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  Noticing Newbies  1. About this Newsletter 2. A Word from our Sponsor 3. Letter from the Editor 4. Editor's Picks 5. A Word from Writing.Com 6. Ask & Answer 7. Removal instructions   Welcome to the Noticing Newbies Newsletter! Our goal is to showcase some of our newest Writing.Com Authors and their items. From poetry and stories to creative polls and interactives, we'll bring you a wide variety of items to enjoy. We will also feature "how to" advice and items that will help to jump start the creation process on Writing.com We hope all members of the site will take the time to read, rate, review and welcome our new authors. By introducing ourselves, reviewing items and reaching out, we will not only make them feel at home within our community, we just might make new friends! Your host this week is esprit      Passionate about writing? Take your passion to new heights - with an online Master of Fine Arts in Creative Writing, available only from top ranked National University. Choose workshops based on your interests. Work with experienced and published faculty. Prepare for a variety of career opportunities. Use a state-of-the art online system: Study where and when you want. Click here to get more information!              Happy 2005, everyone! BUT I DIDN'T KNOW IT WOULD BE READ!! I find myself still occasionally making an excuse for my writing.  It isn't easy to look beyond the great story and see the flaws. I understand exactly how my story makes me feel, and I can't see why the reader doesn't feel it too. It's clear to me!But I have lived the work, I know it completely, the readers only know by the words I have chosen to tell them. If they don't feel the emotion I feel, I need to change the words. It's not easy. You’ve decided to join this Writing.Com workshop to show your work and hone your skills. Right? You’ve read in the ad’s that Writing.Com members give helpful and constructive reviews and that’s what you want. You want to BE READ! But posting your work is scary. You may think, Will anybody read it? Will they like it? Then you take the plunge and, Merry Christmas! It was read! And it was critiqued.  You were visited by reviewers who offered suggestions and errors were pointed out. but I did'nt expect anyone to read or rate my things! One of the "SPELLING & GRAMMAR POLICE",sent me an e-mail I’ve had more then a few express surprise at being read and reviewed.  Being critiqued is not easy to take, for any of us, but especially for beginning writers. Writing is our personal thoughts and feelings, our ‘babies’, and we want to protect them for as long as possible. But remember, reviewers are not judging you. They are reacting to the words you offered to them. They are giving their viewpoint based upon the emotions and images you did or didn’t invoke in them. That’s all! If someone gives you an honest opinion of where your story isn’t working for them, try to be gracious. Don’t slam the reviewer, or make excuses. Try to view your story through the eyes of the reader and understand for yourself why your point isn’t getting across. I repeat, it ain't easy! But I can assure you, if your story did not have merit, or if talent wasn't seen somewhere in your words, I, as one serious reviewer, wouldn't have reviewed it. Fragile egos break easily; work on your confidence by learning all you can. Don't give up because of a few low rates. You may not ever have a best seller, but you will learn to write good stories and enjoy them. Don’t edit or delete your work simply because one reader didn’t understand it; or your feelings were hurt. We all have the same feelings and we understand. Wait to see what other reviewers say. By clarifying what you meant to say, you don’t need to change the story - only the way you chose to tell it. If one reviewer makes a suggestion, and you don’t agree, then leave it alone! It’s your story. If several make the same suggestion, it would be to your advantage to at least take another look at that area. The ability to look at where your story is going wrong and offer advice should be treasured. Learn from the reactions of your readers. That’s why we’re here. The Excuse  but it’s supposed to be slow-paced. I wanted the reader to think.” my character is supposed to be inconsistent.” you weren’t reading it right. You misunderstood what I meant.” but I wanted to leave the readers in suspense.” There’s nothing wrong with your story containing any of these elements. What is important is that the reader must be able to understand why you wrote it that way. A writer who needs to make excuses for his or her writing is missing the point. The idea of writing a story is to be sure your writing says exactly what you want the reader to see. I’m not talking about describing every tiny thing that goes on in your fictional world. I mean write so that your words are clear enough to carry the picture you created with your imagination into the minds of your readers. If you feel the need to explain it, then you haven’t achieved the goal of telling your story yet. Beginning writers make excuses for their work. Good writers revise and polish their words until every point shines. Hang in there! ** Image ID #715135 Unavailable **    ** Image ID #830174 Unavailable **
Items submitted by members: Submitted By: Mitch  Submitted Comment: I found a newbie I think worth noticing. marnyjem I hope she can be included in an issue in the near future. I agree, Flip. Thanks for submitting her name! Submitted By: lavos12 Submitted Item: "Invalid Item"  by A Guest Visitor Submitted Comment: If nobody reads this... should I stop submitting chapters (I'll write it anyways) or keep on submitting chapters so it might get noticed. What would you guys do? I would do just as you're doing, submit it everywhere. Don't forget all the review forums that are out there! Remember, it'syour responsibility to get your work seen and read. Submitted By: andorianip Submitted Item: "Invalid Item" by A Guest Visitor Submitted Comment: I just selected another black case as author of the month! Congratulations to her! She certainly deserved it! Thank you for submitting it. Submitted By: nikkipheonix Submitted Item: "Invalid Item" by A Guest Visitor Submitted Comment: Hawk2K is a great writer, and I think that his poem is worthy to be in the Noticing Newbies newsletter. His stories are also great. Thanks for considering him! Thanks for recommending him! We can't list everyone we'd like, but we need you guys to help us out. When you find an author you like, send it in! Remember to read your neighbor’s work too!  Submit an item for consideration in this newsletter! http://www.Writing.Com/main/newsletters.php?action=nli_form  Have an opinion on what you've read here today? Then send the Editor feedback! Find an item that you think would be perfect for showcasing here? Submit it for consideration in the newsletter! http://www.Writing.Com/main/newsletters.php?action=nli_form Don't forget to support our sponsor! %%NL_AD_BOT%%  Since my last month's newsletter was sort of lost in the Thanksgiving holiday shuffle, I have no feedback this time. I miss it.So, I think I'll just insert a tiny little tip here for those newbies who don't know what the term 'wordiness' means. Here's a couple of examples that helped me. Her blouse is yellow [in color] connect [up together] because [of the fact that] REDUNDANT - exceeding what is necessary or normal and SUPERFLUOUS b : characterized by or containing an excess; specifically : using more words than necessary c : characterized by similarity or repetition - 'equals WORDINESS'. The words in brackets are not necessary. They're obvious here, as you see them pointed out, but they are easy to miss as you're writing. Don't do this.  Are there terms reviewers mention that you don't understand? Maybe you have no idea what they're talking about? I didn't know what 'wordiness' meant when I was a newbie. How would I know? I was new to writing. Have a safe and happy New Year! The editor next week will be: Puditat followed by; laurencia and Cubby  Check out my past issues here. "Invalid Item" by A Guest Visitor Have a question or comment for the Editor? http://www.Writing.Com/main/newsletters.php?action=nli_form  To stop receiving this newsletter, go into your account and remove the check from the box beside the specific topic. Be sure to click "Complete Edit" or it will not save your changes. |
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