Limited Personal Privacy Advice for Prospective Bloggers
In “Open Letter to New Mom Bloggers: The 9 Reasons Why You’re Failing” author Candis Lynn Hidalgo gauges the number of mom
bloggers in North America at 4 million and goes on to offer advice to those who
may be struggling to get their voice heard and their blog monetized within this
massive crowd (although I suspect this number may refer to moms blogging in
general rather than solely parenting focused blogs). Mommy blogging has become
so popular that there are now entire blogs, articles, online courses and even books
devoted to how to be successful at it and what steps to take when getting
started. I thought I would scour the internet and see what kind of advice
people are giving to prospective mommy bloggers and how (or if) they address
issues of privacy and ethical sharing practices.
Focusing
on freely accessible online articles and posts, the guides I found concentrated
overwhelmingly on the business side of things such as marketing and promotions
strategies, methods of securing sponsors/advertisers, and finding a niche in
the market. Secondary to this was general writing advice involving
considerations of tone and audience. Out of twelve “How to” or advice articles
I read through four mentioned privacy in some form. This is what they had to
say:
Balancing your private life and your
blog is tricky. Everything you put online about your children is findable, so
protect your family by setting boundaries now.
-
You may want to leave their real names off your blog and use nicknames.
-You
don’t want to share anything embarrassing or that can start a fight with your
significant other.
-If
you are addressing sensitive issues, such as raising a child who wets the bed,
consider addressing possible reader questions in general, rather than posting
your child’s issues online.
“Blogging for Dummies” by blogger Becky Sherrick Harks
There
is such a thing as over-sharing.
Remember
that your kids may one day read whatever you’ve written, so choose what you
share (especially about them) well.
“How to Start a Mom Blog” by blogger Jennifer Carsen
What should I write
about?
Anything you want, really. There is an ongoing
(and, I think, valid) debate about how much mom bloggers should reveal about
their kids.
2. Decide how much you are willing to share with your readers
It’s
impossible to write a post about mommy blogs without mentioning the queen of
mommy blogging, Heather Armstrong. Ms. Armstrong has a very particular style that includes great writing,
frequent use of profanity, lots of personal charm, and the ability to make fun
of herself and her husband. Her definition of privacy is lax – she readily
shares highly private family moments with her
readers.
But does
one have to use profanity or expose her family affairs on the Internet in order
to turn her blog into a lucrative business? I don’t have the answer to this
question, although I will venture a guess that if you want to REALLY make it as
a mommy blogger, you must be willing to share A LOT. This is a very personal
choice, of course. Define your limits, and once you have – be ready to defend them, to
others and to yourself.
The brevity of the advice out there for bloggers
concerning the privacy of their families indicates a possible hesitation when
instructing others on how much, or what kinds of things, they should be
sharing. As DeLeeuw states above, she considers it “a very personal choice”. It
is interesting that these bloggers refrain from questioning or trying to
influence the judgement of others in this realm when so often that is exactly
what occurs on mommy blogs in general when discussing other aspects of
parenting.
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