Looking back at the A to Z Challenge 2013

After 26 posts during this years A to Z Challenge I’m still buzzing from it all. This was my first year doing the challenge and I only read about it in March, but I was so glad that I took the plunge and committed to the idea.

How I approached the challenge – I didn’t want to divert from the common theme of my blog where I support writers and authors, I’ve got quite a list of books that I’ve read but I wanted to put out new posts, so I sent out messages on the social networks looking for authors who wanted to promote their work through my challenge. This was great it filled most of my letters with books that I may not have otherwise even considered, and added to my TBR pile. For each individual post I thought it appropriate to display the A to Z Challenge badge to help keep promotion going throughout the month. I also chose to display up to 5 randomly chosen links each day to other A to Z Challenger’s blogs to encourage more visitors to the challenge.

What I liked about the challenge – I liked the support from the A to Z Team, their enthusiasm and encouragement. I couldn’t believe how many people had signed up at the start of the challenge (over 1500). I liked the way it brought people together from across the world.

What I loved about the challenge – I loved the fact that it changed the way I approached my own visits to other people’s blogs, I realised that just hitting “Like” (at the end of the post) is only part of your relationship with fellow bloggers, what really counts is taking the time to leave a comment.

What frustrated me – A few sites made leaving comments really hard, sometimes I had to search around the site to find the challenge post and it was a shame when people were unable to par-take in the challenge this year or were unable to finish the month for various reasons.

My own advice to others – Planning, planning, planning. Each day your post doesn’t have to be long and detailed, but draft it out ahead of the challenge, that way the hard work is done and you can enjoy the journey. Also committing to visiting at least 5 sites a day was easy when I had previously set up links to them in my draft posts. I usually went to more than 5 because I enjoyed it so much.

Bloggers worth a mention –

http://blackfrogpublishing.wordpress.com/

http://pullupatoadstool.blogspot.co.uk/

http://stephenyhoughtlin.wordpress.com/

http://sarahcradit.wordpress.com

http://damyantiwrites.wordpress.com/ (Co-host of the challenge)

Guest Author Sarah Cradit

My guest author today is Sarah Cradit, Sarah talks about recently re-reading one of the Harry Potter books. This household loves Harry Potter, we’ve all read the series, I think I’ve read the series 4 times now! We have all of the films and I think the kids know the words off by heart! On New Years Eve we visited the Studio tour here in London see my post http://wp.me/p2Eu3u-6C We can’t persuade any of our friends to help us finish eating our packet of Bertie Bott’s Every Flavour Beans!

Here are Sarah’s replies;

1) Tell me your name: Sarah M. Cradit

2) Where do you live?: Portland, OR

3)When did you start writing?: I started writing when I was 7; I wrote a bunch of short stories that were actually somewhat inappropriate for school and my parents got called down to the office. This was the start of the marriage between my imagination and a pen.

4)What type of books do you like writing the most?: I generally write mainstream fiction, with a special focus on the human condition. Why do we do what we do? It’s not black and white, and its important to me to have character-driven stories that reflect that.

5)Pass on 3 tips about writing or publishing.
1. When I am having trouble finding inspiration, I will force myself to rigid word count goals. It sounds counter-intuitive to the creative process, but it actually, for me, does just the opposite; forcing me to write helps me get back into that process.
2. Free-writing is another way I’ve gotten over the writer’s block hump. Setting a timer and writing, without stopping at all, until the timer stops often brings out subconscious thoughts that help me advance my story. This is how I found the end to my first novel.
3. Most of us have trouble turning off our inner editor when writing; to appease mine, I often highlight the pieces I am having troubles with, or make minor notes (like: “this needs to die a slow death”), so that when I come back for edits I know which spots needed my attention most.

6)What was the last book that you read? How would you rate it?
I most recently re-read Harry Petter and the Half Blood Prince. I would give i an 8/10. There are not many Children’s authors that can write simply enough for children, but engaging enough for adults. Rowling is a master storyteller…her writing is just “so so”but I can’t decide if that’s because of the audience or skill. I’d like to read her adult stories for comparison.

The story itself is filled with suspense…it’s the final transition for Harry into adulthood and there’s no longer any doubt that evil has a real chance of winning the battle. I like that Rowling does not shy away from dark topics, like death and loss, because these experiences are what shape Harry and allow him to do what he needs to do in the next book. I’m always surprised at some of the criticism her stories get.

7)Now choose just one of your books and add a link to it.
St. Charles at Dusk: http://www.amazon.com/Charles-House-Crimson-Clover-ebook/dp/B005RT0ZKE

Thanks!
Sarah