Greetings, it's been a pleasure navigating this site for the past half-hour. I look forward to exploring it further. My name is Cole and I'm currently working in the U.S. Army. I joined the site today on the 4th of July. You might ask, "What are you doing sitting behind your computer on a holiday?" Well, I'm on duty today (hooray!) and I wanted to get involved in something constructive, aside from online classes, while I watch the fireworks from my CQ desk, ha-ha. I've always enjoyed creative writing, short stories in particular, but have recently been craving critique and review from more mature and seasoned outside sources. This community appears to be exactly what I was hoping for. I'm not the best writer. My major is a completely different subject and I don't plan to pursue a higher education in this field. This is something I love doing, however, and I absorb the criticism and advice I'm given by those who are usually exceptionally more educated on the subject. So don't hold back! I do have two questions. I know the requirements I have to fulfill before I can post my work, is the writing workshop the appropriate place to post these initial 20 critiques? Also, if I cannot find anything wrong with a writers work, will positive and constructive feedback of the quality of their work suffice? I look forward to meeting some of you, -Cole
I did a little digging and answered my own question, my apologies. 2 critiques in the workshop and 20 posts overall, got it.
Hi Cole, and welcome to the forum. All the crucial information to get you started is in the New Member Guide. You probably found this page on constructive criticism. In addition to checking how others are doing it, that article gives you some idea about the requirements of constructive criticism. If you find nothing to criticise, do not fret, it's also a good idea to explain why you liked it and that can also be very helpful to the author. Offering critique to others is an awesome way to learn about the techniques of effective fiction writing without it even feeling like you're studying. Anyway, see you around! -Kat
