#AtoZChallenge Better Book Discovery

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

It's letter "B "day on the A to Z Challenge blog. It is said that the second day of any challenge is the hardest. Motivation is pelted with realizations of the commitment needed to succeed. Scheduling and prioritizing become tangible instead of theoretical (inked-in instead of penciled-in 🖋🖉). 

Banish the voices that say you can't do this. Hundreds of bloggers JUST LIKE YOU have completed the challenge successfully for over a decade. Don't bow out!

What benefit can come from completing the challenge? Building a better blogging community, for one. 

And if you're using your blog to write a book, you might publish it one day!

https://shepherd.com/best-books/created-from-the-april-blogging-a-to-z-challenge

That's a list of books that exist right now because of this blogging challenge. How many of them have you read?

Shepherd.com has many book lists with various topics and themes. Over 40,000 people visit the site every month. And now our A to Z Challenge is there with a list of books that were written by bloggers like you who completed the A to Z Challenge in the past. A big thanks to Ben Fox for making this possible. 

When you're looking for a website with better book discovery tools, check out Shepherd.com. 

Authors recommend books and market their own for free on this site. Reach out with a theme idea for a list of five books that go along with a book of your own. 📚

Email: forauthors@shepherd.com
https://twitter.com/bwb
https://www.linkedin.com/in/bweeb

Have you ever published a book you wrote during and because of the A to Z Challenge?

The first of three #AtoZChallenge 2022 #AZchat sessions on social media is today.
📅 April 2 ⏰ 11pm GMT
See the time in your area:
https://www.timeanddate.com/worldclock/fixedtime.html


bloglovin.com/blogs/blogging-from-a-to-z-april-challenge-3294742
@a.to.z.challenge @atozchallenge
@AprilA2Z Our hashtag is #AtoZChallenge
Please follow us on social media.

Sign up for the 2022 challenge? Click this:
https://forms.gle/pN8xCbvnxGLScj4V8

File, Make a Copy of the Master List for yourself! Click this:
https://tinyurl.com/AtoZ22
Be sure your copy is updated with everyone who signed up for the challenge. Hopping to other blogs to leave comments is half of the challenge!

Get your 2022 merchandise here: 
https://www.redbubble.com/shop/ap/103818836

So... what exactly is a Storyteller?

Did you know that a total of ten professional storytellers participated in the A to Z Challenge this year? That's like, nine more than last year. I know, because I am one of them. Also, I compiled a list of their blogs so you can go and check them out for yourself.
The A to Z challenge is all about stories. Written stories. Musical stories. Old stories. New stories. Fantasy stories. Romantic stories. Stories in pictures. Histories. As people of the word, we are all too familiar with the idea of story.
So, what am I doing here exactly with a title like that?

Let me introduce myself first. I am your friendly neighborhood A to Z minion, one of the Seven Ladies of #TeamDamyanti. My name is Csenge, I am originally from Hungary, and I am a professional storyteller. I go to schools, libraries, festivals, museums and other interesting places, and I tell stories for a living. On stage. By heart. From memory. I travel around the world, I collect new tales wherever I go, and I bring them home to my audiences.
(Okay, so maybe I hoard them like a squirrel. So what? Squirrels are cute.)
 I mostly work with folktales, fairy tales, myths, legends and epics (lots of epics). I am crazy about old stories, long stories, heroes, adventures, and imaginary places. I also tell and translate a lot of Hungarian folktales into English for international audiences.
I decided to use my time in the A to Z spotlight to talk about some of these tales, what we can do with them as storytellers, and why they are important. I am going to post every 1st and 3rd Wednesday of the month, and talk about a special topic within storytelling. Today's post was only meant to be an introduction, so without any further ado, I'll announce the next theme right now:

Ladies and Gentlemen, mark your calendars and check your blog feeds, because on Wednesday, May 21st, the A to Z Blog will be taken over by...
TRICKSTERS!!!
from all around the world.

In the meantime, if you are interested in stories, you can check out my latest book, Tales of Superhuman Powers. It is a collection of 55 folktales and legends with superpowers in them - everything from telekinesis to laser eye beams (yeah, really). It started out as a bet to see if I could find at least one traditional story for every superpower on my list. The book includes four categories (physical, mental, elemental, and transitional), and 61 individual powers. It was the most fun I have ever had with research (I mentioned some of the tales in my A to Z posts both this year and last year).
If you ever wanted to be the coolest person in a room full of teenagers, I strongly suggest take a look at some of these stories.

