Monday, May 9, 2016

A TO Z CHALLENGE REFLECTIONS POST

     This was my third A to Z Challenge and probably my favorite so far.  I got to not only play historian, but to get creative too.  It wasn't always easy to come up with 21st-century cultural memes that had 16th-century analogues, but I managed.  I guess my underlying goal was to help make people realize that life on Earth has been around for a very long time, that 500 years is just the blink of an eye, and that people who lived in the 1500's thought and felt and dreamed and schemed very much like people of the 21st century do.  It was an incredibly innovative time, bringing huge advances in science, communications, philosophy and the arts that changed the world every bit as much as the Internet has done for you and me.
     But of course, the satisfaction I derived from my own blog posts is only a part of what the A to Z Challenge is about.  The real genius of the Challenge is its focus on interactivity - discovering new blogs and bloggers, reading and commenting on their posts, replying to their comments on your posts.  Because as fascinating as it is for me to discover 16th-century people I'd never heard of, it's maybe even a little better to discover some new contemporaries who love to blog as much as I do.  The Challenge, at its heart, is about creating and sustaining a supportive community, and that's a really wonderful goal.  So once again, I'll thank Yvonne Ventresca, my friend and the very talented author of the Crystal-Kite-winning YA novel PANDEMIC and the forthcoming YA thriller, BLACK FLOWERS, WHITE LIES, due out in October (I can't wait!)  Among the many ways Yvonne has always supported me and my writing career, she was the one who first told me about the A to Z Challenge and encouraged me to participate.  And I want to thank the A to Z founders, hosts, minions and participants for making the month of April so exciting and rewarding!  I'm very proud to be part of this annual adventure.

18 comments:

  1. Your posts were fun with how you tied things of today with history. Made your theme unique.

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    1. Thank you, and again, congratulations on finishing the Challenge! Minions are awesome.

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  2. Networking is what I love the most about the challenge too. It's an incredible part of the year for me. Hard as it is (and it si hard!) it's such fun and so worth it.

    I'm happy I'v efound your blog :-)

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    1. I couldn't agree more! And doing it in your second language must make it twice as hard, but you triumphed!!

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  3. I absolutely loved your posts and will be catching up on the ones I missed. Have I told you that I love the depth of research, and the erudition you bring to your challenge posts? It's superbly amazing, if I haven't.

    The reflections thingy is going to take up the next few days. After that I am going to claim my award. I hope it'll still be valid :)

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    1. From what I can tell, Nila, you can claim your award any time you want. I can't wait to read your Leibster post! And as always, thank you.

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  4. Hi Yvonne. I'll be playing catch up with your posts once my house move is over by the end of this month. But, I've enjoyed the ones I did get to read. Thank you for visiting my blog and I agree, April oozed with creative juices--thanks to the A to Z challenge.

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    1. Hi, my name is Susan, and thanks for visiting! I hope your move goes smoothly.

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  5. Susan -- Thanks for the shout-out! I'm glad you love the challenge as much as I do.

    Yvonne V

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    1. I do, and I can't wait to read your new book!!

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  6. Congratulations on a unique and captivating A to Z challenge.

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    1. Right back at you, Dahlia! And big congratulations on a successful finish!

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  7. It was my third, too, and I think I enjoyed the posts more than any other. Although my theme in 2015 was the 80s, which was FUN!

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    1. Yes, Stephanie, but you seemed to get a lot of ghoulish pleasure out of this year's theme too! Next year: unsolved mysteries of the 80's and what everyone involved was wearing???

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  8. That sounds like a challenge I would love to have read...if I wasn't having heck month. But hey, way to go! I hope I'll see you around this upcoming year for the challenge.

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    1. Thank you for visiting, Crystal! I'm sorry your April was Heck Month. Hope May has been better to you. And I hope I see you around long before next April!

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  9. No kidding, I LOVE the hand tree. I, also, like meeting new bloggers and joining their blogs. I like the name of your blog, Susan, and will be joining it. All the best with your new release, Yvonne.

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  10. Hey, I finally posted my Liebster Award blog today. Thanks for the nomination!

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