Zoooom #AtoZChallenge 2024

You made it! Welcome to the last day of the Challenge! 

Yay!

Are you feeling tired?

Are you feeling accomplished?

Are you feeling motivated?

All of those?

Some of those?

Pat yourself on the back! Good job!

If you are feeling the momentum, zoom on! Join us for Reflections, and then for the A to Z Road Trip! Watch this blog for more information next week!

SEE YOU ON MONDAY FOR REFLECTIONS!

MASTER LIST https://tinyurl.com/w54yupwe

Hop to as many blogs in the challenge as possible. Grow and strengthen the community.

Please follow us!

bloglovin.com/blogs/blogging-from-a-to-z-april-challenge-3294742
http://www.a-to-zchallenge.com
@a.to.z.challenge     @atozchallenge
@AprilA2Z Our hashtag is #AtoZChallenge

Unexpected #AtoZChallenge 2024

Unexpected things emerge all the time during a challenge. Unexpected obstacles. Unexpected tasks to complete, unexpected reasons why you might be delayed, or might be kept from visiting as much as you'd like.

But let's focus on the times when the Unexpected brings something good into your challenge experience!

Unexpected themes that you fell in love with...

Unexpected compliments you got int he comments...

Unexpected new blogs you discovered and followed...

Unexpected connections on social media!

Share in the comments, and give shout-outs to your favorite unexpected discoveries this year!

MASTER LIST https://tinyurl.com/w54yupwe

Hop to as many blogs in the challenge as possible. Grow and strengthen the community.

Please follow us!

bloglovin.com/blogs/blogging-from-a-to-z-april-challenge-3294742
http://www.a-to-zchallenge.com
@a.to.z.challenge     @atozchallenge
@AprilA2Z Our hashtag is #AtoZChallenge

Now or Never, or maybe Next Time #AtoZChallenge 2024

We are past the halfway point! Pat yourself on the back, if you have made it this far! The Challenge is an intense undertaking, for sure. So this is your halfway reminder to be kind to yourself. Celebrate the posts you made! Even if you didn't have as much time, or haven't done as much research, or visited as many people... you are still doing it, and that is great!

Also halfway through the challenge, whether you are a newcomer or a veteran, things usually become more clear. Take a moment to take some NOTES. 

What are you doing well NOW? What are the things you are enjoying this time around in the challenge?

What are you NEVER doing again? Is there something you would change?

What are you going to do NEXT TIME? Keep, discard, change - were you inspired by someone's blog, or theme, or style? Do share in the comments!

Keep on blogging! :) 

MASTER LIST https://tinyurl.com/w54yupwe

Hop to as many blogs in the challenge as possible. Grow and strengthen the community.

Please follow us!

bloglovin.com/blogs/blogging-from-a-to-z-april-challenge-3294742
http://www.a-to-zchallenge.com
@a.to.z.challenge     @atozchallenge
@AprilA2Z Our hashtag is #AtoZChallenge

Gathering Things #AtoZChallenge 2024

What are you gathering during this year's Challenge? 

Experience? - A challenge is a great way to practice blogging, and learn what style of posting best fits you. It also helps with forming a regular blogging habit.

Information? - Setting a good theme for yourself can inspire some in-depth research that can come in handy for later projects too!

Comments? - I love reading the comments during the challenge! They light up a blogger's day. (If you leave thoughtful comments, you are the best!)

New blogs to follow? - Yes please! I love finding new and interesting blogs, and new and interesting people who write them.

Books to read? - A to Z always adds a whole lot to one's TBR, beware! :)

Momentum? - Keep going! You have already completed one whole week!

MASTER LIST https://tinyurl.com/w54yupwe

Hop to as many blogs in the challenge as possible. Grow and strengthen the community.

