“Geek, Father, Husband, Agnostic, Liberal.” If you want to know what Patrick is about? Look no further than his blog’s former tagline. The engaging writer behind Patrick Says loves to talk tech, television and pop culture. He’s also the innovator behind St. Louis Blogger’s Guild podcast, Blogging In The ‘Lou. If you haven’t yet, check out Patrick’s blog and the podcast where he tackles all sorts of blog related subjects!

When did you first start blogging and why?

I satrted blogging back in 1992. Of course, it was in a program called WordStar and the Internet wasn’t around yet, so it was just on the floppy disk I had. I took a break, well ‘break’ as in ‘lost the floppy’. When I came back to blogging, it was 2005 and I hopped on Blogspot. Originally, my reason was that I fancy myself a writer and a blog would give me the place to practice my craft and hone my skill. Later, it just devolved into me making fun of stuff and whining, you know, like the rest of the blogosphere.

What was the impetus behind creating the Guild’s podcast?

I was at one of the earliest meetings of what would eventually become the Guild. I happened to not be at the meeting where it became official and hence, not a founder. (No, I’m not bitter. Much.) Anyway, at some point, we talked about the areas the Guild would venture into. One arm was the idea of a podcast. I listen to a fair amount of podcasts. Also, no one seemed to be moving it forward and so I just kind of took it. Of course, I NEVER envisioned me as the on-air talent. I’m a mumbler and I’m fine with that. So the idea of me hosting a podcast was very argh.

Have any favorite podcasts you love to listen to? (Why?)

I like the tech podcasts. I listen to two from Jeff Chandler, Perfcast as well as WordPress Weekly and This Week in Tech which is basically ‘The Screen Savers’ from the old TechTV days. That’s about all I can squeeze in each week with a very short commute to work.

I’ve noticed you don’t include archives – you link each post to a few related posts. You also keep your posts short. Any reasons behind that?

Well, the Archives thing was really unintentional. I used to have that page. But really, I’ve never been to a blog where I wondered what the author wrote on June 14, 2007. My hard and fast rule has always been to have a search box. People know what they’re looking for.

I like to keep my posts short because of the attention span on the Net these days. I know if I see a blog post that’s eight REALLY long paragraphs, it better be phenomenal. People like things in bite-size pieces.

How has your blog (and you as a blogger) changed over that time?

I think I’ve gotten more real. In my very early days, I tried comedic bits that really fell flat. Just awful. Now I just talk about things. I TRY to make them interesting things. As always, nobody cares what you had for lunch.

Patrick’s three favorite posts can be found here, here, and here.

It’s not “Mother Mae”, its MUTHA Mae. And her website? It’s “the mutha of all mommy websites.” The stay-at-home mom of three not only blogs, but vlogs and produces an online video show for moms called “Word to Your Mutha”. Mutha Mae’s known for her pink feather boas, Elmo house slippers and sassy style. She’s also one savvy woman who’s chasing some Hollywood dreams. Read more about Mutha Mae’s recent trip to LA’s TV Festival and a deal that’s developed as a result!

Which came first? The creation of your blog or your show?
I’ve been blogging for about ten years now, which is sad considering I never knew you could do more with a blog than just write your story until very recently. I cringe when I think of all the opportunities I could have created from that first blog, which was an infertility blog with a large following.

I had actually removed myself from the mainstream blogging scene and was keeping a small China adoption journal just for my friends when I had the idea to create the online show in the summer of ‘07. I had learned from past mistakes of lost online opportunities so I created MuthaMae.com as a website where I could blog and post show episodes. I focused on creating a marketable brand. The show title of Word To Your Mutha came first, and the Mutha Mae nickname and character closely followed. From there I designed the website and my husband made it happen. We carefully thought out everything on the site right down to the colors. We also put a lot of thought into the show’s opening, using a recording of my 1 year old saying Mama for the first time. Then I went to work on support materials like matching business cards and DVD labels.

