Writing-World.com: A Website Review

WRITING-WORLD.COM: A WEBSITE REVIEW

When I became familiar with the Internet, one of the first web sites I looked for was none other than Writing-World.com. In between classes in college, I would trek down to the basement of the building that housed the English department and go to the computer lab.

Writing-World.com drew me in and taught me a lot more about writing than I had learned in freshman comp and even in reading Writer’s Digest. It still draws people in.

Benefits of the site include a free monthly newsletter. Articles for the newsletter are written by Moira Allen, who maintains the site, and other freelance writers. As a side note, Writing-World.com is a paying market.

According to the contributor guidelines on the site, there are over 600 articles archived. They are divided by type, date, and level of experience. The articles deal with such topics as the business of freelance writing, screenwriting, and publishing your book, to name a few. Articles discussing fiction are further divided by genre.

If you are a subscriber to the Writing-World.com newsletter and have had a book published, there is a section on the website where your book could be listed. There are instructions on how to contact them to get it listed on the “contact us” page, which opens in a new window, so be certain you either don’t have pop-ups disabled or press the control button on your keyboard while you click the “contact us” link.

The main disadvantage to the site is all of the ads that figuratively jump out at the reader. There are eight ads going down each margin, a medium-sized banner ad at the top of the page, and a very large banner ad at the bottom. Most of the navigation links are under the Writing-World.com banner at the top and are not affected by the ads. However, with the animation and changing colors, they are still distracting.

According to a report from Dead-Links.com, there are over 300 broken links on the site. In taking a closer look at the report, most of the broken links lead to Amazon.com and are likely to books being removed because of Amazon’s POD policy or because they are out of print.

Honestly, ads and broken links aside, I’m glad to have rediscovered this site. I have some reading to catch up on. Be careful when typing the address, though, and include that hyphen. Otherwise, as I discovered, you’ll land at a website advertising writing classes.

Rating: * * * *

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Jen Nipps writes from Ada, Oklahoma. She is a member of the Tulsa NightWriters, McAlester McSherry Writers, and Web Writing Wonders. Her web sites are www.jenifernipps.com and www.theideapocket.com.

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(Previously published in the OWFI Report, March 2009.)

Filed under: revisions , Jen Nipps, jennipps, Oklahoma Writers' Federation, OWFI, reviews, writing, Writing-World.com

On the Sci-Fi network Becoming Sy-Fy

You may or may not have heard the commotion about the Sci-Fi cable TV network changing its name to Sy-Fy. Honestly, when I first heard it, I thought it was a joke. Then I realized it wasn’t.

I have long thought that sci-fi (said “sigh-fie”) was a somewhat derogatory term for science fiction, as is “skiffy.” I suppose that’s why I don’t see the network changing its name as that big a deal.

Apparently, some people did — and do. That prompted these remarks from Sci-Fi network president David Howe.

Personally, I don’t lump fantasy, action & adventure, and horrror in with science fiction. Some do. I’m not going to argue about labels and semantics. If it works for them and that’s what they’ve been doing it, by all means, keep on keeping on.

Filed under: writing , Jen Nipps, jennipps, writing, fantasy, Sci-Fi president David Howe, science fiction, sci-fi, skiffy, horror, action & adventure, name change, Sci-Fi channel, Sy-Fy

1,200 what?

I am afraid I have bitten off more than I can chew.

Back in January, I queried a magazine about writing an article about how to write how-to articles. In February, I received what amounts to an on-spec assignment. (“Amounts to” because this magazine treats all submissions as on spec.)

I re-read my original query tonight. I know what I was thinking. I had done a quick article for eHow and decided to expand it. This is, interestingly enough, where my “What-have-I-gotten-myself-into”-itis comes in.

I know I can write short articles. That original article was approximately 350 words long. Other articles I’ve done for the OWFI Report, TutorialBlog.org, and Writing for DOLLARS! run between 500 to 750 words or less.

