Do Any of You Writers/Poets Feel Uneasy About Sharing Your Unpublished/Unfinished Work Online?

[[deleted user]]

I ask because I have always been uncomfortable with doing it. I am very protective of my 'creative offspring' but since joining, "Goodreads" last month, I am surprised by how liberal so many here seem to be about sharing their works-in-progress...Yes, everything from the names of characters and their descriptions, the storyline, to even outright excerpts. Honestly, it is shocking to me.

Even more honestly, I shudder at the thought. Maybe I need to trust people more but you certainly cannot trust 'just anyone' who 'friends' you, or otherwise.

I have confidence in my work and thus, I believe that facets of it are very strong, very good. Thus, rendering facets of it desirable to anyone unscrupulous enough to rip it off. Thus far, I have seen some impressive work here by other writers (both would-be and established. To my mind, some among us need to be a bit more careful about what we disclose regarding our work.

Sometimes I get the urge to share some of that which I write, but that is quickly squelched by seeing my ideas, my dear 'family' of characters, even a verse or line come to fruition without my name on it and instead someone else's. I would shriek in horror. And after I had finished with my shrieking, I would then move to sue them.

Of course, not everyone would be so low as to plagiarize or to otherwise, pilfer someone else's work. But some would. It is sad but it is and has been, the way of things--for centuries.

If and when I do share my work, I do it with one person at a time and in confidentiality. I have to have established much trust with this person and the sharing is then done via e-mail. They are also not permitted to show my work to anyone else; they have to promise. Furthermore, they have to bring me the 'Holy Grail' as well as fill out a couple of forms and provide references attesting to their 'good character' before I will share any of my work with them. ;)

I have already seen some plagiarism here at, "Goodreads" and it was, in fact, today...

In the "POETRY!" group's monthly poetry newsletter competition and entry thread, I saw someone had posted a poem which originally came from a film which I only just watched for the first time. Thus, I was quick to recognize it. Another member had called them on it though a public response from the offender and a withdrawal of the plagiarized poem has yet to come.

I tend to mail my work to myself, keep multiple drafts via both electronic and hard copies. I further keep records of who and when I sent my work to. In the near future, I intend to look at copyrighting.

I have seen people put up whole chapters of their unfinished/unpublished works here and elsewhere and in sequence.

I could not sleep at night (well, I more sleep during the day and write at night actually, but I digress...) were I to do that.

I am just wondering what everyone else's feelings are on all this?

[[deleted user]]

I wouldn't want to share my work prior to being published. I even felt uneasy about sending sample chapters to literary agents and indie publishers. Some of them asked for the entire masnuscript up front, those I didn't deal with. Plagiarism was a concern, but what I was probably more afraid of was sparking an idea in somebody's mind, whereas they would write something different, but similar and publish before I could.

[Philip]

If members of Goodreads who write poetry only wanted to share their poems through publishing them in books, newspapers and magazines, then the Poetry group on Goodreads need not and would not exist. I am very glad the Poetry group on Goodreads does exist. I have posted some of my poems on there, as you know, Fallen Star Poet, and to my surprise and pleasure I have had positive responses to them from other members of the group, all of whom are strangers to me. I have also enjoyed posting my poems, as soon as they are written, on my Author Profile Page and on Struggling Writers, under the heading Philip's Writing. Some of my poems have been published in my local newspaper, the Liverpool Echo and in The Dawntreader, a quarterly poetry magazine. Maybe what you ought to do is post some of your poems and prose that you know you do not want to publish in book form on Goodreads, to join in and be truly part of what it is about, that is, the reading and writing of literature. As for people who steal the words of others and present them as their own work, I would not worry about them. They know who wrote the words, and they know they ought to feel guilty about stealing them, even if they do not. Until I joined Goodreads, I thought no one would read my poems. Now, as a member of the Poetry group, I can share them with others, which is really good for me, and I enjoy reading what they have written, too. No painter would ever mount a painting in an art gallery, if he or she was paranoid about strangers stealing their ideas. Consider Frenchie. She happily posts her poems and people like me enjoy reading them. I think you ought to do the same.

[[deleted user]]

Thank you so much, David and Philip.

Philip, I am among those who enjoy reading your poems (as you probably know) and am thankful that you do happen to post them.

