1 July 2001
Here at Dimsum we pride ourselves on doing our best to provide an
alternative voice from the heart of the British Chinese community. We are
passionate about finding new writers to give us their own perspective on
life, culture and growing up in Britain.

We get so excited when we see a new writer for the site that we have to sit
down for dan tarts and cocktails all round. It's that big of a thing.

Coz here it is: everyone has a story to tell. It's healthy! If you have a
truth to give, a rant to make, or simply an urge to see yourself in print,
please send it in.

You have two options really:

Comment

If you have a reply to someone's article, or an email, just get it down on
that keyboard of yours and press send. Don't even check your spellings -
we
can do that. This will go on the Comment section of the site, and add to
the lively and sometimes stroppy debate that goes on there.

Articles

If you wish to write something a little more formal, you could - yes, you! -
send us a piece for one of the following sections of the site:

Perspective
This is like an 'analysis' section where we talk about things going on in
the world, current affairs, that kind of thing, from a BBC perspective.

Culture
Here is where we take a look at the 'face' of chineseness in Britain. What
does it look like from the outside? Who's on TV, in films, on the web?
What makes you like the look of yourself?

Community
And what is it like from the inside, within the BBC community? What annoys
you? Is there something you've never figured out about growing up in two
cultures? Maybe others have that too?

You may have guessed by now, we really are passionate about new writing. It
would be great to have some new names on screen - and you may find a new
passion for writers too.

Subject areas

If you have the urge but nothing to write, how about some of these subjects
to get your words flowing:

• Sexuality - what's it like growing up chinese and gay?
• Asylum - detention or cruel intention?
• Food - what family dish can you just not live without? What do family
  dinners mean to you?
• Music - sick of popstars? Why are there still no chinese faces in the
  charts?

Style points

There's no special art to writing for the net. However, there are a few
simple things to keep in mind if you want to be snappy and sparkly:

• Bullet points can be nice, like here for instance.
• Short paragraphs always help. Thick wadges of text can be off-putting.
• Lots of titles. It may seem like you are treating your readers with real
  contempt but honestly you're not. They will thank you if they ever meet
  you.
• Leaders. There's a term in the printed press for tasty little
  introductions to get people excited. Whatever we call them, we like them
  all the same.
• Be personal. We're not asking for your shoe size or sexual preference,
  but it seems that pieces with a personal edge read well.
• Size isn't everything. Between 500 - 1000 words is just plenty. For a
  whopper article to maintain interest, you have to go extra heavy on all the
  above.

So, reader, there we have a user-friendly kit for finding your voice on the
net. Give it a shot!

Although we can't pay for any writing sent, we can offer the chance of your
own words being read by thousands of people on the net every month. And you
will be imprinting yourself on a culture that's a little lacking in chinese
voices.