Joined a writing group

indianroads said:

I've joined a writing group, which is a new thing for me; I tend to be reclusive, so it's a bit of a stretch. Pikes Peak Writers has been around for a while, they have meetings, critique sessions, and host book signings, so they seem legit. I've signed on to attend one of their meetings that's toward the end of August; it's being held in the back room of a local bar, so maybe it will be fine - even I turn social after a few beers.

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Cool! That seems like a good group!

indianroads said:

I've joined a writing group, which is a new thing for me; I tend to be reclusive, so it's a bit of a stretch. Pikes Peak Writers has been around for a while, they have meetings, critique sessions, and host book signings, so they seem legit. I've signed on to attend one of their meetings that's toward the end of August; it's being held in the back room of a local bar, so maybe it will be fine - even I turn social after a few beers.

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Hope it is GREAT.

You might see feedback all over the board. About 90% of the people that try one of our local groups do not stick with it. Some say it is too critical for their taste. Others say it is the wrong mix of genres compared to what they are writing. Others say we don't seem like serious writers ('All righty then. Don't let the door hit you on your way out...') The ten percent that become regulars are a great crowd--supportive and critical and a good sounding board.

But meetings can be different one meeting to the next--and since writers might tend toward introversion as a group, you will be with people trying to break out of their introversion and that is not always a normal dynamic, however, it is good.

Another thing--People that are writing memoir occasionally pop in, and they often have personal stories they are writing, and these can be very, very heavy. Like crime scene level heavy. Other writers in the group use very similar premises as a basis of entertainment.

You can imagine the awkward moments that sometimes happen as a result.

I love the in-person groups fro two reasons--I've got a gang and we all know one another's work to an extent that we can dive deep with ideas. This is so valuable. And two, the deadline keeps me writing and revising. No procrastination.

indianroads said:

I've joined a writing group, which is a new thing for me; I tend to be reclusive, so it's a bit of a stretch. Pikes Peak Writers has been around for a while, they have meetings, critique sessions, and host book signings, so they seem legit. I've signed on to attend one of their meetings that's toward the end of August; it's being held in the back room of a local bar, so maybe it will be fine - even I turn social after a few beers.

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I hope it works out well for you.

It's always a roll of the dice when you join a writing group, but IF you end up in a good one, it's one of the fastest ways to level up your writing. I cannot recommend a good writing group enough, in the same way I cannot stress enough how quickly you should ditch a bad writing group if you realize you're in one.

If you see fellow writers all trying to help each other improve, you're probably good to go. If it feels a bit cult-like with a clear ringleader, and awards and punishments being meted out, you should probably bail quickly.

Shoeless said:

It's always a roll of the dice when you join a writing group, but IF you end up in a good one, it's one of the fastest ways to level up your writing. I cannot recommend a good writing group enough, in the same way I cannot stress enough how quickly you should ditch a bad writing group if you realize you're in one.

If you see fellow writers all trying to help each other improve, you're probably good to go. If it feels a bit cult-like with a clear ringleader, and awards and punishments being meted out, you should probably bail quickly.

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This ^

I have a great critique group. But I also tried five other groups at the same-ish time to find the one that worked for me.

A bit over a month ago I was at an event hosted by my local library and the idea was floated for organising a writers’ group. Today I received an email inviting all interested parties to meet with a view towards finding out which times were most suitable for anyone still wishing to move forward.

I’m really keen on the idea (I only know one other writer IRL and we’re still at the ‘new’ stage) but have heard so many stories of what can go wrong. In some ways a writers’ group can be a microcosm of small town cliquey mentality and I’m not a fan of that kind of thing. I’m actually not too concerned about how it will pan out, but would certainly prefer for it to succeed than to fail. It’s certainly worth making the initial effort to see where it leads. The other people I met with at the first meeting all seemed genuinely interested but it’s probably fair to say that most people are on their best behaviour when they are introduced. It’s only when someone wants to be the big dog that things start going sideways.

