About | MediocreMan

I Am MediocreMan™ · 5 March 2011

I am MediocreMan™ also known as (aka) Michael T. Miyoshi. If I had a sound bite attached to my website, it could announce, “Look on the web. It’s a word. It’s inane. It’s a can. A can? Perhaps inane, but not a can. It’s just little ole me, MediocreMan.” Silly, I know. Still, if I say “MediocreMan” in a deep enough voice, it almost sounds like I am a superhero. But I am not an X-Man or a Superman or even an Underdog. I am just MediocreMan, an average guy with a blog.

I like to think I am a bit like my favorite superhero (in either the Marvel Universe or DC Universe), Wolverine. While I do not have his healing factor or cool retractable adamantium claws, I do have this particular X-Man’s penchant for ignoring good advice. After all, many years ago, an established author gave me good advice when he told me I should stick to one type of writing. One genre. But I could not do that. I could not take his sound advice. I write about anything and everything.

I am multifaceted and complicated like everybody else in the world. I am a Christ follower, husband, father, teacher, coach, and writer. I am tied to labels like “aging athlete” and “geek.” I am all of those things, but none of them completely defines me. (Except maybe Christ follower because I want all I do to honor God.) My writing reflects that complexity. I write about God and faith, family and friends, teaching and coaching, and of course, writing. I write essays, poetry, songs, scripts, short stories, and novels. I just could not follow the advice of well-meaning individuals who said to only write a certain way. To be the best at that one thing. I had to go my own way. Like Wolverine.

Fortunately, I do have a couple super powers. Like Superman (not my favorite superhero even in the DC universe, but somebody who must be mentioned in any discussion of superheroes), I can listen in on a conversation from across the room and I can see through people and situations. In reality, I think of myself more like Batman (my favorite DC superhero) without the playboy millionaire persona, outstanding athletic ability, or cool custom-made toys and vehicles. Still, like Batman, I do not have superpowers (except as noted above), but I do use my God-given abilities the best that I can. To please God and affect people in a positive way. I do not fight crime or save people from catastrophes like superheroes do. Instead, I write about living a normal life and having a great time doing it.

What I really do is muse. I muse about practically everything under the sun. I muse about life. But I do not muse just to muse. I have a goal with all my writing. My goal is to make my readers laugh or cry or think. Or any combination of the three. If they are entertained in the process, all the better. I write so people know that they are not alone in living their normal everyday lives. I write about my own foibles and follies. I write about wanting to be like Batman who has no superpowers, but still does good in his world. And I post to the internet regardless of how many fans (real or imaginary) I might have.

(I must digress from the superheroes for a moment, so that a reference made later will make sense. I did not know it until long after I published my first book, Musings of a Mediocre Man, but a writer named Robert William Service wrote a poem called A Mediocre Man. The poem describes who I am – just your average Joe. Like Mr. Service’s poem says, I do not take on airs or think I am above anybody else. I am not a superhero. I am just a mediocre man like he says nine in ten people are.)

Of all the superheroes mentioned here, I am probably the most like Underdog. His is an unfortunate name. If he was Down Under Dog, we would know that he was from Australia. But what is an Underdog? Is he a superhero that is expected to lose? Is he just a super dog who wears underwear as a costume? Neither is really a very good explanation since superheroes are expected to win and they all wear long underwear. And so it is with MediocreMan. Without the expectation of winning or long underwear. I do not really consider myself mediocre except in the sense of Robert W. Service’s poem. (I said the digression would make sense.) I like the alliterative nature of MediocreMan and it fits with my own first and last names. It also fits with my personality and way of thinking. I am good at a bunch of things, but not great at any one. I have that old-fashioned blue collar mentality when it comes to working hard and earning what I get. Like I imagine Underdog to be. At the very least, in his alter ego.

Now that I have been using the moniker for quite a while, I really like MediocreMan. I like the thought that I can rise above mediocrity and still be considered a mediocre man. I guess I am a little like Underdog. I have a superhero name that does not quite fit me or at least the way I think of me. I am not mediocre. But I am MediocreMan.

