So, I'm thinking a lot about blogs as a literary genre. First because as a blogger and a writer, this interests me, and second because I'm gearing up for the panel on this very subject at the Washington Independent Writers All-Day Fiction Seminar on February 9th. One inevitable question: Is there money in it? Some blogs, such as Beatrice, Bookslut, and The Millions, sell ads--- in fact, check out the blogad for the new paperback edition of my book, Miraculous Air, on those very blogs. But some bloggers actually get paid to blog--- a salary or a fee, as for an other freelance writing. For example, Shawn Westfall, who will be participating on the WIW panel, blogs on the DC literary scene for DCist. Over at World Hum, an outstanding cornucopia of a travel writing blog, the founding writers sold the whole package to the Travel Channel and now they get paid to blog. Here's a fascinating article on the economics of writing for blogs, in the Columbia Journalism Review. More anon.
