Brad Marley

When I was new to the blogging game, one of the first blogs I started reading on a regular basis was The Writer’s Coin. I’m not sure how I stumbled across it, or what the post was that drew me in, but I liked it so much that I added it to my blogroll, and it’s been there ever since.

A couple of weeks ago, he wrote about the anxiety he’s experiencing as he and his wife get ready to welcome their first child into the world, so I grabbed the opportunity to submit a tongue-in-cheek guest post that probably did nothing to quell the anxiety. But he was a good sport about it and posted the entry on his site.

Because he was open to what I wanted to write, I thought I’d interview him for the “Five and One.” He’s always been on “the list,” so what better time than now to hear his thoughts on writing, personal finance and his favorite books.

Brad: What’s the story behind “The Writer’s Coin”?

WC: It all started with “Rich Dad, Poor Dad”, which was an eye opener for me. I had never thought of concepts like “making your money work for you” and “paying yourself first.” I felt like the blindfolds had come off and I was thirsty for more.

So I started reading everything I could find online and that led to The Simple Dollar, Get Rich Slowly, I Will Teach You to be Rich, and Frugal Dad. I read them religiously and started checking out books from the library too. After a while I felt like my head was about to burst because I had stuff I wanted to say too.

Plus I am a writer so I figured the daily practice would be good—I started writing three posts per day and eventually bought my own domain and everything. I originally wanted The Writer’s Wallet, but it turns out someone already had that URL and we actually were both from Chicago. We became blogging buddies although she doesn’t blog under that name anymore.

I’ve been doing it ever since. I used to write more about the traditional PF stuff but now I’m more into making more money and entrepreneurship.

Brad: What inspires you to write?

WC: Being interesting, being useful to the readers, and being entertaining. If I hit on two of the three I’m a happy camper.

Brad: If I put a gun to your head and said that you could read only five books for the rest of your life, what would they be?

WC: I love books so this is tough!
1. “Infinite Jest”: David Foster Wallace is/was my favorite author of all time and this book is so complex (but so great) that it’s an easy choice.
2. “The Odyssey”: I tried reading it once and didn’t get any of it. I seriously didn’t know what the hell was going on. But given as much time as “the rest of my life,” I’d hope I could get through what everyone calls a masterpiece.
3. The Collected Works of Shakespeare: I’ve been meaning to buy this and make my way through it…not time like a gun to your head to finally do it!
4. “A Supposedly Fun Thing I’ll Never Do Again”: DFW again but this book is special because it’s awesome non-fiction and because it’s the book that made me want to be a writer. After reading it, I knew what I wanted to do with my life: write.
5. “Catch-22″: Probably the book that’s made me laugh the most…ever. And I love to laugh.

Brad:There are a lot of financial blogs out on the Web – what do you try to do to differentiate your blog from the rest?

WC: It’s hard…it really is. You’ll read a post from some random new blogger and be blown away (rarely, but it happens) and you wonder what the hell you’ve been doing for the past few years. It’s hard to stay motivated with all the talent out there.

I just try to be myself and pick topics that I’m interested in and hopefully others are too. I don’t claim to be the most interesting man in the world (Although I do drink Dos Equis), but I try my best to pick topics that are a little bit out of the ordinary and haven’t been done to death.

It’s the Michael Lewis/DFW formula of success: pick any topic and then go out there and make it fascinating for readers. That’s what I strive for.

Brad: Do you plan to incorporate more baby-centric stuff into your blog when the baby arrives?

WC: I’m sure I will. I’m already feeling the mental anguish and nerves that come with it, and the financial part of it is a HUGE concern for me. But I’m sure this will be a central part of who I am and what I’m dealing with.

Brad: You’re a Cubs fan. What is your favorite Cubs memory?

WC: Yeesh, that’s a tough one…I’d have to pick two: when Kerry Wood struck out 20 Astros in his rookie year. That game was amazing and he was my favorite player soon afterwards (still the only jersey I own), and nobody can take that game away from him.

The other is just all the games I got to see on TV with Steve Stone and Harry Carey calling the games. That was an amazing time to be a Cub fan and I consider myself extremely lucky to have witnessed it.

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