When you go to my different websites, you will see Musings of MediocreMan on one site (MediocreMan.com) and a sampling of all my other types of writing on the other (MichaelTMiyoshi.com). Like superheroes, I have an alter ego of sorts. I am MediocreMan and I am mild mannered Michael T. Miyoshi. Like the superheroes I mentioned, I do not always take good advice (like Wolverine), but I do use my superpowers (like Superman) and non-superpowers (like Batman) for the glory of God and the betterment of people, and I have an unfortunate superhero name (like Underdog). While I may never have my own comic book or graphic novel, I do have my own blog. And I have my own secret identity or at least alter ego. I am Michael T. Miyoshi aka MedioreMan™.

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Money, Money, Money · 19 March 2011

My readers (mostly imaginary) ask me all the time why I have affiliates and ads on my websites. They wonder why I would sully my otherwise pristine place of wordsmithing with such obvious commercialism. At least my imaginary readers do. So this is to give them (and any real readers who might wonder) the two reasons I have affiliates and place ads on my websites.

I hope you are ready for the first reason. I want to make money.

It is a simple explanation. Unfortunately, I cannot just put that simple explanation on my website without further explanation. I cannot let people believe that I have sold out and will begin writing pieces with names of products in my blogs and hope people click through to buy stuff. I cannot let people believe that I am a money grubber with no scruples. I cannot let people believe I have put the clearly not almighty dollar above all else.

While I would like to make a little money with my writing, it is not the reason I write. Actually, that is a lie. I would like to make a lot of money with my writing. Truthfully though, money is definitely not the reason I write. If it was, I would have quit long ago. After all, accumulating ten dollars of ad revenue in my account over more than four years is not very cost effective. Hopefully, that longevity with little payoff is proof enough that I write because I love to write. Proof that I write because I love to tell stories. Proof that I love being MediocreMan™.

The second and perhaps more important reason that I have affiliates and put ads on my websites is because I would love to prove my wife, The Mindboggling Mrs. Miyoshi, wrong. She says that most writers live in obscurity and become famous only after they die. Or at least writers of great literature seem to follow that pattern. Fortunately for me, I have never claimed to be a writer of great literature or even a great writer, so maybe I have a chance to make some money at writing. Maybe, by getting a sponsor or two and more affiliates whose products I believe in, I can monetize my writing. Maybe, I can prove The Mindboggling Mrs. Miyoshi wrong. Only time will tell.

Still, if I never accumulate any more ad money in my account. If I never find any more sponsors or affiliates who I believe in. If I never make any money on my products including my book. If I never prove my wife wrong. I will still be happy. I will be happy that I put my writing out to the world just to see what sticks. Just to see if I could be part of the cream rising to the top. Just to see if I can write anything worthwhile. I may never be rich or famous or notorious due to my writing, but I can always say that I am a success. After all, I do not just talk about writing some day. I am doing it. Every single week.

So far, I have not proven The Mindboggling Mrs. Miyoshi wrong. I have not secured book deals or speaking engagements, nor am I making boatloads of money with my writing. At least not yet. Still, one day, that may change. In the meantime, I want to make sure that all my readers (both real and imaginary) know I would not knowingly affiliate myself with products I do not believe in. So if you see an ad on my pages that makes you question that statement, contact me. Some of the ads try to match themselves with my content, but I can supposedly keep anything questionable out of them. Let me know if that is true.

I am also an Amazon affiliate so I must put this affiliate notification on my websites:

MediocreMan™ is a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for sites to earn advertising fees by advertising and linking to amazon.com.

Hopefully, that suffices.

I know that my websites are not really pristine places of wordsmithing like I said at the start. Still, I hope that I have satisfactorily answered all the questions about why I have affiliates and put advertising on my websites. I hope that you, dear reader, know that I would not sacrifice my writing quality (as poor as it may be) for filthy lucre. Mostly, I hope that I prove The Mindboggling Mrs. Miyoshi wrong. It would be nice to make a boatload of money writing. Before I am dead.

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