I used to just lurk on r/GWA without ever posting. I had so many ideas but thought I would never be able to put them into words. So I just started writing requests. That led me to writing full scripts and now I'm actually getting fills (heck yeah). So I thought I'd give some advice to any lurkers who want to become writers.

A request can just be a title without any further text. Just try to put into 300 characters what kind of audio you want. That doesn't take long and is a great way to get you started on putting your fantasy into words, which is the exact same head space that any writer is in when they're writing a full script.

I can only speak for myself but for me writing has a snowball effect. The more I write, the more ideas I get that I want to write. And requests were what got that snowball rolling for me.

But when writing requests you have to be realistic:

In a perfect world, any request would get turned into an audio but that's not the way it works.

Most requests do not get filled because you need to get lucky twice:

• A writer needs to like your idea enough to turn it into a full script
• A performer needs to like that script enough to turn it into an audio

Or you need to get super lucky once and a performer has to like your idea so much that they both write a script which they then also bring to life.

And if you are lucky enough for that to happen to your request, the final product might be a lot different than you expected. Your request went through the creative processes of one or two other people who put their own spin on it (which is perfectly fine obviously).

But that is another great kick starter to get you writing. Seeing how others interpreted your idea differently than you expected, will help you put into words what you actually envisioned and how you would have written it.

tl;dr: If you don't trust yourself to write a full script, write requests first. Do not write requests in order to get fills but treat it as a writing exercise. Just put your ideas out there and see what happens. If you do get a fill that's awesome but I recommend to just write requests with the intention to flex that creative muscle needed to write full scripts.

Have fun :)

edit: Just remember to put a [Request] and gender tag in the title (if the gender is relevant). Thanks to u/_MissHere_ for pointing that out :)