Rappelling Down the Mountain: 2013 A to Z Challenge Reflections from Jess Topper

As I was reading reflections posts, I invited some bloggers who I thought did an excellent job sharing their April journey with us. This is Jess Topper with her unique take on the Challenge. 

We Arrived. We Blogged. We Conquered. Congrats to my fellow A to Zers who made it through the alphabet in April!

This was my second year attempting, and completing, the Challenge. I feel a little wiser and well-traveled after having made the journey. In my 2012 Reflections post, I likened the challenge to one of those “around the world” parties we used to have in the dorms at college. I was new to the blogging world and eagerly flitted around like a social butterfly, discovering new sites and making new friends.

This year, the Challenge was a bit like mountain climbing. Not in the sense you might think of, starting at the bottom and working my way up to the pinnacle. No, I already knew what the top looked like. At the finish line, the air is clearer, the view is great. I remembered that from May 1st last year! No, the 2013 Challenge felt more like rappelling (or abseiling, as the rest of the world calls it).

Photo credit: © Jarek Tuszynski / Wikimedia Commons

With over 1600 brave bloggers on the sign up list, I attempted to visit as many as I could as I propelled myself through my own Challenge. I tried to follow systematically, starting by using the optional subject headings that were available this year (GREAT OPTION). I hit on the Music sites first, since my theme was the Music-Fan Connection. On days when I chatted about secondary subjects within my theme (parenting, travel, politics, etc), I tried to hit as many sites as I could find in those categories, and so on.  But I also visited haphazardly, clicking on links found though the twitter #AtoZChallenge hashtag, and through the daily status posts on the A to Z Facebook page.

I felt like my feet never touched the same place twice as I rappelled through as many blogs as I could, leaving comments as my footprints.

Foot traffic on my own blog was lighter than last year, but I really appreciated those who came and took the time to comment. The real rock star standouts for me were Another Clean Slate (great writing), Some Dark Romantic (for co-hosting the Big Reveal and keeping the A to Z HOT!), messymimi’s meanderings (great facts), Bibsey (2nd year of alphabetic hilarity, holla!),Whole Foods Living (yum), and Ramblings of a Silly Girl (a city girl after my own heart).

Now, I’m at the bottom of the mountain, dusting off my hands and wiping the sweat from my brow. I’m giving a wave up to all the A to Z winners this year at the top, especially those new to the Challenge in 2013. I’m off to climb another mountain as I attempt to finish writing my second novel, but I hope to take breaks along that journey and visit more of my A to Z comrades.

Thanks to the Arlee Bird and the entire A to Z crew for hosting!1600 b

Thanks, Jess for sharing your thoughts on this larger stage. The rest of you folks – go visit her!

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Blogging Basics: Guest Hosting

Last week we discussed guest posting, where you formulate a post to go up on someone else's blog.  This week, let's look at being the host and putting someone else's post up on your blog.

The five pointers last week were: 1. Choose a Relevant Host Blog, 2. Choose a Relevant Blog Topic, 3. Be Present/Visit the Commenters, 4. Link to Your Site, 5. Thank your Host.

Just as guest posting on another blog can expose you to new readers, hosting someone else can bring guests by your blog that have been led there by the promise of an interesting post from the other blogger.  Thus, you get introduced to their readers, and they see what you have to offer.

Some basic pointers for guest hosting.

1. Establish rules.  Be sure the guest poster knows what you expect from them, and any rules you may have that are applicable to your blog.  When do you want their post by?  Do you have specific formatting rules?  Do they need to watch their language?  Do you want a specific length?  How would you like it submitted (text, html)?  Think carefully about what you expect from them and make sure to make it clear from the beginning, for the benefit of both of you.  If you want a specific topic or theme covered, be clear on that, as well.

2. Introduce them.  Write a nice introduction about your guest poster.  Be sure to include links to their blog or website, and anything else you might want to link to (Facebook, Twitter, links to purchase their books, etc.).  Consider including their image or their most recent book cover.  Don't know what to say?  Think about how a talk show host might introduce them, or visit other blogs they have guested on.

