Guten Tag, Fluent Crowd!
I hope you are enjoying your steps out into the world after the sparkly lights of Christmas. Do you have New Year’s Resolutions, or are you just getting back into your routines?
First of all: The Blog
You readers are the people who make this whole thing interesting, and I put my thoughts on here for you to enjoy, respond to and shout about. SO - I actually want to hear as much as possible back. You should respond more, comment more, chat to me on Twitter. Get me busy!
Real conversations are so much cooler when the person you talk to is being herself. So in 2014, you’ll see a change here at Fluent Language. I’ll still be providing and writing articles and tips about language learning, but I also want to share more of what else is going on over at Fluent HQ and what makes me tick.
So, what's the deal?
Here’s my pitch
I am a culturally aware, multilingual person and a language tutor, but I want to share more with you. I want you to know who's writing all this.
I forget vocabulary, I look things up and I fall over the projector in lessons. I motivate students better with chocolate than with dreams of living abroad. This is what makes learning a real thing, and not a magic skill that is beyond humans.
Are you in?
Some ground rules
I will focus on writing better posts (1 or 2 per week), but not more of what you can already find on the internet about how language learning is best done with technique A, B or C. Instead, accept that people are different and let’s talk about why you are learning and what keeps you going. Or about travel, or Danish TV shows, or Zumba or outdoor swimming.
The new podcast project will be stronger, with one monthly episode (at least until I get better at the technology), published on the second Monday of the month. For January, that's the 13th. Our podcast episodes will be focused on language learning and careers with languages. It’s currently named, not very creatively, the “Creative Language Learning” podcast. How ironic. If you have a suggestion for a better name, let me know, because I WILL rename it and happily so.
I will not swear or use offensive language online, unless I am really REALLY agitated. Even then, I am likely to censor it. It’s just how I roll on the internet. If you really want to hear me swear, then you should talk to me “away from work”.
I will still feature the odd guest post, from regular contributors like Sally, but will focus on getting people who have something to say to talk to me on the podcast because the interview format is just more fun. Agreed?
By the way
If you want to check out what is new here at Fluent, then let me recommend the first ever fully online and self-guided language course! French Grammar for Beginners is now out and I'll give away free places to anyone who comments and suggests a good new podcast name. Thank you for reading. You're awesome.