Despite the not so unique title to this thread, I would like to make this as good of an introduction as I can. Hello. My name, well username, is lolzark. Feel free to call me lol, oz, ozark, or lolzark. Which ever you prefer, it really doesn't matter to me. I am currently a Junior in high school. You know. That time in your life where you're looking at colleges and preparing for that next big step after high school. Well, that's where I'm at. I hope to have a manuscript for a novel done by the end of my senior year. Ready to be printed and sent to a Literary Agent and all that good stuff. By the sentence or two before this, you can obviously tell that one day I hope to be a published author. Actually, it'd be awesome if I could one day be a Bestselling Author, but for right now I'm taking it one step at a time. I enjoy writing and reading. I also enjoy listening to music. I prefer to write Fantasy Fiction, and I will read just about everything. I have actually been known to read entire textbooks just for the sake of it. When it comes to music, I don't have a specific genre that I chain myself to. If I like a song, then I like it. It's really that simple. Though I do tend to lean towards the Beatles, Lady Gaga, and show tunes. Show tunes? Yes I just said show tunes. I love musical theatre. Though I'm not the best at singing or dancing, I would like to think of myself as a pretty okay actor. But I never wished to pursue theatre as a career. I simply love watching musicals and being a part of them. It's telling the story to the audience as best as you can that makes musical productions so great. English is my favorite topic in school, and I'll probably major in it when I go to college. Though I do have a knack for organic chemistry and math, so I am looking into Pharmacy. I know two languages fluently: English and Croatian. I also have a pretty good grasp on German (since I've been studying it for nearly five years). So that's about it. I joined to expand the number of people I know who have the same passion for writing. I wanted to have a group of people in real life and an online community. So this should be nice, no? The more people to help me on my journey of becoming a successful published author, the better. And hey! I might even be able to give a few people a hand. Yeah, now that is all.
Hello Lolzark, Welcome to the Writing Forums. 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 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!
