35 Years a Writer, 35 Lessons Learned

by Jane McBride

 

 

 
 
(Note:  This article is from the new January 2018 edition of Children’s Book Insider, the Children’s Writing Monthly.  To learn more about this essential tool for all kidlit writers, click here.)

 
 
 

Thirty-five years have passed since my first writing was published. Thirty-five years in the crazy business of writing have taught me a number of things. Thirty-five years have also taught me that I have much still to learn. But today we’ll start with what I’ve learned thus far. My hope is this list will shorten your own learning curve.

 

1. Writing is a business. Treat it as such.

 

2. Treat yourself as a business person. If you don’t respect yourself as both a writer and a business person, how can you expect others to treat you that way?

 

3. Keep records. Keep very, very good records. You never know when you’ll be audited, as my husband and I were five years ago.

 

4. Keep on top of your taxes. Do you need to make quarterly tax payments? Penalties are no fun.

 

5. Keep track of your expenses. Do you think that it’s too much trouble to record your mileage to a meeting or postage costs? Think again. Every penny counts.

 

6. Invest in yourself. If you can swing it, attend writers’ conferences. Subscribe to industry periodicals such as CBI, The Writer, Children’s Bookshelf (twice-weekly newsletter electronic newsletter from Publishers Weekly), etc.

 

7. Invest in good equipment. You wouldn’t try to cook professionally without the right tools. The same applies to writing.

 

8. Network. Even if you are an introvert, as many writers are, learn to network. You needn’t become a social butterfly at conferences, but don’t spend all of your time in your room. Engage others in conversation.

 

9. Have a support group. Writing is a solitary business. One of the best things you can do for yourself and for your career is to find a group of like-minded people. If you belong to a professional organization, see if there is a chapter in your area. If there isn’t, consider starting one. Or join an online group.

 

10. Find a mentor. A mentor can guide you in your writing, offer critiques, and tell you when you’ve gone off track.

 

11. Be a mentor. I’m a firm believer in giving back. Mentor a less experienced member of your writers group. Mentor a young writer at your local high school. You’ll learn much in teaching others.

 

12. Work to first learn and then improve your craft. Do you expect a surgeon to decide he wants to practice medicine and then start operating the next day? Of course not. You want a surgeon to have the necessary training and skills before he performs an operation. Then why do we expect to be skilled writers without learning how to write? Take classes. Attend workshops and conferences. Above all, practice your craft and write.

 

13. Don’t take the first offer that comes your way. In our eagerness to sell a book, especially a first book, it’s tempting to take the first offer, even a bad one.

 

14. Be wary of scams that pop up in the industry such as book doctors and others who claim they can fast-track your career. Some are legitimate; some are not. Always do your research before paying anyone to edit your manuscript or help you self-publish.

 

15. Remember that no agent is better than a bad agent. Don’t be in such a hurry to sign with an agent. Do your due diligence and check out any agent or agency before you sign.

 

16. Understand that a contract with an agent does not mean you are married to him or her, but that you will be “bound together” for the lifetime of any book he or she sells for you.

 

17. Don’t burn your bridges. Leave any agency or publishing house with good feelings on both sides. Any bad-mouthing about editors or agents on your part can and probably will come back to bite you.

 

18. Keep in touch. When an editor leaves your publishing house, it pays to stay in touch. The same goes for agents and other industry professionals.

 

19. Volunteer. Volunteer at your writers’ chapter, at conferences. Volunteer at bookfairs and the library. You will not only be giving back, you will also be making valuable contacts.

 

20. Establish working hours. When you’re writing, you’re working. Let your family and friends know that.

 

21. Don’t be afraid to say no. A few years ago, I received an offer to buy a book from a new publishing company. Something felt fishy about the offer, and I turned it down. In the end, I’m glad I did. The company proved not to be reputable.

 

22. Don’t be afraid to say no to family and friends. This goes back to treating yourself as a professional and expecting others to do the same. It’s tempting for others, when they learn that you work from home, to say, “Since you’re not working, will you ‘Let the repairman in,’ ‘Watch my sick child,’ Bake seven dozen cupcakes for the school bake sale,’ etc.” Smile politely and say, “I’m sorry, but I am working.”

 

23. Give yourself a break now and then. It’s wonderful to write every day (or whatever your schedule is), but it’s okay to take a break once in a while. You need to experience life to write about it.

 

24. Don’t beat yourself up when you can’t make your word count. Double down the next day. The important thing is that you keep writing.