Via e-mail today, I was encouraged by someone else who is a member here (and who I greatly respect) to share my work--at least in a published collection. I had showed to him a couple of my 'perfected' poems and was thrilled that he genuinely seemed to like them.

Thing is, I have nothing written down that I do not hope to publish one day in book form. At present and as it has been for a long time now, I cannot be as prolific as I would like to be. I also cannot 'rush' to publish due to this.

I would imagine that it is not then permissible to put work up online that you later intend to send out to agents, editors and publishers? Would it not already be considered 'published' in this respect and this would then negate their potential desire to acquire whatever rights of it?

With my unpublished novel and novella in-progress, I know I could not share them so freely--but my poems, possibly. But again, they are also poems which I want to place into a collected book form one day...

Thus, I guess I am still undecided about it.

P.S. How does one post poems on their "Goodreads" page? ;)

[T4bsF (Call me Flo)]

I can understand your point FSP but there are a lot of would be authors out there who just lack one thing - confidence in their own gift!! Goodreads supplies the 'bridge' between keeping their writings private, for fear of being ridiculed to perhaps having good feedback from their friends here - which in turn gives them the confidence to go ahead and publish. I think one of the main things to take into consideration before publishing, is whether you would like to reach a wide audience with your pride and joy of writing or whether you want to make a fistful of dollars!!

[[deleted user]]

I have seen quite a number of agents and publishers state they'll only review unpublished(in any way shape or form) manuscripts.

[T4bsF (Call me Flo)]

.... so it looks like we have a chicken and egg situation here. Some new authors haven't got the confidence to publish without first sharing, but by this very act, they are diminishing any chance they had of getting published....... HMMMMMMmmmmmmmm!! Ok - whoever's got the answer to this one - take one step forward!!! :0))

[[deleted user]]

You are right about Goodreads serving as a bridge Flo, I was unsure of my skill as a writer, and had doubts about promoting my novel, until you, and Linzi, and Linda were kind enough to read and review my book. Your reviews gave me the confidence to move forward. Thank you all for that. By the way, I've been spending a lot of time promoting "Runaway Joe", and although I have nothing grand to report as yet, I think I'm starting to gain a little traction .

[[deleted user]]

Flo,

Thank you and I do have confidence in my writing--whereas I need to work on it in a few other areas. ;)

I actually hope to make money as to my prose though I know poetry is less likely to earn the amount of cash that prose can (potentially). I am well-aware that rejection is a part of the game ('been there and done that' as to my poems a long time ago).

David,

I had thought as much...Thanks!

[Emma]

I just posted some of the writing I was working on and intending on publishing later on my blog. And someone who I had never met commented. So I am somewhat happy and somewhat cautious about it, because I don't want to publish my whole work-in-progress novel online! That'd be a waste.

[[deleted user]]

I think that wise, Emma! It would be a waste. Personally, I dare to dream dreams of a grandiose size though I keep the reality about me as much as I can do all the while. My writing is not excluded from this.

In the words of a wise old wizard: "Keep it secret, keep it safe." ;)

[Philip]

Some members of the Poetry group post their poems there that they later publish in their poetry books. I have just read and reviewed The Tenderness of Mountains by Lisa Marie Gabriel, for example, which contains some poems she had already posted in the Poetry Group. Most collections of poems contain some that have already been published elsewhere, in magazines and newspapers, so you should not be worried about posting some of yours on Goodreads. You can post your poems on your Goodreads page in the section called writing. Yesterday, as it was Good Friday, I posted the lyrics of a song I wrote in 1986, called Before the Cross, on my Author Profile Page, here on Goodreads, and on Author's Den, and two people responded to it in a positive way. That was wonderful to me, as I thought no one would ever read those words. Unlike many young people, I do not take the internet for granted. It is all fairly new to me. Anyway, I think it is wonderful to be able to post a poem on my lap top, here in Liverpool, England, and not long later someone can respond to it who lives in America. You seem to be creating a problem for yourself which should not exist. It is best to free yourself from it by deciding soon what you should do. Some writers actually publish their entire novels on Wattpad before they publish them in book form, partly to see how readers react to what they have written. I posted the first two chapters of my book, Angel War, on Wattpad, but only after it was published in paperback and now as an E-book. Nearly two hundred people have read those two chapters up to now, which is wonderful for me. Once you start sharing with others what you have written, you will feel better, I think, more relaxed, confident. Don't think about the minority, those who would steal your words, for they are the ones who lose, not you. Remember that most readers love literature and just want to read more of it, including yours.

