1.When did you start blogging?
I have had a online blog in some form since I was 15 years old. I was started on Livejournal when I was 17 years old. I dont remember the name of the platform I used before that. My livejournal entries were always private. I used it as a diary to document very personal things in my life. I doubt I will ever go back and make the entries public. It wasn’t until last couple years that I started blogging publicly. I realized there was this whole world of blogging that I never knew about. Last year I switched to Blogger and then this moved on to a self hosted WordPress site. I totally felt like I was in the big leagues when I did that.
2.Do you make money from your blog?
I am not making much money from my blog yet but I hope to one day. I do make a little here and there but it takes time and dedication. Time is something I do not have a lot of anymore.
3.What is one tip new bloggers could benefit from?
Buy a domain name and do not use the Blogger platform.
4.What has been your best form of marketing for your blog?
Twitter and Facebook are the places I have taken full advantage of. They are great outlets for marketing my blog. Most of the traffic my blogs receive are from Facebook and Twitter.
5.Do you consider your blog a “job”?
Yes I do consider it a job. So much time, money, and energy goes in to maintaining a blog.
6.How do you keep yourself motivated?
How do I keep myself motivated? Staying motivated is one of my biggest problems. I will sit down at my laptop to start working and I always get called away. The phone will ring, one of my sons will need help with something, or they will all start bickering, the hubby needs help with some technical thing and I end up loosing all motivation for working on my blog. So I have started to only work during the day while they are school and my husband at work. When I stick to a schedule and routine I can stay motivated. So day to day after everyone is gone I have a little me time. I drink a cup of coffee, make my to do list for the day, pray, call the hospital and check on my mom, make any other calls I need to make and then I focus on work.
7.What is one personal achievement you’re proud of?
Being accepted in to the MassiveSway/SitsGirls Blogging Network. I haven’t been accepted in to a campaign yet but I am still extremely proud I made it.
8.What advice would you share with yourself when you were 18 years old?
It may sound silly but the thing I would tell my 18 year old self is to GET OVER YOUR SELF! When I was 18 years old I was still extremely shy and not very confident at all. I have a connective tissue disorder called Ehlers Danlos Syndrome (Vascular Type). I have scars and bruises all over my body. My legs and elbows specifically are very scarred. So I would never wear shorts or dresses. I would wear 3/4 sleeve shirts to cover my elbows and I would always cover my legs because I felt like everyone was staring at me. At the beach, pool, or lake I would always wear a cover up. My mom and I had a system down… I would run to the edge of the water and take my cover up off. I would do anything I could to not let anyone see my legs. My mom told me I shouldn’t worry and tried to relieve my fear but it was something I had to over come myself. Now I am 31 years old and I have no problem showing off my scars or bruises. They are a part of me and each one has their own story to tell.
Follow April at http://www.itsapril.net/