Good evening all, My name is Sam(uel) from the United Kingdom, of Irish decent living in England. I'm currently a final year student at the University of Southampton reading Geology and Marine Biology (nature-geek, you could say). I hope to work in science media as a career, the holy-grail of jobs, as it were, would be to have David Attenburgh's current job (!). I write for the student newspaper in the science and travel sections and for a free local paper. I like to write poetry and novels in my "spare time" (though in reality I tend to create spare time because I don't actually have any of it at the moment). I present a "satirical music review" show on student radio and have done a series of "serious" programs. I've written two fantasy novels thus far, which I'm not bothering to try and improve because they're not very good but I have learnt an awful lot in the process of writing them. I have two more fantasy novels planned, one thoroughly and into the writing stage, the other one just sketched out. I have another novel which is somewhat skeletal at the moment and I can't quite work out what genre it is...historical, maybe...not sure. Anyway...that's enough from me, glad to be a part of this community! Sam
Hello Sam, Welcome to the Writing Forums. Please read How to Use the Review Room before you post there. Posting your own writing for people to comment on 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. Also, be aware that posting a piece of writing on any public site, including this one, will greatly diminish your chances of selling it for publication. Removing the writing later does not alter that fact - once posted, it is irreversibly considered published. So do not post anything more than a small excerpt of any piece you are planning to submit for publication. 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 constructive critique as a vital 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). Also, please use the same thread for all revisions and additional excerpts from the same piece of writing. 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 the RPG forum for improvisational fiction. Also try 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. Enjoy your stay here, and have fun!
