Draft-Hoarding? Let Writers Help You Hit Publish
A POMQA Writing Prompt
Currently, I have a number of drafts sitting in my queue. That’s even after doing some spring cleaning in there.
An informal poll of fellow members on our Slack board recently unveiled I was not alone in my Drafts-hoarding. Tuesday I asked if anyone ever got thisclose to hitting Publish, but then completely turned around and reconsidered the entire post. Again, I was not alone.
We’re Here to Help!
Have you got something sitting in your Drafts, wondering whether or not it will ever see the light of day?
- Maybe its a storyline you got stuck on?
- Maybe you need another voice on the piece?
- Maybe it’s even just a turn of phrase you are dying to use but need prompting to get started?
Here are a few brave, needy souls who have offered up their draft links for a little help getting them to the glorious feeling of hitting the Publish button. (Even if you then immediately hit the Edit because you forgot Tags, oops!)
Tom Farr says: “I wrote this story a year ago, and while I love the concept and the non-linearity of the story, it’s a convoluted plot and I’ve learned a lot about storytelling in writing a lot of other stories since this one.”
Lisa Renee says: “It should be abundantly clear why I haven’t hit publish. There’s nothing there!”
Justin Cox 🌮 says: “Been working on it for about 4 months. Just hasn’t felt right yet.”
Amit Gawande says: “I am not sure if the content and the format is really a great fit for a majority.”
Gloria DiFulvio says: “Writing narrative non-fiction, I often (every time) have anxiety about publishing. It is personal, but I also want it to be relatable. Does it meet that goal?”
Thaddeus Howze says: “I think I was interrupted and was unable to get back to it. By the time I did, I had lost the flow and was unable to figure out where I was going with this story. Sigh. Any ideas?”
Click a link above and use Medium’s Private Notes to send them your 2¢, your encouraging words, or brilliant brainstorm. Or send a message privately on POMQA’s Slack to tell them how you’d love to collaborate on it.
(We’ll update if/when the stories above do get published on Medium.)
Want help yourself?
Respond below with your Draft link and reason why you are holding out. Let us be your hero. Tag your response: “POMQA” and help is on the way!
At POMQA, we have an entire channel (called #workshop) dedicated to this same principle. The header reads: Researching and editing DRAFTS before publishing. It’s writers helping out other writers.
Join us at POMQA and you’ll have this kind of access to ideas, help and community whenever you need—or when your boss isn’t hovering at work.
