Blogging 101: Be a Good Neighbor

FYI, I’m going to use the Canadian spelling of neighbour from now onwards because I live in Canada, and not the United States. Besides “neighbour” just doesn’t look the same without the ‘u’.

In real life, I’d be a horrible neighbour.

So to compensate, I try to be a good neighbour here on WordPress.

Leave comments on at least four blogs that you’ve never commented on before.

Of course once I starting reading and commenting on other people’s blogs, I had a hard time stopping myself. So the task took longer than I initially intended.

Afterwards, I printed out an assignment for class. This was before I realized I royally screwed up the page numbering. So my essay is flawed. I’m flawed. My life is flawed. It all works out.

The old me would whine about how horrible my writing is. I’d say things like “I’m going to fail” or “I hate my essay” but the new me isn’t about that life. Also, people tell me I complain even though my marks are great. (Do I really do that?)

Thank you writing. Thank you reading. I owe my good grades to writers, authors, and bloggers. Shout-out to all of my wonderful neighbours.

Reading Multiple Books At Once

I normally don’t read three, four, or even five books at once. One or two is fine. But any more than that drives me insane.

Unfortunately, I have to read all my assigned texts for class if I expect to pass. Plus I still want to read a book purely for pleasure.

So I’ll manage. Somehow.

No one ever said reading was supposed to be easy. Not good reading at least.

Feeling Incomplete

I feel incomplete when I don’t read.

And I’m not just talking about novels and stories but also newspaper articles, blog posts, etc.

So I have no problems with teachers telling the class to read. I don’t consider reading to be homework.

Oh, The Irony

Out of all my classes, I’m most worried for English and Writer’s Craft.

Which isn’t anything special unless you take into account the following:

• I claim to be an aspiring writer. Not the I aspire to write kind. But the I aspire to be a better writer than I was yesterday; hence I write every day kind.
• I blog almost every day. I can probably count the number of days I didn’t on two hands.
• I read anything and everything. Good, bad, contemporary, classic, etc.
• I love words. Almost as much as I love breathing. Almost.
• I’m surrounded by newspapers, books, notebooks. You name it.

So why the worry or concern? Thomas Mann said it best…

“A writer is someone for whom writing is more difficult than it is for other people.”

Why Do I Hate English Class?

Why do I hate English class? 

I’ll attempt to answer that question in depth. Disclaimer: I lied about the in depth part.

It’s strange when I say I hate English class but claim to be an aspiring writer.

Anyhow, here is a list of three reasons. Trust me, this written list is nothing compared to my mental list.

1. Teachers make you read cryptic stories.
2. Those cryptic stories are impossible to find on Goggle.
3. Your understanding (or lack thereof) about these cryptic stories greatly affect your mark.

I would love English class if…

1. I got to write my own stories.
2. I got to read interesting stories.
3. My mark in class was not based on an analysis of a story.

Similar posts:

Why I Love Writing But Hate English Class

Why I Love Writing But Still Hate English Class (Part 2)

What I Wish English Class Was Like

Reading a dictionary to learn new words that are

• useful,
• helpful,
• and purposeful.

That’s my kind of English class right there.

I Never Thought I Would Hate English Class

But I do. And I am a writer. And I am a blogger. And I am a reader.

Goes to show you that anything in life is possible.

A Good Writer Getting A Bad Mark In English Class?

The title says it all.

But really this post explains why sometimes the best writers do not achieve the highest grade in class. How can someone who loves writing not excel in English class you ask? Read on.

• You know too much. Sometimes a little too much. You might argue that this is a good thing but ignorance can lead to bliss. In many cases, ignorance is bliss. For instance, you’ve probably read about every novel assigned to you and when the teacher asks you to make a prediction on what happens next, you can’t. You already know what happens next. Your teacher might suggest the all too common, “PRETEND you haven’t read the book.” But really? Can you ever pretend to not have read a book, especially if said book is your all-time favourite book ever. Now about that prediction…
• Again since you know so much already, you end up bored. Why listen to your teacher explain how to write a short story when you do that every day anyway? Why pay attention to a lesson on dangling modifiers or comma splices or any other grammatical concept when you’ve committed the definitions/rules to memory already? Heck, why bother to attend class anymore? (I’m allowed to say “heck” right? Sorry if I offended anyone.)
• Lastly, being a devoted writer means you’re most likely crazy at best or delusional at worst. So excelling in English class may or may not be one of your priorities since you’re probably working on a query to an agent or an essay that will be submitted to a prestigious periodical or magazine. So what if your inquiry paper is due tomorrow? Being published is much more fascinating, not to mention more rewarding than finishing all your outstanding assignments for a class.

On a final note, many writers have high expectations. So a writer’s definition of a bad mark is likely not that bad at all.