As we near the 2013 A-to-Z Challenge, we'll be speaking increasingly on all topics A-to-Z. In the meantime, though, let's focus on blogging overall. Today, I thought I'd talk about how to make connections in the blogging world.
Blogging is a social medium, but people's reasons for engaging in the blog world differ. Some are here to sell books or other products by creating a platform, some want to meet others and hang out, some are more interested in reading than sharing, and some just want someone to hear them.
For each reason to blog, there are dozens of types of blogs. Parenting blogs, reading blogs, writing blogs, photography blogs, exercise blogs, history blogs, dream blogs, political blogs. You name it, there is likely a blog for it. This gives us the ability to visit all manner of blogs, and to invariably find something out there we want to read.
How do you reach out to all of these bloggers and get to know them, though? How do you meet and forge relationships online?
This is easier than you may think, and really depends upon how much time you have. Here's a quick rundown of how one might connect with other bloggers:
1. Visit blogs. Pretty simple, right? Hunt down blogs you're interested in. Do a search on the topic you're looking for + "blog." Head on over and check them out to see if you're interested in what they have to say.
2. Leave comments. Once you've found a blog you're interested in, read their posts and leave a comment for them. Make it a real comment, not just a passing "nice blog" type comment. Address the topic they're discussing and/or ask a question about the topic.
3. Follow blogs. If you like what they have to say, follow in the way you prefer. Options include Google Friend Connect, RSS feed, follow by email, etc. Choose the option you like best and follow it.
4. Have something to say. It won't matter what you're doing on other people's blogs if you're not talking on your own. Know what you want to blog about, then do so. Be yourself, use your own voice, and talk about something that interests you...and that you feel will interest other people.
5. Respond to comments on your own blog and visit back. When someone happens along and likes what you have to say enough to leave a comment on your blog, be sure to reply in some way. You can comment back in the comments, reply back to each individual comment (on blogs that allow that), email a response to those who have allowed that possibility, or respond to them on their own blog. No matter which response you choose, you should also try to visit them back at their blog to return the favor and see what they have to say.
There are many other ways to get to know other bloggers, but these are the basics that will get you started. After that, you can explore other ways to make connections, such as blog hops/fests, memes, guest posting, guest hosting, interviews, etc. Most important is that you find out what works best for you and go from there.
May you find your Muse.
Shannon
The Warrior Muse
April Blogging from A to Z Challenge #AtoZChallenge
Tuesday, January 15, 2013
Monday, January 14, 2013
A to Z Team 2013
Another Challenge, Another A to Z Team!
Well, folks, it's official! The 2013 A to Z Team is in place and we have another great line-up for you this year. Our Team is here to help you with the Challenge and inspire you along the way. We will be having some extremely helpful posts from the A to Z Co-hosts in the months to come. You will want to be sure to check in daily to see what's new as well as reminders about things you may have forgotten.
Since this 4th annual Challenge is occurring in lucky year number '13, we have thirteen A to Z Team members to help make the Challenge a success. Most of the team are members from last year who have returned with a lot of experience behind them, while there are three new ones coming on board to take the place of those who couldn't make it for this year's Challenge.
So without further ado, say hello to The 2013 A to Z Team:
The A to Z Team 2013!
Arlee Bird Tossing It Out @ArleeBird
Damyanti Biswas Amlokiblogs @damyantig
Alex J. Cavanaugh Alex J. Cavanaugh @alexjcavanaugh
Tina Downey Life is Good @TinaLifeisGood
DL Hammons Cruising Altitude 2.0 @DL_H
Jeremy Hawkins Retro-Zombie @iZombieJMH
Shannon Lawrence The Warrior Muse @thewarriormuse
Matthew MacNish The QQQE @MatthewMacNish
Konstanz Silverbow No Thought 2 Small @KonstanzS
Stephen Tremp Breakthrough Blogs @StephenTremp
Livia Peterson Leave it to Livia @LiviaGPeterson
L. Diane Wolfe Spunk on a Stick @SpunkOnAStick
Nicole Ayers The Madlab Post @madlabpost
Damyanti Biswas Amlokiblogs @damyantig
Alex J. Cavanaugh Alex J. Cavanaugh @alexjcavanaugh
Tina Downey Life is Good @TinaLifeisGood
DL Hammons Cruising Altitude 2.0 @DL_H
Jeremy Hawkins Retro-Zombie @iZombieJMH
Shannon Lawrence The Warrior Muse @thewarriormuse
Matthew MacNish The QQQE @MatthewMacNish
Konstanz Silverbow No Thought 2 Small @KonstanzS
Stephen Tremp Breakthrough Blogs @StephenTremp
Livia Peterson Leave it to Livia @LiviaGPeterson
L. Diane Wolfe Spunk on a Stick @SpunkOnAStick
Nicole Ayers The Madlab Post @madlabpost
Who Are the New Team Members?
