  Noticing Newbies
This week: Edited by: Cubby  
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 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!
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Ramblings from a Previous Newbie
Starting anything new can be bewildering at first. New people, new guidelines, and many new challenges. When I first joined the sight over five years ago, I wasn't sure what to expect. I was a little apprehensive, as I'd never belonged to a writing community before. Actually, I had never belonged to any Internet group. I was wary, but at the same time, excited. I have a comfort zone, but I also like changes, so this has been a great discovery for me. While I now feel very comfortable here, I'm still discovering all sorts of challenges that keep my muse active.
Right from the beginning, many members were welcoming toward me. I wasn't use to anyone reviewing my writing, but most people who did, were very encouraging. Then I discovered each time I reviewed a member, I received "Daily Review Rewards" . At first I felt a little uncomfortable reviewing someone else's writing. I wasn't sure how qualified I really was to comment on another's work. "Invalid Item" ???There are some great "Guidelines To Great Reviewing" . You do not need to be an employed editor to offer free encouragement and helpful suggestions. 
I wasn't too sure what giftpoints were for, but it didn't take me long to learn ( "Gift Points Info" ). It was fun entering contests to see if I could win more giftpoints, so I, too, could be generous. Not only that, but I was being inspired to write.
I've learned how to write many types of "Invalid Item" since I became a member here back in 2002, and some of those forms I can't even pronounce.  Writer's Block is not a common problem in this community. If you happen to get "The Writer's Cramp" , there are several places here that will challenge your muse. 
Campfires are great because you don't need to write a whole story on your own. The previous entry usually is enticing enough for you to come up with another great addition to the story. Once I figured out "Invalid Item" , I was hooked. It doesn't have to be a story, either. I've joined a campfire group where everyone takes turns writing poetry prompted by a word from the last participant. Fun!
Speaking of campfires, I'll be camping in the Upper Peninsula of Michigan as you read this newsletter. My hubby and I will build our own campfire every night, as long as it doesn't rain. Being only the two of us, it won't be like old times, when the kids were little, how we use to start a scary story and take turns adding to it. That was a good time. Maybe when our grandkids get old enough (two of them can't even talk yet ) we can take them with us and start the tradition up again. Sounds like a good time, doesn't it?
Have a great rest-of-the-summer and...
Have a wonderful week!!!
Keep on Writing!
Yours truly,
Cubby ") |
~ Got questions? Look for answers here... ~
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And Now For Our Featured Newbies!
Excerpt: There was once a teenage boy named Godric Orian. Godric seemed very normal. He played with the other boys his age, and loved to learn carpentry skills from his father. But most of all, he admired the knights who would occasionally travel through Graisend to reach their destination. Godric wanted, more than being a carpenter, to be a knight.
Excerpt: It was clockwork. He would scream for twenty minutes straight each night, beginning promptly at eleven-thirty. I would climb into bed at eleven o’clock, and lie perfectly still atop my uneven mattress, waiting for the tragic lullaby from the apartment just beside me. He always finished at least by eleven-fifty-two, never any later, and I would drift to sleep by midnight.
Excerpt: “Don’t they have some sort of special power?”
That’s usually the first thing they ask. I am a unicorn specialist/forest guide. Mostly my job consists of taking tourists through The Forest, hoping to see a unicorn herd, or at least a maverick looking to start his own herd. People have all kinds of misconceptions about unicorns, I’ve found. There are a few common ones, such as “magic” powers, always being white and being gentle/attracted to “innocents”. Let me tell you, none of this is true.
Excerpt: And everyone has their secrets, don’t they? Little imperfections that they don’t want anyone else to see or to know about. Especially me. And today was no different. With the last touch of blush and mascara, my morning transformation was complete. My eyes looked greener and my skin looked flawless; I could’ve been front-page magazine material this morning, at least that’s how I felt.
Excerpt: Dear Diary,
At which point do you say to yourself that this is the end? I think I realized it was the end a long time ago. Quite personally I am getting sick and tired of people telling me that I am acting like a child and that I am throwing a temper tantrum. What would they prefer, that I sit back, say nothing and let them believe that everything is OK? Maybe I should. At least then I won’t have to hear it. So I guess it is back to holding all emotions inside and just saying I don’t care.
