Hello Everyone, I just came across this forum (stunning since I've been writing for almost 10 years). My name is Todd, a surgeon in my free time, and a writer in my heart. I'm just about finished with the final read through on my first novel, a medical thriller. Been working on it for about 2 years, but it's a major revision of a previous novel that I completed and shopped around. That novel had an agent, but in truth, needed work. Hopefully, this is the work it needed. I've studied with some fun writers; Tess Gerritsen, Michael Palmer, Robert Dugoni, James Frey (How to Write a Damn Good Novel) Kathleen Doughtery and a few others. I've taken the little tidbits I've learned from them and started to write about them at my blog, really more for me than for anyone else. I needed a place to write and organize my thoughts as I worked my way through my final (hopefully) revision. I have published short stories, poems and a non-fiction health book, but my love is fiction, particularly medical/scientific thrillers. . . so I've got to keep plugging on to get this novel finished. I'm hoping to gain inspiration for talking with all of you, helping if and when I can, sharing joys and tribulations and overall having a community of folks who love what I love, and are going through what I'm going through. Thanks for your time, Todd
Hi Hey Todd! Welcome to the WF! Glad you found us... Thanks for introducing yourself! Can't wait to read/review your work! Believe me, there is so much inspirational here, its insane. There are so many ideas here that you can easily pick some and write about it. There are weekly contest (Short story and poetry) to participate in… If you have any troubles with anything, you can report it to the admins, mods, or anyone! Enjoy Nice to meet you.
Hello Todd, Welcome to the Writing Forums. Surgery sounds like an unusual hobby. I hope you aren't carving up tarts in the dark alleys of London. Posting your own work should not be among the very first things you do here. It is worth taking the time to see what other people have done to improve their writing, and see if some of it applies to your writing as well. That is part of why we require members to review other members' work before posting their own for review. On the other hand, there are no restrictions, other than content and copyright rules, on showcasing your work in your member blog. If you haven't explored the site yet, you should probably do so soon. Newcomers often gravitate to the Lounge, the Word Games, or the Review Room, but there is much more to be discovered if you poke in the corners. Remember to check out our FAQ as well, and be sure to read through the forum rules, too, to avoid any misunderstandings or hurt feelings. Respect for one another is our principal mandate. As for the Review Room, new joiners often wonder why we do things a bit differently on this site than on other writing sites. We emphasize reviewing as a critical writing skill. Training your eye by reviewing other people's work helps you improve your own writing even before you present it for others to see. Therefore, we ask members to review other people's writing before posting work of their own. The Review Room forums on this site, therefore, are true workshops, not just a bulletin board for displaying your work (and on that note, please only post each item for review in one Review Room forum). See this post, Why Write Reviews Before Posting My Work? for more information. And while you're looking around, don't forget to check out our Weekly Short Story Contest and Weekly Poetry Contest. They actually run more than one week apiece, but any member may enter, and all members are urged to vote for their favorites.
