Hey guys...uhhh...hehehe, so I'm a newbie...hello

Hey, Jasmine! Welcome to the family!

Your story sounds a lot like mine. It took me until fifth or sixth grade for me to realize that my imagination would be put to better use if on paper, and about a year or so later for my parents and teachers to come to the same realization.

I want to be a professional writer too. Two of my main goals in life is to publish one novel and an anthology. I love writing (I've found that it's extremely difficult for me to go a day without. Mood swings and unexplainable anger being the side effects, ) and I can't really imagine doing anything else either.

Nice to meet you, Jasmine! If you have any questions or would like a review, feel free to shoot me a PM or post on my profile! I'll be looking forward to reading something of yours!

~ Rocky

Hello, Jasmine, and welcome to the all-encompassing family that is YWS.
Huh. I too wished to be a manager in 6th grade, now (8th - but you wouldn't tell from my eloquence ) wish to be a writer... but a lawyer wouldn't be bad either. I can do both, like the author of 'The Firm', which I'm told is really good.
So yes, PM me or post on my wall if you have any questions... also, I read some of your work and found it delightful.
And yes, I am, indeed, Italian, living in *spoiler* Italy, Naples.

Hey Jasmine,

Most people join YWS just for fun, but there is plenty of stuff here for aspiring professionals as well. Here are some of the things that YWS offers.

Storybooks:

Storybooks are written by groups of writers. Not only are they fun way to write and meet other YWS'ers, but they are also an excellent place to experiment with new characters. It is also a great place to work on your plotting skills. Storybooks aren't very publishable, so I would just use it as a sandbox.

Knowledge Base:

This is an excellent place to read tutorials and study the craft of writing. One of my particular favorites are "Limyaael's Fantasy Rants. They're not a part of YWS proper, but I still consider it to be an excellent handbook of literary philosophy/advice, if explicit at times.

Literary Works:

This is the real heart of the site for a serious writer. It's uses are many. The most obvious is so you can submit your own work and get feedback on it. This is how most writers improve on YWS, and a serious writer should probably try to submit something once a week, even if it is just revisions of something you wrote last week.

Another use is in reading what other people write. By seeing the mistakes that other writers make, you can avoid making them in your own writing. There is also a chance of coming across a neat trick, which might work for the story you write. A serious writer probably would write three reviews for each piece they submit, and it isn't unusual for them to review once a day.

This is also the best place to meet other serious writers on YWS. These authors tend to recognize one another by the comments and stories they write, as well as by the frequency that they write with. There are many ways to get noticed on YWS, but this is undoubtedly the best way, even if it isn't the fastest.

YWS Chat:

I kind of hesitated putting this down, because a lot of people use it to procrastinate (which is the enemy of writers everywhere.) However, chat does have some good points to it. For one, it is the best way of actually talking to members in real-time. Most of the time, the conversation is rather inane, but if you want to talk shop with another writer, this is one of the best places to do it.

So much for the places on YWS for serious writers. Here is some advice:

A word of caution: be very selective with the information you give others. Things like full names, phone numbers, addresses, etc. We want your experience on YWS to be a safe one.

A word of rumor: on YWS there are strange groups and associations, some of which recognize aspiring young writers. Don't be surprised if you attract their attention in your progress as a serious writer.

A final word: on YWS there are some members with names that are highlighted in green or red. These members are Moderators and Administrators. Light green are Jr. Moderators. If you have any trouble with another member or if you need help finding something, ask these folks for help. If they don't know what to do, they won't stop until they find someone who does.

See you around YWS!