Excerpt: “You’re late,” the old man muttered, and turned to let her in. She walked as slowly as she could down the long hallway, listening to her footsteps echo on the tile. Something about the sound seemed empty. She came to a halt in the doorway of the drawing room, where she knew that he would be sitting in the corner, a fire burning merrily in the grate. She watched him carefully as he looked up and saw her, a slow, cocky smile creeping across his face.
“I knew you would come back, Leslie.”
Excerpt: A ball of reeds and grasses hurtled through the air towards me. It passed over my head and, leaping into the air, I snatched at it, missing. I twisted around in the air to continue the chase, and caught it on my landing. Happiness pulsed through the core of my being as my master, the great and revered Odysseus, jogged towards me. I allowed him to pat my head in congratulations, but when he stopped I noticed that my hair where he had patted me felt wet and slightly matted. I looked about, only to see my beloved master lying on the ground in a pool of blood, staring ahead blankly...
Excerpt: Rain poured over the Payne house as police sirens screeched through the air. Detective Johnson had finally arrived on the scene, ten minutes after the nine-one-one call was made.
“What happened?” he asked the first officer he found.
“A Mr. and Mrs. Payne. Double homicide in the main bed room. But…”
“Malone….what?”
“The bodies,” said Malone with horror etched in his face. “The bodies are… You’ll have to see when you go in there.”
~ A Few More Places to Check Out... ~
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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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FEEDBACK
reikidreamer
Cubby, what a great welcoming letter in the July Newbie Newsletter! I really enjoyed your advice and positive style. I think anyone new or old around this site would feel encouraged and reminded how to be considerate and welcoming to others. Thank you so much for sharing. 
~ You are very welcome.  My pleasure!
lililovegood
For the recommended books section of the newsletter (which really helped me right now, thanks!) I have a question: is the section for published works?
If so, I recommend "Water for Elephants" by Sara Gruen. It's a bestseller and it kept me on my toes throughout the entire piece. :]
~ Yes, published books. And what a great choice! I loved that book!
lidi 
Hi Cubby, Thank you for this encouraging message. One of my poems was recently pick for simply positive review and I thought the reviews were very helpful and encouraging. I just was a little overwhelmed by them all. It was hard for me to decide what suggestions I should do or even to just leave it the way it was. Thank you for giving us newbie's a helpful and positive message.
lidi
That's what is so great about reviews. You can choose what you want to change and what you want to leave. I've received great advice most of the time... and then not so great advice. Think it through before you make a decision. And I agree...Simply Positive reviews are very helpful and encouraging. It's a great group!
mijitmight
I just had to say how ironic it was to see in the newsletter comments someone wrote how annoying colored ink was... and it was in magenta!
Also I try to send a review with every rating with enough suggestions or commentary about the piece that it explains why I rated it the way I did and would hope that everybody else would do the same. If I can't justify or explain the rating I want to give I don't rate it.
Good for you! YAY!!! Sending a review with every rating is what the author deserves. And I also strongly agree with your last comment: If I can't justify or explain the rating I want to give I don't rate it. Thank you so much for your feedback.
Acme
Know what? I still ask , and why not? We're all new to everything once, and I love receiving the Noticing Newbies newsletter, because I either learn something new, or I remember a few things I've casually forgotten over time  take a few deep breaths and jog ten miles (just kidding with the jogging ). NEVER kid about jogging -- being a healthy writer is better than a dead one
I don't jog (well, maybe my fingers jog on the keyboard... Does that count?) Yes, it's not hard to casually forget things over time. Glad you still enjoy reading this newsletter. Thank you for your cheerful response!
Thank you, everyone, for the wonderful feedback!
Recommended Books
Please send me your favorites!
lililovegood recommends: Water for Elephants by Sara Gruen
Excellent choice! A wonderful read!
Quote
Reading usually precedes writing
and the impulse to write is almost always fired by reading.
Reading, the love of reading,
is what makes you dream
of becoming a writer.
~ Susan Sontag
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Noticing Newbies: August 06, 2008 Issue [#2538]
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