Learning Lessons

Dang, I didn't even realize I hadn't done my L post...Sorry y'all, my third grader had testing the last couple days and I forgot all about blogging. (Probably could find a little humor in the fact that I'm a little late with this post.)

Learning Lessons

This word or I guess words came to mind I'm sure mostly because of school stuff. Since my kids are in an online program, it's still structured to a point. They still get to work at their own pace for the most part, but still have a certain amount of lessons they need done each week. But they get to work ahead if they want and that's what all three of us want.

The last day of school is supposed to be May 29th, but we're aiming to be done by the end of April. And I figure even if they don't get all their lessons done in every subject, they're going to have most of them done and won't have to work much. Then we'll get to enjoy the nice weather that's going to be here soon and not have to sit at the computer all day.

So, lessons are taking up a good part of the day. And if it's not school lessons then it's gymnastics, music, or hip-hop. Plus my 8 year old has decided to ignore anything I say left and right so I keep having to give her reminder lessons on how to behave.

I realize though that lessons are something I've had to give and receive frequently in all my years. Lessons are all about learning. We come out learning. We learn to survive outside of our mother's womb. We learn to cry, eat/drink...then we learn to scoot, crawl, sit up, stand up, and walk. From there we just keep learning more and more. As life goes on we learn how to be toddlers, then children, onto preteens, and then teenagers. Oh man and then adults.

I think adulthood is the toughness lesson of them all. Learning to be responsible or face the negative consequences of our action. Learning that we're now grown up and can be punished according.

Whether the lessons are good or bad or just necessity, they're a part of our entire life. We're going to always have something to learn.

That's that. M will be back to my regular scheduled AM post. Catch you later. Have a great night. :)

To Do List: Learn

We're still going strong and everyone is having an easier time checking things off their to do. So here's the next thing up, and this one doesn't always have to come daily.

LEARN:


Now, of course we all hope to learn something everyday (or at least several times a week). However, what I'm talking about here is learning in respect to your craft-writing. There are so many things we need to know and it never stops. The business, agents, publishers, how to's, and the list goes on and on. If you are a writer who writes with the desire that your books will be published for others to read-then you have to learn the business.

Websites, other writers, blogs, books, etc. are all tools for learning. We use them, we need them, and we must find the time to do it. Learning takes up a lot of time, and I know it's hard to check it off. We want to write, that's why we are writers. But if you want to go somewhere with your writing, you have to learn. You have to go to sites like Agent Query and learn about how the publishing business works, learn about what agents want, learn how to write that beautiful-agent grabbing query. Go to blogs like From The Write Angle and learn from people who have been there and done that-real, genuine people who were once in your shoes-writing with hopes that one day they will have published work for the world to read. Don't forget to go to writer communities like Agent Query Connect and learn from people just like you-what they do and don't do, what has worked and what hasn't. And you have to go to blogs by other writers, like Alex J Cavanaugh's blog and C.K. Bryant's blog who are both published authors that are also normal people, who have been there and understand what it's like. Their posts can be teaching posts without that being the original intent. It will help you learn something, without feeling like it's a "lesson". But make sure you go to blogs from writers who have not been published yet, they can teach you things too. (Like E.M LaBonte's Blog and Terri Bruce's Blog)

The point is-writers have to learn about the writing world. It is not always an easy thing to work into your day (or week), but it's important if you are planning on actually doing something with what you write. The fact that we can learn from various things, makes it easier to mark Learn off the to do. You can learn while you're connecting, or you can go somewhere looking for a specific topic, but however you do it-DO IT. Time to learn can vary, depending on what exactly you are learning, but work it in. There have been plenty of times I have learned something in less than 10 minutes or even in the time it took me to read a blog post. It can be done quickly if you don't have a lot of time to squeeze it in. But if you want writing to be more than a hobby, find the time to do it.

I know my posts are beginning to sound the same- Just find the time, because you need to-but that's really what each thing on your to do comes down to. You need to do these things, so do them.

Happy Learning :)

Learn

I've made mistakes
That can never be changed
Done things I shouldn't have
And all with no shame

You have to do wrong
Or everyone would be perfect
So I'm not ashamed of actions
Just try to keep 'em in check

Things I've done
No-one will ever know
But I'm older now
And have learned to grow

Mistakes are part of life
It's okay to make them
Just use your head
And make sure you learn somethin'