Livia Peterson started her blog Leave It To Livia last May, heading full force into the blogging world to make her presence known in many ways including landing a place on the A to Z Team. Her blogging niche includes movies, entertainment, and, of course, writing. She's ready to take the blog world by storm so be sure to head on over to her blog and become friends with her now. We think you'll like Livia.
L. Diane Wolfe was already in the blogging circle that I fell into nearly four years ago and I feel honored to be a part of her blog circle of friends. Diane is an expert on writing, public speaking, marketing, and promotion. In other words, she's a valuable contact to have. You can find her at Spunk on a Stick. If you're not following her blog, then now's the time to head on over and do so.
Nicole Ayers from The Madlab Post is probably a very familiar name to A to Z'ers by now. In fact you may be wondering, "Isn't she already on the A to Z Team?" Nicole has been responsible for our Friday posts over the past several months as she sat in as an unofficial Team Member. Now it's official--Nicole is part of the Team. If you are looking for some inspiration about A to Z themes you may want to check out some her previous Friday posts on that topic. And be sure to follow her blog if you aren't doing so already.
Follow The Leaders
The links to all of the Team blogs can be found in the list above. If there are any that you are not yet following then hop on over to their blogs and click the "Follow" button. You will want to check in with all of these bloggers on a regular basis for the latest A to Z Challenge news and for helpful tips about the Challenge and blogging in general.
The Blogging from A to Z April Challenge Blog is another must for all Challenge participants. Up until April we will be presenting plenty of information about the Challenge, the participants, and the Team members. You don't want to miss any of the posts here, especially between now and April.
If you haven't done so yet, explore the tabbed pages above. Some are still being updated and revised. If you need to contact the Challenge administrators or individual Team members go to the "Contact Us" tab. If you have questions about the Challenge then first read "What Is the A to Z Blogging Challenge?" and if your questions aren't answered there then look at "FAQ" to see if your questions are answered there. If not, just ask us and we'll find you an answer.
The sign up list will start on Wednesday January 30th. We're ready. Are you?
Livia Peterson started her blog Leave It To Livia last May, heading full force into the blogging world to make her presence known in many ways including landing a place on the A to Z Team. Her blogging niche includes movies, entertainment, and, of course, writing. She's ready to take the blog world by storm so be sure to head on over to her blog and become friends with her now. We think you'll like Livia.
L. Diane Wolfe was already in the blogging circle that I fell into nearly four years ago and I feel honored to be a part of her blog circle of friends. Diane is an expert on writing, public speaking, marketing, and promotion. In other words, she's a valuable contact to have. You can find her at Spunk on a Stick. If you're not following her blog, then now's the time to head on over and do so.
Nicole Ayers from The Madlab Post is probably a very familiar name to A to Z'ers by now. In fact you may be wondering, "Isn't she already on the A to Z Team?" Nicole has been responsible for our Friday posts over the past several months as she sat in as an unofficial Team Member. Now it's official--Nicole is part of the Team. If you are looking for some inspiration about A to Z themes you may want to check out some her previous Friday posts on that topic. And be sure to follow her blog if you aren't doing so already.
Follow The Leaders
The links to all of the Team blogs can be found in the list above. If there are any that you are not yet following then hop on over to their blogs and click the "Follow" button. You will want to check in with all of these bloggers on a regular basis for the latest A to Z Challenge news and for helpful tips about the Challenge and blogging in general.
The Blogging from A to Z April Challenge Blog is another must for all Challenge participants. Up until April we will be presenting plenty of information about the Challenge, the participants, and the Team members. You don't want to miss any of the posts here, especially between now and April.
If you haven't done so yet, explore the tabbed pages above. Some are still being updated and revised. If you need to contact the Challenge administrators or individual Team members go to the "Contact Us" tab. If you have questions about the Challenge then first read "What Is the A to Z Blogging Challenge?" and if your questions aren't answered there then look at "FAQ" to see if your questions are answered there. If not, just ask us and we'll find you an answer.
The sign up list will start on Wednesday January 30th. We're ready. Are you?
Saturday, January 12, 2013
The #atozchallenge on Twitter: Are You Following @AprilA2Z
With its limitation of 140 characters, Twitter can be a great medium to share links: it takes very little time, and reaches a wide audience.
So if you're on Twitter, and are thinking of signing up for the A to Z Challenge this 30th January, here's what you can do:
1. Follow the official A to Z Challenge id of twitter : @AprilA2Z
2. Tweet anything you want to say about A to Z Blogging challenge using the hashtag #atozchallenge
3. Considering retweeting posts by @AprilA2Z which are relevant to the challenge. After all, the more people who take part in the challenge, the better it is for all the participants!
