Tag: Ultimate Blog Challenge

My Super-Busy January—Glad It’s Over!
Blogs · Goals · MY LIFE · My Thoughts · My Writing

My Super-Busy January—Glad It’s Over!

Larada Horner-Miller2 Comments
Super-busy

My super-busy January centered around my participation in the Ultimate Blog Challenge. The agreement was to post every day of the month, and Paul Taubman, the host, offered suggestions every day. You were free use them or do what you wanted. I had to complete four activities after writing the blog—I’ve listed them on the web page I created.

My Choice to Not Include My Email List

Just because I decided to make January a super-busy month, I didn’t want to inundate my regular readers with a blog post every day, so I only included you on Sunday, my regular day to post my weekly blog. I did post them on my Facebook pages though.

I hope that was okay.

Here’s What I wrote Super-Busy!

So, I created a web page with all the posts, except three because I missed three days. Look through the list—I hope you enjoy the vast choices you have to read from this list, if you choose!

This morning I had one regular reader message me about reading all of them, “Larada, you are an encouragement to me. I am in love with reading your blogs. I envy your commitment to work. And I was excited to see what you learned from the challenge. YES. You are a beautiful poet. Looking forward to your new book.” She apparently got them on linkedin.com – https://www.linkedin.com/in/larada-horner-miller-4a313261/

To get to the list of my 28 blog posts and the titles, go here:

Ulimate Blog Challenge, January 2026

Finally—Done with Super-Busy for Now,

Your opinion matters to me. Was I right in not sending you a link every day in the month of January for the Ultimate Blog Challenge? Would you have been offended? Or would you have wanted to receive them? I really need to know your answer, so please respond in a comment below or email me at Larada@laradasbooks.com

I certainly am glad it’s over. Midway through I thought it would never end, but I know I will receive many benefits from having participated—I’ve always been a participator and not an observer. It’s in my DNA!

February will be much calmer, I assure you, but be prepared for my rich, fascinating weekly blog! Also, Paul Taubman encouragedthe participants to post more than one blog a week—what do you think?

I do have an exciting experience coming up on February 17 I will be telling you about!

Larada Horner-Miller meme - super-busy
Whew! Glad it’s over, but what now?

Professional Reader

My Newest Books

Time Measured Out!: Navigating Life’s Journey Through Poetry, Book #2 e-book

ISBN – 9798989688654

$.99 for limited time

is my truth universal? book cover

Is My Truth Universal?: A Woman’s Poetic Odyssey e-book

ISBN – 979-8989688623

ALWAYS FREE

Was It a Dream? book cover

Was It a Dream?: Navigating Life’s Journey Through Poetry, Book #1 – e-book

ISBN – 979-8989688630

 $3.99

Hair on Fire book cover

Hair on Fire: A Heartwarming & Humorous Christmas Memoir e-book

ISBN – 978-0996614498

$3.99

Buy My Audio Books:

This Tumbleweed Landed

This Tumbleweed Landed audiobook cover

Let Me Tell You a Story 

Let Me Tell You a Story audiobook cover

Hair on Fire: A Heartwarming & Humorous Memoir Audiobook

Hair on Fire: A Heartwarming & Humorous Christmas Memoir audiobook cover

Day 31 – January Ends Today—So What Did I Learn?
Blogs · Memories · My Books · MY LIFE · My Thoughts

Day 31 – January Ends Today—So What Did I Learn?

Larada Horner-Miller7 Comments
January calendar

January ends today, and so does the Ultimate Blog Challenge. Whew! The challenge was to write a blog post each day for thirty-days. Here’s answers to Paul Taubman, the organizer’s questions.

Did you finish the Ultimate Blog Challenge?

I proudly finished the Ultimate Blog Challenge, but I missed three days: 13, 16, and 20. The part that excites me—I don’t feel guilty for missing those three days. The 13th we went to La Fería Internacional de Las Flores y del Café (International Flower and Coffee Festival). We had a blast there enjoying ourselves and seeing Alejandro Torres, a major music star in this area. I was too tired to write that night but I wrote about it for the next day’s blog.

Alejandro Torres & daughters - January
Alejandro Torres & daughters

Again, we returned to the festival on the 16th. I wondered if returning was a good idea because our first time there on the 13th was so magical, but we weren’t let down. We saw dancers from Panamá and from over the world. Again, we stayed late, and I fell into bed exhausted that night. No blog post!

International Dancers - January

As I remember the 20th, I feel embarrassed! When I got up on the 21st, I realized I had completely forgotten to do the blog post. Nothing significant happened—oh, well!

But again, I reiterate—I have no guilt about missing them, and I feel exhilarated today in finishing this challenge. That’s new for this perfectionist! To finish a commitment like this reminds me of my determination. After each missed day, I had to continue—no question asked!

Again, I gleaned ideas from other participants to enhance my blog through this Challenge. The daily assignment of reading two other blog posts in the Challenge helped me see choices, personalities come out in playful and professional ways, and the passions we all have! Thank you to each one who participated!

