 |
| Available on Amazon.com |
whom others find funny explains how they try to be funny. It seems arrogant and
presumptuous for me to address it myself (because there are probably many people
who DON’T find me funny!).” One thing I’ve noticed is that Cheryl often uses personification and to great effect.
Here’s what she has to say on other aspects of her blogging:
Why did you start your blog? Has the experience been what you expected?
I started 5 Second Rule in 2008. At the time, I remember thinking I was way too late to the game to ever gain any meaningful traction. Over time, though, I started to focus less and less on where my blog was positioned and more and more on making it a meaningful place for people to spend a few minutes of their time. The experience is much more than I ever anticipated. The blog has become my most joyful and reflective space in which to create.
What you think is most special/unique about your blog?
I think the mix of content, and the lack of predictability from post to post, are pretty unique. I completely reject the common advice to focus on a particular niche and, instead, I go wherever the wind blows me. I think my readers like not knowing what they’ll find when the page loads in.
What would those who follow your blog be most surprised to learn about it or you?
I always turn the wrong way off elevators but I pick up new languages very easily. Also, I got carded when trying to get into an R-rated movie when I was 27.
What are the greatest satisfactions you get from hosting your blog? Being playful and contemplative, and having it count as work.
Do you have any secrets to success or advice you could share with other food bloggers?
Don’t listen to too much advice from people like me. It’s not that we can’t learn from one other — we can, of course, and I love both learning from more experienced bloggers and teaching those newer to the fold. But I do think we can be fooled into thinking there’s a secret handshake; there’s not.
Writing is a craft, and an art, and a discipline, and I believe blogging can be those things as well. How you choose to exercise your craft, express your art, or practice your discipline are within your control. That’s the beauty of it. Drink in what others say, reflect on it, process it, but always, always forge your own path in the end.
Do you have a clear-cut plan for topics and work on them ahead or is the process more spontaneous and organic?
I generally cook what I want, when I want, and I photograph it only if it’s especially pretty. I never have any clue about whether or how it will turn into a blog post. It’s only after I stare at a picture for a few hours or a few days that I figure out whether I have anything meaningful to say about it. Some times I do, and then it’s a post. Often I don’t, and then it’s not. I don’t post just to post.
How does your background or experience influence your blog?
My background is eclectic, and 5 Second Rule is eclectic, too. We are one, and sometimes we make out.
For my interview with Jamie Schler of “Life’s a Feast,” go here.
For my interview with Dianne Jacob of “Will Write for Food,” go here.
Good interview. Like the series.
Jamie, thanks for commenting. Yes, it seems extraordinary to me how each of you that I've spotlighted has an entirely different approach and vision. And that they all "work" because they are unique.
Wonderful interview, Nancy, and I so love your series (more so for being a very proud part of it!). But I can see the thread between the bloggers and writers you love: we all blend a passion for independence and catering our writing and blogging to our own passions more than the pressure to conform to what "works" in the rest of the blogging world. I love what Cheryl says about being unique and eclectic and it certainly is what makes her blog so enjoyable and a success!
A fan of 5-Second Rule. Thanks for psot.