What inspires you (for the blog and the show)?
You can see women give birth and adopt and you can see celebrity moms and moms with 29 kids. What about the everyday mom who just wants advice on how to cook kid friendly meals? Or where to take the kids on an affordable summer vacation? These were topics I wanted to tackle on the online show, but found out being a one woman production team with no money only got me so far- like to the Missouri Botanical Garden and Grant’s Farm! I quickly learned I had to keep things simple and that frustrated the hell out of me. My frustration lead to ideas of what I would do if I had money and a Hollywood crew. Which ultimately lead to the LA TV Festival.

You went to the LA TV Festival looking for some direction but you got a whole lot more! You got a “development deal”! Can you tell us where you are in that? What’s the timeline?
My life has changed and yet it hasn’t. What has changed is me constantly wondering what will happen next. There are phone meetings and email status updates, but it’s out of my hands at this point. It’s now up to a network to agree to fund a pilot episode. If that happens, we go into production. Once a pilot is delivered to a network, the network has X amount of months to determine if they want the show on their schedule. If they give us the green light, I will faint and then happily head back into production.

Really, all I want is to get on set and get to work. I can’t imagine doing my show with a crew of professionals who actually know how to work a camera and light a scene. The hardest part for me is being patient with the process. I am not a patient person to begin with and it’s a slow process! The bad economy does not help because networks are being extra careful with spending. I do plan on putting updates on my blog as this progresses. And you never know, this could end up as a funded online show. I just want to get to work. I am so ready for my close up!

As for the guild, why did you join?
I wanted to network with other local bloggers who were serious about blogging. I’ve only made it to one meeting so far, but I do plan to attend more in the future.

Any advice for other bloggers hoping to turn their blogs into opportunities (like book deals, development deals, stuff like that?)
I think these days you have to have the total package of talent, a marketable brand, and time to market that brand. Gone are the days a blogger can post amazing writing and have people coming to them with offers. I think now it’s more about getting out there and getting or creating opportunities.

I think not knowing the difficulties can be a blessing because you don’t have a voice in your head psyching out your confidence. I had no business attending the LA TV Festival and didn’t realize I would be so out of place. Most of the attendees had sizzle reels and resumes filled with experience. But that’s the beauty of being a dreamer from the Midwest. I didn’t let my lack of experience stop me. I just wanted answers. I’m from the “Show Me” state. Show me if I can be in this business or not!

Mutha Mae’s three favorites works can be found here (a little “green” for you) and here, (Mutha Mae’s daughter predicts) and here. (Her love for a super producer.)

Where are the hottest places to eat in the city? Who serves up the best ice cream martinis? Where can you find burlesque dancing? Melody Meiners knows all. In fact, it is sort of her job to be “in the know” when it comes to what’s going down in “the ‘lou.” Luckily for us, she also blogs about pop culture (like Kanye West’s recent hair mishap) technology and pop-politics on ToastedRav as well as on her personal site, Girls Guide to the Galaxy. Read on to learn more about Melody, a founding member of the Guild and our public relations director. 

Did you get that Aston Martin Vanquish you asked Santa for?

Haha, no I didn’t but I did get a few really cool video games and the chance to spend a lot of time with family and friends.

You’ve got a very cool job working at Toasted Rav. Can you tell us a bit about it.

I am a writer and producer for ToastedRav.com, which is a St. Louis focused entertainment website.  Basically I am lucky enough to have the chance to write stories and do videos about the interesting people, events, and stuff in St. Louis.  We also get the chance to be creative with videos and projects.

Did your blogging help play a part in securing this job?  How so?

It was through blogging and using Twitter that the staff found my personal blog and started getting in touch with me to do freelance writing for them.  I happened to be freelancing when they needed full-time writers so I crossed my fingers and made the leap from the world of IT to writing full time.

What do you write about on your blog at Toasted Rav?

It is really cool, actually, because I write four stories a day and shoot an average of two videos for the site every week.  We get to write about whatever went want so I tend to focus on my strong suits like technology, fashion, food, art, and going out, but we write about anything and everything.

You’ve been blogging awhile. How do you battle the dreaded “blogger’s block”?

Sometimes when I am stuck I pick a topic and just start from there, other times I chat with people outside or online and it will spark something.  When I am really desperate I pick up “The Writers Block: 186 Ideas To Jump-Start Your Imagination,” and thumb through that.  I keep a notebook in my purse at all times though and anytime I see or hear something interesting I jot it down and leave enough notes around it that I can brainstorm ideas about it.

