Building in public. Publishing on my terms.

Publishing on my terms. Documenting the journey.

Welcome to My Journal

Building FoundryPress. Writing a book. Sharing the journey.

For more than twenty years, I've been building websites, creating content, and helping people publish their ideas online. Like many creators, I spent years using WordPress and recommending it to clients, churches, businesses, and organizations.

Over time, however, I found myself wanting something simpler.

That desire eventually led to the creation of FoundryPress — a lightweight publishing platform focused on content, ownership, and simplicity.

This journal is where I document that journey.

Here you'll find:

  • Behind-the-scenes updates on FoundryPress
  • Notes from building and growing a software business
  • Progress updates on my book, Do You Really Need WordPress?
  • Thoughts on publishing, content creation, and website ownership
  • Lessons learned from more than two decades of building websites
This isn't a polished marketing site.

It's a working journal.

Some days you'll find technical updates. Other days you'll find thoughts, ideas, successes, failures, and lessons learned along the way.

If you're interested in simpler publishing, building your own platform, or following the journey of an independent creator, you're in the right place.

Thanks for stopping by.

— Tom Kloos

Follow the Journey

Latest from The Journal

This is my personal journal documenting the creation of FoundryPress, the lessons learned from more than 20 years with WordPress, and the journey toward a simpler way to publish online. Expect behind-the-scenes updates, honest reflections, product development notes, and thoughts on creating meaningful work without unnecessary complexity.

Journal Chapters

Do You Really Need WordPress?

In this opening chapter, Tom Kloos shares his journey from building websites in the early 2000s with HTML editors like CoffeeCup to becoming a longtime WordPress advocate. After nearly two decades of using WordPress for blogs, businesses, memberships, downloads, and e-commerce sites, he began to notice a growing problem: increasing complexity. While WordPress remains a powerful platform, many websites simply don't need the overhead that comes with modern WordPress installations. This chapter explores how that realization led to a search for a simpler approach to publishing and ultimately inspired the creation of FoundryPress.

Read Article

What You'll Find Here

This journal is a public record of building FoundryPress and documenting the lessons learned along the way.

Topics include:

  • Website publishing and content creation
  • Building software as an independent creator
  • Progress updates on Do You Really Need WordPress?
  • Product development and behind-the-scenes decisions
  • Simplicity, ownership, and long-term publishing
Whether you're a creator, blogger, author, developer, or entrepreneur, my hope is that these notes help you build, publish, and create with less complexity.

Why This Journal Exists

For years, I've helped other people build websites, publish content, launch projects, and share their ideas with the world.

This journal is different.

It's a place where I can document my own journey—building FoundryPress, writing books, creating content, and learning what it takes to build a sustainable business around ideas and publishing.

Some entries will be technical. Others will be personal. All of them will be real.