Have You Accomplished Any Other Goals Recently?

On December 21, 2025, I released my tenth book, Time Measured Out!: Navigating Life’s Journey and am so proud of it. It is the second book in a five-book poetry series. During January, I have been promoting the heck out of it!

Also, I have a marketing plan I’m following, so I have been promoting my first book, This Tumbeweed Landed, the month of January. To be honest, I started a little late, but I have already started my promotions for my second book, When Will Papa Get Home?, and I feel so much more organized than I have ever been.

At the end of 2025, I received notification my book, Was It a Dream?: Navigating Life’s Journey Through Poetry, won a bronze award in the Global Book Awards so I have been also promoting that book. It is the first book in the series.

I’ve scheduled a promotional experience with Let’s Fix Stories on February 17. I sent them the first 10-15 pages of my new book project which is an AutoFiction. The tentative title is Eye Witness to Life/Healing. I’m excited to see what they have to say about the beginning of my book. As we know, the reader either gets hooked by then or drops off! I want professional help on making it the best.

Why Did You Joined the Ultimate Blog Challenge?

In November 2021, I participated in my first Ultimate Blog Challenge, and I wrote every day. I gained so much from that challenge, picking up ideas from the blogs I read like the use of headings and subheadings and the use of coloring them. I have adapted these ideas and use them regularly.

Because my blog is on wordpress.com, each post is scored for SEO (Search Engine Optimization) and Readability analysis. When I looked at the other blogs, it spurred me on to be more detail-oriented on my blog, so I investigated the relevance of both of these scores. I realized their importance and work hard each blog post to be sure I receive a “green smiley face” instead of a yellow or red one.

Achieving Your Goals

I believe deeply in goals and have used the idea for years. Goals colored my work as a teacher and the computer coordinator at Washington middle school in Albuquerque, New Mexico. One year, I asked my committee to dream without limits for the next year—brainstorm the ideas possible. When I typed up the list, it was long and ambitious!

The next year, we achieved every goal on that list, even the outrageous ones! That’s why I believe in goals.

So, set some goals. Do something you’ve never done before like the Ultimate Blog Challenge then follow through. See the follow through is the important part. On my dream list at Washington middle school, we submitted our list to our senator, we canvassed him, we showed why everything we listed had importance—in other words, we did the footwork!

Finally,

January ends today. This is the last blog post for this Challenge, but I have my weekly blog post to do tomorrow. I’ve shared some vulnerable truths here, some fun-filled activities and my life in general. I will return to blog readers refreshed and invigorated by this month of writing, thinking up topics and sharing my life with the world. Yes, it was a commitment—a hefty one, but it fed my soul, because writing does!

Larada Horner-Miller - Janaury
Join me on my weekly blog at https://laradasbooks.com/my-blogs/

Professional Reader

My Newest Books

Time Measured Out!: Navigating Life’s Journey Through Poetry, Book #2 e-book

ISBN – 9798989688654

$.99 for limited time

is my truth universal? book cover

Is My Truth Universal?: A Woman’s Poetic Odyssey e-book

ISBN – 979-8989688623

ALWAYS FREE

Was It a Dream? book cover

Was It a Dream?: Navigating Life’s Journey Through Poetry, Book #1 – e-book

ISBN – 979-8989688630

 $3.99

Hair on Fire book cover

Hair on Fire: A Heartwarming & Humorous Christmas Memoir e-book

ISBN – 978-0996614498

$3.99

Buy My Audio Books:

This Tumbleweed Landed

This Tumbleweed Landed audiobook cover

Let Me Tell You a Story 

Let Me Tell You a Story audiobook cover

Hair on Fire: A Heartwarming & Humorous Memoir Audiobook

Hair on Fire: A Heartwarming & Humorous Christmas Memoir audiobook cover

A Challenge for Thirty Days! Whew!
Blogging · Goals · Gratitude · My Books · My Thoughts · poetry

A Challenge for Thirty Days! Whew!

Larada Horner-Miller1 Comment
Man in rapids in a kayak - challenge

The Ultimate Blog Challenge, Day 30, is today and I have mixed feelings about its ending. I finished the challenge of writing a blog post every day in November, missing only one day—the first day because I didn’t know about it. A friend in my writing practice group told me about it long, long ago on November 2. So, I started that day and continued successfully until I had network issues one day and had to publish two blog posts the next day. The challenge also asked us to post links on our Facebook and Twitter pages, adding the hashtag #blogboost on Twitter. The next step: post on The Ultimate Blog Challenge Facebook page. Finally, read, comment and post on Twitter 1 – 2 other blogs in the Challenge.

What did I learn in this challenge?

