After learning the basics of a programming language, you are now able to start
writing some programs.
You might feel a bit lost as far as what to write at first. Soon enough
you'll probably have more ideas than you have time for. When starting out,
just try doing lots of small things.
Start Small
The first programs you'll write will inevitably be things like exercises in
books, stuff you write while learning things on the Internet, and other small
stuff. Definitely keep up with learning. You'll get small ideas here and
there, and you can try turning your ideas into software. It might not seem
like you're doing much, but by doing a lot of small programming tasks, you'll
get more comfortable with programming and do incrementally larger things.
Large software projects are composed of many smaller parts. Before making
anything particularly big, you'll have to get the hang of making small things,
and making them work correctly.
Have Fun
Programming is fun. There is so much stuff you can do with it. Mess around
with graphics, web technologies, art, games, anything that catches your
interest. Although different types of software seem very different, a lot of
software looks fairly similar in the small. You'll be writing functions,
naming variables, making design choices, and composing large functional
pieces of software out of various smaller ones, regardless of the type of
software you decide to write. As you proceed with learning how to program,
you'll certainly discover your tastes, and maybe developing a certain type of
software will catch your interest. For now, however, just have fun making
stuff.
Take On Incrementally Larger Projects
Your first few projects will probably be small, and you will use lots of
of resources produced by other people. As you become interested in more
specific topics or types of software, you'll encounter tools and software
packages that are appropriate for particular types of work. There is a
good chance someone has already written the things that pop up in your head
as ideas for projects. Make something anyway, and learn from other people's
implementations of particular programs. You'll learn to use existing libraries
and resources as building blocks for something you want to make along the way.
Now that you're programming a bit, I recommend you spend some time learning
how to use the shell.