First Annual #AtoZChallenge Book Reviews, Tour, and Blog Hop SIGN UP

From now until January 18, you can sign up for the First Annual #AtoZChallenge Book Reviews, Tour, and Blog Hop!

This is ONLY for books written as a result of the Blogging from A to Z Challenge.

Bloggers who took their April A to Z posts and created books from them.

• Just because a writer took place in the challenge does not mean they have authored a book BECAUSE of the challenge.
• You will be asked to provide a link to the challenge blog posts so we can verify your participation.
• This is FREE. None of the websites hosting will ask you for payment.
• If you want your book reviewed, you may be asked to provide review copies.
• If you have more than one book out because of the challenge, you will need to fill out the form more than once.

The form for authors is below and also at: https://goo.gl/forms/mrGYtrmioKdE6Jjk1

BOOK BLOGGERS who have previously taken part in the Blogging from A to Z Challenge:

If you are a book blogger, or wish to offer a book review and/ or book tour stop, please read this:

• Only books written because of the challenge will be offered. Expect many to be self-published or small press.
• You will be asked to provide a link to your prior challenge blog posts so we can verify your participation.
• This is FREE. None of the websites hosting will get paid for these tours or reviews. (You will likely get an increase in traffic though.)
• If you are willing to review books, that's great! We will ask for details on the form. You may opt to review during this event, or during the April A to Z challenge 2019, or any time during 2019.
• You may also sign up to only offer tour stops.
• You will only be offered books that match your criteria. See the form.

The form for bloggers is below and also at: https://goo.gl/forms/RH0a0tvm5AxIqqmg1

Yes, you may be an author and opt to also sign up for the blogger option. Yes, you may be a blogger/ reviewer who also wrote a book for the challenge and sign up for the author option. In other words, yes, you may do both.

The April Blogging from A to Z Challenge is not only for writers and book bloggers. We are interested in ideas on how we could offer something similar to this for our other categories. As these are our two most popular ones though, it made sense to start here.

FOR AUTHORS

FOR BLOGGERS IN THIS EVENT

(This event being the "First Annual #AtoZChallenge Book Reviews, Tour, and Blog Hop")


First Annual #AtoZChallenge Book Reviews, Tour, and Blog Hop
WEEKDAYS in February 4 to 28 2019
19 days total

Be sure to also stop back on
March 1 2019
when the Tenth Anniversary of the April Blogging from A to Z Challenge sign ups OPEN
and
March 18 2019
for the
THEME REVEAL sign up!

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Answers to FAQs: *update*
As long as the posts from the A to Z challenge were your motivation, inspiration, the "push" to get you to go from idea to book, sure, the book counts. If you can say something like, "If I hadn't done the challenge, I might not have written this down, and thus wouldn't have moved on to create a book," you're good.
If you have MOVED blogs, please indicate this. We will need to verify your previous participation.

Embracing challenges from A to Z: Notes from a 4-time challenge winner by Laura Roberts

Embracing challenges from A to Z:
Notes from a 4-time challenge winner by Laura Roberts 

       

           The annual Blogging from A to Z April Challenge has become a rite of passage for me. I can't remember how I first discovered its existence, but I do remember how intrigued I was by the notion of blogging on a daily basis, focusing on every letter of the alphabet – one at a time – as a special challenge.

         The first year I joined the challenge was 2012. Upon discovering that the organizers suggested choosing a theme to help keep your blogging on track, I decided to write about Awesome Lady Authors. The goal was to combat an irritating trend I'd noticed in the media, which seems to focus predominantly on male authors, despite the fact that far more women are reading – and writing – than men. I wanted to play up the female writers I knew and loved, and to discover more of them throughout the month. Writing about female authors based on the first letters of their last names, I discovered the excellent works of Xue Xinran (a double X, as I've always been a bit of an overachiever), and got a chance to promote the works of several authors I'm friends with, like poet Gillian Sze and spoken word performance artist Catherine Kidd. I also highlighted some of my childhood favorites, like Beverly Cleary (author of the Ramona books) and Louise Fitzhugh (author of my all-time fave Harriet the Spy). The whole exercise made me feel a lot more connected to my own writing, on a personal level that I had previously abandoned in my blogging, and seemed to resonate with fellow A to Z participants as well. But that was just the beginning.