 

25. Treat rejection as part of the learning curve. Rejections are a way of life for many writers, including me. After selling 36 books and hundreds of stories and articles, I still receive rejections with depressing frequency.

 

26. Respect your editor and/or agent. Don’t pester them with constant calls, texts, or emails. It’s okay to stay in contact, just don’t overwhelm them.

 

27. Meet your deadlines. Publishing houses operate on strict deadlines. If you don’t meet yours, you may put a crimp in the entire schedule.

 

28. If you can’t meet a deadline, let your editor know as soon as possible. Editors realize that emergencies happen. Give yours a heads-up if it becomes apparent that you can’t meet a deadline.

 

29. Be prepared to have financial dry spells. What happens if your last book doesn’t sell well? Can you still make the mortgage and buy groceries? (See # 30.)

 

30. Think twice before quitting your day job. Royalties can be delayed and/or be spotty. It helps to have the cushion of a regular paycheck to fall back on.

 

31. Know how many books you can reasonably expect to produce in a year. Set a realistic goal and then do your best to meet it.

 

32. Don’t be so quick to send off a book. Revise and polish, revise and polish again.

 

33. Stay current. Know what’s happening in your genre. Keep up with the latest trends. You don’t have to write to them, but you should know what is going on.

 

34. Find an outlet outside of writing. Writing is not just a business, but a form of expression as well. It helps to have another outlet to replenish your well of creativity.

 

35. Keep learning. A woman in my writing chapter expressed surprise when I mentioned that I had just returned from a writers’ conference. “With all the books you’ve published, I’m amazed that you that you still attend conferences,” she said. I replied, “I hope I never feel that I don’t need to learn something.”

 

 

Well, there you have it—35 lessons learned, many of them the hard way!

 

---

 

Jane McBride is the author of 36 novels, numerous short stories and articles including pieces in 16 Chicken Soup for the Soul anthologies . Follow her writing blog at http://ift.tt/2EqH3z5

 

 
 

You’re Registered for the Middle Grade / YA Webinar!

Awesome — you’re in!

 

The webinar will take place September 19 at 5 PM Pacific, 8 PM Eastern.  It’s should last about an hour and it’s completely free.

 

We will have a replay available starting the day after, but you will need to be on live to ask Laura and Alice questions.

 

Here’s how to access the webinar (we’ll send you these instructions again before the event begins):

 

A few minutes before the scheduled start, please click the link below to join the webinar:
http://ift.tt/2FlQ7q6

 

Or iPhone one-tap :
US: +14086380968,,117622143# or +16468769923,,117622143#

Or (as a backup) Telephone：
408/638 0968 or 646/876 9923
The webinar ID is 117622143

 

 

Now, please take just a few minutes to watch this important video from your co-host, Alice Kuipers:

 

 

 

The Writing Blueprints Holiday Flash Sale is ON!

You do not know how long I have been waiting for something like this. With my new Writing Blueprint I am confident that I will be able to finish my book.   I am literally in tears and can nearly see the keyboard. Thanks and love to you all.   Mark S.

It’s that time!      Our 4 Day Holiday 2017 Flash Sale is now officially on. For the next four days, you’ll save 25% on EVERYTHING on the Writing Blueprints site.     ALL our Blueprints are on sale, including:   Picture Book Blueprint Picture Book/Easy Reader Bundle and Easy Reader Upgrade Chapter Book Blueprint Middle Grade / Young Adult Blueprint Self-Publishing Blueprint   Plus, you’ll save 25% on all our specialty tools, including:   Picture eBook Mastery Book Marketing Power Bundle School Visits Made Easy Dialogue Made Easy Time Management and Goal Setting for Writers   ….and more!     Here’s how to get in on the fun:   1. Go to http://ift.tt/2zatDaV to see everything that’s available.   2. When you’ve chosen an item, get the 25% discount by using this coupon code on the checkout page (just click where it says “Add Coupon”):   2017   Not too creative a coupon code, but easy to remember, right?   And yes — you can use this coupon multiple times for as many items as you like.   (Not sure what a Writing Blueprint is? Head over to http://ift.tt/2ajYBD1and watch our fun video that explains it all. You’ll be blown away by this radical new innovation that makes writing a great book downright easy!)       Want to Buy Writing Blueprints as a Gift?   Now you can give our full Writing Blueprints (Picture Book, Chapter Book, YA/Middle Grade or Self-Publishing) as as a gift.   If you want to buy a killer gift for someone, go to the page listed above (http://ift.tt/2zatDaV) and scroll to the bottom. You’ll see “Give Any Blueprint as a Gift”. Click that and follow the instructions.   And yes, you CAN use your promo code when purchasing a gift, so you’ll save big on that too!        One more time, here’s the link for all the products included in the Flash Sale:   http://ift.tt/2zatDaV   And here’s your 25% Off Coupon Code:   2017   Happy shopping!

