The forum has apparently swallowed my last attempt at an introduction. Rather frustrating. Anyway, I'm a teacher, new to writing and being encouraged by a fiancee who I think might be regretting it as she keeps telling me that I'm doing better than her! I've written a little in the past week and seem to be doing ok. In particular I find that the actual words flow nice and easily once I've got a good handle of characters/locations etc... Following orders I have based my first short story on a book I read recently, borrowing the main character and a few ideas to see how my own words flow. Part of it is here. With the same length again already written. I've spent a fair amount of time trawling the site, I found some of the articles really helpful (Cogito's POV piece in particular), likewise the reviews of others' work. I'm hoping to be around here a while as every impression I've got of the site has been positive. I've got a few weeks holiday now for xmas so should have a bit of time to get some stuff bashed out. All the best Mesuno
Hello Mesuno, Welcome to the Writing Forums. Posting your own work 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. 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 reviewing as a critical 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). 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!
