortunately, I’m on the wait list for BlogHer ads (which is how Amber makes her blogger dough).  In the meantime, I would LOVE to figure out another ad network, or some sponsors, to bring in revenue.  So tell me dear blog readers – do any of you monetize your site?  Would you be willing to share your secrets of making a buck off your writing?  Amber is smart, make no mistake, but she can’t be the only one smart enough to have figured this out – so share, please! Let’s all be sisterly and help each other find a few extra dollars in this economy.