A to Z April Challenge – tried it?

On By TomIn Achievement, Competitions, General, Insight, Promotion, Uncategorized

 

A[1]
My first 2014 post
is for April, and it will come as no surprise that the A to Z April Challenge is … a challenge held in April using the letters of the alphabet, from A to Z.

Is it free?   Yes.

Is it fun?   Yes.

Is it worthwhile?   Yes.

Have I ever completed the challenge?   Yes.

What is it all about – really?
Essentially, it’s about increasing your presence in the blogosphere. If you have a blog and you feel you don’t have many followers it can be down to several factors.

– You might have an interesting theme in your regular posts, but may not be relating it in an interesting way.

– You may find yourself wondering how to make your topics attract followers.

– You might even be new to the blogging idea and the best way to learn what works is to visit others – and comment.

– Make an effort to become a part of the international blogging scene.

I’ve provided a link if you click on the logo towards the end of this post. Or you can check out the details here: A to Z April Challenge 2016. You might well fancy attempting to complete the challenge this year. If you make the effort to try it, you have nothing to lose, and a lot to gain.

*

I heard about the A to Z April Challenge from writer, reviewer and prolific blogger, Damyanti Biswas.

I enrolled on the 2014 challenge and I chose to use the topic of writing as my theme for the month. As always, I had several projects on the go simultaneously, so fitting in a daily post and then reading and commenting on at least five other posts became a real challenge.

Okay, having said all of the above regarding my first attempt, I did enjoy my efforts and those of the other bloggers. My followers increased and I still visit some of those bloggers I met in 2014 during the challenge.

I admit, I am a writer who blogs, as opposed to a blogger who writes.

What does that mean?
It means that for me, blogging is a means to an end. It is an author platform.
For many, blogging becomes a social activity and in several years experience of the international community, I’ve found insights into many areas.

What did I do in my challenge posts in 2014?
As an example, I’ll provide the link here for my final post of 2014:Z[1]

https://tombensoncreative.com/2014/04/27/z-is-for-zoom-in/

Here is the link to my complete challenge profile for the 2014 challenge, which is in my blog Resources for Writers sub-menu:

https://tombensoncreative.com/my-a-to-z-2014/

 

Do I have any advice for those are considering the challenge for 2016?
Yes. I’d have two pieces of advice, apart from suggesting you try the challenge.

1. Don’t use the first topic / theme that comes to mind. List about five things you’re really interested in, and then choose one.

2. Set up a file with the letters of the alphabet, and build a small catalogue of posts in preparation. It’s even better if you can prepare your entire month (26 posts) in advance. All you have to do then is either edit them or have a quick look before posting.

Blogging A to Z 2016Interested?
Why not check it out by clicking on the logo to the left, or if you like, I’ll happily field early questions. Better still is to contact Damyanti directly.

Thank you for reading … and maybe we’ll see each other out there in April.

***

11 thoughts on “A to Z April Challenge – tried it?”

  1. susanfaw

    I have signed up too, Tom, but like nanowrimo, writing to a deadline like this is very difficult for me, especially as we move towards the summer months. I am going to give it a try though, would you have any recommendations as far as word length and picture counts to meet?

    Liked by 1 person

    1. Hi Susan. I’m posting this again, because I don’t think I used the reply button the first time.
      You can make it as long or as short as you please. In this next challenge I’ll be using one pic and keeping to around 200 words for the main part.
      There is a danger if you make your posts too long, they’ll be abandoned.
      The general gist of it is to be following a minimum of five other bloggers, and only check out more if you feel you have time.
      If I learned one valuable lesson it was ‘preparation’. Even if all you do is write a couple of posts in advance of when they’re needed it will help.
      Any other issues – drop me a line. Great to see one of our group authors onboard

      Like

    1. A pleasure my friend, and if it helps to get people talking about it, then that’s a start. I’m already preparing this time. I want to see if I can work through April and keep up with the frenetic pace of he challenge. 🙂

      Like

    1. Great to know you’ll be out there Val. You’ll enjoy it, because apart from meeting lots of new people it gives you massive exposure – but not in a freezing temperature kind of way. 🙂

      Like

  4. I’m not going to commit yet–although it sounds like a lot of fun. I’m still trying to set my blog up. This is a test to see if anything pulls up on my website right now.

    Liked by 1 person

    1. Hello Pam. I think it would be good for you. The challenge doesn’t get underway properly until 1st April, and by then your blog will be up and running with the best of them.
      This challenge is a great way of getting followers. Come on now, think about it … what could you write about in short posts that would use the letters of the alphabet? 🙂

      Like

  5. How did I miss this last year?! Sadly, this year I’m less than fit to undertake much of anything… Still waiting for medical news. On the bright side, I finished plotting a novel, so maybe I’ll get some writing done soon. Blogging has fallen quite low down my to-do list. I suppose I lack your discipline 🙂

    Liked by 2 people

  6. Hi Ramona, and thank you for dropping by. You come first, irrespective of any perceived duties or outside interests my friend. Take care of yourself – and then everything else. I hope the med results are in your favour, and I look forward to hearing more about this novel of yours. 🙂

    Like

Comments are closed.