It can be seen everywhere on the site. From the left sidebar that tells you how many GPs you have on hand, to emails telling you that you've received GPs for reviews, or even for raffles and auctions. GPs are everywhere! But what are they?

GPs is short for Gift Points, and it is the currency used on Writing.Com (WdC) to exchange "money", of sorts. You can even buy things in the WdC shop - real things, not just virtual ones - with your Gift Points, including subscriptions.

Each GP is not worth 1 cent. In fact, the GPs are unique in the fact that... each $1 gets you 10,000 GPs! That means that 100,000 GPs is worth $10, and 5,000 GPs is worth $0.50. 100 GPs are worth $0.01. This has both its benefits and its drawbacks.

A drawback would be that 4,000 GPs sounds like a lot, but in reality, it's only $0.40 worth. When going from GP to cash, the "exchange rate", of sorts, is at a disadvantage.

A benefit would be that you really can get a lot of GPs for a very little amount of money, and then you can participate quite a lot in what is going on around the site - ESPECIALLY the auctions and raffles. (Those are my favorites.)

GPs can be acquired in the shop, paying with a credit card, paypal, or other means. But that is only one way to get them! Here is a great list of ways to get some GPs.

The WdC Shop, as stated above.

Doing Reviews! Each review you do will earn you some GPs at the end of the day. PLUS, if you make them really good reviews, other members may reward you through the public review page - as long as you make your reviews public, that is.

You can win them! Many raffles exist on the site (I'll highlight some in the "Editor's Picks") that give GPs as prizes. For just a few GPs, you can earn the opportunity to gain many MORE GPs.

Logging in every day - yes, you heard that right. Every day that you log in, you earn some GPs.

Participate in some on-site writing contests - the winners often receive GPs, merit badges, and other awesome WdC rewards.