I’ve been around long enough to know what pays. — The Part About the Blogger I know I’ve been on the internet too long when every article in my feed is about how to write better, longer, faster, and stronger. My mushy mind succumbs to the kind of clickbait I’ve spent years learning to decode and remix for media jobs. “Easy” this. “Secret” that. The…

I’m working on a story that needs to flow like these hip-hop manifestos — Memoirs dig up the nasty gristle of each neglected gut part and hold it up to merciless, sterile light. They’re distinct from biographies because they don’t retell the timeline of a life. That would be boring and unfeeling, like the original intro I wrote for this essay. (Read it below.)…

I tried to put the reins on big emotions, but it was a disaster. — I have to admit: I started messing with the idea of open relationships because I’m indecisive and greedy. I loved having multiple partners, with all their scents and their histories and their interests. I couldn’t get enough of finding new sexual kinks, adventures, and curricula. I could, at my most…

How I learned to appreciate the past and the culture around me — I was talking to my mom on the phone in the wake of this year’s parade. I don’t know how long it’s been since she attended, but I’d guess a couple decades. The Labor Day Parade is a young person’s affair: you dress up, and you dance until your legs…

Malcolm X also has thoughts on being named in Hov songs — Jay-Z “We not gone stop. Hip-hop is young. We still growing. We not falling for that trick-nology the public puts out there now. Before it was the American Dream. ‘Pull yourself up by your bootstraps. You can make it in America’ — all these lies that America told us our…

Each rapper delivered a verse on “God Did” that sums them up — I’m supposed to be a Jay-Z fan. I was raised in Brooklyn, where he was born and shouts out in his rhymes. I understand the New York experience, which is equal parts refinement and grit. Everyone from every place likes to brag about their hometown. But New Yorkers frustrate others…

Compassion and trust are intrinsic to erasing the mental health stigma. — A few weeks ago, I talked to New York City high school students about how to find their voices on social platforms. Their teacher’s insights from earlier that week surprised me. “I try to get them engaged with social media and telling their stories, but a lot of them are…

This is a list of how you can tell you’re on the right track to blogger success. — This is my August Writing Challenge Entry #8. I want to be an expert on this platform, but I’ll settle for being a regular earning contributor. I notice that this place draws highly motivated, intensely creative people. I’m beginning to understand the difference between writers who only believe they’re highly…