Being a Better Writer: Finding a Good Writing Group · 9:44pm Jan 15th, 2018
Welcome back readers! Ready for more Being a Better Writer? I am! And with one of the more requested topics of the last few months. But first ...
That's right, it's time for the news. Two things to discuss, snap-quick, and then we'll be on to the post.
The first is that whoa, did Friday's Op-Ed on The Indie Hypocrisy blow up. Not with views, though it did do really well there, but with thoughts. I've had posts hit 5,000 views that got less commentary than this piece. At the moment, split between here and another discussion forum the piece was linked, I'm clocking twenty-five comments (up to thirty as of the posting of this article, discussing the concept with both other posters, offering their own thoughts on the matter, and just in general making their voices heard on the topic. And as much as I'd like to reply here ... this is a Being a Better Writer post. That said, the sheer volume of long, thought-out responses is more than enough to warrant a follow-up post to get everyone's ideas and suggestions out into the open. So that's scheduled for later this week.
Second bit of news: Patreon Supporters, expect your December reward this week. Apologies for the delay, but I was really determined to finish that draft of Jungle.
Okay, that's the updates out of the way, let's talk about writing groups.
We're going to start with a giant disclaimer. The kind that comes with a flashing neon sign, and would be said by someone speaking 128 words-per-minute in a radio ad: Only once have I ever been in a writing group. It was for a period of several months, during one of my college creative writing courses. That said, it was still a writing group, and I gave my participation my all. But with only the one writing group under my belt ... realize that my perspective on things may be a bit skewed. Most of what else I know about writing groups comes from second-hand advice and stories collected from other authors.
Crud, I'm not even in a writing group now. And honestly, I'm not really interested in joining one. But does that mean you shouldn't be?
Absolutely not.
Heh, with all the listing of things to watch out for, it's going to scare people away from writer's groups for sure!
I'll just add a couple more benefits then...
In addition to feedback and critique, a writer's group can also provide cross-promotion and collaboration.
My one 'legitimately' published title is because I participated in my group's annual short story anthology project (all proceeds go to the group, and since the anthology sold 100 copies or so between ebook and print, we no longer need to charge dues). And, while I was at book signings for that one, I actually managed to get a couple new readers for my MLP stories, as well as quite a few who expressed interest in the novel I'm polishing. For this year's round, I'll be on the editing board for the anthology.
Which kind of fits into another big benefit: resume-building. Because of the anthology, I can claim one (soon to be two) titles on my 'resume'. And they're not even technically self-published; the group officially acted as the publisher. Not only that, but because the group is small, but has an official-sounding name, they hand out awards like candy. Which makes me not only a 'published' author, but an 'award-winning' author. When you get into the nitty-gritty of just how I got those platitudes, it's not at all impressive ... but at first glance, to a prospective publisher or on an Amazon page, it looks good and may help make that sale. (Not to mention the resume potential of working on the editing board! ocalhoun: award winning author, co-editor. Sounds impressive, no?)
4774444
You know, that wasn't my intent, but I think you may be on to something here I may have accidentally made that a message without desiring to.
With that in mind, would you mind if I quoted a good portion of your post and added it into the main post as an addition? I feel your "here's my experience" adds a bit that my lack leaves wanting in the main post.
4774591
Sure, go for it! ^.^
Something that I don't quite understand is why some people[1] who write think it's harder to edit[2], or for whatever reason, still shy away from it. Years ago, I decided that I was going to be a little more serious about this writing hobby, so I looked for ways to get involved in, well, anything on this site. I had written perhaps 20,000 words of so-so material and read several times that in writing advice/what-have-you. I volunteered to read through a random user's story and provide critical feedback rather than publish my own works because I didn't know if mine were even okay. Shortly thereafter, Kwakerjak asked for volunteers to look over his original short story for those last few errors that he and his proofreaders would be glossing over at that point.
And that's how I got involved with what I think counts as a "writing group". There's a lot in common with Kwak's editing/proofreading group and what you've defined as a good writing group, but we don't actually meet in person, and aren't even necessarily online at the same time. Between a decent Instant Messenger[4] and Google Docs, we have an easy time doing all the sharing and collaborating that it seems you'd expect from a writing group, and nobody has to turn around and get something read or written up by the end of the week because it's completely asynchronous[5].
4774444 is definitely right about the cross-promotion and collaboration. I've found that the single most helpful thing for improving my writing was to edit for others and get to watch the processes of several different people. Reading a lot of completed works can help you figure out what your end goal is, but watching them go from "I've got an idea" to notes, scraps, and snippets, to a draft? That and seeing that people who write great things still backtrack or ask questions when they need to is a different experience, not to mention the discussions that take place, on writing mechanics or otherwise. Writing on my own has helped me as an editor[6], but editing has done wonders for my writing.
[1] It seems like a lot of them, in my experience
[2] Why do "edit", "proofread", and "pre-read" have such contested definitions? All of the above will work here, though[3].
[3] Sans cleaning up grammar/spelling – I know some people legitimately have trouble with those.
[4] When we moved to Discord, I did jokingly give Kwak the role of "King". I chuckled when I read that part in this BaBW.
[5] This does come with all the downsides as well, so it isn't necessarily superior – just an option that doesn't seem to be mentioned in the post.
[6] Instead of just pointing out problems, I can also offer or help work out solutions.