I think it's not necessary to explain what a Marathon is. I'll start explaining what 'Blogathon' is. In simple terms, Blogathon is a marathon of blogs. Each competitor may publish at least one blog post per half an hour, during the allocated time period (usually 24 hours). This is like a long run and that's how it becomes a Marathon.

Following the same way, Sinhala Bloggers Union also annually organizes a Blog Marathon event. It's not a strict competition, but a friendly event that bloggers get together online and have some fun.

Your obvious question might be, “Isn't that a waste of time?”

And my direct answer is “No.”

There are several reasons for my answer.

Sinhala Bloggers recently held a real time get-together at Colombo. But, some were absent. Who? Anonymous bloggers and some of the bloggers who have gone abroad. So, when will we all be gathering and have some fun? Yeah, that's Sinhala Blog Marathon. Since it commences in the cyberspace, no matter of identity, no matter of geographical boundaries.

Like every part of human society, bloggers also share a subculture (or may be several subcultures). I'm not much into Sociology, but I think Blog Marathon creates some kind of identity for the blogger subculture. During Sinhala and Tamil New Year days, we have lots of traditional sports and gaming events (and usually marathons too!). So why don't we have such an event with our fellow bloggers?

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Sinhala Blog Marathon usually lasts 24 continuous hours, while the 'Mini Marathon' is just 6 hours. The organizers prepare a separate IRC channel so marathoners and supporters may have a fun-chat, and a live Internet radio with jokes, stories, and music, making sure that nobody falls asleep on their keyboard.

Around the Sinhala and Tamil New Year days of the last year, Sinhala Bloggers' Union held a Sinhala Blog Marathon event. I can still remember how fun and how joyful it was.

If you wish to participate as a marathoner, go ahead, create a blog and join us. All you have to do is to make a blog post in Sinhala, per every 15 minutes. If you just want to watch the marathon and throw some water at marathoners, yes, come and put some comments on marathon blog posts, and support them! (but don't throw water at your computer :D )

No strict rules here, nobody is watching you for shortcuts, relays, and stuff but you have to follow the code of ethics since we do expect participation from all ages and make this an amiable gathering.

Also, this will play a remarkable role in promoting unicode technology and blogging among Sri Lankan society.

So, dear bloggers and readers, if you do it in Sinhala, then come in, join us. Everybody is welcome, we can have a chat, listen to online radio, and it's all about having fun!

So keep your eye on the Official Blog of Sinhala Bloggers' Union, dates, venue (syndicator URL) and other information will be announced shortly. Be prepared, Sinhala Blog Marathon is coming soon!!

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Notice – Sinhala Bloggers' Union Blog - http://blog.sinhalabloggers.com/what-is-sinhala-blog-marathon/

Code of Ethics - http://blogs.sinhalabloggers.com/add-blog