What ways do people use this forum/service/community to move forward in their careers? I know it seems like a basic question, but I feel like there might be more I could be gaining from my experience here; it's always interesting to hear how others have utilised a resource or an environment.
It's certainly true different people use this site for different things. Like Jonathan, I post questions here and seek support from others on the same path. I don't share work for criticism. The excerpt I've posted is merely to give people a taste of my work. I'm not a huge fan of online critiquing and think the best thing about this site is that you don't have to offer opinions on the work of others. W&A is an open house for anyone with a question and that's quite unusual where writing forums are concerned. Given that writing is such a solitary pastime, I think the ability to reach out to others and share the little anecdotes of our publishing journeys is invaluable.
I tend not to post excerpts - I use a peer-review site (www.youwriteon.com). For the simple reason that this is more a 'friendly' community and I found reviews tended to be a bit...let's say un-critical, which is flattering but not really what I'm after.
I use the site for this type of stuff: the questions and comments. They're unfailingly helpful and, most importantly, varied. I find it valuable seeing how others deal with problems and what their writing likes and dislikes are. Because they're all readers, too, so (on a tiny scale, admittedly) we hope we're writing something they'll want to buy.
Clumsy way of saying every member's views are important :)
Well, the basic advantage here, as you know it is- you get feedback and advice to improve your work and increasing your chances of publication. You can also maybe advertise your work, if its published. And take me for example I learn a lot here, because of the vast amount of different works here, and reading develops your writing- it's a fact, so if you want to be a writer, this place is very helpful, and it helps you get a basic understanding of what you need to do, while trying new things, such as genre's, by looking at many works of that category, so it gives you a broader view and scope and helps develop better understanding and knowledge of things( I previously didn't know what a slush pile was) and so it just pushes you forward in your career of writing.