I know there's a children's short story section, but what if a little kid--he's six--wants to write stories and post them here? My son was really excited when I told him what we do here (he wrote his first book over Christmas--not published, of course). I just don't want to overstep any invisible boundaries and have people thinking "Oh, great! Now we have first graders joining...what next?" He can critique the children's short stories to pay his dues. That won't be a problem (except with SPaG, LOL). So...yes or no? OR does anyone know of a kid version of WF? Thanks!
This site, like all I know of, is geared for aspiring writers 13 years of age plus. However, I don't believe we discourage members that are younger than that. The issues arise when you consider that each member must have their own account, and that all work posted must be the member's own. As such, you could not post on his behalf. With his own account comes its own problems. Sadly due to his age you must be very careful of the very real threat of exposure to material or individuals that you would consider unsuitable. Happily, most threads with such content are flagged as such, and there is a zero tolerance policy for unsuitable behaviour, but as an anonymous community we cannot confirm security. As such, I think the site will allow your son to post, with his own account, but you should be present at all times with him when on the site, and also to read any responses in advance of him seeing them. I would perhaps also mark each post of his with a disclaimer as to his age, so as to avoid negative feedback regarding SPaG or any childlike inferences he may make, although this may conversely put reviewers off for fear of offending him, or worse case scenario attract unwanted attention. It would need to be carefully considered. If any of the above is out of line with the site's policy I'm sure one of the Senior Mods will advise you so and quickly. If you wish further clarification on these points, they should be your first point of call. Kind regards.
I guess it depend on whether the admins or mods will accept it or not... I would have to say yes but if things would go out of hand, then no. I also agree with Gannon.
The recommended minimum age for members on this site is around 13. The content level of the site is set and enforced for an approximate PG-13 rating. The Review Room section of the site prohibits proxy posting - all work there must be written by the member himself or herself. However, ther is no prohibition against postin your child's writing in your member blog, as long as his authorship is clearly identified - we defend copyrigt laws in letter and in spirit. I really cannot recommend your son having his own account at that young an age, but if you do supervise him, the age limit is NOT a formal site rule. He would still be required to comply with all the site rules, and that would include the constructive reviewing requirements of the Review Room. We could not place any restrictions on otherwise acceptable responses to take his age into account. I haven't researched other sites that are more kid-friendly, but I do know they exist, and have enforced content rules appropriate for younger members.
Thanks for your replies. I appreciate your insight and concerns. That's why I wanted to ask first before creating a user account for him. Gannon, thanks for your input. You phrased it very nicely...I'm sure a lot of people wouldn't have been so kind. Cogito, thank you as well. I will look into kid friendly forums of this kind before I consider this one for him. I was also uncomfortable with a lot of the aspects. I knew I would be completely responsible for filtering everything for him now, but I was concerned about when he gets a little older and could actually login and browse on his own in a few years (and already has senior membership, lol). 13 sounds good like a good age to wait for. I couldn't find any age suggestions anywhere when I searched, so that helps. Feel free to delete this post but there might be other morons like me with similar questions.
as a mom of 7, gram to 17, i agree you'd be wiser to find a children's site for him... though he may be advanced for his age, critiquing the work of much older kids and adults wouldn't be something he could do very well, so for him to interact with writers his own age will be much more beneficial for all concerned... regardless, kudos to you, for fostering an early love of reading and writing in your child! love and hugs to you both, maia
THE ANSWER TO MY QUERY: (drum roll please...) Inspired by Cogito's suggestion, I did some searching and found two good sites that host kid's writing forums. What Are Kids Saying http://www.whatarekidssaying.com/ And The Kids' Writing Club http://www.kidswritingclub.com/about.html Hope this helps someone else besides me!
