A writing group is, according to many established authors, a fantastic tool in the arsenal of prospective (and successful) writers. For that reason, I’d love you to join our little writing club. It’ll be informal, is designed to be supportive and you by know means have to know me to join.
Want to join? Message me on Instagram, email ethanloughrey@gmail.com with the subject heading ‘Add me to the writing club’ or just send me text.
Writing Club Rules
Schedule:
Tuesdays – Confirm if you’ll be submitting this week via our WhatsApp group.
By Sunday – Send whatever work you’d like to the group for proofing.
By Monday evening – Group sends feedback to everyone.
How it works:
Giving feedback: The goal is NOT to hijack the story and say what you would like to see or happen. Be DESCRIPTIVE instead of PRESCRIPTIVE. So, “I found this part boring” rather than “Maybe include a fight scene here?”. Say how you felt (confused, excited, unsure) and why you felt (didn’t believe this character would do this) and not how you think it could be improved. Don’t hijack the story.
Be positive! Feedback can be hard to take so start with the things you like, otherwise the writer is likely to want to scrap the whole thing. “I laughed out loud at this part” and “This joke fell flat and was cringe worthy” are both worthy bits of advice.
Discussion: After reading the advice, discuss things with each other. Do not get bogged down in pet peeves. If the writer has heard what you’ve said and it still leaving something in, just drop it.
Receiving feedback: The initial part of the discussion though, the writer shouldn’t speak. Your writing group is a test audience and it’s important to let the others have their criticism. You can’t explain your thought process to them because you can’t explain it to the readers.
Importantly, don’t take anything personally – in the same way you don’t want anyone else to take your feedback personally. See if there are points you agree with, change them and move on.
