  Noticing Newbies
This week: Taking Stock Edited by: JACE  
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3. Letter from the Editor
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5. A Word from Writing.Com
6. Ask & Answer
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Hi, I'm JACE .
Welcome to this issue of the Noticing Newbies newsletter. I hope to take you into some nooks and crannies of Writing.Com that you may not have found time to check out yet.
Don't forget to toss me a note about what you liked or didn't like in my column, or about a topic you'd like to see discussed. 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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Taking Stock
Ah, December has arrived. Time to scurry around preparing for the upcoming holidays. Days continue to get shorter (well, until Dec 21), as do some tempers in certain circles. Me? I prefer to maintain a positive attitude toward all the hustle and bustle around me. Oh, I'm not sitting the holiday prep out. But I'm not buying into all the hype that many around me seem to encourage. Perhaps that smile I wear might just catch on by folks I meet whether on the job, at church, or out in the community.
Generally, before I write my newsletter, I check out a few recent issues to be sure I'm not writing about a topic someone else already covered. Many of the issues coming out now are about the pending holiday season, or about some aspect of one's future. I thought as we approach the end of the year, it might be good to look back on what we did this year, both the positive and those wanna-be things.
I suspect most of us set goals at the beginning of the year regarding our participation on WDC. Did you join that group in which you were interested? Did you do all the reviews you hoped to do? You probably wrote many of the stories you wanted to write. But did you submit them for publication as you hoped? Did you make some new friends on site? Were you helpful to anyone here? I'm sure this list goes on.
I've always loved History--I even majored in it in college, though I never had occasion to use it professionally. I went into the Army right out of college and then started my own woodworking business twenty years ago. Still, I believe in that old maxim--those who fail to study the past are condemmed to repeat it. Knowing that soon I'll be setting my goals for 2012, I want to be sure I don't repeat past mistakes; at the very least I wish to minimize them. Self-doubt about my writing abilities is not something from which I suffer, but procrastination is.
Taking stock of our past successes so we might build on them, and reviewing our shortcomings that we might reduce them is an importance exercise as individuals. Since our writing comes from all that we are, paying attention to our past can only help our future.
Consider 2011 as you prepare to enter 2012. May the coming year be everything you wish it to be.
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The Upgrade Moment
Each issue I write will highlight a feature available only to paid members at various levels.
With so many nooks, crannies, and features available to members, one can hardly comprehend everything. Even older members can't track all the changes WDC has undergone over the past two years, .  Most are explained in "Writing.Com 101" , and are marked with a symbol indicating to which membership level the feature applies. You may see something you didn't know existed, or something you just haven't tried before.
This month, I'd like to discuss the Review Tool.
Reviewing is one of the cornerstones of WDC. This is readily apparent by more than three and a half million reviews given by just over nine hundred thousand members since WDC's inception. Okay, we're just a helpful lot.  Whether you're an experienced reviewer or manage a couple a month, the Review Tool is a basic weapon to have in your WDC arsenal. No, I mean it's available to the Basic membership level and above.
The mechanics of the Review Tool are outlined in a couple of entries in "Writing.Com 101" --"The Review Tool" and "Creating Review Templates" . I won't regurgitate that info here. Check out some sample templates for reviewing stories and poems contained in "Sample Review Templates" . Use them as a springboard for creating your own personalized templates. Often each group or reviewing contest has a specific signature or statement that must be included to make it easy for the group organizer to find and credit the review on the Public Review Page. You can customize as many templates as you wish.
The Review Tool is accessible from two places--the review area of each reviewable item, and a personal review tool located in your My Account area in the navigation menu. The tool provides a pop-up, full size review box with additional tools including a character counter, WritingML icons for easy formatting, and a spell check function.
On a personal note, I use the Review Tool to save templates of items I routinely create, such as newsletters. Bear in mind one thing--Do NOT use the Submit button to post the final results of your NON-review item or you'll post it to the Public Review page.  COPY and PASTE your final results into a Static Item, or whatever format is desired for submission.
You can compare all the features available to a given membership level at "Compare Free and Paid Membership Benefits" .
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EDITOR'S PICKS: Check out these Newbies:
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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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ASK AND ANSWER:
And from the mailbox about my last Noticing Newbies newsletter, "Noticing Newbies Newsletter (November 15, 2011)" .
From Cassie Kat  : I recently purchased a writing.com t-shirt from the wdc shop, and fellows writers that I meet in real life (like my school) keep asking me about it whenever I wear the shirt! I haven't gotten anybody to join as of yet, but I love being able to tell people about how awesome everyone here is 
Good for you! I have a WDC T-shirt too. It's a great ice breaker.
From atwhatcost: I've been writing my whole life, but much of it was writing for businesses, so it's not as fun as it sounds. After becoming disabled, I started writing for fun again. I stumbled upon a website promoting a novel writing contest. The winners (supposed to be one winner, but two were so good the publisher bought both novels) received a guaranteed contract from a large publisher and we saw their books go through from contest to a spot on a shelf in Barnes and Noble. The rest of us reviewed the books for a chance at gift cards from the same bookstore. Then I found others who liked to write and stayed with that site.
It's a social networking site. WDC is my writing site. Whenever folks on that site get the misconception that they're on "a writing site," I tell them what a true writing site looks like. I tell them about WDC. Some people write on that other site. Everyone here writes and reviews the writing, not the writer. That's the difference.
Thanks for your sentinent, Lynn. I checked out several writing sites on my journey here. There's no doubt in my mind that WDC is where I want to be.
From Estes : Just started writing again and would love to share my items with other readers/writers.
Welcome, my friend. Perhaps I can help with that. (See above) Don't forget you can plug your work at "The Shameless "Plug" Page" .
From jim1184  : Hi Jace. Another great news letter. You gave out some good food for thought. I tell people once in awhile but when they get to the web site they don't know how to find me. I kind of leave that part out. When I get more finished work, things may be different. I like the Hints on exploring the site, I know I am not using very many of the available features of my membership. Thanks for the prompts.
Thank you, Jim; I really appreciate that encouragement. I've been here three and a half years and am still finding features I haven't tried. Exploring--that's the ticket.
From Piau : Hey ya! Thanks for a wonderful newsletter :) I just thought, as a newbie here I'd send you a poem that might be interesting for you and others to read. Have a great day!
Submitted item: "I would like to tell you a story"
Thanks for commenting, my friend.
From mARi☠StressedAtWork  : I absolutely enjoyed this Newsletter!! It made me smile so wide, how you told everyone about WDC, and showed how proud you are of the site. I've never been confident enough to share my writing to my friends who don't write like I do. However, after I became a member of WDC, I slowly gained confidence and started sharing my work to my friends, or to anyone at all interested.  I still have a long way to go, I know that much... but it motivates me even more when those around me encourage me to do my best.
~mARi~
Your comment really lifted my spirits, mARi. Thanks. I have to say the only way I could get up in front of a group and say such things was because of my passion for this place. At least they didn't throw me out of the place. I suspect you're farther along in your journey than you realize.
From Leger~  : Hey Jace, LOVE your Upgrade Moment idea for your newsletters. We'll all learn something new. Thanks for your hard work.
Thanks, Leger; you're a gem. I've always enjoyed poking my nose into odd places on WDC.
From Mara ♣ McBain  : What a fabulous story! Congrats on your HM and thank you for spreading the word about WDC. You are an amazing Ambassador. 
Thank you, Mara. It was my honor and pleasure.
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Noticing Newbies: December 13, 2011 Issue [#4765]
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