Join a Writing Community
Back when I was in high school my best friend and I would often pass notes back and forth in class. Nothing unusual about that, many students did the same. However, our notes weren’t about the typical gossip going on in class that most students would share on the sly when the teacher wasn’t looking. Ours were stories. We would take turns crafting pieces of a story, each trying to outdo the other both in outlandishness as well as hilarity. Whether it was a story about our computer teacher going on a killing spree as she screamed, “WYSIWYG!” at the top of her lungs or our own retelling of The Scarlet Letter using gangsta rapers as characters, it soon became obvious that writing was a passion of ours that would not be denied.
That was the first writing community to which I belonged. Granted, it was only a community of two but it was rewarding nonetheless. I can’t stress just how important it is to find a writing community in which you feel comfortable, particularly if you are just beginning to share your work with others. You must get your words in front of eyes other than your own. Preferably you should find a community where members take turns reviewing each others’ works.
If you live in a large city, you may have the good fortune of having a writing group that holds meeting nearby. However, if you are like me, it may be more practical to find a writing community online. I looked for quite some time for a community in which I felt comfortable and ended up settling down at www.writingforums.org It is a friendly board that not only has forums for critiquing each others’ work, but also forums for writing discussions in general. It is populated by beginners and professionals alike.
But don’t assume you will just be able to go there and post your work immediately. You may only post your own work once you have critiqued at least two pieces of someone else’s. This is a definite strength of the site. One of the best ways to improve your own writing is to review other’s writings. If you haven’t done this before you just might be surprised at the insights into your own writing that you will reap.
So go find yourself a community to join and feel free to share the good ones with the rest of us.
I did join a writing community on facebook. Unfortunately, I have been away in Seattle for a week so I will be unable to submit my brilliant works to them.