Author Interview: WordPress For Dummies, 2nd Edition
Way back in the summer of 2008, we heart this was just an idea being tossed back and forth between Stef and me. We knew we wanted to give it a go and start our own blog. We knew exactly what we wanted to discuss and how the blog should work (expanded and fun profiles! member to member messaging! forums! wishlist and favorite lists!) but not a clue about how to get there. After a lot of careful research we knew that we wanted to go with WordPress (the biggest and best blogging platform out there) for our daily blogging needs but knew we needed someone to help us with the actual building of our site.
Enter our savior, Lisa Sabin-Wilson, whose expertise and handiwork is all over this site (thanks Lisa!) We originally sent out feelers to almost 30 companies looking for our web builder. After our very first email conversation with Lisa, the owner of eWebscapes, we knew we had found the perfect choice. Not only was she first person whose response wasn’t along the lines of “You want to do what in the where now?” She also just seemed to get exactly who we were and what we wanted we heart this to be and was happy to work from Stef’s basic design (with lots of welcome additions). Not to mention, she was way ahead of the curve and introduced us to the still beta Buddypress, which enabled us to really customize our site.
During the web building process Lisa happily explained many of the techie things that went over our heads. She always gave us honest advice, encouraged us along the way and never once said “Sorry, I can’t do that.” We were really lucky to find this WordPress genius. While eWebscapes will happily build, design or update blogs using any platform, WordPress is Lisa’s specialty. And by that we mean, Lisa wrote the book on WordPress, literally. As a matter of fact, her Second Edition of WordPress for Dummies 
We’re celebrating the second edition of WordPress for Dummies, by introducing you all to the lovely Lisa. She took the time out of her busy schedule running numerous companies, publishing her own blog, promoting a new book and raising a family to answer our burning questions:
Get your copy of WordPress For Dummies here!
wht: Congratulations on your latest book, WordPress For Dummies! How does it feel to be a published author?
Thank you! When I hear from people, from all over the world, that they enjoyed the book and found it a very helpful resource to them, it is satisfying and gives me a really nice feeling of accomplishment. When you sit down and write a book, there is no real way to gauge how it is going to be received by your readership, you can only really believe in your own abilities and knowledge and have confidence that the end product will be solid. WordPress For Dummies has done really well and the overall reviews have been very positive; that is more than I could have hoped for. So it feels pretty good, so far.
wht: Do you ever get sick of people using the pun “She wrote the book on WordPress?” It’s so cute, it’s hard too resist.
I don’t get sick of it at all, as a matter of fact, I think I’ve used it a time or two! WordPress is a fantastic tool, as you have found out with your own web site, to have had the opportunity to contribute and to have people say “she wrote the book on WordPress” is something I’m pretty proud of.
wht: How did you get involved in websites and web design? How and why did you decide to start your own web design company?
Web design was always a hobby of mine that I dabbled in on my off time. Prior to my career in web design, I had a 12 year career as a Registered Nurse and specialized in home hospice care; that is, caring for terminally ill patients, and their families, in their homes. Design is what I did to ‘de-stress’ and it was a creative outlet for me when I wasn’t on the clock. My growth into self-employment and full time design was truly organic. My hobby literally grew into something that I was able to do on a full time basis.
Requests for my work grew more and more each month and I began to realize that this was something I could do for a living if I really wanted to make a go of it. In 2003, I cut my nursing hours down to part-time and then in 2004, I quit completely to pursue design as my new career. I keep my nursing license current, just in case I ever need or want to go back.
wht: Tell us about your typical day. What do you do, see, hear, etc.
I work from my home office, which is quite a change from what I used to do. In my job as a hospice nurse, I travelled a lot during the day. I was always in my car driving from one patient’s house to another and my car was my office. I was putting upwards of 300-400 miles on my car in an average work week. Now? I’d be surprised if I put 100 miles on in a month!
We live out in the country and we’re pretty isolated out here, which I love. My husband also runs his own business and works from home, as well. We both wake up in the morning and have our breakfast and coffee together in the kitchen and then go off to our separate offices for a day of work. A few times in the day, he’ll send me a message on Yahoo! … “Coffee, baby?” – and we head upstairs for a coffee break and talk about what’s going on in our day before heading back to work.
I enjoy working from home because it enables me to be there for my kids in ways that I wasn’t able to be before. When the weather is nice (I live in Wisconsin – so it’s not as often as I’d like!), I take my laptop out into the garden to work.
I do sometimes miss the social aspects of working in an office with my peers – but I think it makes me treasure my family and friendships that much more.
wht: Building web sites is still thought of as primarily a male dominated field. Do people treat you differently because you’re female? Do you ever feel out of place?
You know, it’s funny, but I never really thought of web design as a male dominated field. As I was breaking my teeth in the business, all of the designers I knew and socialized with were female. It wasn’t until I really got into it, seriously, that I began to notice just how many men were involved in the design business.
Because I work from home, I realize that I work in a bit of a vacuum and don’t really have a decent perspective on how male designers might be treated differently than female designers. I would not say that being a female in design has ever made me feel out of place at all. Every once in awhile I’ll come across an article on the web about perceived sexual discrimination in the world of design and I can’t really relate to it at all. I just figure that person must have had different experiences than I have, because I don’t see it, from where I’m sitting.
At the end of the day, it’s about talent and ability. Man or woman – if you’ve got it, bring it.
wht: What is getting you excited in the web design world right now?
