After attending multiple writing workshops conducted by Judy Howard and blogging seminars by the Geeks on Tour during recent RV rallies, I was inspired and motivated to return to my roots as a journalist and writer using technology.
The CoolRVers are NOT back on the road! I am actually back on the laptop keyboard in my home office and will be participating in a special bloggers event called Blogging From A to Z April (2017) Challenge.
As the "Blogging From A to Z Challenge" logo suggests, I was challenged to participate. Author, Escapee, and Facebook friend Donna McNicol encouraged me to post a themed blog "almost" every day in April. There are rules and the basic requirement is that each of the 26 letters of the alphabet has an assigned day of the month and, to meet that challenge, my blog posting for that assigned day must be based on the letter of the day. Here is an excerpt from the A to Z April Challenge website --
"Can you post every day except Sundays during this month? And to up the bar, can you blog thematically from A to Z? Most of the time if you subtract Sundays from April, you then have 26 days -- one day for each letter of the alphabet.
Using this premise, you would start beginning April First with a topic themed on something with the letter A, then on April second another topic with the letter B as the theme, and so on until you finish on April 30th with the theme based on the letter Z. It doesn't even have to be a word--it can be a proper noun, the letter used as a symbol, or the letter itself. The theme of the day is the letter scheduled for that day."So, since today is April 1, my assigned letter for the day is "A" and my first challenge was to decide on a theme starting with the letter A. Authors call such themes "writer prompts" so I started a list of possible topics and contemplated writing about our recent rally ACTIVITIES, my Facebook ADDICTION, our increasing ABSENTMINDEDNESS, diversity through ACCEPTANCE, life's ABSURDITIES", financial and political ACCOUNTABILITY, or lessons learned as a college ADMINISTRATOR.
Way too many choices! Yes, I copped out and decided on "A is for April" so I could explain what the Blogging From A to Z Challenge was about.
Now for the rest of the month...
As the rules posted above direct, no blogging on Sunday! That means my Monday, April 3 assignment will be the letter "B", Tuesday, April 4 will be "C", and so on. To prepare for the Challenge I used a Word calendar template and plugged in each of the 26 letters to its appropriate date -- omitting the Sundays as instructed -- except for "Z" on Sunday, April 30. Now to fill in daily themes. I have been reading other bloggers who participated in a special Theme Reveal Day and now realize how much easier the A to Z Challenge would be IF I had picked a unified theme. For example, Donna McNicol has the perfect theme: Places They Have Been. [If you haven't done so, please click each of the highlighted LINKS to learn more about each person, blog, or website.]
This posting was a rambling about the Challenge. We expect to be "HOME" during April so there won't be many current travel reports for the COOLRVERS ON THE ROAD.
What would YOU like to read about in my future daily blogs?
I have 25 more blogs to post in April and I welcome your suggestions and comments. If you would like to subscribe to follow future postings enter your email address in the box at the top right side of this page. You are also encouraged to view the archived files that started in 2011 when we headed for Alaska.
5 comments:
Hey, until the A to Z Challenge, my last post was in 2014, too :)
I can also see how a theme would have been helpful. Next year, I am selecting one for sure. Perhaps you can write about Breakdowns or Blown-out tires along the road, if you ever had those.
Emily
A to Z Participant
My Life In Ecuador
I've been trying to get blog posts out monthly, but that has been a challenge....You can imagine the anxiety with this one, Eeeek! Suggestion for a B post, possibly a city you traveled through that starts with B. Look forward to reading your posts this month!
Heidi (visiting from the A to Z Challenge) at, Decibel Memos
I'm so glad you decided to join in the fun. Remember, it doesn't have to be themed. Just pick a word (like you did this time) and write. You'd be surprised how much fun it can be. Oh, and thanks for the links to my site!
DB McNicol, author & traveler
Theme: Oh, the places we will go!
Good job for getting back in the swing of things. This is my 3rd A-z, each time I think I'll do better about posting and I think I do better each year, but there is still lots of room for improvement.
Congratulations and Good luck!
A is for Automatic Writing
You really did take a blogging hiatus! Good to see you back in the Challenge. Just blog about whatever inspires you.
Arlee Bird
Tossing It Out: It's About Time
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