         In 2013 I joined the challenge again. Having published the first book in my erotica series, Naked Montreal, the month before, I wanted to give my readers a less sexually-charged point of entry. I realized that many of my American readers knew little or nothing about the Canadian city of Montreal, and I wanted to help them get to know this alluring, French-speaking "Paris of America," through personal anecdotes about the time I'd spent there. So I wrote chose the theme "Montreal from A to Z," and went for it. Again, I felt inspired by the challenge, excited to share my thoughts, and wanted to keep going! After the 2013 challenge was over, I decided to turn my Montreal posts into a book. In November of that year, I finally published them as Montreal from A to Z.

          In 2014, I went a little more risqué. Drawing on my past as a sex columnist, I wrote nonfictional posts on the subject of Sex Toys from A to Z. And, as per my 2013 challenge, I published the results as Play With Me: Sex Toys from A to Z.

            Which brings us to 2015! This year I decided to double-down on my challenge themes. At my newly minted blog, Laura Roberts Books, I would write about my new hometown, San Diego, highlighting some of its most interesting hotspots, as well as the unusual bits and pieces that might not make the typical guidebook under the banner of "San Diego from A to Z."

           Meanwhile, at my erotica blog over at Buttontapper Press, I would also write about Sexy San Diego – focusing on more X-rated sights and performances you can find in the city. That way I'd have not one but two books completed at the end of April. I'm happy to report that I finished both of my blogging challenges successfully this year, despite the fact that it was twice as much work. The A to Z Challenge has given me plenty of material for my new books, one of which is launching today! Born from my April blog posts, along with plenty of bonus material, San Diego from A to Z hits shelves today at Amazon. I hope you'll give it a read, and that it will help inspire you to turn your own A to Z Challenge posts into a book.

       Visit Laura Roberts Books for her blog and past A to Z posts.

#AtoZChallenge #Book Launch: Do You have Imaginary Friends?

         The A to Z Challenge has given birth to many books (my post about them here), and the latest to hit the stores is Imaginary Friends by Melanie Lee. 

         It has been published by MPH, Malaysia, and recently I went to the book launch in Singapore-- a fantastic event, full of warmth and good cheer!
          Melanie wrote this book inspired by the A to Z Challenge, writing a story a day, and then tweaking and polishing each to bring it to a publishable level.
        

What do an overachieving octopus, a zealous zither and a hopeless hippo have in common? They're all part of the zany world of Imaginary Friends, a collection of 26 hilarious, satirical tales by Melanie Lee. Note: This is NOT a children's book. These fun fables are for the BIG kids, the young-at-heart adults who love laughs and poking fun at the silly grown-up world!

Imaginary Friends on Amazon

     The Author Melanie Lee, and Illustrator, Arif Rafhan

 
MORE ABOUT IMAGINARY FRIENDS:

 A SUCCESSFUL EBOOK HIT IN KOBO IMAGINARY FRIENDS was first released as an e-book of witty, original fables targeted at teens and adults. It has done remarkably well since its debut, shooting up the Kobo Top 50 chart and being picked up by e-book vendors from around the world, hence the subsequent release of it in Print version. 

           Originally published by MPH Digital (a subsidiary of MPH Group Publishing), IMAGINARY FRIENDS made it into the Kobo Top 50 in the week of its release and even briefly touched the No. 2 spot. Launched in mid-October2013, IMAGINARY FRIENDS (at the time of writing) was still in the Kobo Top 15 under several categories. At first glance, Imaginary Friends may look like a typical children's book but its sophisticated wit and references to modern pop culture make it an enjoyable read for New Adults.

       I found the book entertaining on different levels-- a feast for the imagination, with fluid illustrations, and a bite in the writing that only got enhanced by the moral of each story. As the author said at the launch, the morals are a way to end each story with a snap. I think the morals bring the stories out in relief, and I spent happy two hours reading all the stories. 

          Imaginary Friends is also available on Amazon. If you’d like to buy the print edition, you can buy it from MPH Online (they do international deliveries). If you’re from Singapore or Malaysia, the book is available at MPH and Kinokuniya bookstores. If you’d like to buy the ebook version, it’s available on Amazon and Kobo.

          Melanie Lee is a freelance writer based in Singapore. You can find her at her site, her blog or talk to her on twitter: @melanderings and her Facebook Page.

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Have you thought of compiling your A to Z posts into a book? Would you enjoy a book like Imaginary Friends? If yes, please leave a comment below, and Melanie would randomly choose two commenters-- she has an ebook and a physical copy to give away! To support this excellent author, consider buying the book-- it makes a sweet little gift, I'm told-- and share this post on social media. Have a question for Melanie? Ask away in the comments!