Good afternoon! My name is Tom Kubik, and I'm an aspiring writer (pause for the cliche "Hi Tom!"). I joined this forum to post my writing for critique or pleasure reading (hopefully) and to read the other member's writing. Right now, I'm on the fence about my major in school and I'm seriously considering going down the path of the professional writer. I'm hoping that this forum can help me figure out if I have what it takes, help me improve, or even just point me in the right direction. Thank you everyone in advance for your help and/or welcoming arms. -Tom
Hello Tom, Welcome to the Writing Forums. Before you can get critique, you must first give critique. This is not just a quid pro quo, it is because improving your critiquing skills is the primary focus of the Review Room workshop. Posting your own work should not be among the very first things you do here anyway. 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 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!
Hey Tom, great to have you on board! This is definitely the best place online (or possibly anywhere) to improve your writing. And the biggest feature is critiquing others. This way you get into an analytical mindset as you pick apart someone else, which helps you because you'll probably find problems or good things that you're doing as well while you do this. And there's plenty of variety in what to critique. We have newer writers and seasoned writers, great writers and unfortunately some not so great writers. And we all write in every genre possible and then some. And don't forget to have fun! Writing wouldn't be much without that key element, after all. Good luck, Nate
Thanks for the welcome, guys! I will definitely be stepping back and watching for a little bit to see how everything operates before contributing. See you out there! -Tom
