Your Topics, Multiple Stories: A Senior Blogger’s Guide to Digital Depth

Hello there! I’m Linda Ruth. If you’ve been following my work at CbS for the last five years, you know that I don’t just see the world in headlines; I see it in layers.

Lately, I’ve been thinking a lot about the “connective tissue” of our lives—those seemingly unrelated moments that, when viewed from a distance, form a single, beautiful tapestry. Today, I’m stepping away from the data-driven reports to share a collection of your topics multiple stories from my own journey. From the quiet corners of Chicago coffee shops to the digital frontier of storytelling, these are the threads that make up my world.

Table of Contents

The Aroma of Beginnings: A Chicago Morning

It’s 7:00 AM on a Tuesday, and I’m sitting in a small, brick-walled cafe in Wicker Park. The air smells like roasted Ethiopian beans and damp pavement—a classic Chicago morning. This is where my process begins.

For a digital storyteller, the “digital” part is easy to find, but the “story” part requires a certain kind of stillness. I’ve spent over half a decade blogging, and if there’s one thing I’ve learned, it’s that authenticity cannot be manufactured in a vacuum. It’s found in the steam rising from a ceramic mug and the muffled conversation of two strangers at the next table.

People often ask me, “Linda, how do you keep your writing fresh after five years?” The answer is simple: I look for the narrative in the mundane. Every person walking past that window is a protagonist in a story I haven’t written yet. As I watch the city wake up, I’m reminded that my job isn’t just to report facts; it’s to translate the human experience into words that make someone on the other side of a screen feel less alone.

The Evolution of the Digital Voice

When I first started at CbS, the digital landscape felt like the Wild West. We were obsessed with clicks, keywords, and “going viral.” But as I matured in my career, I realized that insightful commentary outweighs an inflammatory headline every single time.

Digital storytelling is an art of balance. You have to be loud enough to be heard in a crowded feed, but quiet enough to be meaningful. I remember a piece I wrote three years ago about the “Loneliness of the Connected Age.” I was terrified to post it because it felt too personal, too vulnerable. But the response was overwhelming.

That was my turning point. I realized that my readers weren’t looking for a polished corporate voice; they were looking for Linda. They wanted the Chicagoan who loves photography and gets excited about a perfectly framed shot of the ‘L’ train. They wanted the depth that comes from someone who actually lives the life they write about.

Lessons from Five Years in the Trenches:

Trust is Currency: You can’t buy it, and you can’t faking it. Once you lose the trust of your audience, no amount of SEO can bring it back.
Depth Over Breadth: I’d rather have 100 readers who feel deeply moved by a piece than 10,000 who scroll past it in seconds.
Adaptability: The platforms change, the algorithms shift, but the need for a good story remains constant.

Through the Lens: Finding Focus

When I’m not typing away at my laptop, I usually have a camera strap around my neck. Photography is more than just a hobby for me; it’s a vital part of my storytelling toolkit.

In Chicago, the architecture provides a rigid, geometric backdrop to the fluid chaos of street life. There’s a specific kind of magic in capturing a moment that would otherwise be lost to time—a child laughing near the Bean, or the way the sunset hits the windows of the Willis Tower.

Photography taught me how to edit. When you’re looking through a viewfinder, you have to decide what stays in the frame and what gets cut out. Writing is exactly the same. A great blog post isn’t defined by what you include, but by what you have the courage to leave out. By narrowing my focus—both literally and figuratively—I’ve learned how to bring more “texture” to my writing. I don’t just tell you it was raining; I tell you how the light reflected off the puddles on Michigan Avenue like shattered glass. That’s the depth I strive for in every CbS piece.

The Intersection of Technology and Heart

We live in an era where AI and automation are becoming the norm in content creation. As a senior blogger, I’m often asked if I fear for the future of my craft. My answer is always a resounding “no.”

Technology can aggregate data, it can summarize reports, and it can even mimic a style. But it cannot feel. It hasn’t spent five years building a relationship with a community of readers. It doesn’t know the specific ache of a Chicago winter or the triumph of finding the perfect independent bookstore in a hidden alley.

My stories are rooted in insightful commentary that comes from lived experience. Digital storytelling isn’t just about the medium; it’s about the message. As long as there are humans who want to understand one another, there will be a need for storytellers who bring heart to the keyboard.

A Multiple-Story Life

If you look at my life as a series of folders, they might seem distinct:

Folder A: The Professional (The CbS Blogger)
Folder B: The Local (The Chicago Coffee Enthusiast)
Folder C: The Artist (The Photographer)

But the reality is that these folders are constantly bleeding into one another. My professional writing is better because of my photography; my coffee shop excursions fuel my creative energy; and my five years of experience give me the perspective to see how it all fits together.

We are all “multiple stories.” We are not just our job titles or our hobbies. We are the sum of our passions, our failures, and our quietest morning thoughts.

Your Topics Multiple Stories Categories

Here is the list of story categories that may change your life;

Looking Forward: The Next Chapter

As I look toward the next five years, I’m excited about the shifts I see in the digital world. We are moving toward a more “human” internet—one where people crave authenticity more than ever before.

I want to continue pushing the boundaries of what a “blog post” can be. I want to integrate more visual storytelling, more interactive narratives, and even deeper dives into the cultural psyche of our times. But through all the innovation, I promise to stay the Linda you’ve come to know: the one who writes from the heart, usually with a camera nearby and a double espresso in hand.

Thank you for being part of my story. Whether you’ve been here since my first post at CbS or you’re just joining me today in this Wicker Park cafe, I’m glad you’re here.

“To tell a story is to claim that the world makes sense, even when it feels like it doesn’t.”

Until next time, keep looking for the stories in your own backyard.