Textnovel

Founded by a literary agent, TEXTNOVEL bills itself as a social network for writers and readers. Authors can post stories, chapter by chapter, about any topic they want to write about -- although many center around popular themes like romance and young adult fiction. The site makes it easy for writers to submit material using computers, cell phones, or even text message, and offers them the chance to get their work read and receive feedback on it. Textnovel also includes a nifty function that allows users to make an in-progress story private so that only selected friends can read it before the story goes live. Nonfiction and fiction fans should also enjoy clicking around -- there's plenty to read. The site's only major drawback is that much of the content, while creative, isn't always kid-appropriate. Writers can post pretty much whatever they want, so kids who come to the site to read young adult fiction could easily stumble across a story about a stalker or stripper. Although stories contain a G, PG, PG-13 or R rating, the authors select it, so it's pretty subjective -- and there's really nothing stopping younger readers from reading an R-rated story.

Online interaction: Users can comment on authors' published stories or ask friends to offer advice on how to improve an in-progress story.