Congratulations Mrs. Haddad, It’s a Blogathon

Two nights before BlogathonATX, I had a dream that I was tied to a tower while hundreds of vultures circled around me. They seemed to think I was dead, so one landed nearby and started making its way toward me. I struggled to move so he’d know I wasn’t dead, but apparently I wasn’t just tied up—I was paralyzed too…

How’s that for an anxiety dream?

Top row: Dara Quackenbush, Kathy Mandelstein, Julie Gomoll, Eric Weiss; Front row: LuAnn Glowacz, Summer Huggins, Ilene Haddad, Fernando Labastida; Cutie in the middle: Haley Odom

This past Saturday I saw my dream of an all-day blogging event come to life at BlogathonATX. This baby started with a few little tweets asking if anyone wanted to get together and blog all day; maybe have a potluck. From there things exploded in very short order. Tweets started pouring in, and sponsors began to call. Apparently, I wasn’t the only one who liked the idea of gathering a group of bloggers for an all-day writing orgy.

And what an orgy it was. My vision was very specific; my requirements, simple: I wanted the event to be long enough (12 hours) for people to really “move in” for the day. I wanted the space to be relaxed and inviting—more living room than board room. I wanted a space that had several rooms so that folks could choose to write or discuss everything from how to set up a WordPress site to content development and marketing strategies. I wanted organic conversations and round table discussions, not formal presentations. And finally, I wanted food. LOTS of food.

Lively discussion in the Talkathon Room about content development and the "myth" of writer's block

Most importantly, I wanted everyone who was involved—from volunteers to attendees—to have a great time. I do not say this lightly. If the Blogging Genie granted me all but that last wish, the event would have failed. I’m tickled that everyone had a good time and busted out a few posts too. In fact, I very well may have been the only one at BlogathonATX who didn’t write a single word. I’m not even a writer, for heaven’s sake. I just like being around writers. Maybe some of their brilliance and creativity will rub off on me.

The night of the Blogathon I dreamed I was outside with my dog, when a tornado dropped down from the clouds and headed straight for us. I ran up the steps to the porch and grabbed the front doorknob, which came off in my hand.

Anxiety? Who me? Naah…

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Scroll down for video and photos from the event.

Here’s some BlogathonATX video from Amanda Quraishi’s blog:

🙂

Featuring:
Amanda Quraishi, Kay Marley Dilworth, Rasha Proctor, Fernando Labastida, Rafael Marquez, Amber Austen, Julie Gomoll, Thomas Myer, Jackie Dana, Nanette Labastida, Anna Gonzalez, Greg Ackerman, Ilene Haddad

I don’t want to re-cap what’s been written in other places, so here are links to various posts that have already been done, and judging from the overwhelming response I’ve received from attendees, there are many more out there. Feel free to add your links in the comments section below.

Official site for BlogathonATX
Group Blog by attendees of BlogathonATX
“Austin Bloggers Gather for Blogathon” article by Kristin McCasland for Austin’s Fox 7 News
“Event encourages open exchange of ideas among local bloggers” article by Anna Gonzalez for News 8 Austin
“Austin Blog-A-Thon a go for Saturday” article by Omar Gallaga for austin360.com
Check out some Twitter Highlights from Tim Gasper.
“#BlogathonATX: This could be the start of something big” blog post by Julie Gomoll

Try squinting as you watch the following interview Rafael Marquez did with me late in the afternoon. That might explain the sweat. Also, there’s a strange crumb of something clinging to the side of my face. Note to self: Powder nose and insist camera be no closer than 10 feet away.