Becoming a Rising Stars Sponsor

THANK YOU !

We're so pleased to introduce you to the process of SPONSORING a RISING STAR. First, we'll offer a little basic information. Then, we suggest you to take 5-10 minutes to check out the links I've provided. After you've checked them out, get in touch. If you have questions or if you'd like to proceed. I'll be glad to help.

Here is a little basic information to help you get started:

The Rising Stars program was founded to provide our diverse community of highly talented writers with black suitcases opportunities to be recognized and rewarded. We engage the entire community--writers with yellow, blue and purple suitcases-- in the process of locating and rewarding outstanding writers.

Your charge is to find a talented writer whose work is articulate and well presented. Finding a writer who touches your heart is a very special plus, but it's also very important that you select a writer who is competent. Think if you can comfortably rate his/her work between 8 and 10, if 10 represents fine writers on W.Com. Be sure to share how your candidate qualifies when you make your nomination. Writers whose work is largely labeled 18+ and violent or primarily sexual in nature will not qualify. The reason for this is we have a number of Rising Stars under age 18 in our group who are charged with reviewing the work of fellow Rising Stars and participating side-by-side in contests and workshops where work submitted must be able to be read by all.

Needless to add, we want all of our Rising Stars to feel up to participating/ The quality of his or her work must be on a par with the rest of the work submitted by Rising Stars. If the work is not close to being competitive, this Rising Star won't feel at home participating in our programs. When you recommend a candidate, keep this in mind.

Preliminary Advice:

Be sure to take time to read, review, and enjoy some interaction with your candidate before recommending this writer to our program. It's important that you and your writer have had sufficient contact that you can see you and your candidate are a good match.

We discourage writers with black suitcases from asking a specific individual to serve as their Sponsor. We like to think you'll enjoy making your own selection without being lobbied. It's difficult to step around being asked to sponsor a writer with a black suitcase. If you are approached by a writer, please send the interested writer to the piece we created especially for writers who are interested in our program.

ID: 1212991   (Rated: E) Title: How Rising Stars are Selected  Description: Information on how Rising Stars are selected By: Gabriella Loves RisingStars !

One other thought. Angel Army provides an excellent buddy program for new writers on W.Com in search of buddies to provide support and serve as mentors to new members. If you're interested, contact iKïyå§ama for further information. By contrast, Rising Stars is a program with a specific mission. We're looking for quality writers with real potential--and we hope you'll take the time to develop a meaningful friendship. This is a little tougher to achieve and the effort to locate and select a talented writer requires that you are able to undertake your search independently, allowing a bit of time to read, review and get to know your candidate. Keep in mind, we're looking for quality work. It's tough to put aside a friendship to select an appropriate candidate for our program, but for our program, this is important.

Once you've submitted an appropriate candidate, we'll visit your candidate's portfolio. If we agree your candidate is a great match with our program, we'll issue an invitation to your candidate to join our program as a Rising Star.

Once your Rising Star has been approved, you'll be expected to:

Carry a link to your Rising Star on your "Who's Online" listing.
Select a piece from the writer's portfolio for an awardicon. Send the
item number to Gabriella Loves RisingStars ! . We will order the awardicon.
Post a Rising Stars Sponsor's sig in your portfolio.
Post the name of your newest RISING STAR on your bio
Boost/support the work of your Rising Stars on an ongoing basis.
Be generous. Reward your Rising Star with an awardicon now and then.
Be aware of your Rising Star's progress and important events in his/her
life on and offline.

Visit the Sponsor's forum (listed below) to select a Sponsor's signature.

Your role:

Can range from the role of mentor, if you should find a writer who is a beginner and/or younger with exceptional potential.

Or you might find a wonderful well established writer, in which case your role might be to establish a strong friendship with your Rising Star--one where you become a much valued supporter and source of encouragement for your Rising Star.