You’re one of the founding members of the Blogger’s Guild. As someone who has been a huge part of its success, why should bloggers (be they just starting out or ones who’ve been at it awhile) join the guild?

I think the guild is a great resource for keeping current with hot topics, getting in touch with blogging leaders to learn more about it, and it is a pretty cool group of people.  I think with the outreach projects that are being planned and the interactive festival it is also a great resume and experience builder.

Check out Melody’s three favorite posts here, here and of course here.

A Bun’s Life has developed quite a following, and its not difficult to see why. The creator’s personality shines through. Tam is endearing, funny, and compassionate. But you will also see that she’s refreshingly honest in her struggles. She’s not about to paint her readers a picture of a perfect life. She shares her good days and bad. She’s not going to tell you that balancing her blogging, work life, motherhood and marriage is easy. But what does come across in her blogging is that she wakes up every morning and gives the people around her 110 percent.

Read through a few of her posts and you’ll quickly develop a tender spot for A Bun’s Life and the blogger behind it.

How did you come up with your blog name?
I call my kids bunnies and my blog mainly documents their lives, hence “A Bun’s Life.”

Now that you’ve been blogging awhile, I’m sure you’ve gotten some strange pitches for products or ideas. What’s the weirdest thus far?
I’ve been contacted by two reality shows. Being contacted by Wife Swap was definitely the weirdest.

Your blog is very genuine. You talk about some very personal, painful stuff. When you started your blog, did you intend to talk about subjects like that?
I made a conscious decision – that’s how I am in real life. I’m not going to pretend to be anything I’m not. I wanted to know I wasn’t the only one out there dealing with certain things and I wanted readers realize that they weren’t the only ones going through it too. Its about a true emotional connection. Its my therapy too. Its my outlet.

Why did you join the Guild
Saint Louis has such a strong blogging community and I wanted to become more involved in it. I also wanted to learn more about web design, and the in’s and out’s of a few of the aspects surrounding blogging from those more experienced than I am. What an added bonus that I get to meet so many of my favorite local bloggers too!

What’s been the biggest surprise?
The biggest thing is the sense of community and friendship I’ve found. There’s an instant connection you feel with certain bloggers. There are several people I consider to be real friends without having ever met them in person. I care about them and if there was any thing they ever needed, I would be there for them. There are several people that, if I could I would fly out to meet them, or if we were on vacation and happened to be in their area, I would definitely make it a priority to visit them.

We’ve asked Tam to pick three of her favorite posts. Here’s one (The Shower Wars)  and another (I Want To be a Yes Mom!) and don’t forget this one too! (Bang Goes the Gun, Out Goes My Light)

Kelli Stuart has a lot on her plate these days. She has three children under the age of five, writes the blog Three Times the Love and is an integral part of the St. Louis Bloggers Guild, serving as editor for our website.

But there’s more to Kelli than mothering and blogging. She’s fluent in russian.  She’s a master at impersonating people. (“I can do a mean Ace Ventura impersonation, which has gotten me nowhere in life, but did help me win over the boys in high school.”) She can also imitate various songstresses. (Her favorite singer to impersonate is Barbara Streisand.) To get to know more about Kelli, read on!

When did you start blogging and why?
 
I started blogging in January.  I had my third child in December and I was struggling with the transition.  I felt like a zombie and needed some way to keep myself sane in those first few months.  Blogging seemed like a good outlet, and it was a great way to keep extended family members updated on what was going on in our lives.  Life with three young children is crazy and I felt like I was losing the fun memories due to extreme sleep deprivation.  I wanted to hold on to the good times we were having and also have a recorded memory of what these early days were like.  And there were some really fun things to remember.  Like, for example, the day my near two-year-old found her baby brother’s umbilical cord in the trash can, mistook it for gum and popped it in her mouth.  Utterly and completely disgusting, I know, but such a great thing to have on record!

Like Gregg, you talk about religion on your blog. What’s the overall response to those type of posts? Do you ever get the troll comments?
 
