Saturday, February 8, 2014

Jumping Into the #AtoZChallenge

                                                    Sign up for the A to Z Challenge here

     After much hand wringing, soul searching, and general fence sitting I've signed up for the A to Z Challenge this year. What is A to Z?

From the A to Z site:
"The brainchild of Arlee Bird, at Tossing it Out, the A to Z Challenge is posting every day in April except Sundays (we get those off for good behavior.) And since there are 26 days, that matches the 26 letters of the alphabet. On April 1, blog about something that begins with the letter “A.” April 2 is “B,” April 3 is “C,” and so on. You can use a theme for the month or go random – just as long as it matches the letter of the alphabet for the day."

I last participated in 2012, and set myself the goal of writing a piece of flash fiction or poetry every day. No previously written posts - I had to get up every morning and write something for the day.

I don't have the time or energy for that this year.  Instead, I chose a subject which I've been having trouble with lately - character development.  My theme also includes a favorite field of interest.

I'll be posting about using psychological and career testing to aid in crafting characters.  There will be brief overviews of well-known tests (such as Myers-Briggs) and lesser known psychological assessment methods, as well as my own ideas on how we can use them to build or explore characters.

ZZzzzzzzzzzzzz...no, wait!

I'll promise to keep jargon to a minimum and try to come up with at least a few fresh ideas on character building.  (I know there's a ton of info out there.)   And...well...I'll try to keep to the theme, although I might have to bail on one or two posts and generate a story. Or a picture. (No kittens).  Maybe even a really bad joke.

If you haven't signed up, there's time.  The list (this morning) has close to 600 sign-ups.  A to Z is a great way to find new content and meet other bloggers.  Hope to see you there!

Follow A to Z on Twitter (Twitter id and hashtag: @AprilA2Z and #atozchallenge )

Follow the hosts :
Arlee Bird @ Tossing it Out http://tossingitout.blogspot.com/
Ninja Captain Alex J. Cavanaugh http://alexjcavanaugh.blogspot.com/
Author Stephen Tremp http://authorstephentremp.blogspot.com/
Tina @ Life is Good http://kmdlifeisgood.blogspot.com/
Damyanti@Amlokiblogs http://amloki.blogspot.com/
Jeremy @ Being Retro http://www.beingretro.com/
Nicole Ayers - The Madlab Post www.madlabpost.com
M. J. Joachim's Writing Tips http://mjjoachim.blogspot.com
Heather M. Gardner http://hmgardner.blogspot.com/
AJ @ Naturally Sweet http://frodofrog.blogspot.com
Pam @ An Unconventional Librarian http://unconventionallibrarian.com 


Oh, and maybe you could follow me too! (Twitter: @ficflash)


14 comments:

  1. That sounds like a great theme. Wow, can't imagine writing something new every single day for the Challenge.

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    1. Thanks Alex. It was TOUGH! I don't think that I could do it again.

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  2. I've been exhausted so far this year in writing a new novel and contracting bronchitis. I hope to have the energy and time in April to play A-to-Z. It was fun last year. I think you're smart to stick to character development - lots of options there!

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    1. Hi John. I know you've got a lot on your plate right now, but hope that you'll join. Of course, your health comes first and then your novel.

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  3. That's a cool theme Li and good luck -will be giving it a miss this year, may miss it but sorta rather busy etc.

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    1. Thanks David. I missed last year because I couldn't commit the time.

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  4. That's an awesome theme. Shall follow you with great interest!

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    1. Thanks Damyanti. Keeping the posts short will be daunting, but I'll do my best to make them brief and fun.

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  5. Glad you're doing this Lisa. In response to Alex's comment: I always thought that was the point, to write daily, not just post daily. That was how I did it the years I joined in.

    No matter: I'm glad I did it the way I did. I'll be looking forward to reading all of yours.

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    1. Hi Stuart. As a writer, that's probably the best way to challenge oneself. Difficult to do, especially if working full time and/or have other major projects and time commitments. The secondary purpose of the challenge is for bloggers to find each other, connect, and share. With up to 1000 participants (maybe more) the A to Z is one of the larger gatherings of bloggers.

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  6. Good luck with your theme. I'll be popping by as I'm very interested in psychological and career testing to develop characters. I think about which mine would fit into to try to keep a mix going.

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    1. Cool. Hope you find some useful ideas or info!

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