Your sponsorship is ongoing:

Although you may only adopt one Rising Star at a time, YOU MAY CONTINUE ADDING RISING STARS as you feel able. We don't recommend adopting more than one STAR every 6-8 weeks. There are no rules as to how many black suitcases you may adopt over time as long as you're able to CONTINUE BEING SUPPORTIVE AND INTERESTED IN EACH INDIVIDUAL STAR YOU'VE ALREADY ADOPTED.

Do what feels comfortable and take your time. You won't have heavy duty obligations. You are adding a great new friend to your list of buddies for whom you become a source of support and encouragement each month. This means being willing to review a few pieces and check in to see how your Rising Star is doing on a monthly basis. Remember, this is a budding friendship.

The staff attempts to visit the portfolios of our Rising Stars often enough to see that each invidividual is receiving reviews and an occasional awardicon. It's very distressing to find a Rising Star whose portfolio has been largely neglected. We (the staff) try to fill in with reviews and ribbons but as the program continues to grow, it becomes tougher for us to cover for all of the Sponsors who have lost interest in and largely forgotten to check in on their Rising Stars. We ask that you give careful thought to sponsoring given our real concern for the long-term care and support of each Star.

When you take on a new Star, take care not to impose too much advice or criticism too quickly. Look to your Rising Star for cues as to how to be supportive. Ask if she/he would like some feedback before imposing it. Be sure to point out what you find that is positive first and foremost when you write up your first set of reviews. Remember, it takes time to build trust and become a valued friend.

Getting Started:

If you're ready to look for a prospect, select a TALENTED WRITER with a black suitcase who has been a member on W.Com for at least 3 months.Send me the user name of your candidate. I'll check his/her portfolio and get back to you. Or, if you'd prefer, I can provide a list of 2-3 prospects for you to consider at first. There is also a forum whereby the community offers suggestions as well. We ask you to choose carefully. Rising Stars is a community of writers with real ability.

I look forward to hearing from you and our Sponsors look forward to welcoming you !

Warmest best, Gabriella

ID: 1177922   (Rated: E) Title: Welcome to Rising Stars !   Description: Celebrating and rewarding emerging writers--Enjoy a self-guided tour. By: Gabriella Loves RisingStars !

ID: 1213540   (Rated: E) Title: Recommend a Candidate to Rising Stars  Description: We Welcome the Community's Suggestions for Candidates By: Gabriella Loves RisingStars !

ID: 1284527   (Rated: E) Title: Sponsors Matched W. Rising Stars  Description: Rising Stars SPONSORS listed with AWARDEES from our founding to the present. By: Gabriella Loves RisingStars !

ID: 1329417   (Rated: E) Title: SPONSORS SHOWCASE  Description: A Showcase for Active Rising Stars Sponsors. By: Gabriella Loves RisingStars !

ID: 1218003   (Rated: E) Title: Rising Stars' PROUD SPONSORS  Description: Rising Stars Sponsors selected from our founding to the present. By: Gabriella Loves RisingStars !

Check your prospect against these lists to avoid selecting an already existing Rising Star

ID: 1373087   (Rated: E) Title: RISING STARS 2008-2009  Description: Part 2 --Rising Stars selected in 2008-2009 By: Gabriella Loves RisingStars !

ID: 1215648   (Rated: E) Title: Our RISING STARS 2006-2007  Description: Rising Stars selected in 2006-2007 By: Gabriella Loves RisingStars !

It's wonderful to see the impact that an attentive interested Sponsor can have on an individual writer's sense of
Writing.Com as a source of ongoing opportunity for growth. Our goal is to see each writer continue on to write and achieve goals that not long ago seemed out of reach. No writer is an island. Even the most successful writers on W.Com look for and need support to continue writing and improve. There is always a new challenge waiting for each writer over the next hill if we're open to new adventures. An encouraging supportive Sponsor can do a great deal to ensure that a writer's journey is blessed with friendship and encouragement.