This week: Nuts and Bolts Edited by: JACE  
More Newsletters By This Editor 
 
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
Hi, I'm JACE .
Welcome to this issue of the Noticing Newbies newsletter. Join me as I take you into some nooks and crannies of Writing.Com that you may not have found time to check out yet. This newsletter is about and for you. And for you seasoned members, I hope you'll find something you can take from my ramblings. 
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You already know what nuts and bolts you need for writing. The basics are vocabulary, spelling, grammar and syntax, sentence and paragraph structure, some ideas, and a little imagination. Put those words on paper, and poof ... you're a writer. Yeah, I know. A bit simplistic. Enter Writing.Com.
If you've been here for at least five minutes, you'll realize just how complicated WDC is. WDC is chock full of many features all designed to make your writing life a bit easier with both your actual writing and with the storage of your work. An added bonus is the ability to receive reviews of your offerings, which hopefully help make your final written results better.
The nuts and bolts of Writing.Com are contained in the Navigation menu located on the left side of each page under the Writing.Com banner. If you haven't already, take some time to check out each category in the menu. As with most things, some features will mean little to you. But many will help you over and over again.
The Navigation menu is divided into six sections below the Search window. I'm dividing the menu into two parts, and will discuss the upper three sections this week.
The top section is a direct link to your Portfolio.
 Normally WDC opens to the Hub page. Clicking on your handle name or on your picture takes you directly to your home Portfolio page.
Clicking on either the Edit Bio link or the Camera icon will allow you to easily change your cover image, as well as the information in your BioBlock. Don't forget to save your image or information.
Click on your Community recognition (the number in parentheses) to access your Community Tab directly. There's a wealth of information in this tab, including all your member activity to date, how your Community Recognition is tabulated, a listing of all your received Merit Badges and Awardicons, and the ability to give the same.
Clicking on your membership level takes you to a membership renewal page in the WDC Shop.
If you desire more information on these topics, check out the "Get Started With Your Account" in "Writing.Com 101" .
The second section contains clickable bullets that relate to other more commonly used Portfolio links. These bullets make access easier to the links easier without having to search through one's entire Port. The Portfolio, My Account and Points tabs open into sub-menus enabling direct access to specific tasks.
Email, Newsfeed and Blog (if you have one) take you directly to those places on WDC.
Email is your personal WDC email.
Your Newsfeed is divided into two parts: A Community Newsfeed, which lists any and all posts by members and staff. Or, a Personal Newsfeed, which lists posts from members and staff that you have favorited. You can toggle back and forth between the two. Because content in the Newsfeed can move quickly, you have the ability to save a post of particular interest for future reference.
Blogs may be accessed via this tab. Creating and hosting them is limited to Upgraded and above members. You can also highlight other members' blogs for easy access.
The remaining bullets (Notifications, Messenger, and Notepad) open to windows specific to those items.
Notifications are received when a members favorites or fans you, tags or reacts to you in a post, or when one of your favorited members has a birthday to note.
Messenger is WDC's version of Instant Message. Active members are listed and may be contacted via this medium. Sometimes it may be quicker than an email.
The Notepad is just that--a page on which you can keep short notes that occur to you while writing, scrolling, reading, reviewing, or whatever while online here. The number of pages one can access is dependent upon your membership level. Free members have one page.
The third section is small but mighty, representing three major components of WDC--creating items, reviewing items and shopping.
Clicking on Create New Items takes you to a window that displays any and all items you are allowed to create and host. All members can create Static Items, though the number of items that may be created and hosted is limited by membership level. For example, creating and hosting Book items is limited to Upgraded and above members
Read and Review takes you to random items of members selected by the site that may be reviewed within a certain period of time. For each qualified review (normally 250 characters), you will receive a number of Gift Points listed. Currently, members will receive four times the Random Review Reward. That amount can change without notice.
Shop opens to a sub-menu which can take you to WDC's own shop at which you can purchase branded gear, gift points or memberships, or to Amazon.com, or to The Marketplace. The latter is a shop where members can purchase products and services from other members. Check it out.
In my next issue I'll tackle the lower three sections. In the meantime, take some time to look over some of these links. I'm betting that like me, you'll find some favorites you can't do without.
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Check out this forum designed to assist Newbies.
Then drop in on these Newbies. Take a moment to review this offering ... or something else in their Port. Welcome them to WDC through a scribble in their Notebook.
| |  | Invalid Item
This item number is not valid.
#2269193 by Not Available. |
| |  | Immigrant (13+)
This is a poem about the feelings one might experience after leaving all they had known.
#2269188 by Valoriant  |
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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!
https://www.Writing.Com/go/nl_form
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Thanks for spending time with me today. At the bottom of every newsletter is a section entitled
followed by a text box. If you liked what you read (or if you didn't), please take time and drop me a line. I'd love to hear your ideas.
From the Newsfeed:
From elephantsealer  : As a reviewer, I try my best to look at what is good in a story. I also look at punctuation, spelling, and to understand what it is the story is all about.
From N.A Miller : Very thorough, but lenient, i will point out the errors and tell where they for grammar and spelling -- but I leave it to the author to bother and fix them. I can't fix it for them but I don't like bugging them to fix them either.
I'd rather be writing than proofing anyway. That's just me...
From Turkey DrumStik  : Sporadic but thorough. I also like to challenge myself with reviewing things way outside my preferred types of works.
From Starling : I answer basic questions then I give a line by line review to finish it off. I enjoy reviewing. I've done short stories and complete novels.
From s : Reluctant. I don't mind reviewing, and I will occasionally go in-depth... but the responses to reviews here on WDC has been steadily growing more hostile if you dare criticize anything. So that is why I am now a reluctant reviewer.
From Bob : In reviewing I try to give encouragement to the writer without being too critical. Someone may not have great prose or vocabulary or even spelling, but I look for the story and or concept and what it says to me as a reader. If I can cause the writer to write again and again, the rest of WDC will help the writer to improve over time. All of us should get better over time. Maybe even publish something.
From amateur40 : I try to be positive. I like to find the positives and keep the writer motivated.
From LJ Barr : I am a stickler for good grammar and Proper punctuation; One without the other, if a stone doesn't skip the pond. It hits with a plunk and sends ripples far and wide. A sentence without proper punctuation hurts the story. It took me years to learn that when an author posts a story online. It's open for criticism.
From tybo777: Honest.
From THANKFUL SONALI Library Class!  : Well, I hope I'm constructive.
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Noticing Newbies: March 23, 2022 Issue [#11272]
View Portfolio
Visit Notebook
Send Gift Points
Awards
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General Discussion
Sponsored Items
Book of Trinkets
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