It really is that simple.

It’s New Year’s Day, so Happy 2013 to all of you! We all have our resolutions, I’m sure–I even looked at a gym membership. Countdown until I forget about in ten…nine…eight…

But one of the big things I want to do this year is meet and fellowship with other writers, and WordPress is a fantastic place to do so! We’re all writers here, but perhaps you do more than blog, or would like to? Perhaps you’d like to meet new writers, too?

If you are a new or “young” author and you have a novel, novella, short story, poem, non-fiction manuscript, film script, TV script, comic book, video game script, or even just a fraction of any of these things, I want to read it. 

Now, why would I want to read your work? To help, of course. Writers can get a lot of great feedback from other writers, so I wanted to offer my services to the community.

What’s the cost?

Dude, it’s free. C’mon, this is WordPress.

Okay, what’s the catch?

The catch is an honest critique. What I read, I evaluate, and provide feedback. This means you may not like what I have to say about it, but I assure you I’m only trying to help. I promise here never to be rude or cruel; I won’t laugh at you or ask what in the heck you were thinking. Someone once told me the knife of truth is best received with the anesthesia of love. I’ll be honest with you, but only because I want you to succeed.

Further still, I want to form relationships with new writers. I’m not going to just give you advice and say “Get out of my life.” I want to help see the project grow and evolve, so if you have a second draft, let me know. I can even compare it to the first draft and see how far it’s come.

I am the only one who reads these; I’m not going to be flashing them to everyone I know, so I guarantee your privacy as much as it depends on me (If somebody breaks into my computer, well…)

I also promise here not to use your works for my own gain. I will not claim ownership or try to sell your work by any means; all rights are still yours.

What’s a “young” writer?

While I make myself available to all writers, my biggest focus will be new or newer writers. A “young” writer is simply one who hasn’t been professionally writing for very long in any medium. It doesn’t have to be the first thing you’ve ever written; I simply want to offer a helping hand those who might not have received help before, and ESPECIALLY to those who can’t (no money, no writer friends, etc).

Even if your work isn’t finished, I’ll accept it and I can even help you complete it.

Are you qualified?

That’s a good question. Let me list my experiences.

• I hold a Bachelor’s in English with an emphasis in Creative Writing, that means years of critiquing workshops.
• I’ve published a novel, which you can see in the top-left corner of the blog. Click on it and you can see the reviews on Amazon.
• I wrote a short web comic for an anthology project that you can view here: http://bizarrenewworld.com/routine.html
• I co-wrote a short film.
• I’ve edited and proofread fiction, non-fiction, poetry, comics, sermons, promotions, ads, resumes, and company mailings.

I have the experience to help younger writers. True, I’m not a paid professional editor at some big company, but that’s why the service is free. I want to offer what help I can and I know that a lot of writers are poor or broke, myself included, so this is a way for you to cut costs and get some honest reviews and critiques.

How to do it?

If you’re interested, you can contact me through this new email address: fencingwithink@gmail.com. You can also say something in the comments section of this or any blog post of mine.

This will be the email through which I receive submissions, contact writers, all the good stuff. Send your documents in Microsoft Word if possible, but I’ll also accept Open Office, PDF, Notebook, etc.

If you only have it on paper, email me and we’ll talk.

Then what?

Then we start talking. I’ll let you know when I start reading your work and I’ll get back to you as promptly as possible, depending on the length. We can email back and forth as much as necessary.

Now, if my inbox becomes overcrowded with requests (dream big, y’all) I’ll still only be able to read and critique a couple at a time and still give quality service. Like I said, I’ll let you know if I’m reading yours. If I don’t contact you, don’t lose heart; I’ll get there. If I still don’t, email me again and I’ll try to get my butt in gear.

BONUS!

If you’ve published something and you want a review on Amazon and Barnes and Noble, contact me. What I read, I’ll review on both websites. Again, this will be an honest review; I’m not going to slap a 5-star unless you deserve it, but I’ll certainly praise the successes of your work.

Cost of the book might be an issue. Email me and we’ll talk.

Looking forward…

Eventually, I’d like to have a second writer on this email address to give a second opinion, and further improve the experience. I’ll let everyone know when that’s happening.

In the future, I’d like to have a place where writers can meet and greet and exchange their works so we can all boost each other, not just me.

So that’s my offer to you: free reviews, critiques, and proofreading. If you want any of these things, please contact me at fencingwithink@gmail.com

I hope to hear from you guys. Love your faces!