alongstoryshort.net
Celebrating their sixth anniversary this year, the editors of this e-zine pride themselves on their accessibility: They reply personally to every author who queries and offer suggestions on how to improve work.

bksp.org
Backspace features articles, columns and news from industry insiders. For access to the forum—which hosts literary agents, editors and authors—you’ll have to cough up a $30 annual fee.

bookglutton.com
BookGlutton lets you share your manuscripts (in full, or chapter-by-chapter) with others, right in your browser, complete with built-in annotation and chat functions.

critiquecircle.com
Writers of all genres are welcome to give and receive reader feedback at Critique Circle. The site is free, but donations to support it are welcome.

editred.com
Give and receive peer critiques, and hone your skills with Edit Red’s weekly writing challenges.

librarything.com
Upload your personal library and network with others who love the same books you do.

mywriterscircle.com
Boasting nearly 8,000 members, this forum has a Q&A section, a job thread and a critique section (for novels, nonfiction and scripts).

ning.com
Sure, you can create fan groups on Facebook or MySpace, but Ning allows you to create your very own social network page. Highlight your brand, add your own members, customize it to look exactly as you want and more.

rallystorm.com
Need an online destination for your writing group? Create your own forum here. Setup is easy and relatively painless.

spawn.org
The Small Publishers, Artists and Writers Network helps you research sources, publishers, printers and the media.

writersbbs.com
On more than 50 active forums, members post daily writing challenges to keep you on your toes. Kids are welcome.

writerunboxed.com
Learn about the craft and business of genre fiction through this site. The many author interviews are a plus.

writing.com
This community offers free e-mail accounts, online writing portfolios and more.

writingforward.com
Writing Forward shares a wealth of writing information. “Are You Cut Out for Freelance Writing?” in particular is a real gut-checking article.


The 2009 Categories:
Agent Blogs
Writing Communities
Publishing Resources
Jobs and Markets
Creativity and Challenges
Genres/Niches
General Resources
Fun for Writers

Don’t see your favorite site? Send comments and nominations for next year’s list to writersdigest@fwmedia.com with “101 Websites” in the subject line (deadline is Jan. 1, 2010).

This article appeared in the May/June issue of Writer's Digest. Click here to order your copy in print. If you prefer a digital download of the issue, click here.