I started composting a few years ago. I believe I have learned the hard way that not cutting your vegetation and table scraps into small pieces and not aerating the compost will result in your composter taking a while to cook. I’ve had my composter set up for over 2 years now and I’m just now seeing some usable compost. I am a lazy composter but I am going to work at it this year. I am going to be conscious of aerating it and also about getting the right mix, as much as possible.
I have two composters and I hope to fill them to the brim this year.
There is a lot of information online that covers the basics of composting so I will not go into the “hows” of composting or even really all of the “whys”. But I will share why I compost.
One of the reasons I started to compost was because of the nagging question, “where does all the trash go?” Followed by contemplation and a continued nasty cycle in my head of feeling responsible and yet still not taking any action. But it was not until I had kids that I realized how important it is to teach them to take care of our earth and I did not want to just share with them verbally but I wanted to model to them the importance of being proactive in this area. Also with children it seems there is a lot more waste to dispose of so my conscience would not let me sleep at the point when the kids began to arrive. I had to move beyond contemplation and start to take responsibility for my own trash. It was a bonus that the compost can be used in my gardens.
A type of composting I have been reading more about lately and thinking about trying is Vermicomposting. Vermicompost as defined by Wikipedia , “is the end-product of the breakdown of organic matter by some species of earthworm. Containing water-soluble nutrients, microbes, and bacteria, vermicompost is an excellent, nutrient-rich organic fertilizer and soil conditioner. The process of of producing vermicompost is called vermicomposting.”Some friends of mine are beginning to setup up a worm farm for vermicomposting. They are I believe in the middle stages of getting it started and so I hope to buy some worms from them and get started in the near future. Their farm blog and their updates on the business are here. Check them out!
Potager Garden Girl 
Ha! It sounds like you and I are composting in parallel universes. I too just got some good soil from mine, and I’m researching the worm bins. It will be fun to see how we do!
I too compost for many of the same reasons. The garbage ouput has gone way down since beginning composting.
My first batch of compost was ready last spring and we worked it into our veg. garden before planting. We use a spinning composter that my hubby made out of a large plastic barrell. Right now my compost is one big frozen chunk, but when it finally thaws it should decompose rather quickly if tended to on a regular basis. The worm assissted compost sounds great, but I’m not sure how I feel about worms in my house.
A friend of mine was an expert in vermicomposting and started her own business in the field long before it was popular. She went by the name of Worm Woman and if you google that, her site will pop up.