Hi everyone! It’s time for the 99th Creator’s Roulette (isn’t that amazing?!) and I am very excited to host author Nicole Dake today! Nicole is a motherhood blogger and author who lives in Broomfield, CO. She is a mom of three, River (4), Atlantis (18) and Phyre (18). She lives with her children and partner, Gary. In her spare time, Nicole enjoys yoga, swimming and playing Magic the Gathering. Nicole has experienced PTSD, anxiety and depression herself, and also advocates for mental health issues through her writing. In today’s post, she will be talking about being a mom and balancing that with work, blogging and writing. We play many roles in life and it is great to know how people handle those roles as responsibilities grow and we get older. Let’s learn from her!
On Life as a Blogger, Author and Mom
My blogging philosophy as Millenial Mom
In April 2021 I started my blog, www.millenialmom.net, to help other millennial moms to live their best life as moms and women. I also think that moms need to find a community and support each other in our parenting journey.
A couple of years ago, I read an article that Millennials lack basic life skills and are having to take classes at libraries to teach each other. At first, I thought that was crazy. I thought, I have life skills. I know how to fold a fitted sheet, boil an egg, and find my water shut off. But then it hit me. I learned those things as an adult, predominantly because I worked for hotels.
My parents never taught me skills, and they never taught me how to parent either. As one of the oldest millennials and the parent of an adult (+a toddler) I work to help other moms learn from my experiences.
I write about parenting, health and wellness, personal finance, and I also do a few product reviews and life hacks. I believe that all the aspects of our life, our health and our stressors, all affect our parenting. Happier moms have happier kids, so I aim to promote happiness for whole families!
Working as a blogger
As a new blogger, I still have a day job, and do my writing early in the morning, or after work.
For me, the writing comes easily. Writing and researching a new blog post takes a couple hours, it is mainly all the other aspects of blogging that takes up the bulk of my time.
Learning how to blog better is important to me so every day I read articles about blogging that I find on Pinterest, as well as participating in communities on Facebook for other bloggers. Finding a community of other women who are mothers and bloggers has been invaluable for me in learning tips and tricks of blogging, as well as getting encouragement from other women in the same place.
Some of the communities I am a part of are:
I also promote my blog posts on YouTube, Facebook, Instagram, Twitter and Pinterest every time they come out. Promoting is the part that has been the most time consuming, since being on social media is about relationship building for me. I have met a bunch of cool people through social media as well.
Not only have I had to learn about blogging itself, but I have also been learning the ins and outs of each social media platform, so that I am best able to connect with my audience.
The blog became a book
When I started my blog, I wrote a series of mental health articles in May for Mental Health Awareness month. I have PTSD, Anxiety and Depression, so I made blog posts and videos on all those topics which were well received. After that, I began weaving mental health issues into some of my other postings. I have written about self-care, scheduling, setting boundaries, and social-emotional health for kids.
As I have continued writing, I have gotten into a mental health blogging group as well, and have guest blogged for two other websites that focus on mental health, PTSD My Story Project and Reel Chat.
My book, Trauma Survivor’s Guide to Coping With Panic Attacks, flowed from that work. It helped to have written on other mental health topics previously.
Prior to beginning the book, I read quite a few articles on writing and self-publishing. That allowed me to write in a format that could easily be transferred into a book and ebook format. It is always important to me to research things as much as possible before I start so that I will be able to succeed from the beginning.
Along the way, I have also received help with the book from other bloggers. Several of them provided feedback on the book and helped walk me through the self-publishing process with Ingram Spark. It is great to have found friends and a supportive community through blogging. All the help and support has made a big difference for me in learning the ropes both with blogging and publishing my book.
Balancing Mom Life With Work
As a mom of two, and parenting blogger, some of the topics that I write about, such as Mindful Parenting and Attachment Parenting, have made me realize even more the importance of being present with my own children. I make a point to spend at least an hour a day with my toddler playing something she wants to play.
When it comes to my teen (adult?!) daughter, I make time for her when she is off of work and needs my attention. It isn’t as structured as with her little sister, but I always make sure to set aside my devices when she wants to talk about something, or do something together.
No matter what else I am doing, or how busy I am, I always make my kids the priority, and make sure to spend plenty of time with them.
Sometimes it can be hard to create a balance, but I am lucky to have a supportive partner who not only edits my writing but takes extra time with our daughter when I am in my writing zone. My partner’s help allows me to have time for my writing and still know that my daughter’s needs are being met. Successful co-parenting has been key for me to be able to find a work life balance.
Conclusion
Being an author is a balance of the actual writing, as well as all the other technical aspects, finding community for support, and promoting my writing. You don’t just write something and hope that they will come, you need to find ways to get your writing out there.
Balancing work, writing and parenting can be challenging, but as a parenting health and wellness blogger, I actually find better ways to connect to my kids by using strategies that I learn through my work.
If you are interested in starting a blog or writing a book, I would encourage you to do it! Don’t wait for the ‘right time’ to start something. Circumstances are never going to be perfect, and there is no time like the present to make your dreams come true!
Nicole
Do you want to put your writing out there in the world but don’t know how? Are you ready to take a leap of faith?
Thank you once again for joining us today! We hope you enjoyed this post about life and the many roles she plays by Nicole! Connect with Nicole on Millenial Mom (her website), Twitter, Pinterest, Instagram and Facebook.
Cover image: Photo by Deanna Lewis on Unsplash
Great post. These are spot-on. I just published a friend’s book dealing with many of the same topics coming from many of the same places. Great idea/resource adding the groups of which you’re a member. Continued success in your writing (and in your journey).
Thank you, I really appreciate it! Kriti told me to add the links as it may help some others. It has been really great collaborating with her for this article. I really appreciate the well wishes. That is great you have a book out about balancing being a mom, author, and blogger. It is tough sometimes but well worth it!