Hello everyone! I'm another newbie joining the forums. I had a little glitch during registration and I've been in limbo for a few days, but I owe a big thank you to Daniel for getting me straightened out. I'm excited to get to know everyone and start participating in the forums. I've been writing as a hobby ever since I was a kid, but never took it seriously. I was raised being told that it was a "nice hobby" but not a "real job." I needed to get a "real job" to earn a living. Well, thanks to our wonderful economy, I was laid off from one of those "real jobs" for the third time in 3 years. That was 10 months ago and things aren't looking promising in that direction. Jobs are scarce and the salaries are dropping to nearly half what they used to be. I've decided to use some of this down time to take a shot at writing as a career. I have the time, I have the passion for writing, and I'm pretty sure I have at least some talent in that department. I have nothing to lose and everything to gain, so I've started working on 2 books, one fiction and one non-fiction. I'm also doing some commercial writing through some of the freelance sites on the internet and really enjoying it. The last step in my plan is to meet some people who understand what it means to have a passion for writing and won't think I'm crazy every time I mention the NEED to write. I think I've found that here. Here's to an awesome future for all of us. Ven
Hello Ven, Welcome to the Creative Writing Forums. Please read How to Use the Writing Workshop before you try to post there. Posting your own writing for people to comment on 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. 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 Writing Workshop, 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 Writing Workshop, 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. We also impose a two-week waiting period before you may post writing for critique, to give you time to become familiar with what is expected and how the site operates. The Writing Workshop 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 Writing Workshop 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!