I haven’t really had any negative comments when I bring up my faith.  It’s not something that I’m trying to shove down people’s throats, but my faith is an integral part of who I am as a person.  My entire worldview is defined by my beliefs.  Because of that, it is very natural to write about my faith in my posts.  We are raising our children to know and understand who God is, and because my blog is focused mainly on my life with kids, the topic of faith is going to surface, especially when I share how my kids process the concept of God – and how I am coping with the stresses of motherhood.
 
You mentioned in a previous post that you were going to “put yourself out there” more so as a writer when it comes to new opportunities. I applaud you because it can feel very intimidating. How’s that going? Has your blog (or the Blogger’s Guild) helped you to pursue new opportunities?
 
The Blogger’s Guild, and my blog, have given me an extreme boost in self-confidence.  I felt rusty and tired as a writer.  It had been so long since I had written on a regular basis and I wondered if maybe I’d lost my mojo a bit.  I have been challenged through many of the blogger’s in the Guild to pursue writing goals again.  I admire so many of the writers that I read on a regular basis and am just so thrilled to be learning about this form of social media.  I knew very little about blogging when I started out in January.  I still know very little, but I’m learning more and more every day.  It’s very energizing. 
 
Why did you join the Blogger’s Guild?
 
I wanted to meet new people.  I wanted to be more diligent in pursuing my passion of writing.  I wanted to learn more about blogging.  And I wanted to make contacts in the writing world, which will, hopefully, open some doors professionally for me.
 
Do you see yourself blogging a few years from now? Or do you think (or hope) your writing will take a different direction?
 
I hope I keep up with blogging.  I really love it.  I also hope to be able to pursue other writing opportunities.  I am about three quarters of the way through a novel right now and hope to finish it soon.  It will be interesting to see what happens with it as it’s been my pet project for several years now.  I don’t know where blogging will lead me.  If anything, I will have a great record of my children’s precious growing up years to show them someday when they’re older.  That is, for me, one of the greatest rewards of blogging.
 
Check out Kelli’s three favorite posts! (Here’s one. Here’s another. And don’t forget this one too!)

If you meet Blogger’s Guild Member Gregg in person, you soon realize he’s much like his blog. The funny, laid-back dad writes about many a subject – from “Stupid Gregg tricks” to childhood memories and how he (at one point) considered becoming a Bigfoot expert.  As Gregg continues on his blogging course, he’s finding out that he’s attracting many a St. Louisian’s attention. And if you haven’t yet visited his blog, “One Dad’s Life”, go check it out. And you’ll see why his readership continues to grow.

Congrats on your “Blog o’ the Week” nod from The Riverfront Times – What did you think when you found out?

I was completely shocked.  The RFT didn’t contact me at all, and truth be told, I didn’t see much bump from it. The funny thing was that I did get email from a couple of friends who saw it in the actual paper.  I discovered it accidentally prior to getting the email while searching google for one of my popular posts.  I’d had some trouble with my posts being swiped, so I was looking for more of that! At first I thought someone at the RFT had swiped something.  This was better.

I saw from a previous post that you and the wife are known to e-mail each other from across the couch… When you post about the fam, does she have a say what stories make it into the blog and what doesn’t? In other words, what will you write about and what do you avoid?

I’ve never asked her, and in fact I usually don’t let her see what I’ve written until it hits the site.  However, I like to see her reactions when she reads it! Since I intentionally focus on the positive, I don’t worry TOO much that I’ll say something I shouldn’t.  On one instance, she thought I might run into trouble talking about what I’d do if I didn’t have to go to work all summer instead of her and the kids. She worried that it might offend some of my SAHM readers.  I decided to leave the post up, though, and hopefully didn’t offend anyone! It wasn’t the intention, for sure, it was about how rough it is for me going to work each day while they are at home.  I basically avoid airing any real gripes I have in my “real” life, I don’t rant, and I don’t talk about work.  I figure that leaves me pretty safe.

What’s been the biggest surprise throughout your blogging journey thus far?