I truly enjoyed writing a blog post every day. Because I had returned to Natalie Goldberg’s writing practice every day in March 2021, it came easier. I outlined topic themes for the four weeks at the beginning:

  1. Writing help—SWAG, doing successful interviews, how I select my blog topics and the value of writing groups
  2. Back Stories for each of my six books and three cookbooks—there’s always a story behind the story
  3. My poetry—I found a sketchbook/journal with several poems I had forgotten about and shared them
  4. Gratitude list & things I was grateful for—I shared about my recovery, key people from my life and my dear pets
  5. I chose two suggested prompts from the Ultimate Blog Challenge & then wrote about my newest adventure: audiobooks

Being organized at the beginning with this outline made the writing every day easy. I didn’t have to search for topics. Being new to this, I didn’t realize topics were provided every day. Also, I created a blog post page with the social media icons in it for each day to make life easier. Normally in my weekly blog posts, I love to add a couple pictures, but I found a wonderful plugin that reduces the size of the picture tremendously and that helps because I have a horribly slow network, and it made my life much easier.

My big take-away: I relearned how much I love to write and share my voice with the world.

What did I enjoy?

I thoroughly enjoyed my topics, especially my gratitude week. Coincidentally or not, the day I planned to write about my dear friend Kathi Raver Miller was the anniversary of her death. I savored each word.

Also, I took pleasure in reading the wonderful posts by the other participants. I learned so much and saw how others handled the challenge. Every blog post I read entertained, educated or consoled me! You can’t beat that!

What was a hassle?

I do my blog in wordpress.com, and it has so many helpful hints which have made me a better writer. But every day I went through the list of suggestions to tailor that post to have both green light (good) in SEO (Search engine optimization) and Readability. In the past, frequently, I have had problems with the Readability score because I write complex sentences. It suggests writing shorter sentences, so I worked hard this month and ended up with a lot of green lights for Readability—yahooo!

Also, my brother visited us for Thanksgiving, so I worked super hard Wednesday night and did two—for Wednesday and Thanksgiving. So, I all I had to do on the holiday after gorging on our delicious meal and watching nonstop football was clean it up and publish it and then do the required assignments!

Would I do it again?

Again, I have mixed feelings about it. It took a lot of work to do it, but the regularity of writing significant pieces every day rewarded me deeply. Yes, I think I would.

Finally,

do + dooubt - challenge

I never once doubted I would finish the challenge. I’m just that type of person. I love a wonderful challenge and couple that with one of my passions and it’s a win-win situation for sure!

What did you think? Did you like it? What was your favorite blog post of mine?

Visit my website to find out about my new book, Coronavirus Reflections: Bitter or Better? and my other five books and three cookbooks: https://laradasbooks.com

STILL AVAILABLE! Cyber Week Specials at my Etsy Shop, Larada’s Reading Loft, on select books! If you liked my blog posts, you’ll love my books! 40% off of select Individual books, 40% off of select bundles and 50% off of digital copies! These books make the perfect gift for your friends and family.

Wondering What’s Going On?
Blogging · Blogs · My Thoughts · Technology

Wondering What’s Going On?

Larada Horner-Miller6 Comments
Wondering What's Going On?
Wondering What’s Going On?

Are you wondering what I’m doing? Normally, I write my blog post weekly, but something changed this week. As of yesterday, I joined the “Ultimate Blog Challenge” and will post a blog every day in November—yes, daily! I plan the post to be shorter, and I have created an outline of my topics:

TOPICS

  • Week 1 – A variety of writing topics
  • Week 2 – Where my new book, Coronavirus Reflections: Bitter or Better? came from
  • Week 3 – Gratitude topics for Thanksgiving week
  • Week 4 – Feature some of my poetry and future poetry books
  • Week 5 – Facing the end of 2021 & yet another crazy year
Wondering about blog secrets

Blogging Technology Secret

I have a blogging/technology secret to share with you. Today I created drafts for all thirty blog posts with the social media button string in the post, using one of my favorite computer tools: copy and paste. I love having the social media string of icons at the bottom of each blog, but you have to recreate it each time you write a blog, and that can be tedious. So I came up with a solution. (I use wordpress.com.)

Wondering how I did it:

  1. Create a new post.
  2. Select “Social Icons” from the block menu.
  3. Click plus to add one.
  4. In the search menu, type the social media site name, like Facebook.
  5. Then, in the little window, type in your URL address for your page.
  6. Click the plus and add the rest of your social media sites.
  7. Save this as a file named, “Social media icons” as a draft.
  8. Create a new post for your current blog post, name it and save it.
  9. Go back to the draft of “Social media icons.”
  10. Go up to the top of the window and to the right where you see three dots and click.
  11. Select “Copy All Content” midway down the menu. It will say on the bottom left side, “All content copied.”
  12. Go back to the current blog post and put cursor in a block, and paste! Voile!

I love sharing technology shortcuts because computers should make our lives easier, right? Wondering about anything to do with technology or blogging? Leave a comment and I’ll help if I can!

Wondering about my new book, Coronavirus Reflections: Bitter or Better?

Visit my website to find out about my new book and my other five books and three cookbooks: https://laradasbooks.com