I’m Jenny Pearson, a co-host for the A to Z Challenge, and I’m here to share my de-stressing strategies with you.
I have lit some candles to set the tone for our de-stressing session.
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Last year I signed up for the A to Z Challenge on April 1st - needless to say I had NO posts prepared.
The outcome: I learned I CAN write a post a day - for twenty-six days - and live to post about it.
HOW?
By following these simple and easy suggestions...
ENJOY THE PROCESS! This Challenge should not be a chore; it should be fun.
DON’T STRESS ABOUT NOT BEING PREPARED. So long as you make the effort, in April, to post daily (see schedule) that's all you need to be prepared for. Yes, having some structure to your thinking is good...but it has to work for YOU so it remains fun!
IF YOU HAVE A THEME - GREAT. Many do, but lots don’t - it’s also not a requirement.
SPONTANEITY CAN BE A THEME. It was mine last year and I loved it. Don’t be afraid of it - you might actually enjoy it! (and have fun with it too)
FOR SANITY’S SAKE - K.I.S.S.(keep it short & simple) Attention spans vary; if you want readers to stick around keep an eye on your word count. Just remember, visitors to your blog are hopping around to many other blogs, during this Challenge, and will appreciate your effort to K.I.S.S.
MAKE TIME TO EAT, SLEEP AND VISIT OTHER BLOGS. Start with the blog right after yours - aim for five blogs a day. As to nutrition and sleep...without enough of both, you will fizzle out. (and that won't be fun, will it?)
FOR THE DURATION OF THE CHALLENGE DISABLE WORD VERIFICATION. It slows the commenting process down thereby discouraging comments from visiting bloggers. (I will have a detailed post about this topic over at Pearson Report shortly - stay tuned)
LAST, BUT SO IMPORTANT...HAVE FUN! (have you noticed "fun" is the theme of this post)
I hope you are feeling the wonderful effects of our de-stressing session.
Now...take a deep breath in and slowly exhale - we are done!
The hosts of the A-to-Z are all looking forward to getting to know all of the A-to-Z'ers. In the meantime, we thought it would be fun to help you get to know us. We've put together a set of questions that we'll each be answering in our own way on different days leading up to the A-to-Z. Please feel free to ask any other questions you might have for us in the comments, and we will do our best to answer them.
ABOUT ME
Name: Shannon Lawrence Blog:www.thewarriormuse.com Other Online Info (Twitter, Facebook, Website): Twitter-@thewarriormuse, Facebook-http://www.facebook.com/thewarriormuse Publications: I have a piece of flash fiction coming out in an anthology, due out in March, entitled Sunday Snaps: The Stories. You can also find occasional pieces from me at The New Never News, a fun mixed up nursery rhyme blog run by author J.A. Kazimer.
10 GETTING TO KNOW YOU QUESTIONS
1. What is the most daring thing you've ever done? I ran into a cattle stampede to save my 2-year old brother when I was 8. Why we were in the middle of a cattle stampede is a long story. 2. What is your favorite article of clothing? This may out me as a weirdo, but...my flannel hoodie-footie pajamas. You read that right. They have footies. They are so warm! P.S. I can unzip and remove the footies, but I rarely do. It's cold! FYI-this is my leisure wear when I'm writing. 3. What is your favorite monster? Right now, I'd say skinwalkers. I'm interested in Native American monsters and how they varied from tribe to tribe. 4. If you had to dress up as your favorite literary character, who would it be? I am currently trying to figure this out because I will be attending a costume event where you dress as your favorite literary character. The pressure! It would be fun to be rogue vampire hunter Jane Yellowrock, from Faith Hunter's Skinwalker. Too bad I can't bring weapons or a modified Harley to the party. If I want to wear jeans and a t-shirt, I can bring a wrench and be Patricia Briggs' Mercy Thompson. 5. What is your favorite fairy tale, urban legend or nursery rhyme? My favorite urban legend may very well be the one about the girl who's driving home late at night when someone behind her keeps flashing their lights at her. The longer it goes on, the more panicked she gets. When she arrives home, she discovers...dun, dun, dun...there is an axe-wielding maniac in the back of her car, and the man in the car behind her was flashing his lights whenever he saw him going for her. Ack! I always check the back of my car...
