3 6 and 9 are interesting numbers. the editors are lost these days. it's painful to see Kellylark. and so true what you mention about what I call OS karma. Read and be read... so it goes

Hey, Kelly!
I haven't had time to read much lately and have even been missing some of my favs but I know what you're talking about.
You put people with similar interests and talents together and you're going to have a community and those people are going to want to protect their community from those who only want to profit from it.
For me OS is a place to grow as a writer and the friendships have contributed to that, particularly people like you.
Thank you, Kelly.

Hi trig and Ms Life - Just had a little rant last night when checking out the newer bloggers. On one hand, I feel badly that nobody reads their stuff. On the other, they have to invest here, as we all do. Thanks so much for looking in!

I've noticed the same thing...

I am kinda sorta trying to pull together a cancer memoir from various pieces but that has never been my real reason for being on OS. It is cool that some people can find recognition for their writing and pull that off. I have been very busy at work and have been rating but not commenting. Need to do that more.

What's funny is that even the best of us (and I'm including you and me in that assessment, Kelly :) can't get book deals, so what makes illiterates think they stand a chance? Ignorance is bliss, I guess. I do so remember a time when I thought good writing on the internet would somehow make me some cash. Hah! The days of child-like innocence. :%

Read others, comment and enjoy. The editors' support is at times questionable; this community [OS] offers much. ~R~

Oh poop. I didn't know I was supposed to be on here trying to write a book and become rich and famous. I thought I was trying keep my brain from rusting closed by reading interesting things from interesting people. I do occasionally try and string a complete thought together in a sentence. I was forgetting how. OMG! LOL! TSFF!

Hi Mary! All of these new bloggers could learn a lot from your site, like how to tell a story, how to open up personally, how to write with wit and charm, and how to be one of the nicest people in the OS community!

Dorinda, I'm glad you chose this spot to start "commenting more". But to be clear, your blog is certainly not the type I was writing about. I read most of your posts and I don't even remember seeing a lot of the cancer posts. You'd be at the top of my list of OS writers who have the skills and experience to to do a book!

Ah Lainey, I gave up my dreams of being an author many moons ago. Thanks heavens I had or I'd be very depressed every day on OS seeing all the real writers showing me how it's done! I am here for the community and it's all worth it. And thanks for the compliment. We do have fun don't we?

Chuck it's all about the community for me. It is simply amazing here.

siflynn the best blogs come from those who are not trying. Thanks for stopping by. I am off to check out your stuff now ;-)

Hey stellaa- I like that idea. Leave it to you to find the unique style!

The blog phenomenon will either change writers--who tend to be solitary and introverted--or develop writers with a different type of personality. I can just see Ernest Hemingway getting a negative comment on a blog, then hunting down the guy who made it and punching him out.

Yes, everyone is a book... hehehehe... I do like Stellaa's angle... opera is good... hehehehe. Thanks for visiting me girl! It is nice to be missed. :) Good to see you here.

You're on the mark with this. It'll be nice to see what a new editor does to reinvigorate OS (re Kerry's said he and Thomas are very busy with so many other tasks now, Plus picking the new editor). Still, you're quite right, if you don't interact and participate here, you won't get read.

I notice that many of these wannabe "novelists" that have recently joined are abysmal writers. It becomes obvious by the second paragraph of their first post that they are unable to create compelling anything. It seems like they've joined here because they thought they would get a group of rah rah types, cheering them on in their naive quest to get on the NYT best seller list. Or, and is probably more likely, they are hoping that amongst us are well connected people in the publishing world itself who will "discover" them, and give their genius the fame and recognition they so well deserve.

There's a reason why they call them "vanity presses."

I confess: I was inspired by Julie and Julia to start the blog. I am GUILTY AS CHARGED! That said, I quickly realized what OS really is and have gotten quite caught up in reading and commenting. Time, sadly, is an issue. Cat's color challenge, for example. I made myself a half hour late for something because I got so involved in reading the various color posts on her list.

There are an unbelievable number of good writers here, and I just want to soak it all in.

Thanks for calling me (and so many others) out on this. It was enlightening to read your perspective.