The following article was originally published on March 3, 2017
by Trent Rosser
There was a debate the other day about what I do for the paper. I was telling everyone that I was a columnist for the online paper. Then I was corrected. I am just a blogger! Well, just that word alone sounds like it is a derogatory remark. I can picture it now, all the little kindergarten kids in a circle around me singing “Blogger, Blogger, your just a Blogger!” They keep singing that over and over and I am just standing there starting to sniffle and cry.
So I looked into it and found out a few things about the differences between a blogger and a columnist. There are a few differences. A blogger in this day of technology can write just about anything and can print it online. A columnist must go through an editor and just to be approved if his story will go into print and then the print hit the paper and the paper hits the porch.
A Blogger can go back and correct any mistakes. Anything from a simple misspelling to a “bad choice of words” a blogger can correct the mistake by just a few clicks of the keyboard. A columnist mistake will be set in stone and unable to correct them until a later date with a completely new article. With the new article, the columnist will have to go back and point out his mistake to start to make amends to the mistake. Again, a blogger can go back and delete the entire column if needed and rewrite it.
As a blogger, you have no deadlines. Again, with no editors you will never be able to have the satisfaction of completing a story while under a deadline. Believe me, there is a big feeling of accomplishment when you do complete an article while under pressure. As a columnist, that accomplishment is something to brag about. On a side note, just to let everyone know, my editor is great and does not get on me about deadlines!
As a columnist the competition is limited. There are few columnists that are very well paid and can make a decent living at writing. Dave Berry is just one that comes to mind. He is also syndicated throughout the country and has had a couple of books and a movie. But he started out as a columnist. Can a blogger make big money? Yes! Some bloggers are bringing in a 6 figure income a month! It is reported that Perez Hilton brings in $200 thousand a month! A blogger does not need to worry about word length either. An editor will be quick to let a columnist know that the article is too long or too short and needs to be redone, and you still have the deadline! Again, on a side note, my editor does not worry about length on if my column is too long or too short!
So, let’s look through this and see if I am a blogger or a columnist. When my editors and I came to the conclusion that I should write a column, we also came to an agreement that I could write just about anything, so that would make me a blogger. Can I go back and correct my mistakes? That is a tough one to answer. Yes I can go back and correct my mistakes, but only to a point. After the paper comes out, it is set in stone. I have gone to my editor and asked him not to run a couple of my columns that I submitted. But after it is in print, it is too late. So this would be both a blogger and a columnist.
Do I have a deadline? Yes, I do have a deadline and the days that I submit my articles vary from week to week. Getting a good article before the deadline….priceless. So that would make me a columnist. Do I get paid good money to be a columnist or a blogger? Well, I am far from making that 6 figure income from any of my jobs. I have no internet blogs, but I am not syndicated yet either. Dave Berry started out as a columnist and Perez Hilton started out as a blogger and both make a whole lot more than me. Someday I might be syndicated and make $200 grand a month, but until then, I guess you can just call me a Blogumnist. That would be a mix between a blogger and a columnist. In reality, I am still a columnist.
Oh, by the way, did I mention how great my editor is?
