As Steve says, all you need is a topic area, good solid research and writing, and the ability to promote.

Of the three, the first may be the easiest to come by.  The second takes, time, discipline and talent, and the third takes (in my opinion) some degree of recognition or a useful connected social network in an industry or the area of focus.

That said, there are some people in the blogosphere and on the Web who have made their ways to fame and (sometimes) fortune who were not so very visible five years ago.  Would you agree ?

TechCrunch: a Case Study in Micro Media

If you want to see how blogs are revolutionizing media, all you need to do is look at TechCrunch. The Web 2.0 blog, currently ranked #20 on Technorati, believe it or not turned one year old today.

The path Michael Arrington followed can be replicated by anyone else and it proves that blogs can eat into the mainstream media ad dollars and eyeballs. All you need to do is: a) identify a high interest topic online that currently does not have a blog tracking it, b) write about it very actively and do it well and c) don't be afraid to promote it. Today Michael is viewed as a critical newsmaker. He breaks big stories on his own right and with the help of PR people.

Here's a look at TechCrunch's numbers...

* TechCrunch went from zero RSS readers to more than 59,000 today

* According to Alexa, the site is neck and neck in reach with TechWeb.com and internet.com - two 10 year-old sites owned by big media companies. It's also giving ZDNet a run for its money as well.

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