“All I’ve wanted from the beginning is just to put a human face on poverty that is not the one that we think of…” Stephanie Land, who wrote a memoir on working as a maid and being a single mother, first found an audience on her blog.

“Spelling really taught me time management and work ethic.” Cole Shafer‑Ray of The Spelling Champ turned his knack for words into an online consulting business.

At Tenure, She Wrote, a grad student explains her decision no longer to write narratives of inspiration and gumption: “A little smarts and hard work and luck can’t make my chronically ill body ‘productive.’”

“Like most ambitious English majors, I hoped I would find work in either teaching or writing after graduation. Long story short, I ended up graduating magna cum laude, won my department’s award, and learned that no one really wants to talk about E.M. Forster while playing beer pong. Go figure.”

“I’d like to say who cares, but I do care.” Romance novelist Holland Rae writes on rejection — an integral part of the creative process for most artists and writers (not to mention job and college applicants) — and what keeps her motivated.

If you ever wondered what an opera singer’s daily life looks like, you’ll love Charlotte Hoather’s blog, where the British soprano invites visitors and fans behind the scenes (and occasionally on stage, too).

“Being a food writer is the most punk rock thing a person can do, and Jonathan Gold was the most punk rock of us all.” Javier Cabral pays homage to the legendary Los Angeles food writer, who was both his mentor and his role model.

Medievalist Lucy Allen writes on the recent move among women in academia to add the title “Dr” to their Twitter name, which she views as “an act of faith, a promise to myself to keep my work from being erased.”

M. Kelter at Invisible Strings on work, coping, and autism: “The words people say slowly turn into a staccato exchange, a call and answer that makes me think of birds. I listen along and pitch in verbal pauses and silences that hopefully convey a subtle attentiveness.”

Madara Parma, a Latvian photographer, asked six of her peers around the world, from India to Argentina, to share their honest takes on the joys and challenges of a career in photography.

From Allie Lehman: “In my 20s, I was always waiting for my big break. I used to see others’ success and was convinced (without a doubt) that that made them happy. Now, I feel myself running away from hype and hustle. I feel strong standing on the ground underneath me.”

Michelle Kondrich and Thomas James at Illustration Age curated a selection of women-led podcasts that focus on art, design, and visual culture.

“The first few weeks will be blurry, abstract, and smoked out. Every experience eye opening; some burdening, most reddening. The hotel rooms are bigger than your future.” Negele Hospedales, aka Hospey, recounts what it’s like to work for Chance the Rapper.

Blogger Sherina on finding what to say to her (growing) audience: “Something is better than nothing; as many writers have noted, you can’t edit a blank page.”

“As designers, it’s easy to get caught up in plans or in the details of a project and lose awareness of ourselves and our surroundings. It happened to me a lot at the White House.” Ashleigh Axios, former creative director at the White House, says that your work is only as good as you feel.