[Emma]

Fallen Star Poet wrote: "I think that wise, Emma! It would be a waste. Personally, I dare to dream dreams of a grandiose size though I keep the reality about me as much as I can do all the while. My writing is not excluded..."

ha :) but I found someone who 1) enjoys my writing and 2) wants to read MORE of it!

[[deleted user]]

David,

It is great you are gaining some traction on your novel! Bravo!

Emma,

I am glad you have found someone who values your work--excellent! You now have me quite curious about your work as well. I like your taste and was intrigued by your inclusion of Giuliano de' Medici and his death in what you are working on at present.

I have a few friends and family members who can be objective with me, whom I trust and who I have shared much of my work with for good feedback and 'constructive criticism' if you will. This feels comfortable to me--regarding my prose especially.

Philip,

It is amazing what modern-day technology has done for so many fields--including that of writing.

I do not have a dilemma as to what to do in this regard; I am quite decided upon the subject but was wanting to see what other fellow writers had to say on the matter.

Confidence in my writing is not at all an issue for me. It has not been one for years. To the core of my soul, I believe in the quality of my work and I have done since my teens. I have laboured long and hard to achieve that belief, crafted, revised and honed my work to fuel it further.

Prose-wise, I would prefer to send my shorter works off to magazines be it offline or on.

As for my novel and perhaps my novella too (which, ultimately, may end up in a collection of three or four novellas written by me to comprise a longer and thus, more marketable book)I am first intending to go the 'old-fashioned' route: literary agent, editor, publisher. Then if that fails, I will look at self-publishing. I am stubborn, but am driven as well.

Poetry-wise, I should go back to submitting them again. It has been a decade-and-a-half and my past attempts were few. One has to be persistent, of course! I was not. I was younger and had other things distracting me at the time. Thus, the poems got shelved and I got on with my life. I suppose I 'abandoned' my 'children' in a sense. ;) Due to being at, "Goodreads" I have been revisiting them again and I am thankful for that as I have missed them.

For me, that even one person alone values my work--builds up my confidence all the more. A fellow writer here who read some of my novella's excerpts told me that, in reading my work, he could see my confidence and comfort as a writer was strong as was my voice and my use of language and imagery.

...

After reading a couple of my poems, another fellow writer told me that one day, I 'should' share my poems with others,I 'must' and that I am 'very talented'. This means a lot--especially in that I was just 16 years-old when I wrote the majority of my poems. Mind you, I did not share with him any of the darker, morose ones. I did not wish to 'scare' him. ;)

But...I have been quite distracted by prose and I will be so in the foreseeable future. However, poetry is something I will always return to amidst my creation of prose. My love is profound for them both and for literature as a whole (otherwise I would not be here--indeed--none of us would be if not for this love).

[Emma]

There's not enough written about him! It's true! And thank you ;)

[Kath]

Happy Easter, all.
I have an intermediate method of sharing. Since joining Goodreads I have formed some very good friendships with people whose writing I admire. I wouldn't want to share a work in progress, in its raw state, you might say, with the world at large so I share with these few friends. The advantage is that I get generous feedback which is brutally honest - exactly what you need - without them worrying about sounding critical in public. I recommend a writing partner or two.

[[deleted user]]

Hey, A Happy Easter to everyone! I hope you get some goodies on this day! ;)

Thank you so much, Kath.

What you have stated is my thinking exactly. I prefer to share my work with a few, trusted friends who can give me an objective opinion, helpful criticism and who can also keep my unfinished/unpublished work confidential. I think it also important that we resonate with these people and if they happen to be fellow writers that, as you say, we have an admiration for their work.

