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N0TICING NEWBIES NEWSLETTER Noticing Newbies Newsletter is geared to help members get acquainted with Writing.com. There are many things to do and learn. Our goal is to help you make your time here more fun and manageable. Each week we select and showcase new items (poetry, lyrics, short stories, essays, campfires, polls, etc.). Exposure for an item (your writing) helps to bring you more rates and reviews by fellow members and the general public...of course depending on how much exposure you want your item to have. Some writers like to keep their work private. When your work does receive exposure, it helps bring more member interaction, which will give you the opportunity to build new friendships. Remember, it is a two-way street...try to make an effort to reciprocate reviews. "There's someone that you haven't already met, go introduce yourself to him or her. Walls and labels can't keep you from the people who are so similar to you in spirit. There's a friendly face behind every door if you pick the right moment to knock. Once you start your wave of creative outreach, it turns into a contagious force. People are waking up and smiling at each other, sharing their dreams without hesitation. This community is worth something." -- Author Unknown ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- EDITOR'S NOTE: Hello Everybody! It's hard to believe summer is almost over, kids are back in school or going back soon; I'm from Maine and it feels like summer just began, we received SO much rain in July, it actually rained for two weeks straight! But, whether it is raining, snowing, or the sun is shining, writing can be your constant companion. So, I hope many of you are consistently writing and even considering on publishing a writing pierce. Before you mail out your finalized manuscript, please consider the following recommendations. Did you know that editors are constantly sending rejection notices to a vast majority of writers because the manuscript was not written to the editor's specifications? Few editors will consider a story, poem or article that does not meet their specifications precisely. All publishers are looking for a particular market to sell, so if you send in a children's story to a publisher who is only looking for adult articles, obviously they are going to send it back. Writers need to do their homework to figure which publishers are interested in what genre, non-fiction or fiction, etc. Writers must request the publishers manuscript specfications. Sometimes the specifications will be listed right on the website, sometimes not. The following list is just a few of the specifications that a publisher/editor may or may not request: 1. Query letter 2. Synopsis 3. Sample chapter 4. Table of contents 5. Manuscript prepared on a computer, will need a printout and a copy of the file on disk 6. Which word processing software you used 7. Style sheet 8. Manuscript conforms to the guidelines in The Chicago Manual of Style 9. Good-quality plain white paper 10. Standard, easy-to-read typeface Writing contests also have exact specifications. It is great practice for all writers, new ones and old pros too, to enter contests. They are excellent training experiences and, if you win, they will give you confidence, exposure for your writing, possibly publish your writing, or even pay prize money. The contest rules are important! Whether the contest is here on W.C. or another site or magazine, it is very important to follow the rules. Here are a few example rules: 1. Opening and closing dates of the contest 2. Genre 3. Fiction or non-fiction 4. Content rating 5. Word limit 6. Entry fee 7. Number of entries per person 8. Newly created items only 9. Grammar/punctuation 10. Illustrations not required Do not let perfection keep you from entering a contest. First of all, it's important to remember that your first draft isn't going to be perfect. It doesn't matter how good of a writer you are, there will be things that need editing. Some of the best writers edit and rewrite and edit over and over until the work is as close to perfect as they can make it. Keep in mind as you sit down to write that first draft, it will be flawed no matter what. If you try not to be the perfect writer when starting a new story or poem, the words will flow better. You should not worry about living up to your own too-high expectations -- writer's block usually comes about from having too-high expections. So, take it easy on yourself! Until next time...   "What we love to do we find time to do." -- John L. Spalding -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------  NEWBIE SHOW ITEMS SUBMITTED FOR NEWSLETTER:
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------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- ASK & ANSWER: Hey Laurencia, The Newbie Newsletter is always packed full of interesting and useful information. It will always be one of my favorites. Thanks. Coolhand Coolhand  Thank you all for reading Noticing Newbie, please do not hesitate to post your comments. See you September 17th! Laurencia
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