Showing all posts in Writing Life

In Life in General, Writing Life

A Brand New, Shiny Year

Author Kiel LemonPosted on Leave a comment

Ah, hello there, poor neglected blog and readers! I bet you thought I’d completely forgotten you and would never return! But no, I have thought of writing so very many times, and I simply kept talking myself out of it. The longer I am away, the harder it always seems to return. It is tricky to think of just how to begin again. But here I am at last, ready to dust off my writing cap and try it anyway, awkward as these new beginnings always are.

Since it is the early part of the new year, I am still thinking a little of the new things this year holds…a new year of AmblesideOnline with my son, beginning some gentle kindergarten lessons with my daughter, a shiny new bullet journal for my planner, a few tweaks for my daily routine, a renewed sense of balance in my approach to social media and tech, and lots and lots of new reading goals. It is all rather mundane and daily, but it is exciting nonetheless.

Unlike the last few years, I haven’t exactly chosen a word of the year for 2020. But if I did, it would probably be something having to do with intention, curation and habit. Over the last couple of months, I have been thinking a great deal about honing in on the truly valuable people, activities and things in my life. Weary of going through the motions of less-than-stellar habits, I am prioritizing intentional choices, making the most of the time I have wherever I can. My goal is to develop healthier, happier habits that will help me do just that. Our family has also been persistently decluttering both our stuff and our schedules, curating that which is truly important and joy-bringing in our family culture.

A few changes in my routine are along these lines, things like: applying digital minimalism concepts to social media and smart phone usage, tacking certain types of reading to certain times of day, and regularly using a habit tracker to see my progress. Each day marks a shift in my trajectory from just taking the path of least resistance to living with purpose and intention. Even when a change is small, it makes a difference!

What are you looking forward to as we embark on this shiny new year? Have you made any new goals? Do you choose a word of the year? I truly would love to hear from you in the comments. And if you are a fellow blogger (even if only sporadic, like me), if you leave a comment with a link to your blog, I will be sure to read your latest news!

In Homeschooling, Life in General, Uncategorized, Writing Life

Where Am I?

Author Kiel LemonPosted on Leave a comment

Testing, testing…Is anybody still out there in blog-land? I feel like I need to apologize for not being here myself. But supposedly, you’re not supposed to do that, at least according to the blogging gurus. Well, I gave up doing things according to them a long time ago. SO…..sorry I’ve been AWOL! There are reasons, and I want to explain.

Last time I posted, I was getting ready to go to the AmblesideOnline retreat. I thought I would come back and be able to write a post about all I learned. But life got so busy that I just haven’t had the time to do that. But I can say that it was an amazing time. I am still processing and recalling to mind some of the things I heard and learned at the AO Camp Meeting. I am so grateful that I had the privilege to attend!

One of the main reasons I have not had time to get back to blogging again is that at the retreat I started working with some new podcast clients! I am so blessed to be able to serve homeschool veterans Angelina Stanford and Cindy Rollins with their new podcast The Literary Life. They needed someone to build a website, create show notes, and help with other behind the scenes technical work. My husband is taking over their audio editing after Episode 4, but I plan to start doing it myself as soon as I am able to afford a new laptop. It is such a joy to get to work with these two amazing women, not to mention getting to listen to their content before anyone else! 😉 And getting to bless my family by contributing to our finances is a gift, too.

Another thing that is taking up more time these days is homeschooling and building local homeschool community. My son has taken some local enrichment classes at the nature park in our town this spring. We try to attend park days with other Charlotte Mason families a few times a month. And now the kids are both in swimming lessons a couple of times weekly. Plus, I am trying to start a Charlotte Mason moms’ fellowship and study group in our part of Middle TN. Real life community always takes precedence over online life, so I have to make time for that.

But as with many good things, there is a downside. In this case, the more time I spend working online for other people, the less time and creativity I have left for my own blog. Since both of the podcasts I am currently working on drop early in the week, I can no longer keep up my commitment to Wellness Wednesdays, even on a monthly basis. I hope that in some future season, I can come back to that, but right now I just can’t. I am also going to take a break from posting our monthly memory work plans. I have a good year’s worth (maybe more?) of those in the archive, so I feel like it is time to move on from that for the time being.

My hopes is that I can continue blogging on a sporadic basis, and probably most of those posts will be about our homeschool or Charlotte Mason/classical education or books, because those are the areas in my wheelhouse in this season. I hope that if those things interest you, you will hang in there with me even in these quiet times. So, all that to say, if you’ve been wondering where I am these days, that’s what’s going on! See you here again, maybe soon!

