Interesting sites

I came upon a site this week called Wow! Women On Writing, and it seems like a great resource. They host a quarterly writing contest for short stories or flash fiction, and I think I am going to sign up for their Winter contest. The deadline to enter is February 28th so I've got some time to try and write something, and I noticed this contest is an "open prompt," so the topic can be about anything I choose. If I don't get a story done in time for this deadline, I will definitely try their Spring contest. I enjoyed participating in the WritersWeekly contest so much that I am anxious to try others.

In addition to the contests, Wow! just seems like a helpful site in general, with lots of articles, a blog, and other resources for writers. I'm definitely bookmarking it and looking forward to exploring it in more detail.

I also started an account at Goodreads this week and am anxious to participate more there. I work as a librarian so I'd heard of sites like Goodreads and LibraryThing before, and had even created accounts, but that was as far as it went, I never participated. I kept seeing Goodreads coming up on authors' blogs though, so I decided to check it out again.

I've always loved to read and used to read constantly, but in recent years I have gotten away from that somewhat. Not for any specific reason, mostly just because of time limits, but I hope this site will inspire me to get back into the habit of reading.

I only played with the site a bit, but I can see how it could become addicting. I started entering in some books I've read and liked, but my biggest problem is I have a terrible time remembering what I've read. Many times I've picked up a book and started reading it, only to find it seems very familiar. After a few pages, I realize I already know the story and the ending, as I've read the book before! Regardless, it's fun to go through and pick out some of my favorite authors and books, and get recommendations for others.

I also noticed the site has groups for writers to share progress and support each other, so I'm dipping my toe in those waters. I'm an introvert by nature and sharing my work is not easy for me, but I'm working on changing that as I know it only hinders my goals.

At any rate, I'm continually amazed at how many resources and sites are out there for writers. At times it almost feels overwhelming. But I look forward to continuing to explore and learn, and see what else is out there. And, I'm happy I made my three posts a week goal for the S.H.I.N.E Online challenge!