Please follow us!

bloglovin.com/blogs/blogging-from-a-to-z-april-challenge-3294742
http://www.a-to-zchallenge.com
@a.to.z.challenge     @atozchallenge
@AprilA2Z Our hashtag is #AtoZChallenge

Challenge Yourself #AtoZChallenge 2024

Sign-up for the challenge! ***https://forms.gle/41PjgHFL4zwnM2Am7 ***

You! Yes you! Welcome to the April A to Z Blogging Challnege! CHALLENGE is in the title for a reason. You have taken it on, and that is amazing! Whether you see it through or not, whether you are preparing or pantsing, whether you are a first-time blogger or a returning participant - you are doing great! 

Just joining A to Z is a great step. You might not finish this year. You might come back next year anyway. That is okay. We are all here, CHEERING you on!

Are you setting an extra challenge for yourself this year? 

A THEME can be an added challenge! A lot of people do it. It makes selecting each letter a bit more tricky, but it also gives your readers something to come back for.

PANTSING can be a challenge too. It makes you write regularly every day - write fast and with enthusiasm. Good job!

PLANNING is also a challenge, because it takes foresight and preparation. Well done!

You may also challenge yourself to VISIT others during the month of April, reading their posts and cheering them on. That also takes time and effort, and we are very grateful if you do it!

Are you setting an extra challenge for yourself?

Tell us all about it in the comments!

And if not - don't sweat it! Just by participating in A to Z, you are already doing a whole lot! :) Pat yourself on the back!

MASTER LIST https://tinyurl.com/w54yupwe

Hop to as many blogs in the challenge as possible. Grow and strengthen the community.

Please follow us!

bloglovin.com/blogs/blogging-from-a-to-z-april-challenge-3294742
http://www.a-to-zchallenge.com
@a.to.z.challenge     @atozchallenge
@AprilA2Z Our hashtag is #AtoZChallenge

Fall in Love with Blogs and Blog Hops Again!

February the Month Of Love: Image by Freepik

February is often thought of as the month of love. Here at the A to Z Blog Challenge, we're falling in love with Blogs and Blog Hops again! With my own blog, I have found my attention to it waxes and wanes throughout the year. I try so hard to keep updating it consistently, and I have definitely found that my best success has been through the community of bloggers (and the support of my husband and co-blogger!) and I am very much looking forward to my next round of A to Z Challenge posts to keep my momentum going!

So tell us, what are your favorite blog hops or blog challenges that you participate in throughout the year?

~Jayden R. Vincente

Erotic Fiction Blogger (adults only!)

jrvincente.com

 B is for Beauty

There is beauty in resilience, don't you think?

Whenever I see a rainbow after a storm, I'm reminded of the resilience of nature. The beauty that is encapsulated in this simple act of nature makes me think of other beautiful and resilient things in nature. I always think of all the animals who had to literally weather the storm. There is beauty in imagining the emerging of the animals from their shelters as the storm lets up and the sun begins to shine again.

As we embark on Day 2 of our A to Z Challenge, let's all remember the beauty in our resilience as writers, as bloggers, as people. 

Tell us about the beauty you find in resilience!

#AtoZChallenge W is for WHY

 

WHY?

Why do we do this? Why do we take the A to Z Challenge (many of us year after year after year)? Why do we challenge ourselves? Why do we blog at all? Many articles on many platforms have pointed out that blogging is slowly becoming less popular than other, more dynamic social media platforms. Why blog at all? And why do it so intensively for an entire month in April?

I am not claiming to have universal answers. Every one has to answer these WHY's (along with When, for Whom, and What) for themselves. But is important to keep in mind our own reasons for blogging, so that outside opinions can't easily affect us.

Why do you blog? Who is it for? Who is your audience? What do you want to achieve with your writing?

Why did you join the challenge? What do you get out of the experience? And when next year rolls around, are you willing to do it again?

See, me personally, I like blogs. I enjoy blogging. I like that it is static, leaving information easily available later on. I like it that it is written, because writing is an important medium for me. And I especially like it that there is a World of other bloggers out there, sharing whatever they are most enthusiastic about.