In Books and Reading, Uncategorized, Writing Life

Why Can’t I Write About the Books I Love?

Author Kiel LemonPosted on Leave a comment

Earlier in the month I finished reading The Good Earth by Pearl S. Buck, and I have been wanting to write some of my thoughts about it ever since. The book moved me and has given me much about which to think, so it should be easy to write a post on it. Every time I think of it, however, the words just will not come.

Why is it so hard for me to write about books that I love? This is certainly not the first time I have struggled with the words to express how a book has impacted me. When I read My Antonia I had a similar struggle, and Watership Down is another book that I thought deeply about long after but could not find a way to put those thoughts down in black and white.

Perhaps one reason I have trouble writing about the books I love is that I don’t have a literary education, and I am not sure of the terms to use to talk about them. I feel somehow to discuss themes and structure and setting and all because I have no formal education in these things. All I know about literature has been picked up from places like the Circe Close Reads podcast or the Center for Lit podcast. Otherwise, my only qualification to talk about books is that I just love them so much.

And because I love books, I have trouble talking about them. It is almost as if the thoughts and feelings that I have about stories that I love feel too close and personal in some ways for me to express. Books have a way of getting to my heart in a way that other media don’t, especially fiction. The characters and settings somehow become a part of my personal experience, and I have a hard time telling others about that experience, even when I really want to do just that.

Reading The Good Earth was an incredibly moving experience, being part of the intensely human story of Wang Lung, the farmer, and his family. I felt like I was there watching his life unfold through all the trials and successes, the joy and the immense tragedy. But how can I tell you all my thoughts as I process this book? I hope that one day I will learn how to write about the books I love.

In the meantime, I will just have to content myself with recommending you read them, too! So, go get your hands on a copy of The Good Earth, and be prepared for a heart-wrenching story of the human condition. You can await my next report, in which I will likely have another book that I have come to love deeply and can’t find words for, because I have just started reading Willa Cather’s O Pioneers!, and I’ve already been feeling swept off my feet!

In Uncategorized, Writing Life

Day 31: Close #write31days2018

Author Kiel LemonPosted on Leave a comment

It seems like just a few days ago I was starting on the Write 31 Days challenge, and here we are at the close. This month has flown by at an incredible pace, and I have had a hard time keeping up with the demands of writing every day. As I close and look back on the challenge, I am proud of myself for completing it. Even though I had to double up on posts some days, I did write for every single prompt this time. I made time to write, and I made that time a priority. Forcing myself to come up with something to write daily has stretched my creativity. I have put some of my thoughts and contemplations into words on the page, which always helps me clarify them even more in my own mind.

If you have been reading along with me through this challenge, thank you so much for taking the time to peruse my meandering thoughts! November’s posts will be more sporadic than October’s, but now that I know I can write nearly every day, I hope to be here multiple times a week like I was back in the early days of this blog.

With that being said, if there are any topics that you would like to see me write about here, would you kindly leave a comment or send me an email and let me know? I would love to bring you better content that is relevant to you if I can! Thanks again!

P.S.–If you want to go back and catch up on any of my challenge posts, you can find the index to all 31 posts here. 

In Uncategorized, Writing Life

Day 30: Voice #write31days2018

Author Kiel LemonPosted on Leave a comment

As a vitrual assistant to two podcasters, I listen to dozens of interviews with authors of new books coming out. One topic of conversation that comes up frequently is that of “voice.” Each author has a unique voice and writing style that makes their work stand out from others. 

I have often wondered after listening to these interviews what my voice is as a writer. (Can I even call myself that? I feel sort of silly calling myself a “writer.” Oh well.) I’m not an aspiring book author, certainly, but I must have some sort of voice that comes out in my blog posts, right? I wonder, when I look back at these 31 days of posts, if perhaps I will see a trend in the way I have been writing. Is that my voice? Or do I just have several bad habits that come out in these little timed writing sessions? I’m not really sure. 

Anyway, I do wonder what my writing style is. Sometimes I like to use a good deal of metaphor. Sometimes I have ideas of writing in a more literary style, but that is probably well beyond my skill level. I feel like a conversational style is pretty natural in some situations, but other times it feels fake. All that to say, I don’t know what kind of writer I am or whether I have even begun to develop that elusive “voice,” but maybe if I keep working at it, someday I will figure that out!

This post is part of the 31 Days of Five Minute Free Writes and Write 31 Days blogging challenges. Find all my posts in this series under the tag “write31days2018.”