Thursday, April 16, 2015

N is for Not Giving Up

Yay! We're halfway through the challenge! How's it been going for everyone? Have you made new blogging buddies? Found some great themes you can't wait to check in on every day? I know I have! 

And yet, as fun as A to Z absolutely is, it's not called a blog challenge for nothing. It's meant to test you blogging perseverance. Twenty-six posts in one month is no small feat. And it's around this point in the challenge when bloggers tend to start running into walls here and there. Again, I know I have. 

But try not to lose sight of the goal here. A community of bloggers, coming together to push themselves and one another to blogging excellence. And you can do it. Just keep plugging away. Trust me, the harder it feels right now, the greater the reward when you finally cross that finish line at the end of April. 

So congratulations for NOT giving up on the A to Z Challenge. You're a survivor, you're gonna make it! And we'll be there waiting for you when you reach your goal!


A to Z Co-Host S. L. Hennessy can be found blogging at Pensuasion

Wednesday, April 15, 2015

"M" Marketing Experiment - With AtoZ Gear!


Greetings AtoZ Challengers, We are at the half point of the 2015 A to Z Challenge and we thought those who are going to the finish line might like to tell the world and show your support. We thought those "SURVIVORS" might like to get your very own design by myself and supported by the Hosts of this challenge. Here is where you go "CLICK HERE".

We are trying our very first "Marketing Campaign and Experiment", see what the possibilities might be and thought we would share it all with you. I have been working with this company "NEATOSHOP" for a few years and they are one of the top in their business. So show your support, wear this proudly and enjoy the remaining A to Z Challenge. We will answer questions, so if you have some please ask...

Jeremy
AtoZ Challenge Co-Host
HOLLYWOOD NUTS
http://www.beingretro.com/

Tuesday, April 14, 2015

Let's have a dance party!

Congratulations, everyone! You're almost halfway through the Challenge! How are you feeling?

I think... it's time for a dance party!

Let's dance! Let Loose, and check out the dancers in this incredible A-Z of dance video:



Keep it up, y'all :)

AJ Lauer blogs at her author site. Her theme this year is interactive fiction, so you should stop by and help shape the story she's writing this month. Her book Armageddon: Pick Your Plot is available on Amazon, and you can get a free prequel to the book by signing up for her email list!

She's also interviewed as the L post today at Lloyd of Gamebooks (so many L's!!).

Monday, April 13, 2015

K is for Karma

Karma: Hindu and Buddhist ethical doctrine that the sum of a person's actions in this and previous states of existence will decide their future fate. 

A common theme to theories of Karma is its principle of causality. Basically, good actions lead to good effects and bad deeds will produce bad effects. We have similar terms. You reap what you sow. Point a finger at someone and you are pointing three back at yourself. 

I try really hard not to judge. But I have to admit, when I see something bad happen to a person who is a real jerk, well, I’m glad I was there to see it. Like the time a total jerk in an expensive suit verbally abused a woman in line at Starbucks. When he left a car drove through a large puddle of water by the curb and drenched the guy head to toe. Karma, baby. Oh yeah. 

K is for Key Cards: Don't forget to stop by my regular blog for another intersting post regarding Key Kards by Clicking Here.

Question: Do you believe in Karma or that a person reaps what they sow? Or is this just a bunch of superstitious hooey that is scientifically unfounded?


Stephen Tremp is a Speculative Writer and blogs at Breakthrough Blogs. His theme for the 2015 Blogging A to Z Challenge is The Supernatural and Paranormal. His latest work, Salem’s Daughters, is due for release Labor Day Weekend 2015.

Sunday, April 12, 2015

Sunflower Update


           Here is the updated sunflower photo taken on Saturday April 11th.  It's looking a bit raggedly perhaps, but still standing strong.  Hopefully I'll have a good harvest of seeds from this flower.  For those who might be wondering what the heck this sunflower photo is all about you can find the story at A Special A to Z Tribute.

Making Progress

       We are approaching the halfway point of the 2015 Blogging from A to Z April Challenge and it appears that the majority of those who originally signed on to the list are still going strong.  To date we've lost maybe 150 of those who originally added their links to the list.  Most of those either backed out and asked to be removed or were Link List opportunists who had no intention of participating.

         The A to Z Team of co-hosts and their assistance teams have been busy scouring the list for bloggers who have fallen by the wayside and stopped posting or never started.   We are trying to keep a clean list so you don't have to waste your time on the non-participants.   I think overall we are doing a better job than any previous year of keeping the list cleaned up.   Still a few get missed.  Some of you have been reporting problem sites to us and that has been a great help to us.  Feel free to let us know if you run across a site that you don't think should be on the Linky List and we'll check it out.

         Just a notice to those of you who have fallen behind but don't wish to be removed from the list quite yet.  At least update your blog with an A to Z post and if there is a problem note that in your most recent posts so we'll know what's going on with you.   We don't like to have to remove links, but in fairness to everyone else if you aren't keeping up with the Challenge then you shouldn't expect the rest of us to be reading old posts.

           Also, there are some blogs that can be a bit confusing to the new visitor.   Make sure it is clear on the landing page that you are participating in the A to Z Challenge and be sure that each A to Z post is clearly identified with tags, a badge image, or a mention that your post is A to Z related.  This is especially true if you do multiple daily postings and your A to Z posts get covered up by other posts.

          I applaud this year's team and helpers and all of you bloggers for helping us maintain the list.  And a big acknowledgement goes to Alex J. Cavanaugh for maintaining the list so well along with all of the other things he's got going with his blogging and book release.

Interested in an Official A to Z 2015 T-Shirt?

          This week be watching co-host blogs and this site for a special announcement about an A to Z souvenir that will be offered to show your support and participation in the 2015 A to Z Challenge.  We've been asked about T-shirts in the past and this year we're going to run a marketing test to see what kind of interest there would be in this.    Be watching this week for the official announcements.  I believe we'll start seeing something on Wednesday April 15th.

          Have you been keeping up okay with A to Z this year?   Have you found many sites that need to be removed from the list?     Is an A to Z Tee-Shirt something that might interest you?