Often I get questions on how one can be a blogger, writer, make money from blogging etc… I usually respond to questions directly but most of them require one-on-one lengthy sessions, so they may not be as sufficient as I would like an answer to be.
I am sure many wonder why people keep on blogging or why it is glorified and may never ask the question. Well, there is a perfect forum for that- Wordcamp Kenya.
Earlier this year, I saw a tweet from David Mugo that that he was at Wordcamp Cape Town and I knew it was a matter of time before Wordcamp came to Kenya. You can get more information about Wordcamp and the sessions coz I want to talk about the people who will be there and the benefits. The link will give you better info about the benefits of wordcamp because there is so much written about it and am just a jenny-come-late as far as blogging about wordcamp is concerned.
As you can deduce from the word, Wordcamp is all about WordPress blogging platform. I started my blog on Blogger but then migrated to wordpress for this blog. The sessions will entail the tech part and ways to generate content.
I am sure most of the conversations will be in the meeting hall but I can also imagine the important conversations and networking that will happen during tea and lunch time as well as in the evenings. You may get to learn as much outside the meeting hall as you will in it.
So, if I were you, I would look out for David Mugo, of course, Kaboro, Kachwanya, Njeri Wangari a.k.a KenyanPoet, and Wamathai, why? mainly because I have interacted with these folks and am therefore biased and probably because I see they will be presenting lots of stuff on the prog. And here are some other reasons why.
Whenever I meet Njeri, the muchene never ceases but in between we get to speak about teaching new entrants about blogging, generating content in Gikuyu and how to improve Poets and writers Online (POWO). I studied Gikuyu in lower primary and I still find it hard to read and write but talking is easy. So, when you meet Njeri, ask about POWO, how you can be a poet, why be a blogger and how to benefit is the process, monetary or otherwise.
If you want to learn more about the tech space in Kenya, in a more simplified way, look to Kachwanya. He gives a better analysis than this blog, that can tend to go all techy with terms like DNSSEC, IPv6, ccTLD, etc.. Dont worry, I have my audience that understands the terms but if you want stuff that is well explained and in detail, talk to this guy.
So, if you meet, ask him how you can be a writer and coder, coz he does both and if you run a business and require quick and affordable solution, he will sort you. Pretend he was a doctor and you were consulting for another person, you know the way you ask; “there is a friend who has been having pain in the privates while peeing, what do you think is the problem?” while that time you are the friend. You can ask, if a friend has this biz challenge and needs a software to make it easier, how much do you charge? If he is expensive then you say, “ohh well, I will pitch it and if its acceptable I will get back to you.” But if its within range, you get on with biz. Am sure am digressing but you get the drift.
Kaboro a.k.a PK
I do not get to meet PK as often as I would like but whenever I do, I always feel challenged. He is a guy who has gone out of his way to establish mentorship for young entrepreneurs under Skunkworks Kenya, you may have heard of the mailing list.
He is an expert on virtualization, integration, hardware, etc but a conversation with him goes beyond. He will talk to you about how shallow tech journalists are, and he will go ahead and give you valid justification of how issues are mangled, mambled and jumbled all in the name of people being tech writers (dont look at me 🙂 am in it too). But you also get to argue on the other side, where CIOs, CTOs and CEOs in Kenya dont care about spending time to communicate but am sure you can find a post to that effect somewhere in this blog.
He also gets to discuss matters of coffee and economics and how to generate content even when you think there is nothing to write about.
If you have ever wondered where you can read interesting poems and short stories, then Wamathai.com is the place to be. I have also contributed one piece but my writing can not compare with some of the writers on that blog. People give thought and take time before writing, the language and flow is just sweet. Eloquence perfected!
I will not be surprised if some of the publishers who are not caged look into Wamathai and discover writing that can be published, or maybe it has already happened.
For an accountant, Wamathai will be a perfect example how you can find your space and write on what you love even if its not related to what you do.
If you meet, ask him how to make money from what you love. His blog audience has moved from just online to physical meetings and he is making money too 🙂
I am sure you think this post is too long and the common denominator is money. Others will blog about writing for passion and therapy but I like to ask, what is in it for you? What does it mean to your land lord?
So, now that you know my stand, have it in mind as you engage with the folks at wordcamp, it could be the change that you want or dont but better still, you get to interact with great people 🙂
Enjoy!
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