With North Carolina’s win over Michigan St., I am pleased to announce that Jared Tamarkin is the winner of the 1st Annual Blog Tournament Challenge.
I came in……… 84th. Ouch.
I’ll win next time. SWEAR.
E-mail me, Jared. I’ll trade you a query critique for bracket tips.
Horserider says
Wow congrats to Jared! Maybe next time I’ll give it a try.
Bane of Anubis says
And the evil powder blue empire wins once again :(- congrats J
The First Carol says
Congratulations, and thanks Nathan for a fun run. My only claim to basketball fame was watching the Portland Trailblazers win the Championship. It’s been downhill since then, basketball wise 🙂
Chuck H. says
Whazzat? Somebody posting in the middle of the night? Don’t you people ever sleep?
WV: murle–Haggard?
Bethany Brengan says
There’s always next year…
I just got my copy of _Writer’s Digest_, complete with 101 Best Blogs for Writers, so you deserve congratulations for other things. 🙂
Lady Glamis says
Congrats Jared!!!
Jeannie Campbell says
people named jared have all the luck. free query crits, national advertising campaigns for eating sandwiches all the time…it’s not fair.
congrats, jared!
Kristi says
Go Jared and go Carolina! BOA – I believe Duke is the evil blue empire – at least that’s what my Tarheel siblings tell me. I came in 26th which isn’t bad for knowing nothing about b-ball…I’m pretty sure that’s ahead of 84. Just kidding, Nathan 🙂
Windy says
Gives me a little faith that winning the lottery may be possible, depending on lottery, of course. ;-P
Congrats, Jared!
Marilyn Peake says
Congratulations, Jared! It’s so awesome that you won.
Jen C says
I came joint-127th. Wooooo! Well, I worked my way up from like second-last place or something, so at least there’s that. Lemons, lemonade etc…
Mira says
Jared – that’s wonderful. Congratulations!
Jody – next year!
genkischuldich says
Congratulations, Jared!
(I came 23rd… having never so much as watched a game of basketball in my life! But it was lots of fun, so thanks to everyone.)
Other Lisa says
I’m not even gonna look to see where I came in…
Congratulations, Jared!
Jen P says
Congrats Jared, and thanks for sharing a great idea Nathan.
You just never know when it’s going to be useful to know about college basketball.
I knew nothing at all before this bracket. Then, on the night of the Syracuse S16 game, I was out for dinner with an American lady for the first time, whose husband was a big follower and just like that, we had something else fun to talk about.
Katie says
Yay Jared! That poor guy that was in first dropped like an anchor when UNC won. And I, who was sucking it up big time, rose like a dove to the sweet final spot of 39.
My hubby was like, “Wow! You did great!” and I said, “Nothing counts but first, Baby… Nothin’ but first.”
So congrats to FIRST PLACE! and thanks to Nathan for a fun-filled few weeks!
Kat Harris says
Bane of Anubis said:And the evil powder blue empire wins once again :(-
ROFL
Luc2 says
Congrats Jared, well done!
serenity says
Congrats, Jared! A query critique from Nathan is the envy of most of us, of course, but dang – I bet you’re wishing you’d entered one of the million dollar ones . . .
Melanie Avila says
Congratulations Jared!
I was in second place for about an hour. It rocked. Fun contest Nathan – it definitely made the tournament more interesting.
Ink says
31st… ah, respectable, I guess, considering how little College ball I’ve watched this year. And I made the top million nationally! A proud moment. And for those of you who know absolutely nothing about basketball and beat me, I hope you sink into the hottest pits of… congrats! I mean congrats! Yessiree. Lots of congrats.
When’s the NBA Playoff bracket contest coming up? 🙂 I think it just might be Bron Bron’s year…
Bryan
sruble says
Congratulations Jared! Sorry about 84 Nathan 🙁
Thanks for having the challenge this year!! My husband and I always challenge each other. We used to have a really large group through work, but we’ve both changed jobs since then and haven’t found a new group yet, so this was fun. Plus I tied for 5th here, beat my hubby, and actually picked UNC, which is really cool and unusual.
Oh, and I drew a basketball picture today (I’m posting a drawing every day in April) and got a shiny new avatar too 🙂
Thanks Nathan!!
lotusgirl says
Congrats Jared! I should have known that Carolina would take it. Go Heels! My son’s been wearing a UNC shirt for days now. (He does own more than one so it’s not as bad as you might suspect.)
:)Ash says
Congrats, Jared!
Rachel says
Congratulations, Jared!
(To my everlasting surprise, I got 30th. Scary, considering I hardly ever watch college basketball.)
Scott says
This is neither here nor there, but I was wondering, Nathan, if you would ever be interested in a book about a literary agent who was actually a bookish Bond-ish covert operative of some kind. It’s the title of your blog that brings that to my mind every single time. 🙂
Ink says
Rachel,
You stole my place in the top 30! Grrrrr…
(Hey, it’s all about the competition, right?)
🙂
Bryan
Bane of Anubis says
Bryan – get in line for the long walk, mister: Jared came in 1st; everyone else came in last
Ink says
Come on, Bane, you’re ruinging my joy in finishing in the, um, top million nationally. I’m good! Please tell me I’m good!
(We writers are always needy for validation… ;))
Ink says
And apparently my typing ruinged that post.
Bethany Brengan says
Oops! I meant “101 Best Websites for Writers”…
Melissa McInerney says
Yeah, Jared! Hey, Nathan, don’t feel too bad. I’m 134th out of 145, that SUCKS! Well, perhaps if I paid even two minutes of attention I might have done better.
Dawn says
Great work, Jared. Congratulations!
Jody Feldman says
Congrats, Jared! Just goes to show, it’s not over til … well, fill in your own blank.
Thanks to all those who were rooting me on until I totally tanked.
It was fun, Nathan. Thanks for doing this.
Ryon Patterson says
Congrats Jared !!
PurpleClover says
Congrats!
Litgirl01 says
Congrats Jared! 😉
Chumplet - Sandra Cormier says
Way to go, Jared! I may have been on the first basketball squad in Spain, but I don’t know nuthin’ about those college teams. Congrats!
suelder says
there’s always next year for everyone else 😉
Congrats Jared.
Ramen with cheese says
84 isn’t bad at all. It’s a nice, ripe age.
Ink says
Nathan,
There’s an interesting Malcolm Gladwell article in the New Yorker about stories.
Hope Oklahoma is, uh, Oklahomaish.
My best,
Bryan
MJ says
This blog is my guilty pleasure. If blogger weren’t blocked at work I’d NEVER get anything done.
Congrats Jared!
Jared X says
Thanks Nathan and thanks all.
It’s a good thing my alma mater, teensy Lafayette College from the teensy Patriot League, didn’t make it into the Dance this year. I’d have felt compelled to put them through to the Sweet 16 (over the likes of a Duke or a Villanova) and thereby blown any shot I had at winning.
Evenstarr1 says
Congrat Jared! I was happy to come in 15th…I think. I’m not sure what the little slash instead of a number means. No matter – I’ll take it. Maybe something revolving around soccer next time? 🙂