We are just three days into this brand new decade and year! It’s been time for reflections, for #OneLittleWord posts, and for many of us, resolutions. How can we show up in a more positive way? How can we add meaning to our busy lives? How can we do small things with great love (as Mother Teresa once advised)?
Right now, there might be an educator thinking, “I really want to start a blog” or maybe “I want to develop a more consistent blogging habit.” That teacher might be resolving to join the March SOLSC 2020, which would be an excellent decision! For those of us who have taken on this challenge in the past, we know how important it was to have readers who commented on our posts that first year when we were brand new to the experience. New bloggers might not realize that those faithful readers who come by each day and comment on the posts are part of our TWT Welcome Wagon. It’s time, once again, to put out the call for volunteers for the Welcome Wagon. It is an opportunity to make a positive difference for new and tentative bloggers who are hoping to build an audience!
WHO: An educator who blogs and has participated in the March Slice of Life Story Challenge (SOLSC) at least once before.
WHAT: By signing up for the Welcome Wagon, you agree to receive a list of first-time Slicers and their blog urls. You commit to reading their blog posts each day of the challenge and leaving a comment on each post.
HOW MANY BLOGS WILL I BE ASSIGNED? The number of new bloggers you receive depends on how many New Slicers we have as well as how many Welcome Wagon volunteers sign up. Typically, Welcome Wagon volunteers start out with about 5-7 blogs. (Some do drop out during the challenge, so the number often reduces.)
CAN I SPECIFY A NUMBER OF BLOGGERS I WILL TAKE ON? We apologize, but we cannot tailor the number of new bloggers to each Welcome Wagon member. Coordinating the New Slicers and Welcome Wagon volunteers is a busy job that some of the co-authors take on while still doing our day jobs and also taking part in the challenge, too. We do our best to assign the same amount of bloggers to each Welcome Wagon volunteer and cannot accommodate requests.
CAN I BE A WELCOME WAGON VOLUNTEER FOR JUST PART OF THE CHALLENGE? In the past, we’ve had some volunteers who wanted to be on the Welcome Wagon but had travel plans later in the month and wouldn’t be able to finish out the challenge. Please only sign up if you can commit to commenting on the blogs for the entire month-long challenge.
WHY SHOULD I BE ON THE WELCOME WAGON? March is a marathon! It truly is a challenge to blog each day and comment on others’ posts. Being part of the Welcome Wagon does add something to your plate for sure….but you truly do make a difference for the New Slicers. I remember how I looked forward to comments each day as a new blogger during my first SOLSC. If no one stopped by and read my posts, I surely would have felt discouraged. Instead, I felt so heard. My first SOLSC (2015) changed my life- it spurred me on to apply to be a co-author for TWT, which has enriched my life both professionally and personally. The Welcome Wagon volunteers who took the time to read and comment each day made me feel that I was a writer with something worth saying. The Welcome Wagon job isn’t glamorous but it is important. It is a job for the generous educator who has a desire to help the bloggers just starting out. We hope you think it is the job for you! Please fill out the Google form below if you would like to be part of the 2020 March SOLSC Welcome Wagon!
WHEN DO I NEED TO SIGN UP BY? To help us in our coordinating efforts, please sign up by February 22, 2020. You can begin signing up today if you know you are up for the job!
In the comments today, please share how a Welcome Wagon volunteer made a difference for you when you were a new blogger! Former Welcome Wagon volunteers, please share what the experience of reading and commenting on posts each day meant for you.
TWO WRITING TEACHERS 