6. What is a cause near and dear to your heart? The longer I sit here, the more causes I realize I have. However, right now I am very interested in saving the wolves (the photo to the right is Baby, from Rocky Mountain Wildlife Foundation in Guffey, CO). Here, we reintroduced them then turned around and gave out hunting licenses for wolf season! How does that make sense? Oops, stepping away from the soapbox. I am also intent on bringing attention to childhood cancer. I almost stepped back up on that there box, but instead I will explain that my interest in this came about after a friend's daughter, who was (is) good friends with my son, was diagnosed with AML Leukemia at three years old. She is now a thriving almost-seven year old, who is officially in remission, but the battle is ongoing. I write about monsters, but I could never imagine anything more terrifying than watching my child fight this particular beast. 7. What's the strangest item you've used as a bookmark? I haven't used anything truly strange as a bookmark, but I have used a collection of odd items: tissues, tampon wrapper, folded toilet paper, paint samplers, other books, magazines, straws, barrettes, binder clips, paper clips, etc. 8. Do you have any nicknames? What are they and how did you earn them? I'm rather fond of Warrior, which some who read my blog have taken to calling me. My siblings call me Sissy (I'm the oldest of five). A friend calls me Non (for the end of my name) because I call her Stine (her name is Christine). And a group of online friends from a mother's forum I belong to call me Pookie. I have no idea how that started, and it is so not my personality, but it's officially mine now. 9. Name one habit you want to change in yourself: Pro.cras.tin.ation. Yikes. 10. Tell us something interesting or shocking about yourself: I was nearly kidnapped as a child, not once, but three times, in three different states (Oregon, Maryland, Colorado). I was also in the car when a serial killer went after my mom in the 80's. Yes, a real one. In fact, this prompted me to look him up and he was in the news in 2007 for admitting to an additional murder. Maybe that's part of why made up monsters don't scare me.
SOME A-to-Z QUESTIONS
1. What was your favorite A-to-Z post from 2011? I think my favorite post was my Y post, because it was so full of optimism and accomplishment. That moment reflected my really starting to see myself as a writer, not just someone who sometimes wrote some stuff. 2. What brought you to the A-to-Z originally? Tell us about your first A-to-Z: Last year was my first A-to-Z, and I signed up right as it was starting. Boy, was I feeling panicky! I sat there with that linky page open all day, starting to fill it out, backing off, starting again. Finally, I swallowed my fear, typed in my information and hit "submit." Almost a year later, I am delighted with where the A-to-Z has taken me. I learned so much and have come so far, and believe it or not, the A-to-Z was instrumental. 3. Are you doing a theme? I have decided I am mostly not doing a theme. I do plan to have some things running consistently throughout, but not something I would consider a theme. I'm still waffling, though. 4. Are you writing & scheduling posts in advance? Man, I hope so! I do intend to, but ask me if I've gotten even one post done so far. Nah, don't worry, I'll just tell you...nope. I keep thinking I'll have a minute. hahahahahahaha! 5. What is your favorite letter of the alphabet, and why? What letter do you like least? I like "X" because it makes me work for it, but it's interesting. "J," on the other hand, is one of the ones I think surprised me with how hard it was, and it doesn't have nearly the personality "X" does.
Thank you for reading!
Shannon
I hope you've enjoyed these questions and answers. Don't forget, you are welcome, even encouraged, to ask any additional questions you might have in the comments section. Or feel free to answer the questions yourself! We won't tell.
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We also have 2 new videos--both from Nicole Ayers from The Madlab Post. Nicole submitted another video earlier as well. Like her previous video, these two new ones are partly promotion for the A to Z Challenge, but also they have helpful prompts for those who may be struggling with ideas for April. Watch and enjoy and then go to Nicole's blog and tell her hello.
