I originally joined this forum many months ago as soon when I first got back into writing. Back then I was getting over a severe phobia of creative writing, as odd as it sounds. However, as luck would have it, once I rediscovered the pleasure of writing, lots of personal crap happened which impacted my mental health, causing me to run away from writing. Without getting too, too personal, I tend not to write when I'm depressed because that's originally what started the phobia of creative writing. However, I am now glad to say I'm doing much, much better. And a few days ago I had a huge realization...one of the reasons I hated writing for so long was because I felt the need to please people with my writing. Then I realized...why? Why do I need to please every single person in the world with what I do to relax myself? Why do I need to please people with my hobbies? Sure it's nice to have people enjoy your writing, but I have no intentions of becoming a professional writer. Writing is what I do to get my feelings out in a non-destructive manner. Bah, enough with that boring depressing stuff. My name is Kaci, and I'm 16 years old. I've been writing since I was in 3rd grade, but stopped from 6th grade-9th grade. Then I stopped again for about...8 months? And now I'm in 10th grade. So! Hi! : D
Hello Kaci, Welcome to the Writing Forums. You really need to please exactly one person in yoru writing - youreself. If you have an interest, even a tentative one, in getting your work published, you can work toward a style that is expressive and personal, and that will improve your chances of selling your work to a publisher. One step at a time, though. 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!
Thank you for the welcome! ^^ And you're right, the only person I need to please is myself. If I don't like my writing, how can I expect anyone else to like it? While a small part of me does want my work to be published, the majority of me just wants it to stay private, only to be shared by a few trusted people.
