Over the next week, we’ll be sharing interviews with bloggers to be featured at our Parent Blogger Brunch on December 9, co-hosted by Jessica McFadden of A Parent In Silver Spring. Meet members of the new media and sign up for the brunch now!
Jessica McFadden writes the popular parenting blog, A Parent in Silver Spring.com, which has gained attention locally as a resource for Washington-area parents, and nationally as a parent blog must-read. Over the last four years, A Parent in Silver Spring has become Montgomery County parents’ top stop on the web to find a fun outing, activity or performance to share with their children.
Jessica has also served as an editor at Nickelodeon ParentsConnect , a contributing blogger to TLC’s Parentables, written the Mom of a Million Mistakes column on Montgomery County Patch sites, and has contributed to The Washington Post Weekend and other publications.
Before taking up the laptop as a writer and blogger, Jessica worked in public relations at Hill & Knowlton and as an aide to two United States Senators. She received her B.A. in political science from University of California, Berkeley.
Jessica is a mother of an eight year old son, a five year old daughter and a baby daughter born in April.
What has inspired your new material on your blog, and how do you keep generating new material?
Input from my local community is the number one source of material and innovative posts on A Parent in Silver Spring. As my personal life gets crazier daily due to my and my family members’ busy lives, I am so thankful for the great relationships, post suggestions and feedback I receive from area organizations and individuals.
Who are some of the most interesting people you have met through your blog?
Fellow parents and spouses who are passionate about their careers and causes, while still successfully balancing their families, always awe me. I am thankful to have met many such gifted people in the arts organizations, small businesses and educational institutions in our community.
What is the best thing a blogger can give to his or her readers?
An honest voice and candor, hands down, are your greatest assets. Your readers do not want to read a press release, a news article or a shilly commercial. They are coming to your URL for your words, opinion and unique perspective, and every time they visit your site it is an honor.
Which post of yours is your favorite and why?
About once a year (usually when school is out of session in summer and I did not secure enough childcare) I write a ranty, blubbering post about how I am a horrible failure of a mother and have bitten off more than I can chew professionally and personally. These posts are my favorite not because of my wussy words, but due to the supportive and hilarious comments from other working moms who chime in that they have been there and survived.
What is your favorite blog to follow? Are / were you inspired by someone else’s blog?
The first blog I read from start to finish was The Washingtonienne, so every blog after has been a dramatic step up. But seriously, I am daily inspired by The Bloggess because her humor is unlike anything anyone else in the world is producing, Toddler Planet for bravely chronicling her battle with inflammatory breast cancer, and every innovative first-person site that fills an information and entertainment void. The Washington, DC area is blessed with a wealth of fresh voices, especially in the parenting blog community.
If you could say one thing to a perspective new blogger, what would your advice be?
You can’t do it for the money. You know those little old ladies at craft fairs selling hot pads? That’s how much you will make…if you’re lucky.
Visit Jessica’s blog, A Parent in Silver Spring, and follow her on Twitter at @jessicaAPISS! You can also meet her at the Parent Blogger Brunch on December 9 — sign up now.