Over the weekend, I noticed the Challenge Within a Challenge post and started strong. I commented on 10 blogs right away because I know how much I look forward to the feedback from other writers. Then, Sunday was crazy busy and I was barely able to post, and the same holds true for the past couple of days.
This got me thinking about the goals and purposes of this challenge. For me, it’s almost a test of will, of commitment to stay focused and disciplined to write for the duration of the month. Last year, was the toughest for me by far – and I think it’s because I forgot to link-up on something like March 2nd or March 4th. Knowing that I had “missed it” already was just about enough to make me throw in the towel. But I kept at it, sporadically, and all was well – there were posts I loved and those I didn’t.
Over the years though, there has been a shift for me, and I’m curious to know if I’m alone or not. I am absolutely, 100% committed to the idea of sharing and spreading the love for reading, writing, blogging, and slicing. I have shared the success that both my students and I felt during this month-long challenge in countless conversations with friends and colleagues, as well as during professional development sessions I’ve presented on blogging.
It’s funny because, I originally started this post with the feeling that somehow, there were so many more participants now, and how we used to have more comments on our blogs. But then, I looked back. I read through some of my old posts with maybe 2 or 3 comments, sometimes 1. Then, I visited the archives of the same year at Two Writing Teachers – and I was shocked that there were 170 comments on one post, and maybe 163 on another. In my mind, that first year I sliced, there were maybe 30 or 40. Time has a funny way of changing your memory of things.
As this challenge grows, just as things sometime happen in our classrooms – projects taken on lives on their own and they become much bigger than we can comment on and actively participate in given 100+ students. What do we do? How do we go adjust and adapt to the new “big-ness” of the project or challenge? How do we encourage those who are ready to rise up into leadership positions? How do we make learning more than “an assignment given to students, but a mindset held by a community of learners?”
It got me thinking about how technology is changing the way we interact with one another. On the one hand, without the technology, this challenge wouldn’t be as possible on this broad a spectrum. On the other hand, is it possible to connect meaningfully with such a large number of people? I think yes, but I think it might require a change. The greatest slicing experiences I had were those when I was reading and commenting on a certain handful of blogs for the duration of the challenge. We would converse through comments and follow-up emails. And the greatest moment was meeting for breakfast in Chicago at the NWP Annual Meeting. Putting faces with names and real people behind their blogs was amazing.
Is anyone else equally ecstatic and simultaneously overwhelmed to think about connecting with so many other slicers? All too often, when I feel that tension, it practically paralyzes me. So, what are you doing to make connections within this reading, writing, blogging community?
The first two years it was about just getting it done. Could I do it? It wasn’t until I finished that I realized how much the comments meant. I have done 3 student blogging challenges over the past three years since my first year of participation. I think that is the fuel for me. I know many readers stop by and don’t leave a comment and I am ok with that. I try to comment on posts that are entered around the same time as me. I often post late and I think they get overlooked. At this point, I try to comment on blogs that have no comments and cultivate bloggers in my teaching life. When it has gone big, its gone viral. I like to think about how many other writers the slicers are growing.
This is my second year, so I do not have the history that you have with the Slice of Life. I have found that there are certain bloggers that I try to follow and make comments…and then scroll down and get as many as I can. This weekend we were traveling so I barely got a post up and so did not get many comments written. I think it is important to write comments as it supports the other writers…and now I notice that we have younger people taking part that makes it all the more exciting and fresh. I wish I could comment on all of them…but decided when I saw the number that I would not be able to…and to just do the best. Sometimes I scroll and check to see if there are any with no comments…and I will comment on those. This is a bit long…probably because I really don’t have an answer…but you pose a good question. Jackie http://familytrove.blogspot.com/
I am trying to share everyday in the challenge. I lost Internet this weekend; so I also missed a day. Growing community is deliberate process with me. I like visiitng and reading blogs. Thanks for sharing. I love your Tag Cloud too. It is so neat.
You pose some very good questions on your blog post today. Honestly, I don’t know the answer. I haven’t participated before this year, so I don’t have anything to compare. I love the comments that I get and love to read and post on other blogs. My purpose for this writing challenge is (hopefully) to create a habit of writing and blogging. I started my blog last summer and hadn’t been on it since, until the slice of life challenge. 🙂 So, connect or not connect, it is a great pleasure to be in the presence of such amazing writers and bloggers! 🙂
My experience with the March challenge is similar to yours — two years ago I felt as if there was much more interaction between myself and the other bloggers, and I feel a big part of that has to do with how much we have grown. Last year and this year, I scroll and look for posts with no comments and try to comment on 3 or more each day, remembering how much it meant to me that first year when people commented on my posts. I would love to build more community during the challenge, but am not sure how to do that, and for me the month is primarily a helpful reason to write every day — bonding with other writers would be a well-cherished treasure, but not something I expect, just due to how very many of us there are, which is a really great thing! (For some reason I am now hearing The Facts of Life theme song in my head. Issues!! Haha.)
I am so glad you sliced about this. I was wondering about all of these things. I started strong especially when we were off from school. I could devote at least one hour or more writing and commenting. On a day like today it was school and straight to my son’s science fair. It doesn’t leave me time to comment on many. I didn’t want to just comment on the same people’s slices everyday, I wanted to try to read many different ones. Great question. How many total slicers are there?
It is important to comment on atleast three as that is the agreement we make when we take part. I usually comment on the three who posted before me then look for the slicers I regularly read and then if I have more time just randomly click. What amazes me in my third year is how despite growing numbers there is a community and something special that happens when we write/post together. I start to recognize names even if I do not always read the slice because of the way we post our links.
I’m so glad you chose to write about this, as I too have really been feeling a lack of community. I mean there’s community in the fact that were all in this challenge and experiencing many of the same feelings, but on the other hand I sometimes feel very lonely and haven’t made any real connections with people. I’ve also been reflecting on the type of comments being left and wonder how more of a connection with someone might then change the types and depth of comments left – thank you again for writing about something so pertinent. I wonder if a different posting format would change anything?
I find myself both thrilled and overwhelmed by the number of folks in the challenge these last few years. When this challenge started, I think we were a mighty dozen! It was was so easy to keep up with people, to comment on everyone’s post. Now I feel sorry that I can’t leave comments for even half the posts, there are just too many. And I post so late in the evening, by the time I get my writing up, it’s usually the stroke of midnight, and I need to sleep!
This year, I’m trying to be a little kinder with myself. I will do my best to respond to at least 10 posts for every one I write. I will try to read some of the bloggers I don’t know while I cycle through the writers I’ve been getting to know over the last seven years. With over 200 people in the challenge, I have to accept that I can’t be present every day for every person.
I love getting comments, love when a conversation starts through the comments and subsequent posts are inspired by comments. So it’s important for me to leave as many comments as I can, so that other writers can feel that connection, too.
What a great conversation. I am a ” first timer” and just loving it! I feel privileged when even one person comments on my posts. Being able to click on any one post and be transported to their life is one of the things I am enjoying most about this challenge. We all have more than one thing in common, most of us teachers as well as writers. I feel I have made some connections with people even if they don’t know it..if you get what I mean. They are sharing their life one slice at a time and I feel like I am beginning to know them more. As far as a catch up goes..I would love to!! Want to come to Australia? It’s warm here, no snow. 🙂