What Type of Writer Will Benefit Most From Joining Author Salon?

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Hell hath no fury like a thin-skinned writer with a needy manuscript.

- Author Salon

What type? To put it succinctly, writers who are serious about honing their prose and narrative skills, as well as evolving their current ms into a publishable ms. If this sounds like you, take time read the AS PROFILE GUIDE and CRITIQUE GUIDE before joining, just to make certain we share common goals. Only strong and supportive community, combined with rigorous critique from qualified peers and professionals, enables a productive online environment for writers seeking a state of publication.

In case you're not sure if your skin qualifies, we've developed a few skin test questions below you must ask yourself. We know they will dissuade certain writers from joining, and offend others, but we dearly hope to offend the right people. We desire to work exclusively with writers able to take fair and direct critique from their peers and the professionals at Author Salon, and we also wish to avoid time-wasting instances of Offended Writer Syndrome (OWS).

Clinical psychologists have found symptoms of OWS to be viral all across the Internet, the most popular being the formation and spread of diatribes on chat boards and blogs. According to Professor Maxwell W. Kaplan of Berkeley University's socio-psychology department, "Along with the unbalanced and paranoid nature of the OWS diatribe, even a relatively mild one, the lack of evidence or trail to follow is an all too common feature because in truth none exists. Victims of OWS are seeking catharsis and sympathy, not independent validation of their claims."

Thank you, professor, and good luck on getting that "OWS Cyber-flatus Dissemination" research grant. Regardless, time to take THE THIN SKIN TEST:
  • Has any writer ever prefaced their critique of your work by first saying to you, "Don't hate me, please?"

  • Do you sense that writers who unfavorably critique your work are "loading the gun" and taking aim?

  • Do you rush to defend your work when a reader gives you criticism rather than absorb and weigh it carefully?

  • Do you feel a need to say unkind things about a writer's work if you perceive she or he was unkind to you first?

  • Have you ever chastised any writer in front of other writers for what you consider to be improper or incorrect critique of your work?

  • Have you ever been in a workshop with other writers and reacted to criticism of your writing or story by demanding the other writer defend their decision in such detail that it served your purpose of making certain they never gave you unfavorable critique again?

  • Do you receive critique you oppose in good humor, but routinely seek the negation of it from those you know will agree with your version of reality?

  • Do you see yourself in one of the pushy and ill-informed stereotypes depicted in the film below?

  • Do you feel a bout of OWS coming on after reading the above questions?
If you answered yes to two or more of the above questions, Author Salon is definitely not for you. If this is the case, but later you have an epiphany and change of mind, please return and join us. We will welcome you. We promise.

Sincerely,

Author Salon Editors, Agents and Staff

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