Also, feel free to visit either one of my two blogs:

The Multicolored Diary - Adventures in storytelling. This April I filled it with folktales and fairy tales about colors, from the Azure Lion to Zaffre and Alchemy.

MopDog - The crazy thing about Hungarians... On this blog I post weird and amusing things from Hungarian culture and history. This year's A to Z ran from the Aggressive Piglet all the way to Zanzibar music. Also, the blog features a lot of gifs about puli dogs. You have been warned.

You can follow me on Twitter under the handle @TarkabarkaHolgy

F is for Fight Club

As a librarian, I'm often asked for book suggestions.  To be sure, I can usually find a book for just about anyone.  So, for letter F I would share an unusual book with you. The Title?

Fight Club by Chuck Palahniuk 

photo courtesy Goodreads.com

Yes, Fight Club was a book before it was a movie.  Fight Club is a cult classic!  

An underground classic since its first publication in 1996, Fight Club is now recognized as one of the most original and provocative novels published in this decade. Chuck Palahniuk's darkly funny first novel tells the story of a godforsaken young man who discovers that his rage at living in a world filled with failure and lies cannot be pacified by an empty consumer culture. Relief for him and his disenfranchised peers comes in the form of secret after-hours boxing matches held in the basements of bars. Fight Club is the brainchild of Tyler Durden, who thinks he has found a way for himself and his friends to live beyond their confining and stultifying lives. But in Tyler's world there are no rules, no limits, no brakes.

 I'll be honest. I watched the movie mostly with a look of confused disgust on my face.  I didn't get all the reason for the violence but I enjoyed being in the know and being able to quote classic lines as if I belonged to an elite group! Lines like: The first rule of Fight Club is: You do not talk about Fight Club. The second rule of Fight Club is: You do not talk about Fight Club.

Ironically, many bookish people and librarians know this line too.  Kinda makes you not want to cross that librarian on a bad day, huh? So that's only one book that starts with the letter F.  Surely you can think of another? 

List the title in your comments; keep it clean, people; my mum reads my work!  :)

How Important is #Collaboration in the #Blogging Community? #atozchallenge

Composers for Relief: An Album of Collaboration

Arlee Bird started the A to Z April Blogging Challenge to encourage a feeling of community amongst bloggers-- scores of bloggers have benefited through this challenge and will do so again this year. This was made possible through the collaboration of the co-hosts, (Lee, Alex, Tina,  Jeremy, Nicole, Stephen, Heather, AJ, MJ Pam, and yours truly,of course.

Today, one of the members of #TeamDamyanti , +Samantha Geary Jones, is here with a post on collaboration, and how it resulted in an awesome project that might help lives come back to normal in the typhoon-ravaged areas of Philippines. Take it away, +Samantha!

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We all have hopes and dreams. Our hope is our strength. It’s what inspires us to be greater. What pushes us to venture beyond what we know and take a chance. A chance to inspire. A chance to be inspired. A chance to make a difference.

Imagine what we can accomplish, together.

When talents and dreams converge--that’s when the real magic begins.

And that’s exactly what happened in December of 2013. In the tragic wake of the worst natural disaster in Philippines history, over 30 compassionate composers and 28 amazing authors from across the globe, collaborated on a compassionate project to support the relief efforts in the most devastated areas ravaged by Super Typhoon Yolanda.

The charity event began with the Composers for Relief album--28 tracks embodying a sense of hope and triumph from the brilliant minds of film composers and musicians. Each track inspired an author’s tale, reflecting the soul of the notes with well woven words. These 29 stories transport you Beyond the Binding of the imagination in heart pounding sci fi, enchanting fantasy and gripping slices of realism.

Even now, the collaboration has captured the creative minds of film students at Limkokwing University of Creative Technology in Malaysia, whose GLOBAL VISUAL HARMONIES project, under the direction of Ray Kril, adds a stunning element of hope in the form of short films inspired by the album.

 

I can’t think of a better way to build a community--one that transcends crafts and continents, cultures and creeds. Consider collaborating with your fellow bloggers and friends, authors and artists, musicians and filmmakers. 

That’s what the A to Z challenge is all about, coming together as a blogging community. In this challenge bloggers from all fields are welcomed, and it can become a cauldron of collaborative creativity.

Let’s take it to the next level-- reach out to one another. Take a chance. YOU can make a difference--you need only try. It’s amazing what we can accomplish, together. 

Begin the journey today by visiting the other bloggers in the A to Z Challenge Sign-up list. Or take part in the A to Z Challenge Theme Reveal. By the time the challenge starts, you would have made friends, and who knows, even thought of a project to do together-- which would enrich your life, and that of others.

