BLOG YOUR WAY THROUGH THE ALPHABET IN APRIL WITH THE BLOGGING FROM A TO Z CHALLENGE

With my two whopper writing projects this April, Camp NaNoWriMo and Savvy Author’s April Boot Camp, I knew I had to blog about it. But I had no blog to speak of. So, the last few days had me rushing to put together a blog for the purposes of recording the ups, downs, and sideways events of this writing extravaganza. You can read my thoughts on Camp NaNo here and Boot Camp here. Of course, when I saw something people were buzzing about, I decided to have a look. A challenge, you say? A third one to add to my glorious tower of looming word counts?

The BLOGGING FROM A TO Z CHALLENGE. I fell in love with the idea as soon as I found the website. Starting April 1st, everyone begins with A and works through the alphabet. With Sundays off, that ends with Z on April 30. Sounds simple enough, but what do you do with said letters? Each letter is a theme for that day’s blog post. You might pick the letter itself or it might be the beginning of a word, as long as you stick to the theme in some shape or form. Again, sounds simple, right? Well, this is where the challenge comes in. And it doesn’t hurt to get creative. Some bloggers are working with a theme, others are going freestyle. The point is to blog, visit other blogs, and have a good time with the online community. At the time of this post, there are already 1,600 participants. That should make for some interesting reading next month.

Since I’m new to the whole blogopshere–that’s a thing, right?–I realized that I needed to do this. What a great way to meet people from around the world. You’ve got something to say, they’ve got something to say. If you blog, regardless of topic, here are just a few benefits when you JOIN THE BLOGGING FROM A TO Z CHALLENGE.

1) DAILY WRITING PRACTICE. Be kind about this. People are going to the trouble of blogging their hearts out. It’s a reciprocity that’s necessary to make this event a success. Also, writing everyday is good for you, especially if you’re a writer. So do it for yourself as much as anyone else. If you blog it, they will come.

2) DAILY SPARK OF CREATIVITY. Whether it’s something pre-planned or something inspired from a fellow blogger’s post, when you create something, put words on the screen, you challenge yourself each day. Share home remedy tips, inspirational quotes, obscure dance moves. If you have 26 thematic posts to share or even 26 completely random posts to share, your creativity will shine through the daily act of writing.

3) BUILD YOUR READERSHIP. I can’t tell you how pleased I am to have people I never expected to stop by my three-day old blog. The likes, retweets, comments, they’re all encouraging. It lets me know there are people out there who like what I have to say. That’s motivation to keep me going as a writer. One day when my WIPs are published, I already have people who support me and they might enjoy reading my novels, too. Such a huge facet of being a writer nowadays is one’s platform. I’m still a newbie in this regard, and the A to Z Challenge comes at a perfect time to serve as a launchpad for a writer’s platform. You like to write. People like what you write. Hello, world. Social media is such a powerful tool. It makes perfect sense to take part in something mutually beneficial.

4) NETWORKING. This is obvious, but more than that. When you take the time to visit other blogs, read what other people have to say in their part of the world, you join the international community. I’ve only partaken in social media via Twitter for the last two months. I’ve already ‘met’ and interacted with people in my industry and it’s made me a better writer. I’m constantly inspired by everything I read each day. As introverted as the writer’s life may seem, eventually we need to come out of our shells. The books don’t always sell themselves, you know. Networking is a great way for writers or anyone who wishes to talk about their expertise to communicate their message to a global audience. How lucky are we to do this now? I keep going back to how excited that I’m a writer in this technological age.

5) WINNING. Ha. I giggled when I typed that, but it’s true. (I hope you got the reference.) You get through a month-long challenge, what does that make you? Of course, for whatever reason, there might be a day that you miss, but it’s a commitment that 1,600 people made along with you. That should push you enough. If not for them, do it for the spirit of such an innovative simultaneous blogging experience. We haven’t even started yet and I already feel like we’re winners.

So, come, gentle viewer… *singing*

Since we know our ABCs,

won’t you come and blog with me.

In April.

2013.

Join.

You have a day left.

You can do it. 🙂

http://www.a-to-zchallenge.com/

Be there, or be… not there.

It’s way better if you’re there.

Join.

Blog.

Celebrate.