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Congratulations to the yeah write #116 weekly writing challenge crowd favourite

Another first-time winner! This week Shanique of Adventures of a Willow Wimp takes crowd favourite with Selfishness V. Sanity. Shanique recently wrote about how being a third world blogger makes her feel that she can’t relate to most other bloggers, but in her essay about taking care of her siblings, she shows that the guilt, demand and love of family is universal. It’s a heartbreaking post, by a young woman wounded in her struggle for balance between what is best for her and what is best for her loved ones. If you haven’t yet, go leave her a supportive comment.

Shanique, your badge awaits you in the sidebar, ready to boast your win on your entry.

Where are the invitational grid and editor picks?

We try to host an additional challenge grid each week called the invitational. To unlock it, the grid has to hit 30 entries and each yeah write editor selects two or three of her favourite essays. From this prestigious pool of talent, a jury prize winner is chosen. You can increase the chances of our reaching at least 30 entries next week by spreading the good word of yeah write.

31-dbbb

Meanwhile, don’t forget to continue with or jump into of our version of ProBlogger’s 31 days to build a better blog. We’ve more than 40 signed up for 31dbbb. If you are making new friends that you haven’t seen on the challenge grid yet, invite them to give it a try for the sake of increased exposure, which is the “so what” of this entire month, right?

Dear All You Guys,

On day three of our yeah write 31 dbbb series, the great Cindy R. recommended emailing higher profile bloggers (when applicable)  to promote your post. Today, our activity is to write and appreciate a current  reader from your blog. I’m writing to all of you now because you’re all appreciated around here.

It used to be that personal mail delivered to my home was the adult equivalent to the ice cream truck making an unexpected visit into my neighbourhood when I was a kid. The sudden appearance of an envelope inscribed with my name in cursive was magical. I’d tear that sucker open and devour every word. Twice.

It’s become rare for anything fun to come in the mail anymore unless I’ve bought it myself. These days, I check and double-check my email inbox for bits of joy – did anyone think of me today? Does anyone need my help? Does anyone care?

Everybody loves mail

you've got mailBuilding community around a blog can feel lonely. Just like buying your own fun snail mail, you have to put in some effort to get a decent response from your audience. Time invested in readers, not just your posts, will provide greater returns to your blog and perhaps also a friend or two.

Yeah write editor Erica M and I met when we were new bloggers. I left a comment on an entry at her place and she sent me an email that made me fall in love with her right away. I added her to my sidebar blogroll, quoted her in my posts, visited her daily and followed the people she followed. It eventually lead to a job reviewing Canadian crime fiction for me, networking her blog, but there were sincere, organic connections being made. Seven years later I’m still thrilled when she emails me.

Prepare to engage

When you take on today’s 31 dbbb challenge, think about what you want to get out of the exercise. Use this opportunity to turn a reader into a relationship. If you don’t have readers yet, write to a fellow yeah writer that you admire. Be specific about what you find compelling and be genuine.  Ask questions to invite conversation. Be yourself.

A word to the wise

Don’t overdo it. Yes, collecting and responding to 60 comments on your entries is nice, but quality will always trump quantity. Nothing will make you want shut your blog down faster than daily artificial banter with people you don’t care about. Don’t feel like you have to be best buds with everyone who crosses your path. If you don’t think of something sincere to write right now, wait until you do. Sometimes “Thanks for taking the time to comment,” is enough.

The time and effort you put into your blog should be pleasant. Short of ice cream, it’s the only way you’ll get the very best out of yourself and your audience.

Yours ‘til the kitchen sinks,

Flood G.

P.S.: Tomorrow Erica M examines how to make your blog mobile-friendly for day 6 of our 31dbbb. It’s easier than you think and definitely worth it.

Weekend moonshine grid opens today at 6 p.m. eastern time!

moonshine
Yeah write is open on the weekends—no editors, no voting, no writer’s block—just hanging out in the clearing among the trees and discarded moonshine jugs. Use this chance to show the yeah write community the other side  of your blog—your top 10 lists, your stream-of-consciousness posts, that hilarious text message exchange with your brother. No commercial or sponsored posts allowed, but this will be a good space for letting us all know when you have a cool blog event coming up.

Hosted by yeah write veteran and regular contributor Michelle Longo, the moonshine grid opens at 6 p.m. eastern time each Friday and will close by 12:01 a.m. each Monday. Grab the badge from the sidebar and go find the perfect post to share!

Win-win

The thumbnails are now sorted in the grid from most votes to the least. In the case of a tie, the thumbnails are additionally sorted by page views. Part of the top row five? Please grab a winners’ badge from the sidebar and display it proudly on your own blog. Congrats!

Do not be discouraged if your blog has landed near the bottom of the grid; it is always a tight race. The fun lies in getting better exposure for your blog and in the spirit of competition as incentive to improve your writing and blogging skills. It’s a win-win for everybody involved.

Thanks again, everybody, for linking up, for reading, for accepting the weekly writing challenge. And for making yeah write the most welcoming spot on the Interwebs for writers who blog and bloggers who write.

Wait. Before you go

Congratulate this week’s winners in comments. It’s not only etiquette, but good comments often get good comments, you know? Yeah write #117 opens Tuesday.


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