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Beyond the Binding is available NOW on Amazon & Smashwords in all ebook formats . Cover designed by Jennifer Redstreake Geary

Composers for Relief is available NOW on ITunes, Amazon, CDBaby & Spotify

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 Have you taken part in a creative, collaborative project? Teamed with other bloggers to create something new, hosted a blogging event together? Has the A to Z challenge resulted in creative ideas of collaboration for you?

Don't Get Busted by the Photo Police: #atozchallenge advice

Hi friends (waving), PammyPam here!  If you're like me, you love love love to have photos on your blog.  Especially those big, bright, and beautiful (see what I did there) photos that are pin worth (as in Pinterest)! The problem is, how do you find these photos?

To be sure, there are many places on the internet that offer photos.  You can use pay services or copyright free sites, as well.  These are great ideas but you MUST remember to correctly cite the owner of the pics or you could end up with a visit from the photo police.  But what if you don't have the time or the notion to find just the right pic for your blog?

Do what I do, my friends, and take your own photos.

Yep, take your own photos.

If you have a camera enabled phone or even a small digital camera, you can become your own photographer! There are many benefits to using your own photos:

• They are free (no costs to join)
• They are yours to use again and again
• You control how they are used 
• Did I mention they're free?
• You can get exactly the shot you want

See? You can't lose with taking you're own photos.  I blog about books and there is nothing easier than going to my bookshelf, pulling out a book and staging it exactly the way I want it.  Maybe I want a shot of a dog reading a book? Easy, just go grab the dog, some doggie treats, and BAM. Done. Or perhaps I want that all to common Pinterest pic of a stack of books with a tea cup on top? Simple; snag the books I want, set them on the table with a tea cup, get down level with the books and POOF! Instant pic. See?

Once you've taken your photos, upload them to a photo editing site to create them to your liking ( I like picmonkey).  BE SURE TO WATERMARK THEM WITH YOUR BLOG NAME.  Save the photos and VOILA!  Not only do you have customized photos for your blog post, now you don't have to worry about the photo police coming to get you! 

Here's a tip: My A to Z Challenge always includes book titles; I start taking photos of books early to ensure I find a book for each letter of the alphabet. I do this process in steps. 

• Keep a list of the letters you need pics for
• Take the photos. 
• Upload them to a photo editing site and edit (make a collage!)
• Save new photo with the title of the book
• Upload to blog
• Write blog post

Don't try to do all of the steps in one sitting. You'll go batty.  Remember, this is supposed to be fun and to keep you from getting busted by the photo police; if you make it too difficult you might not keep up with it.  Slow and steady wins the race here, folks.

Where do you find your photos?

PammyPam

How Many Books Have Resulted from the A to Z Challenge?

 
         I've been wondering how many books have come about as a direct result of the Blogging from A to Z Challenge?    We should probably start keeping track--maybe create a special page on this site to promote them.   I know there have been quite a few since the Challenge began in 2010.

          When I first put out the call to join me in blogging through the alphabet in April of 2010, coming up with an A to Z inspired book was not something I even thought of.   A few participants such as Damyanti and Doris Plaster caught on quick and put out books based on their A to Z posts.   Later I ran across some others who also used the A to Z as a publishing catalyst.  Unfortunately I negligently failed to keep track of those authors.

         Subsequent Challenges have seen outpourings of even more books.  Some I've heard about, while others will catch my attention after the fact when I happen to run across them.  What I do know is that the Blogging from A to Z Challenge has been instrumental in getting many interesting and unique books in the marketplace.

        We'd like to hear from you if you have authored one of these books.  You can use this blog as a forum for getting word out about your A to Z inspired book.  Let us know if you'd like to submit a guest post about your book.  Tell us about how you went about putting your book together and what kind of response you received.

       Or perhaps you are considering doing an A to Z book in a future Challenge.  We'd like to hear your thoughts about that as well.   The concept of A to Z inspired books is of interest to many who have participated in a past Challenge or plan to participate in a future one.

         If you've already published an A to Z project, please let us know in the comments and provide links for more information and maybe we can compile the list for reader reference.

          Next Monday August 26th we will be joined by Pam Williams whose A to Z Devotions for Writers was recently released.   Be sure to return to hear her story about how the book came about.

          Have you published a work based on your experience with the A to Z Challenge?   Have you thought about putting one together?   Can you think of any books that have been the direct result of Blogging from A to Z?

       

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