Besides this interview? (laughs) I’ve had several pretty big surprises.  I never expected to have regular readers that I didn’t already know in “real life”, I didn’t expect to meet so many of the St. Louis Bloggers, and I never expected to guest blog on a “Mommy Blog” site!  I guest blogged on “A Bun’s Life” and had my daughter “girlify” my post with some drawings.  I never spent so long on a post before, but it was great fun!

Some bloggers get strong reactions when they write about their faith. How do people respond when you write about this topic.

I’ve never had a strong reaction to any mention of religion, church attendance, or events at our church that I plug at the blog, but I also just mention it as a matter-of-fact type of thing, rather than beating anyone over the head with it.  It’s a big part of my everyday life, so it just naturally comes up sometimes, though. I certainly don’t avoid it.

You’re a Blogger’s Guild member. Why did you join? And what do you think so far.

Honestly, I joined because I feel like I have so much to learn. I’m a newbie! So far, we’ve largely been working on the St. Louis Interactive Festival, which should be pretty cool!  Being a card carrying introvert, it was kind of scary for me to show up the first time or so, but I have really enjoyed meeting a bunch of the bloggers I’ve admired and I’m very excited about the Interactive Festival. Now I clear my schedule, as much as possible, for the meetings.  It was also gratifying when I first mentioned that I write “One Dad’s Life” and people recognized the blog.

Check out Gregg’s three favorite posts: Generic “One Dad’s Life”, A Dad’s Dream Come True – Part 2 : The Slumber Party, and (Making goofy lists has always been a favorite pastime of mine.  This one has had thousands of hits) 10 Ways Dads Are Like Rock Stars.

Have you seen Holly McCaig’s blog, All Things Pink? If not, you should pay her site a little visit. Holly’s a photographing, jewelery-designing, creative force in St. Louis. One of Holly’s great talents is capturing the essence of animals –particularly family pets. Need a smile? Or an amazing picture of your beloved pooch? Check out THIS slide show.

What sparked your interest in photography?

My dad bought a Canon SLR back when I was a kid. I can remember him having an interest in it and always taking our pictures. I of course, always had some sort of camera from the Kodak Disk, a 110, a Polaroid, you name it! It wasn’t until after my dad passed away of Cancer when I was in college that I knew I wanted to use his camera. So, I took my knowledge of darkroom work from classes I had taken in my major and applied for a job as a photographer for the GeorgeAnne – Georgia Southern University’s newspaper. 

How does blogging fit into that?

Oh man, I have a lot of people that enjoy seeing my images and are inspired by them in their own photography. I can spend hours on photographer blogs or on sites like Flickr, so I always hope I can return the favor and show someone something they might not normally see. Like with people, dogs, and even St. Louis. A picture says a lot. I also like to answer questions on cameras, lenses, my post-processing steps and Photoshop tips so I throw those in there too!

Why did you join the St. Louis Blogger’s Guild?

I really wanted to meet more people in the area that “get” blogging! None of my old high school or college friends blog. And, the bloggers I am friends with are spread all across the world. Some I have been lucky enough to meet in person. I have already met another amazing photographer, Raquita, and we’ve worked on a project together. I like to think we’ve both grown in our photography from knowing each other.

Have you gotten any opportunities through your blog you otherwise wouldn’t have gotten?

Oh sure! Because I also do other art, I have found friends that have connected me to my current position of designing scrapbooking products for a major scrapbooking manufacturer, have had others purchase my photography art through my ETSY store, and have made a few new photography clients!

What are your goals for your blog?

To document life. I love to share with others how-tos and what I have learned, but I also like to just share what’s going on in my life. I can look back and re-read things from a few years ago and remember what was going on with me then. And, see how far I’ve come and hope to go further in the future. We have no place to go but up, right?

Why do you blog?

I blog because it’s sorta my escape and lets me just document my life and what’s going on. Good, bad, new, old, whatever.

What are your three favorite links?

THIS was a post imported from my old blog and the picture isn’t there anymore, but the writing is the most important. I think its important that her story is kept alive.

THIS one because I have amazing online friends that just “get it” and are so supportive.

THIS one because I’m always reminded that beauty and nature are always there, even when they just pop up in the most unexpected places just so you’re sure to see it!

Feature by guild member Lisa from Midwestern Mommy.

