Sharing your Writing

Whether you're writing a short story a novel or an article, the hardest part is showing it to other people. It might sound silly, but there's something very personal about writing. It's easy to write for yourself, even if you do think you are your own worst critic, but writing for other people is a whole new experience. We'd like you to be brave, because being brave is what gets results, and the only way you'll ever know for sure that your work is good is to share it.

Luckily, there are plenty of websites available to help you to get your work out there for some friendly critiquing. If posting your work online sounds like too big a step, there are also forums you can go to to find a beta reader. A beta reader is a person who you will send your work to, usually by email, for them to read and critique. Some sites even offer the option to pair up and swap your work with another writer, so you both read and critique each other's writing, then swap back at the end. For starters, try the forums at World Literary Cafe, as even if you have nothing to share, you can still offer your services as a reader and pick up something new to read.

If you're feeling a bit more adventurous, sites like Writers Cafe, Fictionpress and Authonomy let you upload your work to be read by a community of readers and writers just like you. The criticism you get is usually constructive, polite and helpful, because everybody knows what it feels like to be in your shoes.

Authonomy in particular is great for novelists, because you can post your whole manuscript rather than just an extract. It's also run by publishing giant Harper Collins, so there's always the chance that posting your novel there could lead to bigger things!

So, what's stopping you? Be brave and put your work out there - and make sure to let us know how you get on!