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Understanding the “New Adult Fiction” Category

by Jane Choate

 

 

What is new adult fiction?

 

New adult fiction bridges the gap between young adult and adult books. It typically features protagonists between the ages of 18 and 26. The label was first used in 2009 when St. Martin’s Press hosted a contest looking for stories that could be marketed to both young adult and adult readers. The contest described for new adult fiction as books “with protagonists who are slightly older than YA and can appeal to an adult audience.” Put simply, new adult is the age category after YA.

 

New adult fiction books concentrate on issues such as leaving home, developing sexuality, suffering with chemical depression, coming of age (both legally and emotionally), and wading through a myriad of choices in education and career. The genre has gained popularity rapidly over the last few years, particularly through books by self-published and bestselling authors like Jamie McGuire, Colleen Hoover, Darlene Gardner, Megan Abbott, and Cora Carmack The term has now become widely accepted with most traditional publishers now publishing new adult books and Goodreads, Amazon and Kobo adding it as an official cateory. Entangled Publishing has developed its own NA imprint, Embrace, while Random House had also launched an NA imprint, the digital-only Flirt. Other publishers are marketing the books under their adult or YA imprints.

 

The chief features that distinguish this category from YA fiction are the perspective of the main character and the scope of his/her life experiences. Parents with kids of this age know that there is a vast difference between a new high school graduate who is barely 18 and a home-for-the-summer 19-year-old who has just returned from two semesters of college.

 

This difference has less to do with chronological age and more to do with the greater feelings of independence and selfreliance. At the same time, these characters are struggling to find their own place in the world. They question the attitudes and values with which they were raised and are finding out for themselves what they believe, not just what their parents told them to believe.

 

New adult fiction works to capture the perspective gained as the cares and concerns of childhood fade and life experience is gained, which brings (we hope) greater insight and widom. Characters of this age are building their own lives. They may be living away from home for the first time and handling such problems as dealing with supporting themselves financially, balancing checkbooks, finding themselves overdrawn on their credit cards, and other life experiences.

 

Another major difference between young adult and new adult fiction is that of content in terms of sexually explicit language, and more mature situations such as suicide, alcoholism, and drug abuse. Though some YA books have dealt with these issues in the past, NA books take a different viewpoint with the characters facing and owning up to poor decisions and their long-term consequences.

 

Not every NA book will have such content, but many do and make no apologies for it. Other potentially controversial subjects include date rape and sexual assault.

 

Lighter topics are also addressed such as looking for a first apartment, dealing with roommates, and even finding the perfect wedding planner. No subject is offlimits, whether it be light and whimsical or darker and more serious. Like any fiction, the new adult genre can have crossovers, combining with science fiction, fantasy, romance, historical, mystery, or suspense.

 

If you have a manuscript featuring an 18 – 26 year old main character who is struggling to find his own identity and growing in self-awareness, consider the new adult market. Editors and agents alike, not to mention readers, are actively seeking new authors who can engage them and speak their language.

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Writing for Children & Teens: Simple Steps to Understand Your Readers

by Jane Choate

 

In various writers’ groups over the years, I have heard a number of writers who say, usually with a certain degree of self-righteousness, “I don’t write for others.  I write for myself.”  That’s great.  For the rest of us, though, those who have struggled to get published and who are struggling to stay published, it doesn’t work.  We write for ourselves, yes, but we write for others as well.  We want our words to have an audience.  Just as a painter or a sculptor wants his works to be viewed and composers want their music to be heard, writers want their work to be read.  For it is in the reading that the work comes alive.

 

But anyone who writes for children and teens must ultimately answer a key question — just who is that audience?  Are we writing picture books?  In that case, the audience is the toddler and pre-school set; it is also the parents of those children as they are likely the ones to be reading the books to their children.  Are we writing for early readers?  For the ‘tween set?  For young adults?  Knowing your audience is key.  Knowing their tastes, their needs, their wants, their expectations is vital in penning the kind of stories that will touch their hearts and minds.

 

If you aren’t certain who your audience is, try one or more of the following steps:

 

STEP 1:  Know yourself.  If you don’t know yourself, how are you going to know your audience?  Know your comfort zone.  Know what makes you uncomfortable.  If you aren’t comfortable with angst-filled stories, you may want to steer clear of writing coming-of-age books.  Know your likes and dislikes.  Know your emotional and spiritual self.  If faith is important to you, you may find that you want to write for the growing Christian market. 

