Thankful for Thursday: Websites

Today's meme prompt is: WEBSITES. What writing-related websites are you thankful for this week?

I'm struggling a little bit because this week it's my turn to post over at Oasis for YA.  You'll have to drop in to see what I came up with over there.  But I had to dig a little deeper for my own post.

So here's what I came up with: TWITTER

I know... it's not necessarily writing-related, but that's almost exclusively how I use it.  When I went to my first SCBWI conference (over 2 years ago now), the overwhelming advice from agents was to create a social media platform, which included getting on twitter.  Now, I'll be honest with you here.  I'd never heard of Twitter.  I didn't even have a Facebook account.  Crazy, right?

But here I am, over 3200 tweets later and almost 440 followers richer, and I am very grateful for my 140-character friends.  For those of you who haven't jumped on the twitter bandwagon yet, here are some of the benefits I've gotten from it:

1.  I learned about #yalitchat and its weekly discussions that help aspiring YA authors keep their fingers on the pulse of the industry

2.  Through twitter, I met a retired Classics professor who was willing to crit my entire novel -- since it's set in ancient Greece, her insights were huge!

3.  I can check in almost anytime of day and find advice from agents and editors

4.  I can follow those same agents to see if I think we'd be compatible and if they're someone I want to query

5.  Lots of other writerly folks are always posting links and tips to help improve your craft

So there you have it.  I think twitter is pretty a dang-good tool for aspiring authors and I'm thankful to have listened to that advice two years ago that said, "Twitter. Go."

So what writing-related websites are you most thankful for this week?  Grab the badge, make your own post, and then put your link in the comments section over at Oasis for YA.  (Come on, much like twitter, all the cool kids are doing it!)