Guild Member Lisa, who normally writes our Member Profiles on Fridays, isn’t available this week. So I thought I’d take over for her. And I couldn’t think of anyone better to profile this week than Lisa herself. -Ed.

Lisa, a founding member of the St. Louis Bloggers Guild, has been blogging at Midwestern Mommy since January of 2005. A devoted wife and mother to six-year-old Seth, Lisa has been a quiet but powerful force in the local social media community for years. Lisa has personally organized several meet-ups between local bloggers since joining the community. Many of the bloggers who attended Lisa’s first few events eventually became involved in forming the St. Louis Bloggers Guild.

Lisa loves Target. Lisa loves sleep. Lisa plays bunco. She’s a fashion maven. She has a great sense of humor. She loves her mother. She worked as a reporter and in public relations before becoming a stay-at-home mom, and it shows in quality of her writing.

Lisa is sick right now, and we at the Guild wish her the very best.

If you have a great story about Lisa from Midwestern Mommy, please share it with us in the comments.

This post authored by Jaelithe.

Spend a few minutes with Kim Dorsey and you can’t help but notice her engaging personality, warm smile and easy confidence. The author of Parachuting Without a Net and Jessica and Kelli – A Celebration of Two lives, began blogging in May of 2007 during her lunch hours at work. At that point, she kept the blog private, using it as an outlet to express her feelings about daily life

But when her eldest daughters, Jessica and Kelli, were fatally injured in an accident last year, she quit blogging for a short time.

“I didn’t really know what I wanted to say. I finally posted ‘I Have No Words’, and then I commented on Mamalogues in response to a post she put out about what we wanted for Christmas, and I said I wanted my girls back.  I had a really bad day and I just typed it without really thinking what might happen.  I got so many hits from that comment, and it inspired me to keep talking about my kids, all of them,” she says. 

As Kim continues to blog, a story of heartbreak and loss is evolving into one of healing and hope — she’s been able to promote a fund-raiser in memory of Jessica and Kelli and she’s helping other people who have experienced similar tragedies.

How did you come up with your blog name?

It was how I felt at the time, like I was free falling but had no idea how to land.

What has been the most eye-opening experience for you on this blogging journey?

How you feel like you “know” the person you read about.  So, I’m sure that people feel like they “know” me now too. Also, to hear from other readers who have lost children, or lost someone close to them suddenly.  It makes me feel less alone in all this.  I also have had people say “oh, I read your blog,” and I immediately think “Oh, I hope it was a good post today!”

I guess losing your anonymity through blogging is what I’m getting at.

Speaking of anonymity… How do you feel about being “out there.”

So far, it’s been a positive experience.  I do talk about Maddy, I use her name, although some bloggers use pseudonyms for their kids and spouses.  I figure I’m in the public eye because of Jessica and Kelli’s deaths, so the information is already out there.  Some writers get flamed for using real names but I think it’s a personal decision.  It doesn’t change my opinion of the writer. 

What’s the best feedback you’ve gotten so far? 

The best feedback is any feedback.  I love getting comments.  Knock wood, they’ve all been positive (except for one time!)  If I make someone laugh, or think, or go hug their kids, then I’m cool with that. But I’ll be honest, when people say I’m a good writer, that’s my best feedback.  I sometimes struggle with how I’m writing – I try to use spell check and not butcher the rules of grammar, but I know I do.  I write how I talk, so I hope that people who know me can “hear” me through my writing.  I do have flashes of brilliance sometimes, and sometime I post and think “wow, that was pretty sucktastic.” 

Why should bloggers join the Guild? Why did you join?

To meet the people in the local blogging community; to further rights and responsibilities of bloggers; networking and exchange of ideas and opinions; and for the cocktails at the gatherings.

I wanted to make new friends, I’m really excited to be a part of the Guild.  I think we can do some new and exciting things with blogs.  It’s such a new medium that we’re kind of writing the rules as we go along.  I’m looking forward to possibly having a bigger role in the Guild eventually – like the chance to help people understand intellectual property rights.

When you look into your future as a blogger, what do you see?

