Pearson Report weighs in on prepping for a Challenge

Last April was my first attempt at doing the A to Z Challenge.

I signed up on April 1st; I had only found out about it on March 30th.

By letter “C” I had my groove on and was letting the juices flow.

Having no time to prepare for the challenge I was clearly at a disadvantage - my day to day activities did feel the pinch and sleep was lost in the process...but, By George I sure had fun!

Is it necessary to have your posts finished and ready to hit the Publish Button well before April?

Some say yes, I say not completely...let me explain.

It is a challenge set forth for the month of April, to be done in April...so why all the fuss about having everything finished before the Challenge has even started?

Well, I imagine getting organized early falls into a few areas of concern; finding a theme; having the available time; commitment to a day job; family obligations; other interests...and so on.

All of these areas do affect how much time we spend blogging and therefore a little preparation can go a long way in helping us participate in a Challenge that has very clear time constraints, without messing up our lives completely. Right?

It’s no different than preparing for your first marathon - you don’t just lace up your runners, arrive at the starting line and run twenty-six mile without some preparation.

Key word here is “preparation”; so when April 1st rolls around you can enjoy the process of “doing” the Challenge because you are ready, organized and have prepared for it.

Now, that being said, I will have much, if not all, of my “stuff” done because, as a co-host, I want to spend every free minute, in the month of April, visiting YOU and reading your posts!

What are your “preparation” strategies for this upcoming A to Z Challenge?

Are all of your posts finished and ready to go? If so, what will you be doing in April? 

Happy Blogging!
JENNYPEARSON

Inspiration for your posts

Hey A to Z bloggers! 

I am really excited to be a part of the team this year and I am looking forward to the challenge in April.  And that is just what I am here to talk about.  (Well of course it is, what else would I talk about on the A to Z blog?) 

I know that there have been many comments since the A to Z team was announced this year that bloggers were terrified to do the challenge.  Lots of us (myself included) aren’t/ weren’t sure what to blog about starting from A to Z.   And I also know that many participants from last year gave encouragement saying things like ‘Once you know what you want to blog about, the rest is as easy as the ABC’s!  (Okay I don’t know if anyone Actually said it like that . . . but you get my point).

Well after all the encouragement I forced myself to buck up and think of some really good idea’s to blog about.  And guess what!  It worked!  I know what I am blogging about for the entire month of April.  And I am here to help you get some ideas. 

What helped me was thinking about what I have posted about before, what posts of mine have gotten the most attention and what information I have that I can give that no one else can.  My entire alphabet of posts for April are all based on Inspiration. 

Another example:  I found a blog all about camping and hiking and doing things related to that.  The person running the blog talked about doing the A to Z challenge and that all their posts would be camping related. 

So there are two examples to help you out!  And here are just a few ideas’ you could use:

Favorite Books/ Authors, Mythology, Mythical creatures, Music, Movies, Writing Experiences, Fairies

Dragons (Yes I am pretty sure you could write 26 posts about Dragons and/or Fairies alone.  I know I could write at least that many on Dragons)

Hobbies (of any kind)

The list is never- ending.  If you truly cannot think of anything to write about, read the dictionary.  (That’s always fun whether you’re doing it for research or fun anyway, and you would be amazed at how many words you can find that you never heard before!) 

Best of luck!  I look forward to seeing what everyone comes up with in April!

Konstanz

A Real Challenge for the Moody Ones: guest jnana from Spill Beans

          From its inception the Blogging from A to Z April Challenge has been an international event with bloggers from nearly all continents participating.  In 2012 we will be joined by jnana from Spill Beans.  Jnana blogs from Dubai.  

A Real Challenge for the Moody Ones

Image via Wikipedia     For some writers, writing is a ritual. They wake up with a fresh mind and sit down typing their daily blogposts as they sip their morning coffee. For other writers, it is a hobby. They wait for that time of the day when there's no urgent work, and then happily spend their free time spilling out their day's energy into writing.

       But for me, writing is all about my mood. I could go a month without writing anything, simply because I don't feel like it. Or I could be sitting on the metro after a long, tiring day when I get the sudden urge to write. I could be going to bed when I'd randomly get a new idea for a blogpost, and hurry to write it all before it slips through my very slippery mind.

       All of us Moody Writers out there have only one solution to our writing habits: self-discipline. Which is why I have resolved to participate in this April's Blogging from A to Z Challenge. It's time I start dragging the writing by its leash to me, rather than waiting for it to come to me. 

      I've read of the many different plans my fellow participants are coming up with for this year's Challenge. Frankly, if I don't arrive with a creative theme or unique edge, I'd still be happy with just being able to conquer the hugest challenge of having to post every day. 

     Thank you for coming up with this idea. I hope to keep up with this challenge and declare myself at the end of it: an un-moodified writer!

      And thank you jnana for your interesting take on how bloggers can benefit from Blogging from A to Z.   Be sure to stop by jnana's blog at Spill Beans--say hello and maybe become a new follower.

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