 

ACTION:  Ask yourself some questions.  Do you enjoy being around babies and toddlers and early grade-schoolers, but older children and teens send you running in the opposite direction?  If so, don’t be afraid to admit it.  Own that and embrace the fact that you are probably most comfortable writing for the preschool and early reader set.  Likewise, if you enjoy the humor and sometimes angst of older children, such as ‘tweens and young teenagers, you will want to focus your efforts there.  Or maybe you want to create stories for the YA market, to touch the lives of those teens who are on the cusp of adulthood.

 

 

STEP 2:  Familiarize yourself with what’s being written now for the age group for which you are aiming your work.  It’s wonderful to read the classics such as Laura Ingalls Wilder’s Little House series, Mark Twain’s Tom Sawyer, and Louisa May Alcott’s Little Women etc.,  but it’s imperative that you know what publishers are printing now

 

ACTION:  Read.  Read widely in your targeted age group.   Go to your library—a librarian can be a writer’s best friend—and ask for a recommended reading list.  If you have children or grandchildren in this age group, you have a leg up, as you are already familiar with what kids are reading.  Read books in other age groups as well.  You want to know the differences between a board book and a book penned for the almost-reader and to understand what sets a middle grade book apart from one written for the ‘tween age group.  Pay attention to vocabulary.  Books for very little children repeat words over and over.   For older children, the vocabulary is more varied.  Read pages aloud and listen to the rhythm.  This is particularly important in writing for small children who love repetition, not just of words but of sounds and sentence structure.

 

ACTION:  Subscribe to industry periodicals such as Children’s Book Insider.  Treat yourself to a current copy of Writer’s Market.  Learn what publishers are looking for in the varied children’s and teen markets.  Learn what agents are representing the kind of books you want to write and what their targeted audience is.

 

ACTION:  Go to places where you can find your audience and hang out with them.  For example, picture book writers can volunteer in a preschool or kindergarten.  Teachers LOVE volunteers.  Don’t be afraid to pick the brain of a teacher.  Teachers know what kids like to read and what they avoid like the plague.  If you’re writing stories for the middle-grade group, go to a third or fourth grade classroom.   If you belong to a church, offer to teach Sunday School.  If you don’t have children or grandchildren of your own, volunteer to tend the children of a busy young mother.  Not only will you learn more about children, you’ll be doing a tremendous service for a woman who works harder than any brick-layer! 

 

Young adult writers need to be online where teens are hanging out (teen book bloggers are a good place to start).  Watch current TV shows for different age groups, especially MG (middle grade) and YA.   Pay attention to the commercials that are sponsoring the shows.  You can learn a great deal from what products are being advertised and how they are marketed.  Go to movies.  Find out who the current super heroes are and who the heartthrobs are.

 

For picking up on teen language and behavior, there’s no better place than a mall where kids roam the stores in packs.  Settle in at a food court and listen.  Be prepared to take notes, but don’t spend all your time scribbling in a notebook.  Absorb the nuances of interaction between the teens.   Identify the leader and the followers and watch the “pecking order” in action.   Note what the kids are wearing.  Fashion is a spot-on commentator.  Each generation has its own style.  The ripped jeans and cold shoulder tops of today are the poodle skirt and twin set of the ‘50s   

 

 

STEP 3: Fit in.  No, I’m not suggesting you try to join a clique of middle-schoolers.  (As if they’d let you in!)   Once you’ve established your audience, learn what is appropriate for the different age groups.  You wouldn’t pen a gritty story of a child watching his parents’ marriage dissolve into a bitter divorce for a picture book, but you might write such a story for a ‘tween audience.  What is right for a YA novel won’t be right for a middle grade one.  Note:  I’m not saying that you can’t tackle tough subjects for younger children, only that your tone, vocabulary, and other aspects will be entirely different than they would be for an older audience.  

 

ACTION:  Read again.  Read this time with an eye and ear to the subtleties in language and style and tone and subject matter in books for various age groups.  At what age can you talk about sexual activity and LGBT issues?  What about cutting and other forms of self-mutilation and eating disorders?  When is it okay to use curse words?  Or is it ever okay? (This goes back to knowing yourself and what you’re comfortable with.  For myself, I couldn’t use offensive language in writing for children of any age.)

