26 letters! 26 posts! 26 lots of nostalgic ruminations!
But now it's over and we've been asked to say how it was for us...
Topic: I wouldn't do the A to Z without a strong topic. I loved my topic this year, 1950/60s nostalgia. It's filled me with long lost memories and I'm still reliving them! [Living in the past, some call it!]
Visitors: Like last year, I've made some lovely new blogging friends and I've increased my blog following [always a cause for great merriment!] I received lots of great comments and I loved that I had visitors competing with each other
to provide memories that I’d forgotten.
Problems: There were so many bloggers taking part in the A to Z that I almost wore my keyboard out trying visit them. At one point it was all I could do to visit those who had commented on my blog, never mind popping in to see anyone else.
I found it difficult to visit those bloggers who had chosen to post a continuing story. If I missed one day I'd literally lost the plot! And there were still people who posted long pieces and, even though they looked interesting, I couldn't spare the time to read them.
Special Request: I love the way that the A to Z brings me into contact with a multitude of bloggers but there's something extra special about meeting bloggers who have the same interests and outlooks as myself. With 1719 people taking part this year it was a bit of a fluke if we came across those 'special' bloggers. Is there any way that we can add labels to our linky next year [next year! I'm talking about next year already!] to increase the odds of meeting those special bloggie people.
Over to you, the reader: The A to Z organisers also want to hear from anyone who visited during the challenge so please share your thoughts. Did you enjoy having a blog post a day to visit? Did you get fed up of all the A to Z posts flying through your blog reader? Did you feel neglected because your usual visitors didn't have the time to pop by?
That marks the end of another A to Z. I'm already feeling nostalgic about it all. In fact, I'm almost starting to think about next year. And before I return to normal blogging let's raise a virtual glass to all of us who survived the A to Z, and that includes blog visitors as well as participants.
That marks the end of another A to Z. I'm already feeling nostalgic about it all. In fact, I'm almost starting to think about next year. And before I return to normal blogging let's raise a virtual glass to all of us who survived the A to Z, and that includes blog visitors as well as participants.
Cheers!!
Well done Ros! I also suggest there to be categories that participants can enter their blog into, to make it easier to find blogs in common.
ReplyDeleteDuncan In Kuantan
You had a great AtoZ. Lots of wonderful memories. Already asking about next year? That's good, I look forward to reading them.
ReplyDeleteI loved your a to z series...and can't help but admire the total dedication to the cause.....it must have you taken you ages!
ReplyDeleteAnd can't help but smile....you're already looking forward to next year?
I just loved your theme as it was similar to mine except mine was music of the 50s/60s.
ReplyDeleteWell done for completing the challenge and yes, me too am already thinking of next year.
Yvonne.
i found the continuing stories hardest to keep up with too. I'm also one of the ones guilty of long posts. Need to tighten things up for next year.
ReplyDeletemood
Moody Writing
Our 2nd A to Z together went by even faster this year! I really liked tuning into your theme, and appreciate all of your visits! I also like your labeling idea! Julie
ReplyDeleteI enjoyed the challenge too! Your posts were so much fun. I like your label idea :)
ReplyDeleteMore good things than bad I'm thinking.
ReplyDeleteThanks so much for dropping in on thefeatherednest.
I agree about the posts with stories that continued from the day before - I really enjoyed them but it was difficult to pop in right in the middle.
ReplyDeleteThat's a great idea about labels and possibly we need 2 labels: one with the theme of the A-Z Challenge and another with the theme of the blog, generally. Or would that be too complicated? ~Miriam
ReplyDeleteI LOVED your theme. It was a lot of fun re-visiting the past with you and your commenters. You're right about the continuing stories. By following that tact, the bloggers assumed readers would return every day to keep up with the ongoing story, and in light of all the blog-hopping involved, that wasn't a terribly realistic approach. Ditto, the super-long posts. I'm guilty of writing long posts at times, too, but the A-Z wasn't a very good time to do that. Your idea about splitting the blogs into categories next year is a terrific one. Not sure every blog would fit neatly into one specific category, but doing something of this sort would make the search for kindred spirits a lot easier. (Okay, maybe not "kindred spirits", but you know what I mean!)
ReplyDeleteI agree with you about some of the longer posts - I felt bad that I either read only some, or didn't read any of the post at all. It took time away from other blogs.
ReplyDeleteGreat Reflections post. You had a very interesting theme.
ReplyDeleteOther people have also suggested a category option. I think it's a good idea as long as there's room for those blogs that don't fall neatly into a category. I am aware that my blogs were a bit on the long side - apologies for that but once I'm started it's difficult to stop me!
ReplyDeleteBelated congratulations, Rosalind. I hope you're well and catching your breath.
ReplyDeletexoRobyn
I'm seeing a recurring theme in the "category" request as I visit reflection posts today. I blogged the same request.
ReplyDeleteOn the recurring stories, I ended up saving all the posts so I could read them at the end. I lost track otherwise. Definitely a challenge for the writer AND the reader!
"Cheers" - and Well Done Ros. As you know I don't usually visit but I thoroughly enjoyed your wonderful nostalgic theme and inspirational A to Z challenge. It was fun. Found myself getting up earlier and earlier each day just to read what smell you'd conjured up for that letter or what magic moments would come flooding back of TV and Radio programmes.
ReplyDeleteI loved reading all the comments, finding lovely memories I didn't know I had, even discovered a 'soul sister'...........
Hi Ros .. I think your theme was one of the best - and loved coming to visit ..
ReplyDeleteI have a problem with 'label' - where would I go .. history is quite dull for some people .. though I don't think I do dull history?
I think if one 'flips' through the few blogs we're likely to read each day .. we'll find one or two we relate to for the challenge - the others get left by the wayside.
I've made some excellent friends this year - as last (such as you!) ..
I love your layout here and your letters .. very clever!
Cheers and definitely cheers to you .. Hilary
Hi Ros, I loved reading the clever way you set out your posts with smells and sounds etc. I loved the tie between our blogs and though we basically think and like similar things we write about them in completely different ways. As for next years ,yes I'll probably have forgotten about the bad days by then.
ReplyDeleteI had the same "problems" as you, but it was great having so many visitors and commentors. :D
ReplyDeleteFirst of all: I loved your A to Z, the creativity, the reader participation, the way you made me remember those things too, and on and on. I really loved it.
ReplyDeleteI wouldn't do it without a topic either and found that I liked to read the blogs with topics best. I was always curious about what would come next.
Your special request above makes so much sense and I hope they will consider it for next year. I got completely exhausted trying to find blogs of interest among all the participants. And I'm retired, imagine if you had to go to work!!
Thanks for all the enjoyment of your A to Z posts.
I enjoyed the way you did your Reflections post. Also enjoyed your theme even though I couldn't get by here every day. I had the same problems as you did. And I was hoping to have your request granted before the Challenge but didn't get many to go along with it. I don't know if you noticed that all of the links to my blogs except for Tossing It Out were labeled to identify them to a certain extent. It's a good idea that I hope we can fix in the future.
ReplyDeleteThanks for your participation and support.
Lee
Wrote By Rote
Good to finally "meet" you, Rosalind! I'm making my way slowly down the list...I enjoyed your reflections. I get nostalgic at times, especially when I think of my childhood!
ReplyDeleteMakingTheWriteConnections