Beauty blogger Nadine Jolie’s turned blogging into a career. Since starting her first blog she’s scored book deals, TV appearances, and more…

www.nadinejolie.com

Nadine’s blogger profile…

Blogger: Nadine Jolie

Blog: Jolie Nadine

Lives: USA

Visitors per month: 35,000

Twitter: @nadinejolie

What’s it about? There really weren’t any other beauty blogs around, save one or two, when I started, and magazines were putting forth a lot of smoke and mirrors information. I felt that women needed an advocate in their corner – somebody honest, down-to-earth, tell-it-like-it-is, and funny.

Why did you start it? I started Jolie Nadine (originally called Jolie in NYC) because I was looking for a creative outlet, working on it in the evenings following my day job as a beauty editor. Since my entire world was beauty, it was a natural thing for me to write about – plus, of course, the job is fairly glamorous! I made my name writing about swag and the over-the-top aspects of the job (such as private jet press trips) but I quickly segued into honest tips, advice and tricks.

What did you know about blogging before you started? Nada. A friend of mine had a blog and would send me a link on a weekly basis. I thought, “Hey, I want to do that!” I initially started a novelty blog called “Nick and Jessica Breakup Watch”; once I learned how to do it, I decided to write about my life and job.

How many hours per week do you spend on it? Mmm, eleven billion? Just kidding. Only seven billion. Truly, it consumes my life; I work on it for over an hour every day, and the online blogging opportunities for other sites that have come as a direct result of my blog take up about five hours each day.

Biggest blogging lesson you’ve learned so far? You will get out of it what you put into it. Hard work and thoughtful posts will pay off.

Biggest blogging mistake you’ve made so far? Other than writing my “beauty hierarchy” post calling the beauty director of Vogue “more powerful than God“? Probably laziness the second year of my blogging career when I was focusing on my book and traveling around the world. I had a huge audience and didn’t make the most of it, alas. My numbers now are good, but for nearly a year after I was ‘outed’, they were consistently huge.

Your number-one piece of advice for fellow bloggers? Don’t get stuck in your voice! Mix it up, have fun with your blog, and challenge and surprise your readers. There are so many blogs out there, so it’s up to you to differentiate yourself.

How has blogging changed your life? Honestly, how hasn’t blogging changed my life?! I signed with William Morris Agency (although I’m now with CAA), published two books, appeared live on CNN, MSNBC and the Today Show, was featured in People magazine, have appeared in two beauty commercials, have spoken at colleges like Yale, Berkeley, Columbia, LSU, Boston University, FIDM and FIT, teach blogging classes for Mediabistro, and am now doing new media beauty consulting! I work with beauty brands to help them on a variety of things – guest blogging for them, providing blogging tutorials, creating and managing their Facebook, Twitter and YouTube presences, writing press releases, and doing blogger outreach.

Do you earn an income from your blog? I do. I run blog ads through Total Beauty, and also occasionally participate in events with beauty companies. My blog is my business, so I have no problem talking about earning money from it.

Your tips for making money from blogging? Be proactive. Research the requirements for various online ad networks, make sure you meet those metrics, and when you do, reach out. E-mail beauty companies and contacts and pitch them campaigns or initiatives that you could take part in. (Many are beginning to set aside budgets for online marketing campaigns.)

What other blogs are you involved with? I’m editorial director of The Fairest, write weekly for AOL Shopping as a beauty expert, write occasionally on polo, events, socialites and beauty for the Vanity Fair blogs, write for The Gloss, and am just beginning to do LA event coverage for Guest of a Guest.

Any final tips? Hmm, can I use this space to plug my books? My first book, Beauty Confidential: The No Preaching, No Lies, Advice-You’ll-Actually-Use Guide to Looking Your Best is something I’m really proud of: it’s funny, honest, took a lot of research, and is crammed full of tips. (Yes, tips you’ll actually use!) I’ve been told by scores of people that it’s like no other beauty book out there and is the favorite one they’ve read. I gobble those compliments up greedily! Meanwhile, my second book, Confessions of a Beauty Addict, is not Tolstoy, but it is a damn-cute beach read. I wanted to write the perfect chick lit novel – something well-written, but fun and frothy, with heaps of believable romance. Spoiler alert: it has a happy ending!

The non-blogging question: your best beauty advice? I’m a skincare girl, so I believe in the following: wash your face thoroughly before bed, apply a retinoid several times per week, use sunscreen of at least SPF 30 religiously, and get eight hours of sleep! You take care of your skin [while you're young], and it’ll look 35 when you’re 50.