New Look, Contest & A to Z Followup Signup

Today is the first scheduled post during my vacation. We're on our way to Orlando to enjoy the end of the school year with good friends, but I didn't want to abandon you entirely, so I have written and scheduled several posts, just in case I am unable to sign in during my trip! I try to respond to all comments, but it will take me longer than usual during my vacation. If I'm unable to sign in during my trip, I will get back to everyone upon my return.

You probably noticed the blog is looking a little different. It became a necessity when the old template wouldn't allow me to change certain details, which made both my poll and the signup for the A to Z impossible to read unless you highlighted the text with your cursor. I figured people wouldn't appreciate that, so a new look it is! Eventually, I will get around to putting a custom face on here, but I have no idea when I'll have the time.

Before I explain about the A to Z signup, I wanted to let everyone know about a contest Sylvia Ney is running on her blog Writing in Wonderland. It is a 1000 word picture-prompted contest. The picture is a great choice, and one I can see inspiring some very interesting stories. Click on the name of her blog above for details. She is accepting submissions through June 6, 2011.

You may have also noticed a little linky underneath the name and description of my blog. This is a signup to participate in the Followup Blog Hop to the A to Z, where Tina of Life is Good and I are encouraging those who participated in the A to Z Challenge to visit the blogs they missed while working so hard to keep up with the challenge, itself. I've found so many wonderful blogs via the participants of the original challenge, and I'm sure there are many I've missed, so far. The goal is to visit all of the blogs by the end of the summer. You may take it as far as you please, whether that means simply visiting each blog and commenting where you choose, or making it a point to comment on every blog you visit. This linky list will eventually appear on Tina's blog (she is on vacation at the same time as me, and I needed some time to fiddle with the linky, as it was my first time attempting one). If there is anyone else who would like to be a host of this blog hop, please leave me a comment with the means to contact you in my comments or email me via the email in my profile. I will get you the code to put it on your blog, as well.

While there is no true official start or end date to this hop, it is meant to be a summer challenge. I intend to start June 1 and be finished by September 1. The linky list will remain open for signups until July 1. Let me know in comments if you have any questions. You can access the original signup list of the A to Z Challenge by clicking on the A to Z apple badge on the right side of my blog. Anyone can join, whether they participated in the original challenge or not. This is really about touching base with other bloggers and getting out there to find new blogs you might enjoy.

Happy Writing!