4. If you make a blog post about the A to Z Challenge (I'm hoping some of you will, won't you?) make sure to tweet it with the #atozchallenge hashtag
5. Connecting with other A to Z Challenge participants on twitter will ensure that your posts have lots of visitors : so consider following not only the hosts (once they're announced coming Monday!), but also other blog-friends who say they'll participate.
If you have questions regarding A to Z challenge on Twitter, fire away in the comments.
And if you haven't joined Twitter yet, I can point you to Arlee Bird, the founder member of this A to Z Blogging Challenge, who joined last year (after a fair amount of poking), and now has more than 2000 followers!
Wednesday, January 9, 2013
Post A-to-Z Road Trip Check-In
Well, hello there! It's been awhile since we did a check-in on the Post A-to-Z Road Trip, but now that the holidays are past us (well, as much as holidays can be past us since we like to throw out holidays every month or so) this is as good a time as any to see how everyone's doing.
We're officially gearing up for the 2013 A-to-Z Challenge, so time is running out to catch up with all of last year's participants. How far have you gotten? Are you able to make any monthly progress? Weekly? Daily (you visiting fiend, you!)?
What's your plan of attack as you go through the list? Do you find that you go in order, or do you randomly choose someone to visit? Did you go through the Post A-to-Z Road Trip sign-up list first?
What I've found works best for me is to go down the list and open a series of blogs at once (usually ten at a time). I visit those blogs, then if I find I have some more time I open ten more. This helps me take little chunks at a time, and to feel like I've made progress.
Let us know how you're doing, whether you're still at it or have given up. This isn't a competition, so don't feel pressured to have made progress. Do you intend to keep going? Were you able to visit everyone already? If so, what was your secret, and what tips might you like to pass along?
Click here to access the 2012 A-to-Z sign-up list.
Cheers!
Shannon (The Warrior Muse) and Tina (Life is Good)
We're officially gearing up for the 2013 A-to-Z Challenge, so time is running out to catch up with all of last year's participants. How far have you gotten? Are you able to make any monthly progress? Weekly? Daily (you visiting fiend, you!)?
What's your plan of attack as you go through the list? Do you find that you go in order, or do you randomly choose someone to visit? Did you go through the Post A-to-Z Road Trip sign-up list first?
What I've found works best for me is to go down the list and open a series of blogs at once (usually ten at a time). I visit those blogs, then if I find I have some more time I open ten more. This helps me take little chunks at a time, and to feel like I've made progress.
Let us know how you're doing, whether you're still at it or have given up. This isn't a competition, so don't feel pressured to have made progress. Do you intend to keep going? Were you able to visit everyone already? If so, what was your secret, and what tips might you like to pass along?
Click here to access the 2012 A-to-Z sign-up list.
Cheers!
Shannon (The Warrior Muse) and Tina (Life is Good)
Monday, January 7, 2013
2013 A to Z Challenge Badge Debut and Upcoming Schedule
Badge debut
This badge in coded form which will direct clicks to the A to Z sign-up page will soon be available on the "Badges and Banners" page than can be accessed in the tabs below this page's header. When adding the badge to your page, please use either the coded form or be sure to link your badge image to the A to Z Blog. After all, displaying the badge not only shows that you are a participant in the Challenge, but also should direct others to the place where they too can sign up.
Banners, etc
A banner similar to what is seen below will also be available on the "Badges and Banners" page. Jeremy will be doing some adjustments on this soon and will be doing a post about putting the badges and banners on your own sites. Animated versions of the badges and banners are also in the works for those that like that sort of thing.
Upcoming A to Z News
Next Monday January 14th the new A to Z Team will be announced. There will also be a new opportunity for more of you to participate in helping the A to Z Team. I think some of you will find this to be very intriguing.
On Wednesday January 30th the A to Z sign-up list will be made available. Last year we had over 1700 participants on the list and fully expect more this year. You will want to be sure to sign up right away if you want to be listed toward the top of the list. But never fear, if you don't make it to the top we still have accommodations to be sure that your blog won't get overlooked even if you are somewhere in the high thousands.
There will be later posts about sign ups and pre-challenge activities. Be watching this blog (as we're sure you always do) to catch up on all the latest A to Z news.
Update!
The badge with code is at top of sidebar. On Blogger Blogs you can copy the code and add it to the HTML gadget on your layout page.
The banner with code can be found at the bottom of the page. This can be added to your page in the same manner as the badge using the long spaces at the top or bottom of your page.
More detailed instructions will be coming in a future post.
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