Lonely at the Keyboard: Online Writer Chats & Forums

 Here's a list from Google of online writer chats and forums (there's tons more if you don't like these):

I UPDATED THIS LIST ON SEPTEMBER 27, 2015.

Spoiled Ink -
http://www.spoiledink.com
Offers writer to writer exchange of feedback, ideas and support.

White Paper Source -
http://www.whitepapersource.com/forum/
User based forum dedicated to writing and marketing white papers.

Tag You're It - Writing Club -
http://www.tagyoureit.org
Tag writing community in which one person starts the piece, and others contribute. Includes related links and FAQ.

Able2Know -
http://www.able2know.com/forums/ask-about16.html
Active writing forum with creative categories.

Talk about Journalism -
http://www.talkaboutjournalism.com
Journalism discussion forums with topics like reporting, newspapers, jobs, research, and even gonzo writing.

The Pleasure Dome - http://groups.msn.com/ThePleasureDomeahomeforwriters/theeverythingboard.msnw
An online club for writers about discussion, debate, personal, professional support.

WritersWall -
http://www.writerswall.com/forum/
Place for writers to exchange creative ideas, share their stories. Includes a monthly ezine, chat forum, and other resource links.

Mindsight Forum -
http://www.mindsightseries.com/cgi/discus/discus.cgi
Forum for authors, writers, agents, publishers, and editors.

Write Here Write Now -
http://p221.ezboard.com/bwriteherewritenow
Forum offering weekly prompts, newsletters, critiquing, and writing over a variety of genres.

Literary Escape -
http://www.lulu.com/devrie
Member based literary community where users can create clubs, writing galleries, blogs and personal websites to get exposure and critique.

WritingForums.com - http://www.writingforums.com
Provides a place for writers to meet and chat about the writing craft, post stories, and meet other writers. Also provides tips, contests, markets and original works.

Writer's Waters II -
http://groups.msn.com/WritersWatersII
Free community and forum for writers, artists, poets, publishers and freelancers.

The Writer Community -
http://www.writermag.com/wrt/community/forum/
Discussion boards, polls, contests, events calendar.

Ye Gads: I DO watch Reality TV

I believe in the written word, and however bad some of the sitcoms out there may be -- they are written. There are scripts. Reality TV avoids this problem. There's no need for a script when you put a group of people on an island to eat horrid things, or have them race around the world for a prize. Ditto, the dating competitions. And the dancing ones. And the singing ones.

Since I avoid these shows I smugly thought that I didn't watch reality TV. I was lying to myself.

I admit it: I watch Jon & Kate Plus 8 periodically, as well as Dog the Bounty Hunter. I discovered this as I wrote a post about coupons after watching Kate shop for her family of 10 at Whole Foods and come away with almost $100 in savings. Awareness had sort of begun when I wrote another post about Dog the Bounty Hunter being on Larry King Live and the ability to email in your questions or comments beforehand.

My Bad. I am a writer who does watch reality shows. Should I feel bad? I am pondering this. And, I'm adding in the fact that any TV takes time away from other things unless I'm watching the tube while folding laundry or something. There are things like books, after all ....

Writers' Strike: All About the Web - & They've Got a Blog, Too

There's a good article about the Writers' Strike over at Forbes.com. Lacey Rose reports:

"Americans now spend nearly 27 hours a month online, up 8% from just two years ago, according to comScore Media Metrix. And advertising dollars are following: Internet ads registered a 17.7% increase in the first half of 2007, to $5.5 billion, while the broadcast networks saw ad spending slip 3.6%, to $11.8 billion, during the same period, according to TNS Media Intelligence, a division of Taylor Nelson Sofres that tracks ad spending."

In this fight for parts of the Web Pie, the striking writers have set up their own blog, United Hollywood. Interestingly, when I jumped to their site, the top post was about the very Forbes article by Lacey Rose that I'd just read. Small world.

At any rate, United Hollywood should prove to be very entertaining. Already today, there's the post about Steve Carell calling in sick to The Office - he was suffering from "enlarged balls."

And, in an earlier post by the Strike Captain, an explanation on why the Web is so important that it's worth this level of fight:

"The other big reality is that the future of ALL film and television is INTERNET bound, a paid advertising medium for which each and every Guild member currently has ZERO financial participation. With entertainment industry executives and studios raking in exponential profits every year and hiding much of those profits through creative accounting and fuzzy math, it is ESSENTIAL that, as members of the WGA, we stand up for what is only reasonable and just. The studios have forced us into this position through their greed and hubris. The attitude at the executive level often is that these movies and TV shows write themselves when in reality the obscene profits they are making always start with us, the writers.?"

I'm going to continue following the writer's strike, since without writers what do you have? Surely all these reruns already appearing everywhere should be making all the Suits sweat ....

Personally, I want the writers to get everything that they want. Period. And while I'm at it (it's my blog, after all) I don't want another reality show - ever - and I'd like someone to just go ahead and formalize the official Law&Order Network. It would make it so much easier for me to find Bobby.

One last thing. As a writer who provides content on a daily basis to various areas of the web, the news that publication on the Internet is apparently akin to the Gold Rush - or here in Texas, wildcatting for oil, well ... it's good news.