3. Be on time.  If their guest post is supposed to go up on Monday, the 23rd, be sure you've got it formatted and posted on Monday, the 23rd.  Let your guest know when you will be posting it.  If you post at a specific time, let them know that, as well.  You want them to be able to cross-promote, so give them the tools to do so.

4. Be present.  This one sounds familiar, doesn't it?  Well, it applies here, too.  Even though you are playing host instead of poster, it's still good for you to be there to respond to comments and to visit the commenters. After all, they took the time to visit your blog, even if it was to read someone else's post.  Bear in mind that many of the comments will be from your readers, and you want to maintain that relationship and show your appreciation for their support of your guest poster.

5. Thank your guest.  Yep, another one that sounds familiar.  Your guest put a lot of work into writing a quality piece for your blog, as well as (hopefully) cross-promoting and bringing people over to visit you.  Thank them for their time and for their post.

Hosting a guest can be as beneficial as guesting on someone else's blog.  Also important is that you're forging a relationship with another blogger, so try to make it a positive interaction for both of you.

May you find your Muse.

Shannon
The Warrior Muse

Challenge Participant Feature - Mary Montague Sikes!

Today’s Challenge Participate Feature is Mary Montague Sikes!

For the Challenge, Mary decided to do an animal painting a day, which I thought was very ambitious. Not only did she succeed, her paintings were beautiful. Please welcome Mary!

Alex, thank you for having me as part of the A to Z feature!

What made you choose your theme of a painting a day?

For many years, I've admired people who made the effort to create a new work of art every day. There are even web sites devoted to promoting that work. I thought that the challenge was the perfect opportunity to try out A Painting A Day.

Did you ever worry you wouldn’t be able to create a new painting every day?

Every day, I worried and wondered if I would actually be able to pull off yet another painting. That was especially true while I was in Boone, NC taking a workshop in experimental painting. It was hard to shift creative gears and paint an animal and post it in just a little over an hour for each of four days.

Which one was your favorite?

It's really hard to choose. I have them spread around the walls of my studio right now. The possum and the jaguar are among my favorites, possibly because I like the design of the background foliage in each of those paintings. My husband likes the X-Ray Tetra best. While I was working on them, I found I liked the newest work best on most days.

Did you work from a photo or create them from scratch?

I worked from photos—mostly that I took myself or borrowed from my daughter, Amy, who took animal pictures while visiting Tasmania last year. It would be hard to create animal paintings from scratch unless they were fantasy images.

Did you have a picture of a unicorn?

I looked at unicorn paintings on the Internet to get ideas then used the photo I took of the horse sculpture in Avon, Colorado and embellished it with a horn! I used that same photograph when I painted the horse for the A to Z Challenge.

What do you intend to do with the paintings now?

I took six of the animal paintings with me to Tides Inn for display on Memorial Day weekend. I also printed out a greeting card for each of the animals and sold them at the Art Marketplace set up at the Inn. The gift shop manager there kept all I had left, except for the alligator and the iguana. Turns out she doesn't like reptiles. I'm looking for a gallery or a place that would like to display all the animal paintings together in a show. Several people urged me to contact publishers of children's books with a proposal. I hope to do that as well. It's hard to pursue those things when I want to keep on painting instead!

Do you know what you’ll do for next year’s Challenge?

I loved doing the painting a day and would like to try something similar for next year. However, I don't know what subject might work best. I need to choose something that will keep up my enthusiasm to the last day!

As a bonus, from this year's A Painting A Day for the A to Z Challenge, I have a new painting almost finished on the wall of my studio. It's 30" x 42" acrylic on stretched canvas. For several years, the canvas has been leaning on the floor roughly sketched out with charcoal. Each day in April (except for the time in Boone), I used the leftover acrylics on my palette from the Challenge painting on this new work. I haven't named it yet but hope to have it completed in early June. I'll unveil it then! What a nice surprise to get an extra painting from A to Z!

Thank you, Mary! Your paintings rocked.

Co-host Ninja Captain Alex is the author of Best Sellers CassaStar and CassaFire and his blog can be found HERE