IMPORTANT INFORMATION

The 2024 OFFICIAL MASTER LIST: https://tinyurl.com/w54yupwe
Showing posts with label Ron Easton. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Ron Easton. Show all posts

Sunday, February 26, 2012

#atozchallenge: Sunday Summary February 26, 2012




There's lots of activity going on as we make our big push for 1000 sign-ups by March 1st.  If you haven't signed up yet why not do it now.   Also please consider liking the A to Z Facebook page.  We're still sort of 200 likes there--shouldn't we have more like at least 700 likes?   Same with this A to Z Blog. Have you clicked the "Follower" button yet to become a "Friend of the Alphabet"?   Let's fire up some A to Z spirit!

We had some great posts on the A to Z Blog this past week.  If you missed any be sure to go back and check them out.  We are no longer accepting guest posts for the A to Z Blog as the schedule is now full.  Thanks to all of you who have shown such hearty participation.

Fellow co-host Konstanz Silverbow is providing some incentive with a great give-away.  Check out what she's offering at her blog No Thought 2 Small and then be sure to tell others about it as well.   Somebody's going to win a very cool package.

Be sure to be at the A to Z Blog this coming Tuesday February 28th.  I won't tell you what's going on, but I bet some of you can guess.  Tuesday is a very special day to celebrate.

Jenn at Scribbles from Jenn participated in Jenny Pearson's game of tag and helped with the push for 1000 by March 1st.

Sommer Leigh at Tell Great Stories provided one of the best A to Z posts that I've seen so far.  Make sure you pay her a visit to thank her for providing this valuable information and make sure you follow her advice when the April Challenge starts.  In fact, don't wait, start now!

RJR Daydreamer gave not only a nice summary of what the Challenge is but also provided an excellent graphic layout of what he did last year.

Donna Mc is a first-timer on her blog My Write Spot and she's getting organized for April.  She provides some excellent tips on how to plan for the Challenge.  I hope all of you will go through her checklist and make sure you've got these points covered.

A to Z got a slightly eccentric mention at The Slightly Eccentric Diary of Rob Z Tobor.  Thanks Rob--I think. Now don't you forget to start the Challenge on time.

Jman at Death of a Hardcore Gamer appears to be ready for April.  I think you'll have loads of fun, Jman.  Let all your friends know about this.

Susan Kane at the contemplative cat provided a round of A to Z brainstorming inspired by the "How It's Made" TV show.

Teresa at Journaling Woman was having an internal debate about the Challenge, but it looks like the Alphabet won.

Mish at Writer-In-Transit got very creative with her Challenge post.  Just goes to show what kind of inspiration comes from Blogging from A to Z.   Can you top this one?

Marcy at Maine Words (#235 on the Linky List) played the "Getting to Know Me" game by answering some of the questions posted to co-hosts.  Always a good time to get to know one another better and everyone is welcomed to join in the fun.

Dave at Dave Wrote This is another blogger who joined in the "Getting to Know Me" fun--Dave went with the entire list.  Whether you answer them all, just some of them, or make up your own questions; we'd all enjoy hearing some of your answers.  As we head into the Challenge you might want to set aside a post to introduce yourselves to the others who may not know you yet.

Susan Gourley/Kelley at Susan Says provided some important tips on her blog that can't be said too many times.   I hope everyone listens to what Susan says.

And hooray Inspire Nordic who also touted the Challenge on her blog.  So glad you're with us this year.

Patricia Stoltey is a solid supporter of the A to Z Challenge.  She's been giving weekly shout outs for us on her blog.

Janice at Jabblog had some kind of snafu with her sign up on the Linky List, but it gave her a reason to post about the Challenge which is always good.  Might as well turn lemons into lemonade.

Call it what you will, there's no reason to be in a tizzy about the April Challenge Lizard Happy--who is #370 on the sign up list by the way.

Tower of Archmage is a gamer blog that is returning to play the A to Z Challenge for the second year.  Have fun!

Thank you Christine Rains for helping push for the March 1st 1000!

I'm learning about Twitter and in doing so I spotted Laurie Carlson's Challenge to her readers.  Check out Laurie's great A to Z Post.    Then follow her blog while you're there--she deserves it.

Spirit Called put forth a call out for more folks to be a part of the April A to Z.   Yeah! That's the spirit!

The adrenaline is pumping high at Whatever.  Thanks Gossip Girl for your energetic post.

Susanne Drazic at Putting Words Down on Paper announced our drive to get 1000 sign-ups by March 1.  Come on bloggers!  Get everyone you know involved in the April Challenge.  Let's make this a party to rival any Oscar party out there.

Lindi from F.A.I.T.H. Girls gave the Challenge a nice mention and provided the link for others to sign up.  Anyone can do this--how about you?

More and more of you are posting about the Challenge.  We are trying to keep up with these posts to list on our Sunday Summary.  I'm watching Google Alerts, emails from co-hosts, and the messages I receive from you who contact me.  If you've posted something and we've missed it here, let me know and I'll try to put it up.   In the weeks to come we may have so many mentions that I may have to distill them into the highlights and the most unique posts.

 But Please! no matter what--keep on promoting A to Z to get more sign-ups.  We are looking for 1000 by this Thursday and it would be nice to pass 1300 by April 1 so we can surpass last year.  Our goal is to make the Blogging from A to Z April Challenge bigger and better each year.   Thanks to all of you for helping us meet this goal.

And now a word from our sponsor courtesy of Ron Easton at Dads Unlimited:






Enhanced by Zemanta

Wednesday, January 18, 2012

Time to Sign Up for the A to Z Video Challenge!

     Are you ready to sign up for the A to Z Video Challenge?  We hope so!
 
