The pen bleeds our creativity, our originality, our fears, our inspirations. Indeed, the world of writing is beautiful. But trying to fit such an art into today's market can be nasty. To enter the market, writers must put on the gloves (or, in some cases, go bare-knuckle with rings on). Hunt down the demands, what is going to sell today, and knock out the competition. Unfortunately, these sorts of pressures can simultaneously increase one’s financial worth and slash one’s moral value. While the art is freeing, the trade can be restricting.
From Blogs to Riches
I’ve talked about him before. He’s tacky, he’s rude, he gossips about anything Hollywood; he’s Perez Hilton and he’s worth about $30 mill. (Source) Perez, whose real name is Mario Lavandeira, worked as a publicist and journalist before starting his first blog, PageSixSixSix.com.
Perez’s real success began after the show “The Insider” labeled his blog “Hollywood’s most-hated website.” This hiked his Web views hugely, a trend that continued after the name change to perezhilton.com. His blog now attracts about 7 million views a day and advertisers pay up to $54 000 a day to be on his site.
Today, his profits extend past the blog, as he is writing a book on celebrities, has regular television and radio appearances, has acted in several films, has his own reality TV show, and has just begun his own record label. To read an interview between Perez and the LA Times on his success, visit Turning a blog into an empire.
Marko Saric, the man behind howtomakemyblog.com, notes a few things that Perez did well. To be a successful blogger, you have to, like Perez did, choose a popular topic that you too are interested in, blog regularly, be opinionated, and use your blog’s success in other ventures.
Now, to get back to the basics, before the riches—what’s in the content? Perezhilton.com is filled with candid photos, which Perez usually marks up on MS Paint, and updates on and gossip about every kind of celebrity (A-Z). As he updates his blog anywhere from 20-40 times a day, much of the information is less than captivating. He writes in a sarcastic (sometimes plain mean) tone, and his posts are often ridden with spelling and grammar mistakes.
Many agree Perez’s blog is lacking in writing skill and talent. There is not much style and it is obvious there is little if any editing occurring. Further, for many, this form of writing, celebrity gossip and the like, is to professional writers as porn is to actors. We’re tempted by the money, but can’t quite bring ourselves to sell that kind of “lowbrow” culture. We don’t want to invade people’s privacy or unjustly bash anyone for a buck; we want to entertain with our great creativity and technique and educate with our extensive research. We are writers and we are proud.
Unfortunately, the drive to earn a living off meaningful, quality writing projects will not always bring you to them. And with every dead end and every flat tire the above thoughts become less and less absolute. The line between a writer’s personal value and need and want for economic value becomes more and more relative. In these cases, a writer may then think: my need for an income justifies my selling gossip; perhaps I can bring more substance and style to this profitable genre; I’ll gossip to gain popularity, then will have the following to write what I want.
Now this sort of thinking can go terribly wrong. For example, Jim Cramer, once a journalist and investor, better known as the host of CNBC’s Mad Money, tried to cash in on the celebrity gossip market when it started getting hot in 1996. He developed a site, MainStreet.com, with regularly updated articles on celebrity stories and, based on each story, provided financial advice. An article on a celebrity pregnancy, for instance, may be followed by tips on budgeting for a newborn.
But without balance, tastefulness dissolved. For one tacky example, Main Street used Heath Ledger’s untimely death to introduce tips on estate planning. (Source) As this sort of poor judgment repelled views, Cramer reinvented Main Street, saving it from heading completely downmarket. Now the focus is on celebrity’s economic endeavors.
Perez too has made costly calls. In 2009, he received strong backlash when, after Michael Jackson went into cardiac arrest before his death, Perez posted a blog claiming the illness was a publicity stunt. He has also “outted” many closeted gay celebrities; this upsets a large part of the gay community, a group he, as a gay man, should be respecting and connecting to.
Perez has also faced a myriad of civil suits; Britney Spears sued because he posted unreleased songs, Colin Farrell sued because he posted a link to Farrell’s sex-tape, Jennifer Aniston sued because he posted a photo of her topless, countless others in the industry have sued because he used photos and information from their media. (Source) And the litigation continues.
In these ways, Jim Cramer and Perez Hilton have both felt the damage done by focusing solely on profits, forgetting principles. While these examples have foundations that enable them to quickly bounce back, most writers do not have such secure bases.
It is for this reason that a writer must carefully weigh all options in earning an income from the written word. Look for projects that not only seem lucrative but that also suit your moral standards. And where this combination balances is different for every individual. As Perez admits, “I think what I do is noble."
Writing Rule:
Be true to yourself while looking out for yourself. To be a successful writer, it is important to pay attention to trends and be aware of what sells best. It is just as important, however, to maintain your merit. It is the writer’s challenge to find his/her comfortable balance between principles and profits.
No comments:
Post a Comment