What about you? :)

#AtoZChallenge Q is for Questions

 

QUESTIONS. WE ALL HAVE THEM.

There are 10 days left of the challenge! You have all been wonderful and inspiring so far. Soaring or struggling to keep up, pantsing or planning, lurking or commenting, you are all doing great! Don't forget, this challenge, first and foremost, is about having fun. 

I am sure you have a bunch of new questions now. Or maybe old ones that you did not get to ask before. Feel free to ask them in the comments!

Here are some, from me to you, just out of curiosity:

Do you have a favorite blog or theme that you discovered in this year's challenge?

Which one was the most difficult letter to complete so far?

What was the nicest / most fun comment someone has left on your blog?

Did you end up adding something to your TBR pile / bucket list / travel plans, thanks to a post you read?

How are you planning on celebrating after you complete the challenge?

Keep going, keep blogging! :)

#AtoZChallenge I is for Integrity

The team's theme of the April Blogging from A to Z Challenge this year is:

ACCOMPLISHING YOUR DREAMS, AND THE DUALITY OF 22

If you are a freelancer, an entrepreneur, a self-employed content creator, an artist, or anything of the sort, you probably spend a whole lot of your time trying to promote your work online. Blogging might or might not be an integral part of that - or even the entire business in itself - but we are still constantly bombarded information on how to blogging bigger, better, more profitable. How to optimize content, posting frequency, posting times, social media shares, tags and hashtags. Sounds familiar?

This post is just here to remind you to take a break. Integrity is important. Your blog, your contant, first and foremost, has to be you. Accomplishing your dreams is not worth changing those dreams to fit some kind of an expectation. It is good to learn how to do your own thing better - but you don't need to change your content, your stories, your interests into something "more marketable." As cliché as it sounds: you are the content. The person, the personality, the enthusiasm, the dreams. All of it. Stay true to that.

Also, hey, we are done with the first full week of A to Z! How are you feeling? :)

Find the list of participants by clicking here.

#AtoZChallenge H Is For Happy

The team's theme of the April Blogging from A to Z Challenge this year is:
ACCOMPLISHING YOUR DREAMS, AND THE DUALITY OF 22

A lot of you are already experienced bloggers and don't need to hear this. Or maybe you do. But this is more for the newer bloggers out there, for whom maybe this is your first challenge, this is for you (but everyone's welcome to read along).

One of the reasons that I started blogging was because I saw a few blogs that were participating in the A to Z Challenge and thought "hey, that looks like fun, maybe I'll do it next year." The next year came along, and I joined up. I learned a lot about blogging that year, and it's grown from there. In short, the A to Z Challenge made a blogger out of me. How, you ask?

1. It taught me to set a schedule and stick to it. Before I did my first A to Z, I was posting whenever the spirit moved me. Whatever readers might be have been interested in reading me didn't know when they'd see another post from me, and few waited around to find out. Doing A to Z taught me that, when they when they knew when to look, they did. You don't have to be out here every day, like I am, but commit yourself to one day a week, or every two weeks, and make it the same day.

2. It taught me that, to get traffic, you have to give traffic. One way to let other bloggers know that you're out here is to comment on their blogs. More often than not, it results in a return visit. Plus, when other bloggers see your comments, they'll be curious to know who you are.

3. It taught me to find the joy in what I was doing. That's really what it's all about: having fun! Meet people from around the world, share your thoughts with them, write whatever's on your mind, have a few laughs along the way.... you get the idea. If you had fun writing it, they'll have fun reading it.

I had come into blogging thinking that I wanted to be a fiction writer. Part of the reason I didn't write on my blog initially was that I was trying to force story ideas out of my head. Fiction didn't make me happy, blogging did. I had more fun coming up with blog ideas than I did coming up with story ideas. Blogging made me happy.

I hope it makes you happy, too.

Does blogging make you happy? How?

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@a.to.z.challenge @atozchallenge
@AprilA2Z Our hashtag is #AtoZChallenge
Please follow us on social media.
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