I'm smiling, no laughing, that Lee wants me to write about my experience with A to Z 2011.
Let me tell you...
See this doppel of me from Facebook? There's a reason it's not a photo. I'm bald now due to A to Z 2011. I'm kidding. All but a few patches have grown back. If I do a comb-over like a middle-aged man you can hardly tell. Honest.
I watched the 2010 Challenge from the sideline. Most of it anyway. I discovered it late and was embarrassed to join half way through. I promised myself I would do the next one. When registration came up I jumped right in. I started preparing posts in February. I was on it like fleas on a dog. All I had left were my six doozies -- Q, V, F, Z, U and Y. I refused to skip an entry. A couple of times I think I was almost putting up posts only a few hours apart.
As April approached I watched the list of blogs to visit grow ... and grow ... and grow ... More than once I prayed the monitors would shut down registration. They finally did. At something like 1200+.
Seriously, guys, what were you thinking? My original plan of scheduling posts and spending xx amount of time visiting new blogs and checking out old friends was lost. No way. After all life goes beyond blog reading. Life, eye strain and headaches can put the brakes on visiting all those sites in 30 days. Best laid plans and all that. I think it was August by the time I got to the final participants. (My humblest apologies inserted here.)
I notice that a lot of folks hit the high hundreds (and even thousands) with new followers. I didn't gain that many. Maybe because I didn't follow every blog I visited. Everyone handles the whole following thing differently. Some click the Follow Me button everywhere they stop. Some follow only those who write a certain type of posts. Some only follow where they want to return. To each his own.
Well, A to Z 2012 is fast approaching. I was prepared to blow it off this year. But the more I see that button and read how excited everyone is the more I have to join, no, want to join. Besides, what would I do with all the posts I've already written. They wouldn't make sense to use any other time. That's right, guys, I'm ready. Bring on April!
My hints?
Prepare early
Keep it short
Turn off the darn captcha and word verification. Many participants skip blogs where those are necessary. (Guilty) Imagine 1200 blogs each requiring two steps to leave a comment. That's a lot of wasted time and typing. I block anonymous comments on my blog because of an overzealous shoe salesman. Again to each his own.
THE most important thing to remember ...
ENJOY YOURSELF! Have fun. It's all about the fun and friends, old and new. I'm looking forward to visiting everyone -- hopefully, before the A to Z 2013.
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There are just a few days left to submit you A to Z promotion video. Look in the appropriate tab at the top of the page for more details. Here's something fun from Tracy Jo Blowers atA Brand New Day.
REWIND: I remember when I first heard about the A to Z Blogging Challenge. It was last March, only a few weeks before the challenge was scheduled to begin. “What a fabulous idea!” raced through my brain. I was so excited at the thought of being included in an event with so many other bloggers that I signed up.
Obviously, there were ideas that immediately came to my mind for a few letters. But then I started to think about it, really started to think—THE ENTIRE ALPHABET—and then quiver, shiver, and sweat. How was I to handle committing to a new letter each day? What had I done?
What about those strange letters like X and Z? Or what if I had another commitment on the day P was supposed to be posted and there was no way to fit that letter into my post? How could I be unique? Would I make my posts about writing, which is what my blog is geared to? Or should I veer off course? If so, what the heck do I write about? What if there was an earthquake, a hurricane, or a flood?
I think you get my drift here.
With the help of a few deep breaths, I put an axe to that train of creative-diluting thoughts and went for the fun angle. I decided to stick to my normally posting days of M-T-F, highlight whichever letter fell on said day, and committed to seeking out new and interesting ideas to post about.
FASTFORWARD: This challenge is to exercise your thoughts and push you out of that safe comfort zone. How else do we expect to grow if we don’t try new things? Whether you’re looking to grow as a blogger, a writer, or as a thinker, this challenge is for you.
Here’s a list of some fun ideas. All are special days celebrated during the month of April. Use this list as a reference if you feel stagnant during the challenge. I’ve even shared with you my official logo I’ll be using for all my ‘April’ posts! Hope you like it.
