Writing Helps
A few months back, long before I thought of doing this site, I made a little web page over on Geocities (cause it was FREE); and so, because I'm just a lazy sloth at heart, I figured I'd just post a link for it here instead of reinventing the proverbial wheel. What it contains is some basic writing information - grammar, spelling, word usage (like who and whom - don't tell me you don't get confused) and a little review on some basic English skills that we seem to forget. Here's the site link:
There are lots of good resources out on the web for proper grammar and sentence structure. I don't know any writer who can't stand to improve their writing chops a little - sort of an ongoing process, at least for me. This is a list of some of the sites I find helpful. If you have any others that are helpful to you, drop me a line at claforce@plotexpo.com and let me know. I need all the help I can get!
And in the "they should know" department (CAUTION: VERY adult site ahead):
This is a site written by a gay man who also writes slash. Now, in my book, that qualifies as the ultimate expertise in a given field.
After all that - do yourself a favor and get a good beta reader. Betas are those objective eyes that look at your story - not from the angle of someone who likes your stories and thinks you're the greatest thing since sliced pizza - but from the standpoint of looking at your grammar, looking at your punctuation, looking at the overall logic of your story and making sure your characterizations are true to form. I have wonderful beta readers - they kick my butt on every story . . . 'that doesn't make sense,' 'this doesn't flow,' 'you should extend this time period between these two events,' 'you've gone and Marty-Sued them again, you oaf.' Beta readers should never be afraid to get in your stories and just rip it to shreds if needs be - because if they are afraid to do that, then they're a fan and not a beta. As a writer, you should welcome strong, constructive criticism of your work - it only makes it better. There are lots of fic lists that have beta readers listed . . . check some of those out. My advice to you would be to either get someone you know that's not afraid to tell you the truth (no matter how much it hurts), or someone you don't know that you aren't emotionally invested in - that way it's more like a business transaction. And for heaven's sake - find a beta reader who knows the fandom . . . getting someone to beta a J/D slash NC-17 fic is not the same as someone who writes Buffy/Angel and offers to beta for you . . . use common sense - you'll be glad you did.
