Critique Circle #1 (North American-centric) 2011/2012 Thread

Hi guys! Happy new year!

Just a post to start off 2013: If you haven't gotten my email and still want to be part of the crit circle, PM me your email address so we make sure you're on the list going forward so you don't miss any of the great pieces we get to crit.

Reminder: Crit chat is every 2nd and 4th Friday of each month (holidays are worked around as they come up) at 8:30 PM Central time in the IRC chat channel (not main chat)

See you all at next session
~Kit

Kitcat, how is the critique circle supposed to work for novels? Do we get on the list to critique chapters as we progress with the book? If so, I see a problem with new critters not being familiar with the story. Do we write a short synopsis at the beginning, to bring everybody up to date? That could get a little long as the story progresses.

This is something of a problem with my regular weekly crit group, which is smaller and meets more often, so I'm wondering how people have handled it here.

Calli's material this week is a re-write, so that would pose no problem. But what about chapter 20?

Any clarification would really be helpful, since I'm currently slugging along through chapter 12 of my book.

Thanks.

With sections of novels, when you're critting 5k pieces and under, we're not looking at plot, so knowing all the events that happened before chapter 20 isn't necessary. What we look at is all of the same as in any piece, clarity, problems in narration or dialogue, pov problems, any problems that stick out to make any length of piece confusing or hard to read. When you find those in a chapter in the middle of a novel, it gives you a good idea that you might have had those same problems throughout so they're things that can help the overrall WIP.

Thanks, KitCat. I asked because I write mystery, and readers often get confused if they're not immersed in the story. I'll give it a shot one of these days if I have a chapter that is particularly troublesome. I got very good feedback on my first few chapters.

Hi KitCat! I'm severely new to AW and I'm interested in joining a crit group. I'm not looking to submit anything yet but I'm figuring that with all the other participants, my turn would be far down the line anyway. Is this a good place to start? I've looked back through several pages of posts on this thread but, I'll admit, I haven't gone through all of them. I'm not certain if this is currently a closed group. Let me know and Thanks!

Hi Elaine Welcome to AW!

It's definitely not a closed group and there's actually another one, depending on what time zone works out better for you.

This one, the North American group meets at 8:30 pm CST 2nd and 4th friday of the month.

The European one meets at 3pm GMT first sunday of the month.

It's perfectly fine if you just want to crit instead of submit pieces, we don't really take turns but go along the lines of whoever's ready and wants to step forward and then kinda work out the schedule from there

Circle takes place in an IRC chat channel, this link will give you instructions: http://absolutewrite.com/forums/showthread.php?t=178738

If you want to join, pm me your email and i can add you

I can't get in to chat tonight. It doesn't seem to like me anymore.

PM me with the details joey, also if you're using java, the irc clients are much easier, i can walk you through getting one if you need help

Sorry I missed tonight's session. I'm sitting at my desk, working on my novel, when I suddenly realized it's critique night--only it's after midnight.

I need a reminder! And this thread has so little activity, it takes me forever to find it, to issue my apology.

I'll mark my calendar for the next one and try to remember. Hope it was a good session!

Where'd everybody go?

We're still going, you're welcome to join us, PM me your email if you want to join in.