Featured Blogger- Natalie Perkins

Natalie Perkins from definatalie.com is this weeks featured blogger.

When did you start your blog?
August 15 2007

I had been using Livejournal for years, but I wanted a blog that I could show people and be proud of. I was thinking about breaking away from my full time job to be a foot loose and fancy free artist for a while, and I figured I’d need to establish my personality somewhere so after a couple of false starts definatalie.com was born!

I make stuff and share it with people!

Google Reader!
Some kind of spell checking facility (I just use Firefox’s inbuilt checker)
A passion for what you’re writing about.
Google Analytics – though I am still pretty pants at figuring out what all the stats mean!
A decent knowledge of html and css – there’s nothing worse than an unreadable blog.

I love that it’s my soap box! Sure, I have had one or two trolls but on the whole, being able to express myself has only garnered support from people.

People don’t want to read objective and impersonal blogs. I really didn’t know what kind of “voice” to use when I started out, because I didn’t want to come across as too familiar but in some entries I came across too robot-like! Once I started really being me, lurkers came out to wish me well – they actually wanted to engage with me. It only took me… two years to realise!

I probably wouldn’t use Serendipity as a blog platform. My husband suggested it, and because I usually like to be non-conformist I decided to use it! There are other CMS platforms that are way more adaptable these days, like Drupal, but if I wanted to have lots of flexibility with widespread support I would have used Wordpress.org.

Starting the monthly desktops was awesome! I’m glad I came up with it… eight days into 2009! It’s brought me new subscribers and fans of my work.

Be yourself, write from your passions, and don’t listen too much to the “pros” (unless you’re strictly doing it for the money!) It’s a hard formula to crack unless you’ve got a bunch of writing experience.

While I use Adsense, and I’ve just been approved for BlogHer advertising, I’m not into making a bunch of money from definatalie.com. I offer a selection of “free stuff” and I have a bunch of hosting costs, so all I set out to do was recover enough money to cover my time, effort and bills. I’m glad to say that my current arrangement certainly does that, but I’m not earning enough to pay my rent or jet set around the world! If you’re a personal blogger, I’m not sure anything but privately arranged advertising would make you much money with the SEOs and the key words and the etc etc etc. It’s all kind of Greek to me!

I’m pretty much going with the flow! I hope to report my fabulous personal and creative successes though!

Freak Revolution
Pace and Kyeli just launched this newest blog, but they were blogging to support their book “The Usual Error” before Freak Revolution. They are relationship and communication experts, and I really appreciate their thoughtful and useful posts.

Design*Sponge
This is just flat out eye candy! I adore interior design, but I rent, so all I can do is cry over all the beautiful pictures that Grace posts! She has fabulous guest bloggers as well, who also post lovely things that make me cry!

The Design Files
For years I followed US design blogs because I couldn’t find any Australian ones, and then Lucy pops up with a gem like The Design Files! The blog profiles designers and other creative people, and lots of eye candy daily. I kind of wish it had a wider scope than just Melbourne, but that’s ok ;)

Kate Harding’s Shapely Prose
I have been lurking around Shapely Prose for a while, but it wasn’t until I read “Screw Inner Beauty” by Kate Harding and Marianne Kirby that I decided to throw myself into the fat-o-sphere. This is a meaty, hilarious and thoughtful blog that has the capability to change how you view your body forever (and other people’s too!) Big promise, I know, but I think it delivers!

Le Blog De Big Beauty
Ok, most of it is written in French but Stephanie Zwicky is one of my favourite fat fashion models. She posts the most incredible photos of her outfits, and sources plus sized fashion from places I didn’t even know existed!

Thank you Natalie for sharing a bit about yourself and your blogging :)

Filed Under: Featured Blogger