Best practices before posting

There are a lot of factors in putting together a good story.  What should always be first and foremost in your mind is that you are communicating with your audience.  No matter how original or well written your story, if the reader can’t comprehend your point, your effort will not succeed.

Objectivity is your best friend and taking your time is critical to doing your best work.  Here are a few practices to consider when working on your next story:

“Thought maturity”
I have a method for developing good ideas I call “thought maturity”.  When I have a great idea or new project, I sit down with a blank pad and write down every thought while the topic is hot.  I keep adding to it over hours or days or even weeks as more ideas pop into my head.   When I find some quality time for the effort, I have a better conception of the idea, which makes it easier to flesh out the scene and identify missing elements.  This helps create a richer and deeper effort than I could hope to get in a single attempt.

Revise and, if necessary, rewrite
Sometimes, you really discover your message in the first pass but didn’t do it justice in the work.  Never feel bad about heavy revision or even rewriting if it helps you grow as a writer and better communicate with your audience.

Read out loud
Listening to your work out loud can help you identify errors in voice, tone and sentence structure.  I find reading out loud provides greater objectivity, as if I’m reading something for the first time.

Ask friends for feedback prior to posting
It’s always good to get someone else to give your effort a quick pass.  Make certain to clarify what you’re looking for, whether it’s top-level scene, plot and character criticism or feedback for grammar, spelling and sentence structure miscues.  Being clear with your beta-reader will help them provide the content you need.

Posting scenes with author commentary
Posting your work can be a bit nerve wracking for some people, especially those who are not used to sharing in a public space and don’t know what to expect as a response.  This is further amplified for individuals who don’t have a strong background in writing, for whom English is not a familiar language, or who feel too time pressed to put in the effort they would like.

In response to limitations, some feel the need to post a commentary to provide further context and explanation.  While this isn’t necessary, you are welcome to do so.  Just keep in mind you should let the story stand on its own.  This means the story is read on its own merits and your comments can be read after, providing context when they reread the work.