APRIL is:
·Autism Awareness Month = Letter A
·National Frog Month = Letter F
·National Humor Month = Letter H
·National Educational Mathematics Month = Letter M
·National Volunteer Month = Letter V
Of course, there are individual days to celebrate as well. April:
Sheri Larsen is a published freelance and short story writer, and KidLit author. Her current YA novel is with literary agents, and she’s preparing to sub one of her picture books to agents. Her website, Writers’ Ally (http://writersally.blogspot.com), is where she explores writing, children’s literature, and motherhood. She lives in Maine with her husband and four children.
We're still accepting A to Z videos until Sunday March 11th. Details can be found in the tab at the top of this page. This video comes from Reka at A Chronicle of Dreams.
I also run another blog with one of my bestest friends: Writeaway
I also have three Facebook pages, and you can also find me on Goodreads & Google+!
(I wont bore you to death with more links but now you know that's where you can find me and all the links are on the sidebar on the Nothought2small blog)
And now. . .. the interview you have all been waiting for. . . .
(okay probably not but I would like to make myself think that)
What is the most daring thing you've ever done?
There are many things I could answer this with but I have to say, I think agreeing to Co-host this challenge has been the most daring of them all. I really have no idea what I am doing when it comes to blogging. When I accepted the invitation to co-host this year, I had 38 followers on my blog. Only four months later and I now have 350.
What is your favorite article of clothing?
Hmmmmm. . . .I don't know. I think it would have to be either my T-shirt that says ‘Muggle' or my t-shirt that says ‘Trust me, I'm a Writer'.
What is your favorite monster?
This questions is very general so I could answer in many ways. Most people consider Dragons to be monsters. And I LOOOOVE dragons. (If you don't believe me, you can see a small portion of my dragon collection HERE) So, does my love for dragons count as a love for a monster? (I don't really consider them to be monsters).
If you had to dress up as your favorite literary character, who would it be?
Ooohh all the choices. . . I think I would create a costume that allowed me to have a little piece of all my favorite literary characters on it.
What is your favorite fairy tale, urban legend or nursery rhyme?
I don't really have ONE Favorite. I love researching the original tales and comparing them to what people know the Fairy tales to be today. It's fun to know why they are referred to ‘Fairies' which I will actually talk about in April for one of my posts.
What's the strangest item you've used as a bookmark?
A stick of glue. (It didn't stay there long. . .)
Do you have any nicknames? What are they and how did you earn them?
Not really. Tina calls me ‘K' (which I love btw) But other than that I just go by Konstanz.
Name one habit you want to change in yourself:
I have this awful habit of blogging and updating my blogs and always checking them and it has gotten to the point that I never have time to write. I would really like to change that and get more writing done.
Tell us something interesting or shocking about yourself:
Something interesting: I play the Violin, Organ and Piano. And I plan on going to college for Music.
Some A-to-Z Questions:
What was your favorite A-to-Z post from 2011?
I didn't participate in anyway last year so I really can't say. Sorry.
What brought you to the A-to-Z originally? Tell us about your first A-to-Z:
Last year I saw the badge for it on Elizabeth Mueller's blog and although I thought about joining, I didn't. But Elizabeth is also the one who asked me to co-host so Elizabeth is what brought me to the challenge. This year will be my first year doing it.
Are you doing a theme? Are you writing & scheduling posts in advance?
I am doing a theme. I'm not really talking about what my theme is until April (although I did mention it above sort of). I am writing the posts and scheduling everything in advance so I have time to visit other blogs and comment lots!
What is your favorite letter of the alphabet, and why? What letter do you like least?
I love, love, love 'D' and 'F' specifically for the challenge. Aside from the challenge, my favorite letter is 'S' and I don't know why.
I don't, don't like any letters. For the challenge, I am not liking 'A','Q', 'X', & 'Z'. But putting the challenge aside, I love all the letters.
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