Writing.comReviews 236

I have been a preferred author on Writing.com since 2003. I also used it during my home schooling years with free accounts for all seven of my kids, as a supplement to our writing curriculum, but more importantly, it was the catalyst for me to hone my own work. I appreciate the opportunity to get honest constructive reviews on my work, and to get a large readership without the hassle of self-publishing. I got burned by a publisher who stole my idea once, but now have documented copyrights on every piece. I only use a tiny piece of the vast resources on Writing.com, but it has been worth every modest penny I have spent to maintain a 250-piece portfolio.

I've been a member of WDC for eleven years now. I've learned a lot, both about writing and dealing with criticism. I've won official contests, and I've been told my writing "lacks literary merit." Are there cliques on WDC? Yes. Are there people that will praise/trash your writing no matter the content? Yes. But if you are starting out as a writer I encourage you to sign up. Find those people on the site that know what they're talking about and listen. Grow as a writer, and grow thick skin. Good luck.

I enjoy reviewing others' work and building my personal portfolio by stashing my works-in-progress, finished pieces, and published clips. I had a bit of trouble navigating the site as apparently I am not as technologically gifted as other members. However, member forums are available and someone is always willing to help. I am not into the "social side" but there are many groups with myriad interests available. That being said, I have found it interesting to exchange ideas and writing tips through reviewing and being reviewed. The monetary system of GPs (gift points) is not my reason for venturing out into this large writing community- I merely try to earn enough points to gift to writers I review and maybe buy a few pens and sticky notes. All in all, I have enjoyed my years at WDC.

I enjoy writing reviews, as an author, you want readers, and you like to know how they are affected and feel about your work. As for a review for writing.com, I feel you need to experience the community to fully understand. Words, simply are not enough.

My experience with my family here at WDC, goes well beyond words. I have learned to write, and I continue to learn new and exciting ways to communicate through writing, using imagery in the sense of how a writer can describe an experience in such a way, you can see it, in your minds eye.

From day one, about four years ago, I felt like family, and our bond has grown stronger every day. As for loving WDC enough to want to tell the whole world. I do, I tell everyone I am aware of that either likes to read, or write. Take a few moments, browse some of the communities works, and you may find, your family also.

All writing sites have good and not-so-good points. Any level of writer can benefit from the site by just using those things that are helpful like getting others to read and offer comments as you polish your work. There's places for all genres and collaboration, and you can have a blog (at a Upgraded membership level). For those not interested in a social scene, you can skip that part of it and still progress your writing. It may not be perfect for everyone, but any writer can find it useful.

My review is back and forth. I love writing.com but I'm disappointed by the community there at times.

I was an active member of this site for a year while I wrote my novel's first draft. At the start of that year, I decided I wanted to write a book and looked for a community to be part of to help motivate me. With writing.com, I used it to get feedback and input from folks that didn't know me or my work. In that regard, the website is invaluable as there a lot of people there and if you are a brand new member, you get a lot of feedback in the first six months. Well... if you can get them to read your stuff. You do have to reach out to people, join contests and such to get attention. My writing improved over the course of twelve months and I couldn't be happier with Writing.com for that. There are also contests and little badges you earn if you win the contest, which is nice. I can't say enough nice things about the website and all that it does. There is a lot of time and effort put into making it work and I think that is awesome.

But there's a price. Kind of.

I'm not talking about the website subscription, but the website currency used to get folks to review your work. It's easy enough to earn with weekly goals, reviews, or contests. And you can use it to "garner" services from others like reviewing your work. Or I should say *if* you can get them to. Trying to get someone to read your stuff is half the battle on Writing.com. The incentives that they have are noteworthy, but it's never a guarantee you can get what you are looking for with feedback. Depending on your content, a lot of people will turn down requests you send--which is fair. Sometimes other will stumble onto your work and leave a review, but most do it to earn the website currency. A few reviewers of my work did it for that reason and only skimmed my writing. Afterwards, they left some really weird reviews not even relevant to the story. Either that or they're not native English speakers. It's hard to say. They also leave ads to their stories at the end of their comments which take up more space than their actual review.

Also, depending on the genre/content of your story, you won't be able to ask for reviews in the common review forum. I posted a request there and because there is profanity and violence in my story, a site admin removed it and sent me a message explaining why. Afterwards, I tried to request reviews for those that had reviews open, but 90% of the time I never got a response. After a month of that, I became disheartened and left the website to join a writing group outside the computer where I could get some guaranteed feedback once a week.

Despite all that, I am still a member of the website. I go back to really admiring everything the site does. If I'd written something more PG friendly, my experience would be different. I hold out hope that someone will find my work or accept a request and give me feedback on what I've done. Just got to hang in there!