[Orinoco Womble (tidy bag and all)]

I'm with the OP on this. My creations are mine, and while they'll never be published, I would not post them willy-nilly on the Net for anyone who feels like it to lay claim to, or even publish under their own name. I agree about sharing with only a few trusted friends. I've already had my work severely misunderstood when I posted it on a forum; there was a poem I wrote (and deeply felt) about a dysfunctional family dynamic. When I shared it, you'd think I was slagging off parenthood in general--while nothing could be further from the truth. Besides which, on some forums there are people who just want to stir up a little drama, and if you or I post something they think they can use to cause a little excitement, they will.
It's worth bearing in mind that when you put something on the Internet, it's out there. Even when a site is taken down, often the things posted continue to float in cyberspace and can be resurrected...and sometimes misused.

[Sherri]

I do share sample chapters of my works in progress through my blog, but I've been writing for 13 years and an indie author for 3 years. It also seems that my blog entries with sample chapters get a good number of hits, and seem to generate interest in my other published works. While I understand your trepidation to share your work (I used to feel that way), I guess it's fair to say that you become more bold the longer you write. And I also preface those samples with a statement that it's an early draft that's subject to change as rewrites/revisions/proofreads progress.

[mrbooks]

Maybe I have to much faith in my fellow man, but I don't fear sharing what I write. I write because it is in me and have a need to share. I think we are more protected here than we would be anywhere else. O.K I am showing my Naivety but there you go. If someone wants to steal your work the will no matter how hard you try to protect it. If someone wants to use what I have I will share it as I feel it needs to be shared. It is just me I guess but I am tired of not trusting and have decided to "pay it forward" so to speak. I only ask if you want to use what I have ask...

Am I to trusting ? I don't think so. I don't write and won't write for a living.

[[deleted user]]

Thanks to Sherri and MrBooks for responding! I imagine one might become bolder the longer one has been a more established writer. But, of course, I am not 'there'--yet. ;)

"Orinoco Womble,"

I resonated with your post quite a bit; thank you for responding.

There are always going to be people 'out there' who will misconstrue another person's work and use it at their whim to start arguments and thus, propel a thread into much drama. It is a sad truth that on forums about anything there are always going to be these kinds of people.

This comment of yours strikes me especially:

It's worth bearing in mind that when you put something on the Internet, it's out there. Even when a site is taken down, often the things posted continue to float in cyberspace and can be resurrected...and sometimes misused.

I do not think that the majority of people, unlike you, realize just how much truth there is to this statement.

I am married to a computer software engineer and he has taught me to be quite wary about how I handle things online just for this reason. Even if something is 'deleted' it does not just disappear into the void: back-ups are often stored or archived in servers. Webpages can easily be copied and yes, persist in their existence in cyberspace and then be drudged up at any random moment in time.

I even happened to watch a film today called, "The Words" which was about an struggling writer finding this lost, brilliant, but unpublished manuscript in an old briefcase in an antiques shop in Paris. The writer then proceeded to pass it off as his own work and receive the accolades and fame which the novel, apparently, warranted. Of course, his doing this did not come without significant repercussions, ultimately.

I choose to be careful because I intend to publish my work and under my own name. I have decided that this goes for my poems and not just my prose as well. ;)

[Orinoco Womble (tidy bag and all)]

I'll look for that film, thanks FSP.

I watch a lot of French crime drama and they are always setting some police computer whiz to find a webpage to get info (often prostitution rings etc). The first guy will say, "Oh, it's been taken down" and some young rookie will say, "Leave it to me" and find the information in a few hours. Of course the "web crawler" sites they show onscreen don't exist, but that doesn't mean there isn't some other tool out there.

[[deleted user]]

You are welcome!

While the film was not great to my mind, it was certainly a good enough watch and provided some interesting reflections (especially for we writers--both aspiring and established).

Crime dramas..."Dexter" is the one for me--up until the last season which was abysmal. I more often tend to watch forensic documentaries--usually on my own.

...

It seems there is plenty of fuel 'out there' for this thread of late--just based upon what my senses have been experiencing over the past few days...

Someone 'friended' me here recently at, "Goodreads" who had a couple of favorite quotes by a young aspiring poet. So I went on to view the list of quotes by this poet and saw one there I knew to be from F. Scott Fitzgerald's novel, "The Great Gatsby". I thought, perhaps, this was just an error.

But then I followed a link which led me to this poet's "Twitter" page and on it he was called upon this quote and he vehemently denied stealing it as his own, citing to the accuser, "I write every word!"

