Inquiring minds want to know! I've tried a few avenues - twitter, writing meetups - but nothing has panned out. How did you go from strangers to buddies?
How did you make your first writer friend?
- Thread starter craftyjackrabbit
- Start date
My best friend is also a writer, and I met her when we worked together in WH Smith (a UK bookstore/newsagent/secondary level of hell) as teenagers. We attending a writing class together last year and it was great to meet other writers - I have to admit, though, that while I have their contact details I haven't actually been in touch since the course ended.
On a day to day basis, most of my writerly interaction happens on Twitter (and I do consider a few of them "friends"), or on here. Like most things, I would say that I think the key is actual interaction. No-one is going to seek you out and message you, or arrange to meet up, if you don't put the effort in too. It won't always be reciprocated, but it's a start.
On a day to day basis, most of my writerly interaction happens on Twitter (and I do consider a few of them "friends"), or on here. Like most things, I would say that I think the key is actual interaction. No-one is going to seek you out and message you, or arrange to meet up, if you don't put the effort in too. It won't always be reciprocated, but it's a start.
I took a writing class. When it ended, we passed around a sheet with phone numbers and emails which was photocopied and shared with all. I contacted some of the people and proposed a writing critique group, now in its 27th year. It's quite small now as members have drifted away or died, but we're close friends as well as fellow writers.
dpaterso
Also in our Discord and IRC chat channels
Staff member
Super Moderator
Moderator
Super Member
Registered
- Joined
- Feb 12, 2005
- Messages
- 18,806
- Reaction score
- 4,598
- Location
- Caledonia
- Website
- derekpaterson.net
Real life interaction, the very thought! There's a local writers' group in town, meets at the library, I've thought about going along, but nah. People allergies. I'm sure they're a perfectly nice bunch of folks and could teach me things.
Many moons ago I was friendly with some folks on another message board, gone now alas. Sometimes we wave hello on FB, there's a private group there, but people rarely talk. Different dynamics I guess.
I was also friendly with a few AW members for a while, mutual critiques kind of friendly. Alas I don't see them now, sometimes people move on. (Or they move on from me... ooooh, moment of profound realization, maybe I'm the problem.)
Currently I have a couple of writer buddies I met years ago in AW chat, we still talk most days and show each other new writings and give feedback and suggestions. I always get the short end of the stick and have to do most work though -- they write more than I do!
Thinking back, all my online relationships started with critiquing, which gets you talking, which gets you interested in each other.
-Derek
Many moons ago I was friendly with some folks on another message board, gone now alas. Sometimes we wave hello on FB, there's a private group there, but people rarely talk. Different dynamics I guess.
I was also friendly with a few AW members for a while, mutual critiques kind of friendly. Alas I don't see them now, sometimes people move on. (Or they move on from me... ooooh, moment of profound realization, maybe I'm the problem.)
Currently I have a couple of writer buddies I met years ago in AW chat, we still talk most days and show each other new writings and give feedback and suggestions. I always get the short end of the stick and have to do most work though -- they write more than I do!
Thinking back, all my online relationships started with critiquing, which gets you talking, which gets you interested in each other.
-Derek
I met my very first writing buddy at my previous job about 7-8 years ago. We worked across from each other and as we started to get to know each other, we learned we had both dabbled in writing but never finish a full draft. We vowed to help push each other to get to "The End" and with the help of a bunch of fun writing challenges we both finished our very first novels within a year. He was a great writing buddy, even though neither of us had any writing knowledge or experience, but we learned a lot together. Sadly, he left the company we were at and took a position somewhere else with a lot more responsibilities and stopped writing all together. I tried to stay in contact with him, but as time went on, that contact became less and less and it's been a couple of years now since I talked to him.
I didn't have a true writing buddy for quite a while after him. I put writing on hold for a couple of years and when I jumped back in, I started going to writing conferences and became more active on this forum and on Critters. I met my current writing buddy through Critters last year after she critiqued my pages and we continued to talk and learned we lived about 15 minutes away from each other.
Never give up on finding a good writing buddy! During the years between my first buddy and my current one, I tried to connect with a lot of other authors, either at conferences or through the interwebs. While I have nothing against any of those authors, our personalities just didn't meld well together. Keep reaching out to people and connecting with other authors and someday you'll find someone that you connect with. My suggestion is to start by seeking beta readers or offering to beta for someone else. Start slow, with swapping the first chapter or so and see where it goes from there. You'll probably find a lot of authors that don't seem like the right fit, and that's perfectly okay, but eventually you'll find someone you get along with really well.
I didn't have a true writing buddy for quite a while after him. I put writing on hold for a couple of years and when I jumped back in, I started going to writing conferences and became more active on this forum and on Critters. I met my current writing buddy through Critters last year after she critiqued my pages and we continued to talk and learned we lived about 15 minutes away from each other.
Never give up on finding a good writing buddy! During the years between my first buddy and my current one, I tried to connect with a lot of other authors, either at conferences or through the interwebs. While I have nothing against any of those authors, our personalities just didn't meld well together. Keep reaching out to people and connecting with other authors and someday you'll find someone that you connect with. My suggestion is to start by seeking beta readers or offering to beta for someone else. Start slow, with swapping the first chapter or so and see where it goes from there. You'll probably find a lot of authors that don't seem like the right fit, and that's perfectly okay, but eventually you'll find someone you get along with really well.
All of my "Writer Friends" are at AW - Met them here 10 years ago (come this May), and they are the Best. Peeps. Evah! 
I met some writer friends at a writer's group my mom's friend is doing. She invited me to it and I was introduced to her nieces, her friends' children and I saw her sons there and that's how I made friends with them there.