 
Noticing Newbies
This week: Edited by: Cubby  
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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
 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!
Your host this week: Cubby
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What Are You Doing this Summer?
I, for one, plan to do a lot of camping and kayaking. I also have a garden to keep up. Then there's my violin practicing. Oh, and my full-time job at the library. My daughters and their families are visiting. I suppose I should do a little housework now and then.  We also have five acres that need mowing, minus the pond. So... where does writing fit into all this? Good question.
Recently, my writing has been put on the back burner. Since I've discovered my love of the fiddle, I spend most of my spare time either practicing my instrument or labeling each note of the songs I play, with finger numbers to make playing easier for me. I am obviously obsessed for the time being.
Should I feel guilty? No. I'm sure that what I am experiencing right now will have some sort of positive effect on my future writing. Many of us write what we know, correct?  I'm certain there will be a future story or poem that will include a violin/fiddle in one way or another. Learning new things is a wonderful asset in so many areas. Experimenting a variety of newfound loves, feelings you never knew were there, can and will add depthness to your writing. Don't be afraid to expand your interests. Don't bog yourself down with paper and pen and empty thoughts for weeks on end. If you're experiencing big-time writer's block, try something you've never done before. It could definitely broaden your horizens.
Love,
Cubby ")
Got questions? You might find some answers here...
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 ~~~And Now... For Our Featured Newbie Presentation!~~~
Excerpt: On these deaf nights when he woke up and the lines of the stucco ceiling blurred together, he knew he could skip dimensions, or whatever it was. He would succumb to the trembling fatigue, let his eyelids droop low, but refuse to let them close. His jaw would go slack, his pupils swallowed his irises, and in his peripheral he saw the black lump of his bundled up wife and the looming sticks of furniture hugging the walls.
Excerpt: It would be like a film, he thought, for his mind never wandered far from the aspect of drama, film, theater. Outside, the bystanders would not have seen it coming. They would wonder if Price had felt anything when it happened.
Excerpt: I shifted my attention from Ben to our destination. And there I saw it. A flaming meteor the size of three hundred Jupiters hurtled towards us at an extreme velocity. 'We're gonna crash!' yelled Ben who was trying to steer us out of destruction's path. I shut my eyes and waited for the inevitable as fear consumed me.
Great Places for Newbies to Check Out!
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Winners of the Children’s Poetry Contest for Newbies !
First Place
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Second Place
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Third Place
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Fourth Place
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Tie:
Fifth Place
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Honorable Mention
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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!
http://www.Writing.Com/main/newsletters.php?action=nli_form
Don't forget to support our sponsor!
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~ Yeah, Feedback! ~
Antonio 
Before I make the following suggestion, let me be perfectly clear. This is the best website around. It probably didn't start out this way though. It grew into what it is by listening to its members. I therefore offer this suggestion: Ratings for the raters and reviewers. When I put a piece on the site, I know it's going to be scrutinized to some extent. This is motivational and inspires a special effort. What motivates the rater/reviewer to improve their work? A person can even rate anonymously. I think raters should have to stand behind their work just as the authors do. Giving someone a two or a three without an explanation is tantamount to a driveby shooting as far as I'm concerned. One other thing is, if you get a detailed review with suggestions, the reviewer should go back and adjust accordingly.
Yes, I agree that a rater/reviewer should stand behind what they hand out. When I rate and review, I am always there for the writer. If the member writes back to me with questions, etc., I do not have a problem corresponding with them in a positive way. I wrote to the member who gave me a 1.0 on my blog, asking to talk about it more, and he/she never responded. What motivates me to improve my work as a reviewer, is that my own skills get polished up as I review. I'm more aware of what I need to improve in my own writing. I learn a lot from not only reviewing, but reading Public Reviews. I'm not sure about your suggestion of rating the reviewer. I do know, however, that if you read the Public Reviews page, you can award good reviews with gps and add a comment. Thank you for sharing!
Gen 
Hey Cubby! That was really cool how you explained that WritingML business. I looked at it in the first week of this past October and I didn't understand any of it. Thanks to you, I now have at least a clue. Good topic!
I'm glad you found it helpful, Gen! Now I expect a very colorful email from you next time.
schipperke
Cubby!!
I love the way you use your WritingML tags! It is part of your bubbly personality!
Schip 
Thanks, Schippe! They are such a great way to express ourselves! 
megsie2584
Cubby, thank you for featuring my campfire this week.
Who inspired me the most to write? Well... I have recieved the most encouragement from my friends here on writing.com. It's mostly my own drive and desire to write that keeps me going though.
As for who I write about the most, that one is undoubtedly my Mom. Almost half of my pieces have a touch of her or my feelings about her in them... even though most of them are completely off that subject.
Megan
I completely understand, Megsie. We've had similar experiences with our mothers' deaths, and by you including her in your writing, keeps her alive.
lynk
Hi Cubby,
thanks for including my comment in this weeks newsletter. I think you misunderstood me though. When I read it back I see that I didn't word it very clearly.
I meant as a warning to people who rate low that the people we are rating and reviewing are real people and we should respect them as such when we are reviewing our work - not the people who rate low for spite - I don't care for those at all!
 It's not hard for me to misunderstand, believe me! Thanks for clearing that up though.
Meg: Writes Daily in 2006
The Tips and Tricks link was helpful! Someone recommended using the notepad for saving emails and I didn't know how it worked! Still learning the ropes here, I guess! :)
I've been here 2 1/2 years and I'm certain I'll never know all the ropes, lol! It's so much fun learning new things, isn't it? I'm so glad you found the link helpful. This place is a treasure of information.
Tehanu
Hi Cubby,
I remember learning WritingML as a newbie and I admit that it was a daunting task, at first. I think the examples and links you've put in this newsletter will be helpful to all members who have not yet experienced the fun of adding colors and smile faces to their writing.
BTW, I LOVE the pirates you have roaming about this newletter. Funny!
Best to you,
Tehanu
I'm glad you liked my pirates, lol! I thought they were pretty cool myself. I, too, remember what a task learning the tags were. Now they just sort of spill from my fingers while I write!
 Quote: I read and walked for miles at night along the beach, writing bad blank verse and searching endlessly for someone wonderful who would step out of the darkness and change my life. It never crossed my mind that that person could be me.
~ Anna Quindlen
Cubby's Question of the Week
What is your favorite quote?
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See you again on July 13th!
Love, Cubby ")
 Next week's editor will be... Puditat
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Noticing Newbies: June 15, 2005 Issue [#421]
