From WordPress to Ghost: A 14-Year Journey of Writing and Tech Exploration

My OnTechies website has been dormant for a while, and to think it started over 14 years ago is unbelievable—at least to me. It began as AustinTechGeeks, but someone from the Austin tech community felt it was too similar to their organization’s name. They sent me a Cease and Desist letter. I was shocked! It was just a simple WordPress site, posting about local Austin tech events using a default template. Instead of feeling upset, I felt validated—like what I was doing was worth noticing. But the cease and desist letter was also effective for them.

In 2010, I was more naive than I am today, so I stopped using the name AustinTechGeeks and went with OnTechies. It wasn’t the greatest name, but I liked it well enough.

Now here we are, still trying to put this domain to good use. After years of using WordPress for this site, I decided to try something new. I created a VPS and installed Ghost on it. This way, I have control over everything—the server, database, content—you name it. I know enough to enjoy the process and (hopefully) not break anything.

Writing is something I enjoy, and I’ve done it for OnTechies.com for years, along with posting regularly on my personal blog. I started with WordPress and it served its purpose, but after the introduction of the Gutenberg Block Editor in 2018, I stopped enjoying it. While the block system is great for building layouts and mixing content types, it’s terrible if you just want a clean, fast writing experience. WordPress killed the joy of writing with Gutenberg.

That’s when I started looking for alternatives—apps that let me write without distractions while offering grammar checks and other basic features. I tried Microsoft Word and Google Docs, but I never liked their interfaces. Then I discovered the Bear app and loved it. I still use it occasionally, along with Ulysses, iA Writer, and Scrivener. Of all of these, I keep coming back to iA Writer. I thought Ulysses would be “the one” for a while, but I ran into syncing issues. Bear was great, but it didn’t have a Windows version. Scrivener is too feature-packed, and I felt guilty not using everything it offered. So, iA Writer became my go-to, and I really like it.

Any of those writing apps is far more enjoyable than WordPress’s editor. It’s not even a fair comparison. That’s why I moved OnTechies.com to Ghost. The platform is simpler, which is exactly what I like about it. The editor is clean, comparable to the best writing tools I’ve used. I’m writing this post on the new Ghost instance, right in the browser, and it’s a joy to use. Here’s a quick comparison of the Ghost editor vs. WordPress:

It’s the little things: distraction-free writing, a visible word count, easy text formatting. All of these are built-in. WordPress can be adjusted to feel more like this, but it’s not the default experience. It feels like writing isn’t a priority there anymore.

Don’t get me wrong—WordPress is a great tool, just not for someone like me, who prefers to focus on the text. I’ve tried different themes that promise a better writing experience, but none delivered.

Running a self-hosted Ghost instance isn’t for everyone, but I enjoy the process—setting up servers, DNS, routing, redirects, and tweaking code. Plus, the flexibility in cost is a big win. I can run multiple sites on my VPS as long as the resources are available. Moving my old posts from WordPress to Ghost wasn’t straightforward, but the freedom to do it myself, without needing support, was rewarding.

After exporting data from WordPress, I realized the file wasn’t compatible with Ghost’s import feature. Ghost has a free plugin for this, but my old WordPress plan didn’t allow plugins. WordPress plans that offer this start at $25 a month—more than double what I pay for my VPS, which lets me install anything I want. To solve the issue, I set up a free WordPress instance on my VPS, imported the data there, installed the Ghost plugin, and exported everything in a Ghost-friendly format. It took about an hour to transfer 336 posts and images, all done using the MacOS terminal. I’ll write a post explaining the process in case anyone else needs it.

Having a self-hosted Ghost instance gives you full control, and while there’s some risk of breaking things, that’s how you learn—by tinkering with code, files, and settings. If you enjoy tech, I recommend setting up your own VPS. You’ll handle everything from domain settings to security, and you’ll gain a deeper understanding of how the web works.

This blog is still hosted on WordPress.com, but I use iA Writer for the posts, copying them into WordPress later. It’s not ideal, but it works. When my current subscription ends, I’ll likely move it to a WordPress or Ghost instance on my VPS.

I know most people just want a platform where they can log in and start writing. I get it. But I prefer having more control. I’ve tried Medium, Substack, and WordPress, but so far, Ghost is the winner for me. Each platform has its perks—Medium has a great writing and reading experience, and there’s a strong community there, as with WordPress and Substack. But none offer the level of control I get with my own server.

I plan to start posting on OnTechies again, even though it’s been a while. I think I’ll split my writing between this site and the OnTechies blog. Personal stories and experiences will go here, while tech-related thoughts, industry criticism, and maybe gadget reviews will go to OnTechies. Who knows? It’s a work in progress and probably always will be.

I don’t do this for attention or recognition. I do it because I enjoy writing. As David McCullough and Donald M. Murray said, “Writing is thinking,” and for me, it’s my thinking exercise.

Have an excellent weekend! 😀