Last year, I found the challenge exhilerating with all the overseas visitors calling in to my blog and commenting. This year, old friends retained contact as well as a very few strangers. Perhaps the list was too long this year, but not many others worked their way down to me. I must have visited over 500 blogs.
Never mind. It's over.
The comments others left were very heartening. I made it easy for them because I only wrote two paragraphs, whereas some other blogs were so long. My eyes were strained at the end of each day.
I must thank the organizers, who did a marvellous job and visited me three times with encouraging comments. However, I wan't be participating again.
I only spectated this year. I've found blogging should be fun, not stressful like me writing novels or short stories.
ReplyDeleteHugs and chocolate,
Shelly
I want to write my stories too. Those give me immense satisfaction.
DeleteHi Francene .. two blogs .. gosh I'm glad I never went or found your 2nd .. the flowers with their informational posts were so interesting to read.
ReplyDeleteYes - some were too long and I would not necessarily read those ..
I had a much more fun time this year - but my subject was less demanding .. castles v cookery - the home wins!!
Cheers Hilary
I skim all the long blogs. Who has the time to spare to read them? It's a shame because the writers must have gone to a lot of trouble to write them. You've been such a good friend during the last year. Thanks.
DeleteI hear you, Francene, I think having categories was a bad idea, since some people will only visit the blogs that have similar interests to their own. Sometimes things can get too big and too managed.
ReplyDeleteWe differ on one thing though, I like the long quality posts. Then I learn something. Thanks for being honest!
I couldn't see the point of categories. I thought we were required to visit every one below us, despite the specified group. Yes. This year the list was way too big.
DeleteKudos, Francene. That is hard work and also very thoughtful of you to read and comment on so many other blogs. I, too, found that hard last year and did not participate this year. But I did keep reading my faves, as I have all year, and indeed - your blog shows the hard work. I'm one of your overseas friends. Rest up and keep writing. Thanks.
ReplyDeleteThank you for being there through thick and thin, Joanne. Of course, we met through my participation last year. The only bloggers who have kept in touch are the ones who maintain their effort.
DeleteI won't be participating next year either. Mainly because I couldn't keep up like I'd like to with the other blogs. And that's one of my "things"... if I can't do it right, then I won't do it at all. :)
ReplyDeleteIt is harder to visit blogs the more and more we follower. I didn't want to neglect my favorites, but I didn't comment on as many as I do in other months.
ReplyDeleteCongrats on making it through.
You too, Cindy. Thanks for popping over.
DeleteI am in complete agreement. I wrote all mine in advance but towards the end the strain of visiting back took its toll. I've hardly had time to venture on blog land since and I've met very few new bloggers. I think this will be my last A to Z.
ReplyDeleteGood of you to share your experiences, Rosalind. I mean to concentrate more on my novel writing.
DeleteI also noticed this. Even though I commented on over 700 posts, I didn't see any sustained increases to the number of comments on my blog after the first week.
ReplyDeleteSo I'm thinking I won't be doing another challenge. Just not worth the effort. Especially not now that I have a writing career to build.
Thanks for sharing your experiences, Misha.
DeleteI don't know if I'll do it again next year or not. I probably won't do as many blogs if I do. I did 3 blogs this year and I visited and commented daily, and returned all comments. It does take time. I thought the point, initially was to write good blogs, have good content; so really labored over the first of the 3 blogs with alot of research for the blog posts and time given to select interesting topics. Later, I read...I think the day before when reminders were sent to keep it short. So, sadly I didn't get the readership to match the work I put in. I think it also created alot of folks posting a few sentences without much thought, or a picture without words, or a paragraph and no picture. That was disappointing to me. I like to read things of interest, see pictures. Sooooooo, at this point, I just don't know about next year. Only time will tell. The one sidedness of it bothered me. I'm still visiting everyone who visited me, and already it seems some have stopped visiting ...sooooo, do we actually gain readers? But, I'm in another challenge for May, only 1 blog though. lol
ReplyDeleteOozing Out My Ears
I don't think we do gain readers. Only tempory visitors. I've still kept about ten from last year but the others have disappeared. I can't work out how to unfollow them either. Google blogger is easy to use, yet baffling in that way. I maintain a daily blog on: 475035832790540880.weebly.com/blog.html if you want to continue there.
DeleteMission accomplish, congratulations! I just got your 'Still Rock Water' and I'm looking forward to reading it tonight.
ReplyDeleteHow wonderful. I know you'll enjoy the novel. The next one should be published soon.
DeleteI'm sorry the challenge wasn't enjoyable to you. :( I am just catching up with all the comments left on my blog. It does get overwhelming.
ReplyDeleteShannon at The Warrior Muse
Francene,
ReplyDeleteI agree with a lot of your points. I liked that I found some blogs that I will actually follow up on. I already am. But not every one I visited returned the favor, by a long shot, and when I was going through the list, after finding I could not relate, sometimes AT ALL, I found it exhausting. I am glad for the readers I have and I will pretty much focus on retaining them. I doubt that I will participate next year as well.
Yes, Wendy. So many blogs bore me to tears. In the end we have to fact the fact that life isn't fair.
DeleteFrancene, I do hope you participate next year! I found your comments consistently helpful. Last year, I used the A to Z Challenge to talk about research for my current wip. Maybe that would bring your blog next year closer to your next novel? This year, I tried to double up by linking National Poetry Month to the A to Z Challenge. Whew! I didn't prepare anything in advance. Yes, keeping up with others is difficult. Generally I comment on their blogs when folks visit my blog. But many people (like you) also comment right on the blog. I still haven't figured out if that's a reasonable use of my writing time -- but thank YOU for writing that reflective A-Z entry. I'll do mine too!
ReplyDeleteI am still working my way through the A to Z list and Yep it is long. . . .
ReplyDeleteRob Z Tobor
Hi Francene
ReplyDeleteI'm not going anywhere, I love your blog and your comments. I was very happy to have met up with you last year and will continue to follow your blog. I agree with all of your comments, it was difficult to read and comment and write and answer, last year was my first venture into public blogging and I enjoyed meeting all my fellow bloggers. This year I was just as fired up for the first half but for some reason the workload this year combined with my full time job etc all became overwhelming and my joy de vive expired.
I will have to think seriously about participating next year. As you know I am but a humble gardener who loves the sound of her own computer not an aspiring writer (well not yet).