I’d like to continue blogging, and eventually expand into other areas.  I’m really looking forward to InterPLAY – I’m so technologically challenged. I’m doing the basics right now but there are so many places I could take this blog. If we were to get a law passed for Jessica and Kelli, I could start an informational blog and maybe help others. I could expand their website for more fundraising and information about their scholarships. Heck, Maddy wants to start a blog! The possibilities are endless.

Check out Kim’s favorite blog posts. Here’s one. Don’t forget this one nor this one. (Kim says this one gets an honorable mention.)

This post was written by Lisa, from Midwestern Mommy and Midwestern Mommy Reviews.

Photo credit: Andrea. Used with permission. All rights reserved.

Almost three years ago, St. Louis Bloggers Guild Member Andrea found herself in the midst of a new kind of chaos — parenthood. As many who’ve taken the parental plunge will testify, the experience, as thrilling as it can be, can leave many a mom feeling a bit depleted. What to do when you long for a greater sense of connection? Start blogging!

That’s what Andrea, the author of Little Bald Doctors, did. The community she’s established through her blog’s readership has been a sounding board and a source of support through toddlerhood trials, health scares, and a second pregnancy.

Your blog has a very unique title. What’s the story?

My blog title came from my love of the book Insomnia by Stephen King, aptly enough. The timing of my blog birth coincided with some sleepless nights due to having a small child and also to some of the disjointed feelings I was dealing with because of some depression. There are three characters in that book referred to as little bald doctors from time to time that the main character, a man going through some rough times because of his insomnia, was seeing that he thought he was hallucinating. At the time, I felt off kilter enough to be seeing little bald doctors myself, and so the name of my blog was born. Also, there’s the idea that my kids are little, they started off bald, and maybe some day, they’ll be doctors. I know, it’s a stretch, but hey, it’s catchy. It’s also come full circle again, because I’m back in the insomnia months of parenthood, having given birth in January 2008.

What topics do you typically write about?

Whatever’s on my mind, but mostly my kids, my husband, my family if it’s a benign topic, and my thoughts. Sometimes I try to write about current events, but I find that there are usually others more adept at handling those topics, so I try to keep it light, like a chat with a girlfriend over lunch. I love me some lunch talk.

What topics do you avoid? Why?

Mostly, my extended family and some of the drama involved there, because every large family has drama, right? I choose to blog about my life, and as such, there are people in the periphery of my life that affect me, but they haven’t chosen to have their stories online, so I give them their privacy by staying away from more than a casual mention of our familial goings on. My kids, my husband and what happens under my own roof on a daily basis, that stuff is fair game unless I’m expressly forbidden to discuss it, like my husband’s showering habits — not that they’re negative in any way. But I will not point the microscope at anyone outside my immediate family without permission and even then, I will not do so in a negative way. That’s just an aspect of my life and my dealings with people that will not see the glowing light of a computer screen. I think internet bashing behind someone’s back, when that person doesn’t have their own blog with which to defend themselves or a way to voice their side, is just as bad as a sucker punch from behind. Not cool.

What has been the most eye-opening experience for you blogwise?

That not everyone in the blogosphere is peachy keen and friendly. Sometimes, it feels as if the blogosphere is like high school all over again, with the popular crowd, the stoners, the gamers, the geeks, the joiners (I guess I’d be one of those) and it feels cliquey sometimes. However, it’s good to know that I have grown adept at navigating waters such as those with much more aplomb than I had when I was actually IN high school.

Why should bloggers join the St. Louis Bloggers Guild?

There are a multitude of reasons. If you’re interested in photography, vlogging, podcasting or any number of different ways to present yourself online besides just writing, there are things to learn to protect your content such as watermarking photos, copyrighting content or getting a Creative Commons license and which one applies to your needs. There are technical questions that can be answered. The community-building aspect is priceless and if you’re new to blogging, it’s a great way to meet other area bloggers. It’s also a good way to educate yourself on the perils of online journaling and you can find out things regarding anonymity on the web and protecting yourself from stalkers as well as content thieves before making the mistakes that make such things easier for those kinds of people.

Andrea’s three favorite posts of all time? Here’s one! Here’s a second. And here’s a great one too!

This post was written by Guild Member Lisa, who also writes at Midwestern Mommy.

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