Are you ready to commit to a week, a month, or even a year of posting? Multi-day blog challenges are a great way to push yourself as a writer or artist, grow in unexpected ways, connect with other bloggers — maybe even to produce a publishable book.
Our survival guide gives you the tools you need to see a longer challenge through to the end, from inspiration for the days your muse has left the building to resources on making the most of WordPress.com:
Like genius, blog challenges are 99% perspiration, 1% inspiration — but without that 1%, it’s hard to get off the ground. We’ll help you shape and sustain your energy for the long haul:
- When Life Gets in the Way: Tips on finding the time to blog.
- You (Almost) Never Have Nothing to Write About: 4.5 steps to busting bloggers’ block.
- The Ghosts in Your Dashboard: Stuck? Find creative ways to use drafts you’ve abandoned.
- It’s About Time: On Editorial Calendars: Tips to set up and manage your blog’s content plan.
- Plagiarize Yourself: Revisit comments you’ve made to spark new post material.
- Philosophy of Composition: A discussion of Edgar Allan Poe to fuel your own methods.
- Try a New Point of View: Get inspired by three takes on the same topic.
- Blogs for 365 days, 52 Weeks, and More: Bloggers with year-round or ongoing projects.
- Want to Write a Novel? A kickoff for NaNoWriMo 2013, with tips from past participants.
Need some specific post ideas? We’ve got you covered there, too.
- Check out past writing prompts: An archive of hundreds and hundreds of prompts.
- Check out past writing challenges: A collection of challenges to hone your craft.
- Check out past photo challenges: Our popular photography prompts, served up each Friday.
- Find a weekly event to join: Bloggers running weekly events centered on photos, fiction and prompts of all kinds.
- NaBloPoMo prompts: Daily prompts from the NaBloPoMo team, for November and beyond.
- Make writing prompts personal: Learn how to bend writing prompts to your bloggers’ will.
Blog challenges are an opportunity to stretch yourself as a writer or artist; trying something new shifts your perspective, and a new angle on your work is critical and inspiring. These posts help you tighten and focus your writing and give you the push you need to try something boundary-busting:
- Perfect Pitch: A primer on developing your voice as a blogger.
- The Art of Snark: Tips on creative disagreement, from parody to satire.
- The Art of the Open Letter: Successful examples of the open letter format.
- Point of View: Looking at three ways to tackle the same subject.
- Blogging about Family and Friends: Getting personal without abolishing privacy.
- Make Them Laugh: Five funny bloggers on the art of humor writing.
- The 5-Paragraph Essay: Using a familiar format for longer posts.
- Longform Layout Tips: How to keep readers hooked ’til the end.
- Going Serial: Regularity and repetition in your editorial schedule.
- Serial Writing for Fiction: Tips to keep fiction writers writing.
- Quick Tip on Editing: Eliminate unnecessary words!
- Down with Adverbs: The adverb: writing friend or foe?
- Three Steps for Perfect Proofing: Essentials for error-free writing.
- Metaphor and Simile: A refresher on two common literary devices.
- Hyperbole is the best thing ever: Exaggerating for effect.
- Escaping the Grammar Police: Breaking grammar rules for style and impact.
Ensure your blog layout shows off your content to its best advantage with these options, baked right in to WordPress.com:
- Post Formats: A primer on the various formats to display your posts.
- Features for Writing: Tools in your dashboard, from requesting feedback to copying a post.
- Features for Longform: Pagination, page jumps, and the more tag, oh my!
- Features for Poets: Alignment, formatting, and spacing options to make your poems pop.
- Blogging on the Go: Creating content with mobile apps.
- Inserting Images, Four Ways: Easy ways to create visual impact.
- Apps We Love: The tools and tricks that make writing easier.
The folks at BlogHer, who are behind NaBloPoMo, know a thing or two about sustaining daily blogging! Here, their top tips for a blog challenge experience you can be proud of:
- 6 Ways to Get the Most Out of NaBloPoMo: The nuts and bolts of engaging with the NaBloPoMo community.
- Survive NaBloPoMo: Post ideas galore from a NaBloPoMo regular.
- What Bloggers Can Learn from Marathon Runners: Using schedules, community support, and built-in breaks.
- 3 Ways to Keep Writing When You Don’t Have Time: Keep going when life saps your muse.
- 6 Tips for Writing Well Even After Kids: Honing your craft when you’ve got little people with big demands.
- Why You Should Cross-Post to BlogHer: Getting more eyes on your bloggy efforts.
Of course, WordPress.com and BlogHer are not the only places to find helpful resources! Here the sites we visit — on WordPress.com and beyond — when we need a blogging boost:
- Boy with a Hat: Writing and life inspiration from the talented Vincent Mars.
- Cristian Mihai: Inspiration and practical writing advice from a popular blogger.
- Kristen Lamb: The blog of a bestselling author with a big readership.
- Alec Nevala-Lee: An excellent writer on art, culture, and the writing life.
- Brevity Magazine An essential resource for nonfiction, essay, and memoir writers.
- Live to Write, Write to Live: Professional writers talk about the craft and business of writing.
- The Art of Writing: The blog of novelist Tobias Mastgrave.
- Lorelle on WordPress: Tips on writing and blogging on WordPress and WordPress.com.
- The NaNoWriMo Blog: The official hub of National Novel Writing Month.
- Nieman Storyboard: A resource for storytellers, period.
- Poynter.org: All about storytelling, news gathering, and tools for writing.
- Write to Done: Articles and practical tips on writing.
- Men with Pens: A blog on copy writing, freelancing, and the business side of writing.
- Time to Write: Ideas and tips for writers from Jurgen Wolff.
“Blog event survival guide” image by Florian Richter / CC by 2.0
“Get inspired” image by Caleb Roenigk / CC by 2.0
“Be a better writer” image by semihundido / CC by 2.0
“WordPress.com” image by Christopher Ross / CC by 2.0
“Resources” image by Germán Póo-Caamaño / CC by 2.0
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