That's me in a big way this year. You see, I've signed up for the Blogging from A to Z Challenge . Along with 2,000+ other bloggers - yes, more than 2,000! - I'll be blogging daily starting with the letter A prompt and ending with Z at the end of the month. Why do something like this? Well, the best way to boost your blog traffic and get notice from search engines is to post meaningful content on your blog regularly over an extended period of time. This is proven. The blog I'm working with was created to support a book title, the first in a trilogy, and deals with environmental themes, as well as murder and romance. So my goal going through the alphabet will include topics I might be writing about in the series. I'll also be reporting my daily word counts and hope interaction with other A to Z bloggers will inspire me, and maybe even garner a few new friends. Are any of you reading this post planning to join the A to Z venture? What is your blogging focus...

Nowadays, being a writer means spending so much time on the periphery of writing that it's hard to remember the only way to sell books is to write books. We're expected to maintain an Internet presence, interact with readers, and keep our names in front of people. And, I'll confess, often it's fun to spend a little time tweeting, or seeing what our friends are doing on Facebook. Unless you're disciplined and set a timer, it's easy to look up at the clock and see you've frittered away an hour. Or three. Word With Friends is not even "pseudo" writing time. One approach many writers have taken is to band together to help expand their reach. And it is about reach , not sales. If your goal is solely to sell books, you're likely to be frustrated. Unless you're a Big Name Author whose next release is highly anticipated, makes the best-seller list before it's even released, and have a publisher that markets you and your book, odds are, v...