Yeah, sure he does. I could swear that some of his other lines were 'borrowed' from Pablo Neruda (one of my favorite poets) and that he might have altered a few of the words here and there. Whereas with the F. Scott Fitzgerald line, it is a blatant and complete rip-off.

Of course, it is one thing when a well-known writer's or poet's work is pilfered because it is then, that the theft is more easily called upon. Now I could say that I wrote the following lines of poetry:

This is the way the world ends
Not with a bang but with a whimper.

(T.S. Eliot, "The Hollow Men")

But I would not get very far in that claim, now would I? But if someone stole work from an unpublished, or little published and still obscure writer or poet (such as I am at the time of this writing and may be indefinitely for all I know)--it would be far easier to get away with it. Only the true author would know their original source and any of those close to that author, who remembers well enough their work.

To quote The Smiths and their song, "Cemetery Gates:

And you claim these words as your own
But I've read well, and I've heard them said
A hundred times (maybe less, maybe more)
If you must write prose/poems
The words you use should be your own
Don't plagiarise or take "on loan"
'Cause there's always someone, somewhere
With a big nose, who knows
And who trips you up and laughs
When you fall
Who'll trip you up and laugh
When you fall

;)

[Orinoco Womble (tidy bag and all)]

I tutor English from home, Star, and sometimes students will ask me to go with them to check their grades (ie, "I probably bombed and will need moral support.") One time I went with someone, she tanked the exam, and decided to stop by the prof's office and talk to him. He was in there with another student and we could hear him yelling, "Do you think I'm stupid, mate? I have Internet too, ya know! And I know a cut-and-paste when I see one!"

Some people would never admit they stole someone else's work, even if you stood in front of them with a printed anthology open to the page, and waved it in their face. Even if a poet laureate went physically up to them and tapped them on the chest and said, "Oy, mate, that's MY work!"

One "student" (inverted commas intentional) actually sat there and told me about how she had snuck her smartphone in to the exam, Googled the topic and cheated. That's bad enough, but the portion on the exam (Eng Lit commentary writing) was one we had worked on together about 2 days before the exam!! Not only did she cheat, she was proud of it!

[Andrew]

Fallen Star Poet wrote: "I even happened to watch a film today called, "The Words" which was about an struggling writer finding this lost, brilliant, but unpublished manuscript in an old briefcase in an antiques shop in Paris. The writer then proceeded to pass it off as his own work and receive the accolades and fame which the novel, apparently, warranted. Of course, his doing this did not come without significant repercussions, ultimately."

Well that's clearly plagiarised from what is pretty indisputably the greatest book ever written! The Bear Went Over the Mountain

[[deleted user]]

"OW,"

Unfortunately, I am not at all surprised by your revelations. I can imagine that being a tutor must require a lot of patience at times, especially in situations as the one you described with the girl 'student' cheating via her, "Smartphone" (well, at least the phone is the 'smart' one in that equation! ;)). Despite some of these students being disappointing in the end, I commend you for the work you are doing; it is good, important work.

Andrew,

You don't say? I had never heard of that book before. However, after reading about it, I felt compelled to add it to my, 'To Read' list here at, "Goodreads!" It looks and sounds fantastic. Thank you for the recommendation!

[Orinoco Womble (tidy bag and all)]

Josef Manckiewicz (sp) is on record as saying, if you copy one source, it's plagiarism. If you copy several, it's an "homage."

[T4bsF (Call me Flo)]

....the real downside to plagiarism is if you are the one being copied from, but get the blame for being the copier!!

[Andrew]

Fallen Star Poet wrote: "You don't say? I had never heard of that book before. However, after reading about it, I felt compelled to add it to my, 'To Read' list here at, "Goodreads!" It looks and sounds fantastic. Thank you for the recommendation!"

I hope you enjoy it!

[Justin]

Sometimes I feel uneasy at times yes. I have a dozen short stories on Wattpad, I know that they all could use some work and touching up but I guess I'm really not that uneasy about them if I posted them right? The stories are still readable and I mean unless the feedback is bad then I would feel really uneasy and consider removing them but for right now I will keep them as is and when I have time I will touch them up one at a time.