Howdy, y’all! Hey, it’s the first Monday of a brand-new, shiny month, and you know what that means, right? Yep; it’s time for our next What I Learned From… groupwrite project! (sound of cheering)

This month, the topic is something I just know you can all relate to. So don’t even try to pretend it’s never happened to ya! The question ya hafta ask yourself is, when was the last time you made a mistake, a blooper, or perhaps got yourself into an embarrassing moment?

Now, you may be askin’ yourself, Allright, Bubba; why on earth would I want to share something like that with the whole world?

Hey, not to worry; my point isn’t to bring shame to your household, or cause folks to point and snicker when you enter the room (if they’re doin’ it now, you may have, well, OTHER problems). No, lemme just answer your question with another question: What did you learn from that incident?

Yup; that’s the nub of the gist, all right. And, since the Main Thing here at the Middle Zone is to celebrate lessons learned from life, then what better way to do it? (By the way, if you’re worried that folks will think less of you if you admit to making a mistake, well, don’t be. The truth is, it may actually make you seem more human.)

Remember, your entry can be as eloquent or as brief as you like. You can make it relevant to your blog’s theme or not – it’s totally your choice. (You can even submit it to me as a guest post if you like. Just drop me an email about it at rhruzek@sbcglobal.net.) You get to choose your format, too; so far we’ve had everything from multi-part prose (up to 5 parts) to poetry. (I’m still waitin’ for the first video entry; I figure it’s only a matter of time.)

Free Prize!

As with the previous four WILF projects, I have a fresh, totally new, and guaranteed unread copy of Darren Rowse and Chris Garrett‘s book, Problogger to give away (with thanks to Chris Garrett for the generous offer of several promotional copies). Hey, if you’ve ever considered tryin’ to make a living as a blogger, this is a must-read, y’all!

So, one lucky and randomly-chosen participant will win a free copy! (sound of crowd cheering)

Here’s How to Enter

Hey, you know the drill. Like I said; you can pretty much write anything you like, as long as it illustrates a lesson (or lessons) learned. Be specific. Be non-specific. And, since I never impose a restriction on length, be as eloquent as you like. But most of all, be yourself – and write something!

The contest is open from now thru Sunday, July 12, at midnight (that’s midnight to me, which is GMT-5 time), so write your post(s) (yes, you can enter more than once!), and send me the links! I’ll post the entire list of entries on Monday, July 13, and I’ll announce the winner of the Problogger book on Tuesday, July 14.

And let’s not forget the details…

1. Write a new post (or more than one) on your blog with a link to THIS POST (uh, the one you’re reading now). As I said, feel free to be as eloquent (or concise) as you like. C’mon; show off for us!
2. Send me an email (rhruzek@sbcglobal.net) containing your name, the title of your post, and the permalink of the post. (To make sure I don’t miss it.)

That’s all there is to it! Next Monday, July 13, I will post the entire list of entries right here at the Middle Zone, so be sure and drop by to check ‘em all out.

As always, we have just two simple rules around here:

• For the sake of the general blogging audience, please keep it G-Rated. (Also please note: this is a request, not a demand, since after all it’s your blog and you can do what you want. Fair warning: I can choose to link to you or not.)
• Be nice.

All right, ladies and gentlemen; you know what to do! Grab the writing instrument of your choice and start writing!

[Note from the Proprietor - I realize it takes a little time to write your entries, but would you mind too terribly not waiting until midnight on Sunday night, March 8, to notify me? Sometimes it can be difficult to get them all compiled by Monday's 6 am post time! I surely thank you, and as a token of my appreciation - have yourself a cookie!]

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