Hello. Just joined, browsed a bit and read the forum rules. Much of my young adult life I wrote and wanted to be a writer. However, when I went into college the pressure was put on me to go for a career that would enable me to make a good living. I also had a very serious relationship then with a young lady who wanted to be an author. I didn't want to compete with her and so focused on the sciences. Still I would occasionally write short stories when moved to do so, but would generally keep them to myself. I would find myself and still do, making stories in my head and developing ideas I wanted to put into a written work. Flash forward to nowadays. I'm certified and a professional in my field. I've done well for myself in my career, but unfortunately I hate my job and dread the thought of spending the rest of my days living like this. I appreciate the technical aspects of what I do, and my work has exposed me to a lot of situations, individuals, locations and institutions that over time have given me a deep personal insight into much of the world. Not only do I have interesting story ideas in my head, but now I have something to actually say. Ideas and thoughts about the world that I want to share. So I've put pen to paper again (figuratively speaking since I'm using MS Word) and have committed myself to finally finishing one of the novels I've started. Since then I've probably spent more time editing the dang thing than actually writing it, but the hope is the final product will be internally consistent, convey the ideas I want it to and maybe even enjoyable to read. Since I'm not really comfortable sharing my writing with my family and friends I googled aspiring authors forum and found this place. Maybe someday I'll complete all the steps needed to post a story and finally share a piece of what I've been working on here from the safety of anonymity.
Hi there. Welcome to the forum. It's been my experience that this venue makes a great sounding board. Obviously you can't please all the folks all the time, but many reviewers are able to put their own personal tastes aside and read objectively, and if you ever find yourself stuck in a rut, you can be sure other members will have had similar experiences and will be able to offer suggestions. Close friends and family members can be concerned criticisms may cause offense and temper their opinions, so in many ways members' constructive, objective and dare I say it, knowledgeable opinions can be of greater value from a writing perspective, at any rate. Those who are readers, not writers, can be very helpful when it comes to highlighting things like lack of character believability, poor story flow, et cetera, but can rarely offer much in the way of suggestions as to what can be done about it. For me, letting folks read what I'd written was the first step in taking it seriously, and I can't believe how much I've improved in less than a year just by hanging out, reading and critiquing the work of others. It makes me feel less isolated in my writer's bubble, knowing there are so many of us working toward similar goals. I sincerely hope you get a much from the experience as I have.
