This week: Now What? Edited by: GeminiGem of House Lannister  
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You wrote something. Now what?
In case you haven't discovered this yet, your work has just begun. First drafts are incredibly important, but they are just as their name suggests. It is the first step in your writing.
Edit Sober
The next step is editing. Yes, this is work, but you don't have to do it without assistance, and I will cover that in a moment. Start by reading it over to see if you can find any errors or weak areas. You may find this is easier to do if you approach your writing with "fresh eyes". In other words, leave it be for a period of time. Maybe a few hours is enough, but a day or more is better. Then slow down and read it again. It is amazing how that break away from your work will let you see places you need to improve. If you aren't under some kind of tight deadline, you may want to do this a few or even several times.
There's An App For That
There are free apps available to help you with your editing. I have used them both. There may be other apps out there as well, of course, but I can personally vouch for the usefulness of these two.
https://www.grammarly.com/ I lean on this one for just about everything I write. It catches spelling, punctuation, and other grammar issues. Is it perfect?
NOPE.
If you are using Grammarly and it shows you a suggestion for a change that feels so wrong that it might land you in grammar jail for the rest of your natural life, engage your common sense, and don't follow the suggested change. It has given me a few real head-scratchers from time to time. Having said that, Grammarly even does comma placement! Commas can be wretchedly difficult to do correctly (or is that just me?). I appreciate the help.
https://hemingwayapp.com/ has a different approach that may prove helpful. You copy and paste your text onto the site and the app will highlight adverbs, passive voice, and difficult-to-read sentences. You can edit right there and see if you have improved your writing.
The Eyes Have It
Okay, you have written your piece and done your editing. What else can you do? I highly recommend having more people read it over and make suggestions for improvement. One tip is that entering contests can bring people to your piece, and people often like to do reviews on contest entries. It isn't a surefire way of getting feedback, but it can help.
There are also review groups and individuals that will take requests for reviews. I can't list them all here, but do some research by looking on the left-hand column of this page for REVIEWERS and clicking on it. Then click on MOST ACTIVELY REVIEWING GROUPS. You will see links to these groups, and you can check out which groups accept review requests.
A more direct way to request a review is here "Please Review" . You can list the item you are interested in getting feedback on in that forum.
But Wait...There's More
I have more tips for you if you would like to take a look "Attracting Reviewers To Your Portfolio" .
To get the most out of this feedback, make sure you do your editing before you request reviews. Have reviewers give you another point of view or smooth out some rough patches, you should have already revised the first draft.
You Can Do This!
Good luck with your writing journey. The more time you spend on this site, the more ways you will learn to get the help and support you need to grow and improve your writing.
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Here are some comments from past Noticing Newbies newsletters I have edited:
"A Soft Place To Land"
Comment from Elfin Dragon-finally published
The most useful thing I've found on Writing.Com has often been from the list on the left side. Specifically...Writing.Com Tools...WritingML: Docs & Help.
That is an excellent place to find information. Highly recommend.
"Social Hour"
Comment from buddhangela's Wounded Not Dead
Ha! I loved your Different Strokes reference!  Great newsletter, as always!
Couldn't resist, lol Thank you!
Comment from Beacon - House Night's Watch
When I was a newbie, I had to find out how to use the tools by asking the Moderators because they would know since they have been on the site for at least 10 or 15 years. I go to the experienced mod who knows the site pretty well. I like it here and I learn different things every day.
Mods (or the folks with the blue cases in their handles) can be very helpful, indeed. |
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Noticing Newbies: December 21, 2022 Issue [#11719]
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