I'm quite glad to see graceness posting a daylog. I'm enjoying seeing established noders wander back to the site and join in the fun again, and I hope they feel as if they're being welcomed back with open arms.
That said, I want to speak about a point that she raises in her April 3, 2007 daylog; in her words, The trouble I'm seeing is - there is no room for a "beginning" stage here. It is almost expected that your first write-up be stellar, or so help you God and Sunny Jesus.
This is a – call it what you will, idea, meme, thought, belief, whatever – that periodically raises its ugly head. Many noders may believe it to be the God's Honest Truth. Indeed, others besides gracie have expressed this at one time or another. I'm here to tell you it's as true as believing the moon is made of green cheese.
YOUR FIRST WRITEUP DOES NOT HAVE TO BE THE BEST YOU'LL EVER PRODUCE.
(Was I shouting? Good, I want you to hear me.)
Your first writeup doesn't even have to come close. Naturally, we – gods, editors, noders, and your parents – hope that your first writeup will be your best effort and the first of many; but if it falls short of the general tone and style of what makes a good E2 writeup, there's plenty of help available. I don't know if that can be made any clearer or any more understood. Very few of us started out as excellent or even good writers, but we all should remember that E2 can help you become as good a writer as your talents will allow. That's been proven so many times it can not be in any dispute.
Couple that with the knowledge that it's been strict E2 policy for some time now that we editors and gods do NOT delete writeups willy-nilly; rather, the policy is to try to help the noder salvage the writeup and polish it to the point that it will begin to acquire a positive reputation, whether that be through XP or word of mouth. Again, we're here to help. There's plenty of non-admin noders as well who are ready and willing to lend a hand. They remember being a newbie and freely give of their time and feedback to anyone who needs it.
All one has to do is realize that sometimes you need help. Sometimes what you believe is a piece of Great Literary Work just ain't. In actuality, the writeup may need some work. There is real, verifiable danger in taking any criticism you may receive here personally; it's detrimental to your outlook and your career on E2. Don't. Don't let anyone tell you that you have to be a factual noder, you should be writing fiction, poetry doesn't cut it on E2, or any of the other nonsense that refuses to die. E2 is and always has been about good writing, whatever the genre; and if at first crack your writeup isn't so good, there's a universe of assistance available. All that's asked from any noder is a willingness to dig in alongside those that have offered help, and then get down to the pleasant work required. It's much more fun and productive than going off in a huff!
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A final comment in that vein, before the usual ed. report: some noders, long-time and not so long-time, have expressed to me that these are actually the Golden Days of E2. I couldn't agree more.
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Well, in February and March, I nuked a few writeups by long-fled noders; and assisted others with some grammar and style fixes. Unfortunately, like a big dolt, I nuked all the notes I had made and I didn't save 'em anywhere else. Sometimes I wonder if I should be allowed near a computer. Happy Noding until next time.