1.) If my subject matter doesn’t have as fast a news cycle as the political blogs, how many topics should I have up my sleeve ahead of time in order to keep traffic coming to keep the advertisers happy? (I’ve read the 7 Steps to a Great Blog (or something like that))
http://kwmap.com - stick in your keyword and it will give you topics to begin with.
2.) What’s the bare minim. I should post per day to keep traffic up? I heard about 5 or 6 per day!
Post at least once a week for the search engines to keep your site in their radar.
3.) I haven’t seen any prices for using Google AdSense, and it appears that it’s free. Is that correct?
Correct
4.) Are there any other programs like that?
Not exactly like Google, but there are other contextual advertisers. I have some of their banners on my affiliate blog ... check it out.
5.) I hear there’s a lot of busy work in order to make good $$$ at this. Can someone please explain what are the laborious tasks that require such tediousness? Remember, I know NOTHING about this, so DO NOT assume I do.
This questions is too big to answer. So keep reading the newbie forum for more info or go to the affiliate guild and signup for free classes. (link below)
6.) RE: this busy “admin.” work, what’s a percentage range of the creative writing to admin work ratio? In other words, do I do 60% to 40% writing to admin?
Don't quite understand the admin part, but I do 95% original writing for all that I do.
7.) RE: Question 5: What are the best FREE tools for what I have to do, and what do they do? BTW, I’m using Win2k…NOT XP.
Again, go to the Affiliate Guild and see tools listed in left navigation.
8.) Someone PLEASE explain RSS. What does it do for me? How do I use/tweak it to make it work best for me? Which ones should I start with, and what’s the difference?
Ignore RSS for now. It's too much for where you are in the learning cycle.
9.) What are the top 5 stats that you would advise me to heed the most?
No idea what you're asking here...guessing.
25 Affiliate Tips To Success - Good Advice for New Affiliates
10.) I would think that polls would be a great attraction for readers. Is this correct?
They're okay.
11.) Before I just jump in to starting a blog give me the 5 most important factors to consider keeping in mind in order to peak interests?
Use common sense ... what holds your interest?