The message is the medium.

There are some big changes coming to RoundSeventeen.

And of course, by big I mean banner ads usually 128 X 324 in size.

It all started last week, when on the first day of a new gig I ran into a copywriter friend. Before we were briefed on the new project we had time to catch up and shoot the shit. Naturally, as is always the case when two copywriters start chatting, the discussion turned to other copywriters, schmucks, who were making money, much more money, than either of us.

He started telling me of another blogger and how he had successfully monetized his operation with ads. He didn't know for sure but thought this other blogger had anywhere from 10,000 to 15,000 page visits a month, which had roughly translated into $500 of extra money.

FIVE HUNDRED DOLLARS, I said, in a voice that was inappropriately loud in a place of business.

Shit, who couldn't use an extra $500 a month? If I could swing 500 bucks just for my daily bouts of industry-bashing, career self-immolation and narcissistic nostalgia, my wife and I could live like royalty.

We could enjoy that sharp cheddar cheese I like instead of the store branded American.

We could switch from the scratchy toilet paper we're currently using to that nice soft quilted 2 ply that seems to reward me with every use.

And we could spring for that new outdoor security camera system that beams HD pictures in glorious 4K so I could keep an eagle eye on my white trash neighbor's nefarious activities.

Well, that was all I needed to hear. So I took a deep dive into the blogger settings and signed up for their advertising program.

I don't know why I had resisted the notion before. Some nonsense about purity. Editorial control. And having Respect for my readers. Then I looked at the sales numbers for my books, books that you never bought or reviewed or created any buzz about and thought, screw that.

The process has not taken long.

As you might have noticed, the good folks at Google have already polluted this page. I've seen ads for Nest Thermostats, camping equipment and Mammoth Mountain. Which tells me, the ad placement is governed by algorithms of my current online activities.

Well, my mama didn't raise no fool. I did a little digging and found out that the biggest online sales stem from auto insurance, recipe tutorials and penis enlargement pills.

So don't be surprised if in the near future you find yourself reading a lot more RoundSeventeen posts about T-boning, chicken masala and Ron Jeremy.