To whom it may concern,
There are many aspects of Teen Ink that I cherish. For example, I enjoy reading the brilliant submissions that are promoted on the site. I appreciate being able to write about anything that is on my mind, and getting feedback from like-minded individuals. I also love giving critique to writers who need it, and I enjoy getting feedback on my writing in return. There’s only one problem. What is the point of giving critique to users if the writers can’t actually utilize it?

I get lots of wonderful critique on my writing, and yet I am unable to do anything with the feedback, besides deleting the piece and resubmitting it with the revisions. Then I would have to wait several weeks before it goes online, and when that happens, I would have to start all over in the process of getting people to read, comment, and rate the piece. This is quite an inconvenience and a hassle, but a hassle that I feel could be avoided with a simple change to the site.

I have a suggestion that would help improve the quality of work on the entire Teen Ink site, and make critiquing a much more meaningful experience to everybody involved. My idea is to simply add an edit button to each article in a writer’s inventory. This would enable users to quickly correct misspelled words, fix grammar and punctuation errors, and expand on the piece. To lighten the load on the editors, a program could be employed to detect whether the edit only involved simple spelling changes and such, and if so, the piece could be instantly changed without having to go through an approval process. A language filter could be used to ensure that all work is free of any and all profanity, and thusly Teen Ink would be able to stay a safe and clean environment for budding writers.

Only if a piece of writing was edited in a more complex manner, for example if a new paragraph was added, or if several sentences were replaced, would an editor have to check the writing to make sure it is safe and appropriate. In this manner, critiques such as “expand upon your ideas further” could be listened to and instigated.

This is my suggestion to improve upon an already splendid site that has changed the lives of teen writers from all over the world. If my ideas are realized, I am sure that Teen Ink will find a fresh surge of creativity and happiness to everybody involved in the editing process. In this way, the quality of work would improve manifold, and Teen Ink would continue to be a very special place for young writers everywhere.
Yours truly,
Julian Mullins