Do any of you feel that "calm before the storm" sensation? It's not a feeling of doom per se, but a knowledge that soon the next Blogging For Progress Scholarship will start, and the madness will begin again....
To tell you the truth, I've got some mixed feelings on the whole thing. The scholarship, I mean. On one hand, I'm optimistic. This will be the second time I'm actually trying for this scholarship (the last one I just posted, but didn't really vie for the scholarship).Anyway, I'm more prepared than the newbie who joined ProgressiveU sometime last year. I've read numerous blogs, commented, and written a good number of blogs myself.
On the other hand...I'm a little wary. I have a very realistic view of things, which often tends to be a negative view as well. I know the enormity of this contest. I can't even number the amount of people who try to get it. There's a ton of competition, and I know I'm not the most well-known user out there. I have to hope that I can compete this time. I've done a little preparation, but I still feel that it is not enough....
Also, I'd like to do a little shoutout to the admins who have been improving this site nonstop. Last year, we did not have an edit option on blogs (that I'm aware of) or a counter that reminds you how many points you've accumulated. There are some other great add ons, but I could go on forever about how ProgressiveU has improved.
So, here's me saying that I'm going to try, once again, to win this scholarship. *Crosses fingers*
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I was in the top ten for a while in last scholarship...I don't know if I ended in it. I also have no clue how. I don't blog a lot and very few of my blogs had a really big amount of reads. I guess I comment a lot, but I tend to be very limited in range.
So, hey. Even if it seems like you're doing really poorly, you never know. :-)
And I wouldn't call this the calm before the storm... There's already a ton of new blog posts popping up very quickly. It's already gotten geared up.
"-bah!! Pardon the "bah!" I feel several "bahs!", but out of courtesy I only say one."
H.P. Lovecraft
The announcement on Fastweb went up today, I think. That's why there's so many new stuff. But really, there's not a horrible amount of competition. The numbers taper off pretty dramatically after the top 10 or so. Many people seriously post like crazy for a month, and then give up.
~C
Check out the latest entry in the Between The Lines column!
I think the thing to remember is that 90% or so give up before the contest ever ends. Since this contest is 5 months long, the longer it goes on, the fewer bloggers there will be. It starts strong and dwindles. By the end of the contest, you generally have 25 to 50 that could be serious competitors and the rest either post sporadically or have fallen completely off. Of those 25 or 50, 3/4s give up before the end. We had one blogger in the top spot last contest and then she just stopped blogging completely and ended up losing. Had she just stuck with it, she likely would have walked away with the prize. So, even if it feels hopeless halfway through, stick with it and you'll do far better than so many.
And as always, keep sending suggestions for improvement to us. We try to implement as many of your suggestions and requests as we can. Sometimes it just takes us a while, as there aren't many of us.. and of those fewer still have the skills to do the techy stuff that most of those suggestions require.
Good luck!
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~Fallon~
“What is insanity, anyway? Is it when you scream and everyone else whispers, or is it when you fight for what's right, even when everyone else thinks your wrong?” Ethergoth
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I actually found this site on Fastweb, as someone has already explained. I am beginning to realize I haven't much of a shot at this, but I'm going to try to give my best.
Though, it may be difficult for me since I'm rather cautious about "profound" writing . . . It's hard to do it every day, and why spout drivel when I actually like writing and wouldn't want to get burned out from a mere website?
Ah, well. Here's to you and me and to everyone trying for the scholarship. [^_^]V
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"People demand freedom of speech as a compensation for the freedom of thought which they seldom use. " -Søren Aabye Kierkegaard
If you think that you don't have something "profound" or relevant to say in a blog on a particular day, keep in mind that posting isn't the only way to get points.
You get points for commenting, too (actually, commenting will probably help you out more in the long run than will blog posts).
Good luck with the scholarship!
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What's the worst that could happen, apart from all of us being flattened or fried or whatever bombs do? [Rudy Steiner from The Book Thief]
http://progressiveu.org/143541-how-to-survive-the-2008-elections
I totally take back my "calm before the storm" attitude when I wrote this yesterday. I've seen so many blog posts yesterday and today! I can't quite understand it. Aren't people going to wait until the scholarship contest actually begins? Blogging now doesn't earn you points. Perhaps I'm missing something here....
We generally tell people to blog during the off season in order to pick up readers and some do so anyway to get a feel for ProgressiveU and what to expect. Some may also not know despite the official rules and all of the announcements, that points cannot be earned toward the contest until the contest starts on the 15th.
It wasn't really calm yesterday when you posted either. We've been inundated with new posts since the 9th.
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~Fallon~
“What is insanity, anyway? Is it when you scream and everyone else whispers, or is it when you fight for what's right, even when everyone else thinks your wrong?” Ethergoth
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I'm sure some people are waiting, but you still get points for reads on those new blogs, and if you can make yourself known to the vets before the contest starts, you'll make a lot of reads.
~C
Check out the latest entry in the Between The Lines column!
Thanks, you two, that does clear some things up. And I did only realize the non-calmness (probably not a word...) until after I posted the entry. I guess I just liked the idea of that for a title.
Anyway, I usually find that my older blogs don't get read when they've been pushed off the "recent blog posts" list. Usually it's a short run, and then only random people will visit the post after it's off that list. There was that time when the admin introduced the "double points for comments on old blogs" thing. I really liked that idea!
Yeah, it can get so you have to time when to post a blog. How many people are online? Do you know how many of them will read or comment on a blog covering a certain subject?
"-bah!! Pardon the "bah!" I feel several "bahs!", but out of courtesy I only say one."
H.P. Lovecraft