#atozchallenge Have you … Huh? Huh? Huh?

With the Challenge approximately a month away, now would be a good time to take stock of where we're at and what's left to be done. Have you …

   a.    Invited people to participate?

   b.    Shared information about the Challenge via social media?

   c.    Decided on a theme?

   d.    Signed up for the A-Z Theme Reveal,   which is on March 21, 2016?

   e.    Done any research on your topic of choice?

   f.     Written up any of your posts as yet?

   g.    Scheduled said posts for the designated dates?

   h.   Gone down the list of A-Z participants and checked out a few new blogs?

     If you haven't done any of the above, now is an excellent time to get moving so you'll have more time during the Challenge to blog hop, socialize, and stay ahead of the game.

Have fun as you prepare to rock the Challenge!

#atozchallenge Blog Check Up in 7 Steps

       Here's some good words of advice from one of Arlee Bird's A to Z Ambassadors team.  

Blog Check Up in 7 Steps

Guest post by J Lenni Dorner

The April A to Z Challenge is fast approaching. Time to do a Blog Check Up! I've encountered many blogs that need a few minutes of tender loving care. Here's a seven-step checklist to help you:

Step 1- Using a computer (not a phone or tablet), surf to your webpage. Not your admin area, but the page that the public sees. Do you like the way it looks? If not, note what you want to change. Use the A to Z list to surf to three other blogs (any random three), then surf back to your own. Do you still like how it looks? (This is a color test.)

Step 2- Click on your links. Does your Twitter icon go to your Twitter page? (As opposed to going to "https://twitter.com/http://twitter.com/username" If you think I made that example up, you haven't clicked on as many Twitter icons as I have. I found that error 42 times last year.) Check your Facebook link, Pinterest link, Instagram link, etc.

Step 3- Even though I just discussed clicking your links, I'm going to make this a step onto itself. Check your Goodreads icon. (Skip this step if you don't use Goodreads.) People come to your blog to connect with YOU. If you have a Goodreads icon and it goes to Goodreads.com instead of to your Goodreads profile, that isn't helping you or your blog. (Unless, perhaps, you're getting paid for that click.)

I see many people making this mistake. Go to https://www.goodreads.com/user/edit and click on Widgets. There you will find pre-written code that will link your guests to you. It gives you various options to suit your needs.

Step 4- Can your blog be followed? You just joined a massive blog hop. A majority of bloggers who make this commitment do so because they want to be found, heard, and followed. The marketing blogs will tell you to create an email list for your blog army. That's certainly good advice.

I'm going to toss in that you should offer at least one other method. Why? Because some people will visit over 300 blogs in April. They do not necessarily want 300 new emails a day, a week, or a month. However, those same people might follow your blog with services such as:

·         BlogLovin'

·         LinkyFollowers

·         Networked Blogs (limit of 200 blogs that a person can follow, requires Facebook)

·         Google Friend Connect (only on Blogger, possibly being phased out)

·         Wordpress Reader (only those with a Wordpress account can use)

·         RSS feeds (several options for those people who use that service, but must be set up correctly)

Step 5- Site rating. Look over your blog posts. If you have adult material, you need to note this up front. Most importantly, you NEED to have an AC label on your link at the challenge sign up page OR YOU WILL BE REMOVED.

What is adult content?

·         Excessive Violence — If your blog reads like a how-to guide for Hannibal Lecter, you have excessive violence. If you've written the A to Z guide of how to beat up anyone, make bombs, and kill without detection, you have excessive violence.

·         Nudity for sexual purposes — If you write erotica, you have adult content. This gets tricky with art blogs. If you fall into a gray area, ask the challenge hosts for a ruling before April.

·         Strong and frequent harsh language — If the F word is being used as a verb, or it is used more than three times in a blog post, that is considered adult content. If your every blog post drops at least three curse words, that is adult content.

Adult Content blogs are not written for children. The purpose of the rating is to protect the young and those sensitive to such topics. Those people are not the core audience for such blogs, would not follow such blogs, and possibly present legal trouble if they land on adult blogs. The hosts and their volunteer teams take on the responsibility of keeping the challenge safe and legal for everyone. Please be respectful of this.

Step 6- Check your site on a mobile version (smartphone, some tablets). Can people still access your social media? (If that's important to you.) Do you like the look of your blog?

Step 7- Is your blog a blog? There's always someone trying to get their "click to buy sunglasses" site in the linky. Guess what? They get removed. The difference between a selling website and a blog that has some items for sale is all about content. There must be actual posts with actual content that people want to enjoy.

There are plenty of good people who are willing to help you get your blog ready for the challenge. This is the time and place to ask.

J Lenni Dorner is a speculative fiction and reference guide author who blogs at: http://jlennidornerblog.what-are-they.com

This is the fifth year that J is taking place in the A to Z Challenge, and the second year serving on Arlee's team. 

#atozchallenge Meet Your Co-Host: John Holton

John Holton (photo: Mary Holton)

This is my fifth Challenge, my second as a co-host. I started my blog, The Sound of One Hand Typing, on Wordpress in January 2012, specifically so I could participate in this Challenge. I had been toying with the idea of blogging for a while, anyway, and had in fact started several blogs in the past, all of which I was embarrassed to leave lying around. It gets its name because a stroke nine years ago deprived me of the use of my right hand, but I wasn't about to let that stop me. What encouraged me was reading about the author Walter Wager, who wrote novelizations of TV series and tie-in novels based on them. I read somewhere that Wager only had one hand, and I decided that, if he could do it, so could I.

I blog daily, which I started in July 2014. I have a few regular features, and participate in a number of blog hops I've found along the way. I'm also technically inclined, and found a way to simulcast my blog to one on Blogger, which I talked about last year. This year, I created the Challenge's Pinterest and Google+ pages. I also participate in the weekly chats on Twitter. See what happens when you retire?

You can find me at either of my blogs, and on Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest, and Google+. I hope to get to know many of you during this year's Challenge! See you soon!