Hi all:

Happy 2006!  May we all get what we're hoping for (impeachment/conviction and imprisonment for certain governmental office-holders tops my '06 wish list, btw...).

I have a question:

I'm finishing up a short, true story about pulling my boat out of the the water under extreme winter conditions, and I hope to sell it to a boating magazine.  If I post it here and ask the good folks whom I haven't insulted, by my political statement, above, (you know who you are, as members of "the reality-based community" lol!) to critique my story, will I have just "published" my story?  IOW, will I then be unable to sell the First North American Serial Rights, as it's already appeared in the public domain?

I hope your answers can also explain how people handle this, in the event that yes, I will have forfeited my right to sell the above rights, if I were to post it here.

Also, if I can post it and still retain said rights, where on this site would it be appropriate to post my story, if I wanted any interested parties to critique it?

Thanks in advance!

Warmly,

Peter

The meaning of previously published is determined by the potential buyer, not writers. While a post for critique only may not seem like "publishing" to us, the definition of published is basically appearing in fixed form. Anything posted anywhere on the Web may turn up where you don't expect it one day making it accessible to anyone online. You can't get more fixed than that. 

Read guidelines carefully. Many say work must not have appeared anywhere in any form. Others might accept work posted for critique only. If you know where you want to send it, check all those places before posting here so you don't ruin your chances.

The best way to get a private critique is to post a brief description of the work and its length and ask willing parties to contact you for a copy of the manuscript to review.

celestewrites