        The A to Z Video Challenge is a bit of an experiment so we hope you'll bear with us if we occasionally have to tweak it a bit over the course of the next       couple of months. Please feel free to provide any suggestions or comments that might help   us in this              experiment. And of course, feel free to ask any questions you may have about the Video    Challenge.
 
        First let's review the two videos that kicked off this challenge:
 




               These great videos are from Ron Easton and Ada Zdanowicz.  Each of them provides an example of what your video entry should include.  

          We want to encourage creativity in this Challenge.  Your 
video can be funny, dramatic, commercial, arty, educational, or 
whatever style you choose.  But for the sake of uniformity we  have some rules.

          Here are the A to Z Video Challenge rules:

1.   Videos should be no longer than 2 minutes in length including credits.

2.   Subject matter of video must pertain in some way to the Blogging from A to Z April Challenge and include the site address of a-to-zchallenge.com prominently in the video.

3.  Content should be suitable for general audiences.

4.  The video must be new and made for the A to Z Challenge and it must not have been previously posted online anywhere including a blog or website.

5.  Videos must be downloaded to YouTube or a similar site where they can be shared in order to allow them to be placed on the A to Z Blog and to be linked to for viewing purposes by the audience.  The video creator should place their entry or entries on their blog or web page if they have one.  The entered link can correspond to any of these placements.

6.   All videos will remain property of the creator with permission granted to A to Z Blog for exhibition on that site.

7.   Finalists will be chosen by a panel of judges that may include A to Z Team members or others selected by the Team to act as judges.  Videos will be accepted for judging until 11:59 PM EST Sunday March 11, 2012.

8.   Winners will be chosen in a vote by the A to Z audience between March 15th and 19th with winner(s) announced on March 20th.   Voting will close at 11:59 PM EST on March 19th.

9.   Number of winners may vary depending on number of entries received.  If  there are enough entrants categories such as most creative, funniest, best animation, or others may be opened per judges determination.

10.  Prizes will be determined by the A to Z Team and subject to any additional prize donations.

11.   Rules for the A to Z Video Challenge may be subject to minor adjustment depending on number of entrants or other unforeseen factors.

       We hope this is simple enough for everyone to understand.  If you have questions please ask.


         Now about the prizes.  Since this is a rather hastily assembled contest and an experiment at that, prizes will be limited primarily to promotion and recognition.


          Winners of the Challenge will be given special guest or feature opportunities on some of the A to Z Team Blogs.   All video entries will be featured on the A to Z Blog with winning videos featured again in special promotional spots on the A to Z Challenge Blog after the Video Challenge has closed and during the month of April.  


          As stated at the opening, this A to Z Video Challenge is an experiment we are trying out this year to see what the level of interest is.  If all goes well, perhaps next year we'll start putting this Video Challenge together earlier and get some bigger more tangible prizes.  But the exposure and promotion gained for your blog, website, or video-making talent can be very valuable gaining you new fans or even clients.   And the bragging rights could be fun too.


        As the Challenge continues this year we will probably see some  surprise prizes appearing along the way.   It probably won't be big cash awards or expensive premiums, but we might be having some fun things to add to up the ante.  It depends on how many of you enter the Video Challenge.


         So now for the entries.  The entry form is included in this post today and will continue to be found at the top of the page by clicking the tab marked "A to Z Video Challenge Entries".    Fill in the form with the link where your video can be found, your name or the name the entity submitting the video (blog, website, company, organization, etc),  your email address so we can contact you (this will only be seen by Challenge administrators), and tell us if you will be participating in the Blogging from A to Z April Challenge.  


        That's all there is to it.  So if you already have a video made, then submit your information now.   Or come back later and submit it when your video is ready.  You have nearly two months to submit your video since we will be accepting them until 11:59 PM EST of Sunday March 11, 2012.   But please don't tarry.  We're anxious to see your videos.


        Now let's get creative!

Enhanced by Zemanta

Sunday, January 8, 2012

Some More Big News!! Coming this Wednesday!!

Arty


                                Bold


Creative


                    Daring


Entertaining


                               Fun


         We've got some exciting news about an A to Z innovation that we hope you'll enjoy.   Be here on Wednesday for a special video from Ron Easton and a big announcement from the Blogging from A to Z Team.   


          In the meantime, if you missed yesterday's post go back and take a look at it here.   And be sure to visit Ron Easton at Inside Out, introduce yourself, and follow his blog.


         Some good fun is on it's way.

         Also, take note that the official A to Z Badge in the sidebar has a copy and paste code that you can use to add the badge to your blog.   We encourage you to take the time to add the badge to show your support for the A to Z Challenge.   Likewise, there is a flashy matching banner at the top of the page and a flashing animated button half-way down the sidebar.   These were created by Jeremy at Retro-Zombie.  You can find the code for these on Jeremy's site.  Feel free to take all of these codes and add them to your page so you can show the world that you will be Blogging from A to Z in April.
       


Enhanced by Zemanta

Saturday, January 7, 2012

A Unique Reflections Post from Ron Easton

          Ron Easton from Inside Out has come up with a unique approach to the Blogging from A to Z Reflections post.  His video looks back on the topics that he covered in April of 2011.  It's very short so take a moment to watch and enjoy.  Then meet up with me at the bottom of this post.





          It doesn't end here, but you'll have to come back on Wednesday to see what Ron's video has inspired.   We've come up with an idea that I think you will all enjoy and could be the start of an exciting wave of creativity.   And Ron has created another video that will appear on that day.

         In the meantime, please visit Ron's blog at Inside Out and show him your support.  Give him a big hello. Don't forget to click the Friend Connect button before you leave.  Ron's got some changes coming on his blog and I think he'll be a surprising force in the 2012 Blogging from A to Z April Challenge.



       
Enhanced by Zemanta