Lots and lots! From a pure design perspective, I love the trend towards organic design and the use of texture and hand drawn elements in design. For me, that style gives a personal touch to a site design and gives the site more personality than, say, your standard gradients and lines. WordPress founder, Matt Mullenweg, has a very nicely done design on his site that incorporates the kind of design elements I’m talking about, and I really like it a lot. Although, that look is beginning to get overplayed by now, so I’m really interested in seeing what new trends start to emerge.
wht: What’s the one thing that people ask you for over and over in web design that just can’t be done?
Scratch n’ Sniff interactivity. I’m kidding, really – but wouldn’t that be fun?? On second thought…maybe not!
With a little perseverance and a whole lot of focus, most things can be done in design when you accept the fact that you’re dealing with a 2-dimensional environment. I’m not saying that I, personally, can do everything – but I certainly do try to do what I can and am not afraid to admit when I come up against something that is beyond my scope. That is why it’s so important to network in the design community and have on hand a few referrals to folks who can achieve certain things.
wht: What is your favorite font?
Seriously, you want me to name just one? Right now, I’ve been working with and loving Parma Petit, which you can see and download for free here.
wht: What sites do you visit regularly?
It may surprise you to know that I don’t visit a whole lot of sites on a regular basis. My days are usually spent working on my client sites, leaving little time for me to actually browse through the web. I do, however, keep up with RSS feeds in my Google Reader and a few of my favorites are:
smashingmagazine.com
freelanceswitch.com
zenhabits.net
mashable.com
wht: The about page of your blog justagirlinthworld, tells us you have three cats and three birds. How do you keep the peace (and the birds in one piece)?
I guess I need to update my about page on my site because our pet status has changed. We still have 3 cats, however; we now have 5 birds. We added two new ones to the flock over the holidays. In terms of birds, we currently own 1 Military Macaw, 1 Lorikeet, 1 Pionus and 2 Conures. We’re bird lovers, no doubt!
People always ask me how we keep so many birds and cats in one house – it seems a recipe for disaster! The truth is, the cats are terrified of the birds and they keep their distance.
wht: Your tagline exclaims, “refusing to apologize for pink.” Tells us a bit more, do you use it in your home? Have lots of pink clothes? Makeup?
I don’t use pink a whole lot in my home or my clothes – makeup? Definitely. In design, I love pink – all shades of it and it mixes so well with other colors. My blog has been online since 2002 and every time I redesign my site, there is always some variation of pink in the design.
I’ve gotten razzed for my use of pink over the years, although, I’m not entirely sure why. Is it a girl thing? An anti-girl thing? I’m not sure. Seriously, what is wrong with pink? With my last design, I kept it simple and decided to do it in black/grey and pink and decided to head off all the pink naysayers with my tagline. I refuse to apologize for pink – get over it! ☺
wht: You can pick front-row-center seats to any concert, anywhere, at any point in time. Whom are we going to see? (Cause Stef & I get to come with you, of course)
Are you really up for this? You, Stef and I are front row and center and bangin’ our heads at a Metallica concert. Though, if I had to choose, it would be Metallica pre St. Anger … before they rehabbed and their music was still great.
If not Metallica – then Pink Floyd.
If not Pink Floyd, then Queensryche.
In reality? I’ve totally been roped into taking my teenage daughter and her friend to Britney Spears new “Circus” tour. Throw me a lifeline, would ya?
And from the wht potluck vault..
wht: What book do you think everyone should read?
WordPress For Dummies, 2nd Edition – now on sale at amazon.com. heh.
Otherwise, I have Shakespeare’s entire collection here at home and have read them all, repeatedly. Wrapping my brain around the language of the time is always a challenge – and nobody does tragedy, drama and comedy like the Bard of Avon.
wht: You can listen to one cd for the rest of your life – what do you pick?
Queen’s Greatest Hits
wht: What movie changed your life?
The Red Violin (or le Violon Rouge) – it takes you through 300 years of history in various locations in the world and you experience love, betrayal, loyalty, morality and sacrifice.
wht: You invited some friends over for a dinner party – what do you cook (or do you just order in?)
Fantastic varieties of fondue and wine… lots of wine!
wht: What are you three make up must haves?
Mascara, lip gloss and a neutral eye shadow.
wht: What characteristic do you admire most in a person? Which one do you despise?
Loyalty. Disloyalty.
Thanks for your time and for sharing with us, Lisa!
If you’re looking for some guidance in creating, designing or updating your own blog, you can contact Lisa through her company, eWebscapes or pick up your own copy of Second Edition of WordPress for Dummies.
Filed in: read, watch, listen
11 responses so far ↓
Great post!
Let me just concur…Lisa rocks! We NEVER could have done this without her.
I really enjoyed this interview… this post was great not only for “chicks who love stuff” but chicks who love the web & design! –Bravo!
She does rock – and she also rock and rolls. I love that she wants to go see early Metallica – that would be so much fun!
Great interview! Congrats on your book Lisa! Thats awesome! And any girl who chooses Metallica pre-St. Anger gets extra points from me.
This interview was tons of fun – thanks so much Stef & Tyna for doing it, and for promoting WordPress For Dummies, 2nd Edition!
Building your site, as it stands today, was a real challenge and a great experience for me and I’m so glad to see it so active and growing by the day!
And Christy – anyone who tells you that St. Anger was a great album just isn’t a true Metallica fan
Ooh I need that book. I guess I never realized such a book existed. I heart wordpress and also use it for my blog, but I’m still in the learning stages.
I totally agree Lisa =)
Tiffany – as an owner of Wordpress for Dummies, I can tell you this book is perfect for the beginning wordpress user. Call it a generation gap, but I totally have better reading comprehension and retention when I learn something from a book (as opposed to trying to learn off a computer). Some things should stay in book form, you know? Anyway, you can have the book open to the chapters you need and work on your blog simultaneously – it rules!
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