the link to the comic:

http://community.eu.playstation.com/t5/PlayStation-Home-General/Spin-off-Home-City-Vengeance-s-Dreams-1st-part/td-p/13305446

And, for both seasoned and new writers alike, the benefit of being published in HomeStation is twofold: HSM has established itself as a reputable platform (with a substantial audience) which maintains a high level of quality; and, further, could in fact could perhaps even be used as a résumé credit, should a team member choose to further pursue commercial literary endeavors elsewhere.

Obviously, the catch is that the writer has to be willing to put in the work, and learn to work with the process of editing, rewrites and polishing. One of the downsides of the internet age we live in is that people have unprecedented freedom to publish whatever is on their minds in their own personal blogs, and thus they feel their words are sacrosanct. Prior to the internet age, if you wanted your words to reach a large audience, your work had to be published by an outside party — which meant, if you *were* published, that your work had been properly vetted and polished. A certain level of quality assurance, if you will.

(This is one of the reasons why, even with readily accessible vanity presses all around, aspiring writers still want to be published through a house like Knopf — because it tells the reader that the work met a certain level of acknowledged literary quality.)

Making the transition to a more professional venue can thus be quite a rude wake-up call. Working with an editor is something that most internet bloggers are completely unfamiliar with; some will leave and cry foul (which has happened both here at HSM and elsewhere in the Home community), whereas others will stick around, learn, and benefit not just from the larger audience but also the improved skills. And they can take pride in knowing that they’re associated with a brand that demands quality and displays quality.

By the way, keep in mind that the bar only goes higher — and the process more challenging — as you make a name for yourself. Even the really big authors these days — Stephen King, Jo Rowling, John Grisham, James Patterson, Dan Brown, Tom Clancy and so forth — have editors. Thomas Wolfe’s first novel had over 90,000 words cut from it by Maxwell Perkins, who is generally considered the finest American literary editor of all time. This didn’t win him any popularity contests, but it made the final *product* stronger.

Or, as HearItWow so perfectly put it on the Sony forum, “All editors are jerks. Myself included. All good writers know this.”

The difference here is that, unlike the world of commercial publishing, we’re still a fanzine and a writing community. But we’re a fanzine that runs itself like a commercial publication. So it’s a wonderful environment in which to learn and grow. If you’re willing to put in the work and learn the process, then we *want* to help you develop your skills.

Because, ultimately, both sides win: the HomeStation tree grows another branch, and the writer develops skills (and exposure) which can be put to further use down the road.

We hope you’ll join us.