Week 1 Voting Starts NOW!

The Top 12's Week 1 assignment was to introduce themselves to their audience, and the people that will be voting for them.  They were not to make it about them and their blog, they were to make it about THEM as a person.

Shortly after they received their first assignment, they also received a twist, which will be revealed on Friday with the results.

So, here they are!

Derrick Barnsdale 

Roni 

Justin Mannato 

Kim Mullican

Whitney Boyd

Christi Seidman

John Willey 

Brett

Chris

Cat Rainwater

Mama Mash

Mama Spaghetti

VOTING IS CLOSED FOR WEEK 1!

Blogger Idol Play-at-Home: Week 1

There was some interest in having me post what the weekly assignments were for the Top 12, so that other bloggers could sort of do a play-along on their own blogs.  It's a great way to strengthen your writing skills, gives you practice for if you are going to audition next year, not to mention gives you an idea for a post if you are looking for something to write about.

Here is the assignment given to the Top 12 for week 1:

Your week 1 assignment is to introduce yourself to your audience, and the people that will be voting for you.  Give them a good dose of who you are. Remember, this is going to be where they start picking favorites, so make sure that they want to pick you.  Don't make it about you and your blog, make it about YOU as a person.  You can not use the same thing that you used for your audition.

Once you post the Play-at-Home assignment in your blog, post a link here for others to read, and you can go 'judge' the posts of the other people playing from home!

Here is the moment you've been waiting for...

I've been teasing you guys long enough, so I'll just get straight to the point..... after a few little things I need to mention:

1. Links to the blogs of the Top 12 will be posted shortly, on the Top 12 page.

2.  If you have made it to the Top 12, please watch your inbox for an invite to the Contestant Zone!  You will not be able to participate. Make sure to check your spam boxes. If you do not receive an invite by noon, please email bloggeridol@gmail.com.

And here it is........

Congratulations to the FIRST EVER Blogger Idol TOP 12!!!

Who's freaking excited???

In less than 4 hours... you will know!!

Right now, I want to know... who is CONVINCED that they made it? Who thinks they might have done alright?  And who is pretty convinced that they didn't make it?

And.... have you checked out our new discussion forum?  It the perfect place to hang out and chat while you are waiting for the results!

I figured I could annouce the top 12 early

Because I know how anxious you guys are.  And I'm super anxious too.  Not to mention this week is so screwy for me and I keep waking up thinking that it's Friday and that I forgot to post.

But...... I swore I wasn't going to do this. I ALWAYS give away surprises early and I SUCK at keeping secrets.  But I WILL keep this one until Friday.  I think.

The Top 12 will be announced....

Watch here on Friday, June 24th for the announcement of the Top 12! 

We had 52 auditions.  It broke my heart to have to eliminate a few when the scoring began. There was a possible 405 points, and the highest score was 367.  The lowest was 206.  Everyone in the Top 12 scored 339 or higher, and it was a VERY close race between them. 

We had a lot of fun reading them though.  It's very clear that we have our 'Paula' type judge, and we DEFINITELY have a Simon...lol.  I can't wait until we get into the competition, and we can give constructive criticism to the Top 12. It's going to be a lot of fun. 

For now, I'll leave you with a bit of a teaser:

There are 7 women, and 5 men in the top 12.

Today is the last day!

If you want to audition, today (Monday, June 20th) is the last possible day. All entries should be in by 11:59 PM central time.

The top 12 will be announced here on Friday. 

Thank you to all who have participated, and helped get the word out about Blogger Idol. At the time of this posting, we have already had about 45 auditions, which is HUGE considering the fact that a month and a half ago, Blogger Idol wasn't even an idea.

And thanks to all the judges for all the hard work thus far, including our new judge, Corinne Cepeda, who is here to provide opinion and critique from the point of view of the reader.

It's going to be fun! We've already got some trash talking going on on twitter and facebook!  I can't wait until the voting begins!

Just under a week left to audition!

If you want to try out for Blogger Idol, you have until Monday, June 20th at 11:59 PM central time to get your entries in. I just want to take this time to encourage those that may think they are not 'up to par' or experienced enough.  It doesn't matter if you have been blogging for years, or just started last week, or want to start a blog just to enter Blogger Idol.  If your audition catches our eyes, and we like you, you have a shot. It doesn't matter if you have 5 blog posts in your archive, or 5,000.  Trying out for Blogger Idol is a great way to gain exposure for ANY blog. And you will get to work on your writing skills as well.  This is not a contest for 'big bloggers'. It's a contest for all bloggers.

If it encourages you, get a Blogger Idol buddy. Team up with another blogger you know, and both submit auditions, and if you both make it to the top 12, you can work on your weekly assignments together, and cheer each other on. 

But hurry! You have just under a week left!

Are you considering auditioning?

Here are some things to consider before you audition:

*What can it hurt? You will get tons of exposure for your blog, win some awesome prizes (and not just if you are the grand prize winner either!), meet new people, get constructive criticism on your writing, and have lots of fun!


*Are you able to commit to the time the contest will take? We would hate to see anyone have to drop out.  You can see the official schedule on the How It Works page.


*Have you read the Official Rules?




What's that? You've decided you are going to audition? Awesome! Now, get ready for your rockstar debut!


*Here is a post with helpful audition tips.

*Make sure you grab a badge to put on your blog so the world knows that you are auditioning!  And, heck, buy yourself a fancy tshirt, or coffee mug, or laptop bag to really make yourself feel like a rockstar!

*For some awesome gadgets that will help you stay up to date with contest happenings, and give you some tools to help you out, download the Official Blogger Idol Toolbar! 

*Make sure your blog looks all fancy schmancy so that you are ready for all of your new followers!

And once you've done all the above:

*Submit a written statement to bloggeridol@gmail.com telling us about yourself, and WHY you think you are worthy of the title 'Blogger Idol' which must be between 250 and 500 words, and provide us with a link to your blog or website, or state that you do not have one. Please do not include any images in your post. 


Each audition will receive a numerical score, as follows:

0-5 points based on ability to follow directions above
0-10 points on likeability
0-10 points on appearance of blog
1-15 points on how you will appeal to the general public
0-5 points on your reason for being worthy of the title 'Blogger Idol 2011'

You will not be notified of your score, only whether or not you have made it to the Top 12. 


And with that being said.... We've decided to open auditions early!  Have fun, and we are looking forward to seeing all of your auditions!


Top 12 will be announced on Friday, June 24, 2011!