faith, mommyhood, My Big Jesus, random thoughts, women

The Mommy Bloggers: Why Are They So Bad?

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I read a disturbing article recently, bashing “mommy bloggers”. Somewhere along the way, we’ve labeled mothers who write, on blogs and/or elsewhere, with an awful name and lumped them into a group together, as if they all have the same goals, ideas, or talents.

I’ve only been writing for a couple of years now, and originally, I thought it would be to make some money. As it turns out, I’ve switched tracks and simply fallen in love with writing. Yes, just the process. I’ve made a little bit of money (not much, truly), and I’ve been published on several sites other than my own, but I don’t think that’s what drives me. I love sharing my life. I love encouraging and positively challenging others. I love sharing the Gospel. I love connecting with other women, parents, writers, and Jesus-followers.

You see, when I started writing my blog, the first thing I did was start reading others’ blogs. Like, a lot of them. So now, I have people whose words I truly admire, aspire to emulate, or simply laugh out loud while reading. I’ve enjoyed getting to know these other writers, and even becoming friends with several of them. I’ve seen their children grow, and their families get larger. I’ve seen hard times fall upon them and I’ve seen them pray and wade themselves back out of them. They have likely seen all these things in my life as well.

What I’ve learned is that other people like to connect, too. We all like to know we aren’t the only ones. We like to see that someone has made it through the stage of life that we feel we are stuck in. Parents really like to connect, because there is often wisdom to be gleaned from other parents, or at the very least, some encouragement that “This too shall pass.” We tend to feel we are stuck in some rut or another, with a tantrum-throwing toddler or an eye-rolling teenager. We love reading that someone else is also dealing with those issues. It reiterates the humanity of the situation for us.

So, “Mommy Bloggers”, I say this to you: I appreciate you. I appreciate your realness, your humor, your honest distress and the encouragement you’ve given. I can only hope that my words and the sharing of my life have encouraged, amused, and provoked thought in you, as well.

7 thoughts on “The Mommy Bloggers: Why Are They So Bad?”

  1. I saw the article too, and realized that this woman took more importance from stats than from connections. I couldn’t help but feel like she was lonely. I read a few other of her posts and not only do they fly in the face of what she was complaining about, they also seemed desperately hurt and lonely too. I’ll never have a viral blogpost (and that now seems like something I’d never want to have either), thousands of followers or endless offers of product or cash from sponsors. But I know who is reading, and I know the names of their kids, their struggles and their victories, and that is more important to me.

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    1. She must’ve had a bad experience that she didn’t bring up in that article. Or else a come to Jesus of some sort. And I agree with you… I try to make connections and love on my people, and when I leave comments, I try to be sincere and worthwhile in what I’m saying. “Going viral” seems desirable until you see the sorts of things that “make it”.

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  2. I read her article on the weekend and I agreed with some of her thoughts re: sponsored posts/not compromising your principles along the way, but I disagreed with the lumping together of all “mommy bloggers” – I have connected with and enjoyed reading so many blogs by moms – some of whom don’t monetize at all and others who have successfully balanced that with their own voice in a way that I really believe is genuine. I think it’s always risky making big generalizations. Especially about writing – which people (including moms) do for many reasons.

    I enjoyed – and agreed – with so much of what you’ve said here about blogging and why I do it/what I get out of it.

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    1. Definitely- don’t sell out, especially if that wasn’t your plan. I did agree that sometimes it’s easy to get swept up in it. I sometimes feel the pressure to crank out a product even when I’m not feeling it about anything, and I have to step back.

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