Alright – so today we’ve got the honor of introducing you to Brenda and Chuck Marshall. We think you’ll enjoy our conversation, we’ve shared it below.
Brenda and Chuck Marshall, appreciate you joining us today. Can you tell us the backstory behind how you came up with the idea?
At the time, it seemed like everyone had a blog. Brenda joined the fray with stories about being a single mom raising two rambunctious kids, but needed some pictures to help tell the story. Enter Just Chuckin Around. Chuck was also interested in using a blog or website to showcase his photography. His first attempt was a web site with at most two photos. That site quickly failed as Chuck was floundering without direction.
We decided to combine our efforts and focus on telling stories about our lives in Michigan. Those stories have evolved over time as we’ve traveled, met new people, and explored what it means to us to live in Michigan.
A goal for us from the beginning was to create a website free of advertising that showcased our storytelling in a compelling way. Sadly, our web development skills were pitiful at best. Happily, we knew Kate Peterson from Pleasantly Progressive Design. She worked her magic to design our site. She has also developed our logos. We think of her as part of our family and would be lost without her.
As always, we appreciate you sharing your insights and we’ve got a few more questions for you, but before we get to all of that can you take a minute to introduce yourself and give our readers some of your back background and context?
We started Life In Michigan telling our stories to promote Michigan. Those stories have now evolved and focused on our primary passions of music, travel, and beer (with some wine and spirits mixed in for good measure).
In terms of music focus, we strive to raise awareness about the massive amount of musical talent in Michigan. Through our concert reviews and album reviews, we want to put the spotlight on Michigan musicians and those that support the industry. There are so many great local festivals such as Fuzz Fest and Corktown Music fest that showcase the small acts that deserve recognition. During the pandemic, we started the Fans With Bands podcast to bring fans and local bands together to share stories about music and life in general. In addition to Life In Michigan, Chuck is actively supporting national music coverage on MetalWani.com and Loud Hailer Magazine.
The Michigan craft beer world has embraced us with open arms. Our love of beer has taken us around the state and introduced us to so many wonderful people. It has also launched our freelance writing services. We owe so much to Dianna Higgs Stampfler (Promote Michigan) and Amy Sherman (Behind The Mitten with Amy Sherman and John Gonzalez). These two extraordinary women have opened many doors for us in the freelance writing world. These connections have established us with byline in Hearst Media and Hour Media. On top of all that, we are proud to be allied members of the Michigan Brewers Guild.
One of the first things we did with Life In Michigan is to share travel stories. Michigan has such a variety of places to see and experience. This has taken us on dog-sledding runs in the U.P., on a tall ship in Traverse Bay, wandering in the Porcupine Mountains, rambling through the streets of Detroit, and reliving history at Michilimackinac. However, our travels go beyond the borders of Michigan and even outside of the USA. Our recent travels on Route 66 in a vintage VW van we named Rita is a great example. Our followers on social media were cheering us on when Rita turned diva and decided she need a spa break.
How did you put together the initial capital you needed to start your business?
Honestly, Life In Michigan is a labor of love. Thankfully, we have some wonderful supporters who have shown dedication to our work by subscribing to our Patreon page or kicking in a donation via Paypal to help us keep the lights on. Our freelance writing is also helping us fund the site.
We hope to grow our freelance writing and photography work over time.
What do you find most rewarding about being a creative?
Making connections and hearing the stories. Our passion for music, beer, and travel have introduced us to many fantastic people. We’ve had the opportunity to share their stories through our writing and photography.
Contact Info:
- Website: www.lifeinmichigan.com
- Instagram: @lifeinmich
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/LifeInMichigan
- Twitter: @lifeinmich
- Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/LifeInMichigan
- Other: Fans With Bands podcast – https://fanswithbands.podbean.com/
Image Credits
All photos by Chuck Marshall – LifeInMichigan.com (Marshall Media Services LLC.)