Hello, all! My name is Lauren, but my pen name is Lola Waters. You can call me either-or! Despite my "flirtatious" username, I take writing seriously, and I have for about five years. Naturally, I've improved since the sixth grade, and I plan to continue bettering my style. I'm not sure what I want to be when I grow up. (I've been leaning towards forensics lately, but maybe I'm just saying that because it sounds like a pretty interesting profession.) All I know is that I want to be a novelist or at least a short story writer on the side. I'm not as good of a poet as I was back in the days of seventh and eighth grade, if you want to know the truth. My stories are usually either sci-fi-based (Cyberpunk, biopunk apocalyptic/post-apocalyptic, etc.) or much more realistic (School, gangs, etc.) I'll occasionally write a traditional fantasy story involving use of magic and all that, but I haven't in quite a while. I'll also write from an animal's perspective, be it a quadruped or an anthropomorphic creature. The vast majority of my stories contain either underlying or obvious romance, usually revolving around two women, but I'll write straight fiction and "slash" every once in a while. Anything else...? Well, let's see.... I'm seventeen and from New Jersey. The origin of my username is the "stripper" name I thought up for myself one day when I was bored out of my skull, and the name randomly popped into my head. My computer had to be system restored not too long ago, and I lost everything, so I'll eventually, but surely, begin posting my work. For now, I'll do my best to critique!
Hello Lauren, 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!
Nice to meet you Lauren, and welcome. It's a shame your computer had to be restored, Windows is not a friend to data. Your information is probably there somewhere, and with a degree in forensics, they might actually be able to tell you how to get that kinda stuff back! I look forward to seeing some of your stuff, I enjoy sci/fi and the post-apocalyptic genre.
