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Be a woman to watch. I’ve already decided this will be my mantra for 2018. But there’s no need to wait until January 1 to start crushing my goals. In fact, I believe that to make 2018 the year I want it to be, I need to get to work on next year’s goals right now and I want to help you do the same.
If you want to slay 2018, here are three things I believe you should do before the end of this year.
This weekend, for the first time ever, I participated in the Vulcan Run, a 10K race held annually in Birmingham that attracts about 1,000 runners each year.
I have never been more nervous for a race. I couldn’t really figure out why. I’ve run a half-marathon — twice — which is more than twice the number of miles of a 10K. I also trained for this race for a month. Yet, the morning of the Vulcan Run I was so nervous my stomach started to hurt.
I was convinced I’d be too slow to finish the race in the two-hour time limit or that my legs would just stop working around mile five.
Nevertheless, I laced up my Nikes and set off to pound the pavement. This race, like so many others, would not only teach me plenty about running but impart lessons about writing, too.
This is it — it’s November 1, the first day of #bloglikecrazy. This month many bloggers across the country and I will attempt to blog every single day.
As we enter this challenge and this month it’s important to set specific goals for the next 30 days. What do you hope to get out of #bloglikecrazy? What other goals and intentions do you have for November? Could working toward these goals help you produce more content for #bloglikecrazy?
The See Jane Write blogging challenge #bloglikecrazy kicks off in two days. (If you’re new around here, you can learn all about #bloglikecrazy here.)
I’ve discussed before how I believe blogging every day for 30 days can help you be more creative and more consistent. This challenge can also drastically increase your blog traffic but simply publishing new content every day isn’t enough to do so. Yes, you need to develop an editorial calendar of 30 blog post ideas for November, and you need to find time to write your blog posts, but you must make time to promote your blog posts, too. And this is where so many bloggers drop the ball.
If you’re looking for something to give your blog a boost and whip your writing regimen into shape, the #bloglikecrazy challenge may be exactly what you need.
Each year in November I challenge myself and my fellow bloggers to publish a new blog post every day for 30 days. I call this challenge #bloglikecrazy. Throughout the month, I’ll share blogging tips and post ideas using the hashtag #bloglikecrazy. And if you use the #bloglikecrazy hashtag when you share your posts on social media I’ll help promote your posts, too.
In 2012, I started the #bloglikecrazy challenge on my personal blog but the women of See Jane Write were so excited about it that it quickly became something I started hosting for the women of SJW. Then word started to get out and soon women and men all over the country were participating. You don’t have to be a member of the See Jane Write Collective to do the #bloglikecrazy challenge. To participate all you need is a blog.
I’ll be honest, I originally started this challenge because November can be a lonely time for non-fiction writers. National Novel Writing Month (or NaNoWriMo) is also in November, which means all my fiction writer friends are busy trying to write a 50,000-word novel in a month and so no one can come out to play! So, I decided to create a writing challenge for non-fiction writers who blog.
But I believe blogging every day for 30 days will boost your creativity, your community, and your consistency. I break down each of these here.
Related Reading: Jessica Furniss of Spiffy Eats shares how #bloglikecrazy helped her land her first magazine spread.
Also, if you succeed in blogging every day for 30 days (each blog post needs to be at least 300 words), I will give you a shoutout on the See Jane Write blog and on social media.
Related Reading: Making the Most of #bloglikecrazy
You can find tips on how to create an editorial calendar for the challenge here.
You’re free to blog about whatever you want during the challenge, but, in case you need them, you can find writing prompts here, here, and here.
Good question. Be sure to read Finding Time to #bloglikecrazy and How to #bloglikecrazy without Going Crazy.
Follow the #bloglikecrazy hashtag on social media to find other bloggers participating in the challenge.
If you use the #bloglikecrazy hashtag when promoting your posts on Twitter, I’ll retweet your tweets. If you use it on Instagram, I’ll like and comment on your posts. And if you use it and tag me @seejavaciawrite when promoting your posts in Instagram Stories I’ll share your story in my own.
And be sure to join the See Jane Write Network Facebook group.
If you’re participating in #BlogLikeCrazy 2022 head to this blog post and let me know.
Let’s #bloglikecrazy!