Young Writers Society

I'm sure you know this, but I think it's important to bring to mind every once in a while.

I joined YWS in 2005, which would put me around 13 years old at the time. I was active on and off for a couple of years, and then dropped off the face of the earth. Occasionally I'd come back just to see how things were going---childhood/teen nostalgia.

I'm 22 years old now. I had trouble sleeping tonight, and for one reason or another, YWS popped into my mind again. Oh man! I thought. I should check it out; it's been years. I logged in and started browsing my old portfolio submissions---terrible, terrible writing. But, hey, that was the beginning and I was only 13-ish, right?

Then I started looking over my community posts, and I started to realize that, sandwiched between my goofy tween mannerisms and palpable angst, were ignorant and hateful comments, rife with sexism, homophobia, and self-righteousness. I've always remembered I was a misguided little bigot with terrible opinions when I was in my early teens, but I'd forgotten the evidence had been preserved so well. In addition to these comments, I had also posted fully identifiable pictures of myself. No bueno.

Now I don't say all this just to publicly spank myself, but rather to remind you that you are growing. Every moment you are growing as a person, and the person you are tomorrow may not agree with the person you are today. Is someone going to hold comments you made when you were 13 against you when you're 22? Doubtful; that'd be pretty silly. We all do and say things we perhaps wish we didn't, but in the digital age, nothing just goes away. It's been 8 or so years since some of my comments, and there they are.

These are just some things to keep in mind as you build your presence online. Keep writing and putting stuff out there; just be mindful and respectful of your peers. And for anyone who remembers, I'm sorry.

For more info on general internet safety, there's a great sticky in the Information Desk on it. There are a lot of good reasons to be careful what you put online. Internet Safety

Also... can I add something to this? We have had people (myself included!) who are basically analyzed by potential boyfriends/girlfriends from our YWS posts. Like, I posted what I wanted back when I was a teenager, and then I had my boyfriends bring up what I had said back a couple of years ago, and I would be like, "Uh... I don't even remember this!"

And, if you think, "Oh, well, I am protected because the real dirt that I post is stuff that I am posting on my blog, and only members can get there, and my potential suitor wouldn't actually sign up on YWS, because that isn't their sort of thing." As my husband pointed out, all it takes is a tiny bit of digging to find The Confessional's password. Then, people who have no desire to join YWS can use that account to read your blogs and whatnot anonymously.

I'm new here but I like your post