But yes, encouraging signs.

Other advantages include how different your work looks and sounds when you are sharing in a small group, compared to working solo, and along those lines, it helps a person get over the fear of submitting work to strangers.

The occasional 'top dog' that shows up and tries to take over/throw weight around usually doesn't get much traction around here--those groups dwindle to nothing pretty quick and it becomes fairly clear why, and the so-called top dog usually gets the hint. It has happened a couple times.

And sometimes feeling that someone is trying to run the show boils down to a simple misunderstanding--and keeping a practice/guideline of using 'critique sandwiches' (this is good/this needs work/this is good) instead of just criticism does wonders to prevent those. And, adhering to time limits per excerpt, etc, also helps.

indianroads said:

I've joined a writing group, which is a new thing for me; I tend to be reclusive, so it's a bit of a stretch. Pikes Peak Writers has been around for a while, they have meetings, critique sessions, and host book signings, so they seem legit. I've signed on to attend one of their meetings that's toward the end of August; it's being held in the back room of a local bar, so maybe it will be fine - even I turn social after a few beers.

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Hey! Fellow Coloradan here!

I haven't attended any of the Pikes Peak Writers groups, but I did attend the Pikes Peak Writers conference last year and it was a blast! If you haven't attended one of the conferences, I highly recommend it. The Pikes Peak and Rocky Mountain Fiction Writers conferences are some of the best experiences I've had with social writing events.

I'm not really a writers group type of person, but the knowledge and experience I gain every time I go to one of these conferences has been invaluable.

As others have pointed out, groups differ. I've been in several over the years and bailed on most, usually because they just were not right for ME, not that they were bad in general. But the ones which fit me and my needs, they were very useful and helped me a lot to progress. Keep looking, and we can hope you find one which suits YOU.

Pikes Peak Writers is definitely a legit group with a long history of doing writer stuff. I'm not in that area & haven't been involved with any of their activities or conferences, but I know people who have been. My impression is that it's very diverse, in terms of the level & seriousness of craft, but that it can be both useful and fun. ("Write drunk, edit sober" is apparently a favorite event.) Also that the organization, as an organization, seems to be somewhat disorganized & dysfunctional, but that may be a passing phase. PM me if you want a contact name who might be able to tell you more about it.

I hope it's a good fit for you! I've had exceptionally good luck with the groups I'm in, so much so that I travel an hour each way for the meetings (which are monthly, so it's but a mild inconvenience). It helps that I'm an extrovert, but both of my groups have made me a much better writer, both through critique and just by being around other people who "get it."

Hopefully this is a good and helpful experience for you!

I took a creative writing class in college and it was great however some of the students stopped showing up because they didn't like sharing their work every week. A writer's group can be like that.

The only writer's group I was ever a part of was when I first started and I left after about a year because nobody really showed up. Some people only showed up to promote their own book. Others showed up but never brought any writing, and for some it was just a social event. There were times where three people showed up and nobody even talked about writing, instead they would talk about their day or how they want to spend their summer vacation. They are not always good. Some though, I have heard, can be very useful. Hopefully that will be your experience.

indianroads said:

I went to my first meeting tonight and had a great time. About 15 writers showed up. The meeting was well run and discussion lively.

I’m looking forward to the next meeting.

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Glad it worked out!!

Now that I live in a city, I have located several writing groups. I thought about joining one. I thought again. I might think about it again next month, or maybe next year.

I have been in a couple of writing groups over the years, but they never really worked for me. I tend to keep my own counsel. One-on-one with another writer has been useful for me.

Pike's Peak is a well known and well regarded organization (I won an award in one of their contests years ago). Make the most you can of it.

I'd love to have a few someones to talk with about writing, but I don't like the idea of sitting in a group and critiquing other people's work, or having mine critiqued that way. It just seems tedious — at best. Still, there's one group here that meets in a restaurant. I'm guessing their format is pretty casual or maybe nonexistent. Just my style.