Well, mind my silly thread name i am experimenting ;D Iv been reading through a lot of things in this forum over the past few weeks, peoples critique and peoples attitude towards beginner writers like myself, and i wanted to be involved in a community where id get help and not negative criticism but constructive, not abuse, no trolling, and this seems one of the most mature writing forums iv come across all the critique iv read and iv read pages of it, has been top notch, and i hope to one day be involved in this and to be on the receiving end of such helpful and kind people like yourselves. I am 16, iv just finished high school, so got plenty of time to read and write. Iv never really written a piece before that iv wanted people to help me re-write tweak nor have i written a piece id like to "get published" my main aim in life is to become a journalist, but better off starting to write now, and i just want to write anything. I am not one for a great imagination and i prefer factual rather than fictional. But i am hoping to one day be able to write a good high quality piece of creative writing. I have one questions i wish to ask here. PERSONALLY, to you fellow writers, i am going into sixth form next year and i have a choice to make, because of option blocks i am unable to do both English Literature and English Language separately, so i have two choices either to do an English Language and English Literature A level course combined or just English Language, for people who have a career in the writing industry which would help me more? I am kind of leaning towards doing the combined course as i don't want to be missing out on anything, but just out of interest i just thought id ask. Thanks for listening to my ramble ill stop now.
Hello Auty, Welcome to the Writing Forums. The course with literature will probably be more helpful, because you will be exposed to good writing and will need to read it critically. You need general language skills as well, particularly in spelling, punctuation, and grammar, but hopefully you have a solid grasp on that already. Please read How to Use the Review Room before you post there. 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 the RPG forum for improvisational fiction. Also try 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!
I'm not personally an expert on such things, but I would say English Lit is the direction I want to go. But with that in mind, be wary of taking advice from faceless strangers on a writing forum.
thanks guys, and i know i wasn't going to take peoples opinions as a definite answer anyway at the end of the day its up to me, i just wanted to see what other people would do. Thanks Cogito for the information iv checked the links. and read everything. and thanks lads / ladies for the warm welcome. See y'all around
Welcome Auty! Hope you enjoy it here. It's a bit sleepy in all the other areas of the forum, but this area seems to be alive with action! Happy writing! -Writing.Geek.
Hello. I'm not really a NEW member but i haven't been on in like a long time. so i thought id give myself a new introduction. REASON for being away is that iv started my A-Levels, and iv been swamped with coursework i still am but i couldn't keep away from this forum... it is just so interesting.
