Hi everyone! I've written a thousand introductions for a thousand different things over time, so I'll try to condense things and keep it short. My name is Brittany (you may call me whatever you'd like), and I live in (currently frozen) Minnesota. It's not quite the Great White North, but the upper Midwest may as well be part of Canada, in my opinion. It would really be for the best. I have a Bachelor of Science in Ecology (and a minor in Statistics, can't forget that), and I'm currently working on a Master of Science in Scientific and Technical Communication--a.k.a. Technical Writing. Ideally, though, I'd like to buckle down and start submitting some of my fictional work to magazines and other publications, small or otherwise. In essence, I'm looking to wallpaper a room with rejection letters, because I know they'll be coming (and I'd better get used to them as a writer). I'll write just about anything, but I prefer to read things that are generally a bit sci-fi, a bit dark, peppered with oddities, and full of interesting people (a la my hero, Ray Bradbury). Thus, things of that nature tend to leak into my work fairly often. Looking forward to making some friends here and hopefully starting a relatively fruitful freelance hobby (career?).
Hello Brittany, 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!