Actually, now that I’ve pulled up the drafts of a couple of those articles and found that there were some as long as 750 words or more, I can do this. It’s momentary anxiety.

Show me a writer who doesn’t get anxious, at least on some level, about their work and I’ll show you one who isn’t sending anything out.

Besides that, I’ve completed three novels and have received good feedback on them from publishers.

What’s 1,200-word article compared to a 75,000-word novel? (I’m 200 words in. Only 1,000 to go.)

Filed under: writing , queries, Jen Nipps, jennipps, writing, writers, write, writer, submissions, novel, anxiety, query, article, on spec

Is It May Yet?

I know, I know…The year is already speeding along and I’m wanting it to go faster?

Well…

Yes. Sort of.

May 1 and 2 is the annual Oklahoma Writers’ Federation, Inc., conference at Embassy Suites in Norman, Oklahoma. There is a pre-conference workshop called “Self-Editing without Self-Destructing” given by Robyn Conley Thursday, April 30.

I’m looking forward to that workshop. I try to self-edit, but I know there is a lot I could do to improve on that.

There are a lot more workshops and speakers I’m looking forward to as well. Tess Gerritsen is the keynote speaker for the Friday night Famous Authors banquet. (After the actual banquet, one side of the banquet hall will be opened up to anyone who didn’t go to the banquet but wants to hear her speak.)

As for the conference workshops themselves, there will be tracks for fiction, nonfiction, poetry, and memoir. I have no doubt I’ll have trouble deciding between a few of them. I also hope to have an appointment with an editor or agent. (Note to self: You won’t be getting an appointment if you don’t send the blasted e-mail.)

Other presenters include Jodi Thomas, Romney Nesbitt, Jackie King, Mel Odom, Elaine English, Sandra Dark, Merline Lovelace, Jordan Dane, and many more. (I’ll add additional links as I find them.) There will also be editors and agents available for appointments.

Friday after the banquet, there will be “buzz sessions” — informal gatherings/workshops that cover some of the same topics as what is discussed in the sessions and then some. (FYI, I’ll be doing one on blogging and microblogging — such as Twitter, Plurk, etc. And we’ll talk some about Facebook, LinkedIn, and MySpace too.)

Saturday, the banquet is the awards ceremony for the contest. I entered — I think — 14 categories this year. That’s a record for me.

I’m looking forward to connecting with new people and reqcquainting with friends I haven’t seen in a while.

If there’s something I’ve left out about the conference that you want to know, leave a comment here or send me an e-mail. Or you could check out the link to OWFI that I gave at the beginning of this post.

See you at the conference in May (or via the Internet between now and then.)

Filed under: writing , Jen Nipps, jennipps, writing, Oklahoma, Oklahoma Writers' Federation, nonfiction, conference, agents, Plurk, Twitter, Facebook, MySpace, LinkedIn, Merline Lovelace, Jordan Dane, Mel Odom, Jackie King, Romney Nesbitt, Elaine English, editors

Writing with the Muses

In Greek mythology, the Muses control the creative arts in one way or another.

I found out this afternoon that one of my friends passed away a week ago.

Ridley was a self=proclaimed cycnical old bastard, but he was a great writer and a wonderful critique partner.

Whenever I would receive a critique from him in e-mail, I’d read it immediately and disagree with over half of what he said. I’d close it and go back to it later. Sometimes later was a week or more, but I always went back to it. When I did, I’d see it from a fresh perspective.

More often than not, he was right.

I have missed — and will miss — his critique, his sharp attention to even the smallest detail, his wit, his reminders, and — yes — even his cynicism.

I consider myself priveleged to have been able to read THE PRICE, a political thriller (even though that is not my preferred genre), which he had been working hard to get published.

Write with the Muses, Ridley. You will be missed.

Filed under: writing , critique, cynical, cynicism, genre, Greek mythology, Muses, political, political thriller, thriller, write, writing