 

 

Learning to know your audience is like any other writing skill, such as crafting characters, strengthening conflict, and writing sparkling dialogue  You become better with practice.  The best way to do that is to write and to keep writing. 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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Here’s an Extraordinary Submissions Opportunity

“With Children’s Book Insider on my side, I went from being unpublished straight to the bestseller list! If you dream of writing for children or teens, CBI is the place for you.” – Ken Derby, author, The Top 10 Ways to Ruin the First Day of School

 

 

If you want to become a successful children’s author and you’re not currently subscribing to Children’s Book Insider, the Children’s Writing Monthly, you’re making your life much harder than need be.

 

To help set things right, we have three big reasons to become an Insider now:

 

* A once-in-a-lifetime submissions opportunity with a publishing powerhouse

 

* The chance to get your questions answered on a regular basis by one of children’s writing’s most renowned experts — free.

 

* A big, big discount.

 

 

First, the incredible publishing opportunity:

 

Throughout the year we offer Insiders exclusive Above the Slushpile™ submissions codes. These are secret codes that, when included with your submission to top editors and agents, allow you to jump over the slushpile and get immediate attention. And sometimes, we even get a code that will get your submission read at houses that aren’t even accepting unsolicited submissions!

 

The November issue of CBI features one such code. A two month window to submit your work directly to an editor at…..

 

Wow. Just so you understand — Simon & Schuster Books for Young Readers is closed to unsolicited submissions. This is the only way to submit if you don’t have an agent.

 

And only if you’re a CBI Insider. (Keep reading to find out how to become one — at a big discount — before November and get this Above the Slushpile™ code!)

 

 

Now, the free help from an expert….

 

We just had one of our regular “Ask Laura Anything” sessions for Insiders. Laura spent almost two hours answering every question our Insiders had.

 

Imagine if you had the regular opportunity to — at no additional cost — have one of children’s writing’s most renowned and respected experts answer your questions?

 

Once you’re an Insider you won’t have to imagine any more. You’ll be invited to attend these regular Ask Laura Anything sessions. It’s included in your membership!

 

To show you just how great these sessions are, we’d like to gift you the entire session from this week! It’s packed with insight and advice and, by itself, is worth far more than the pittance it costs to become an Insider.

 

Here’s the link — watch and enjoy!

 

http://ift.tt/2gJ255K

 

 

And the BIG DISCOUNT…..

 

The regular price to become an Insider is just $49.95 for the full year. That includes:

 

* 12 downloadable issues of Children’s Book Insider, the Children’s Writing Monthly, packed with market news about publishers, agents and contents, in-depth instruction, interviews with top editors and agents, and much, much more.

 

* Above the Slushpile™ submission opportunities that give your submissions priority status at top publishers and agents.

 

* The Children’s Writing Knowledge Base, our giant searchable library filled with answers to all your writing questions.

 

* Our private Facebook groups for support and community.

 

* Seven years of back issues!

 

* Regular “Ask Laura Anything” sessions.

 

* b, including complete courses, ebooks, webinars and more, all waiting for you as soon as you join.

 

Yep, $49.95 is really cheap for that kind of value. But you know what’s even cheaper?

 

 

$39.95

 

 

That’s right — for a very limited time you can become an Insider for just $39.95 and get everything (including the upcoming November issue with the Simon & Schuster Above the Slushpile™ code)

 

So let’s do this — it’s the perfect time to get your career in gear and start earning the success you deserve.

 

We leave you with the words of a longtime subscriber:

 

 

“I can’t imagine not subscribing to CBI and taking myself seriously as a children’s writer”

 

 

Amen to that! Come join us now at

 

 

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We can’t wait to welcome you to the Insiders!

 

 

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Writing Groups 101 – Which Kind is Right For You?

by JEN Garrett

 

When writers think of joining a group, they often think of joining a critique group. But this is only one type of writers’ group. Other reasons writers may join a group include accountability, networking, and brainstorming. All of these aspects are important to your writing journey, and can be a boon to your critique group. But not all writing groups focus on critiquing, even if they call themselves “critique groups”.

 

Critique Group

 

Most writers have an emotional cycle in their writing. We write because we are passionate about something and have a message to share. Then we try to get what is in our head on the paper and it sucks. We begin to doubt our ability, doubt that we have talent, doubt that we ever had inspiration in the first place. At this point, the smart writers walk away. But not forever. When we come back, the manuscript still sucks. But there’s something there that doesn’t suck. And now that we are looking at it with fresh eyes, we can detect the parts that don’t suck. We try to fix it as best we can on our own, but we’re still too close to the story. We need someone else. Maybe several someones. That’s where critique groups come in.

 

A critique group’s main focus is to give and receive feedback on manuscripts. Good critique groups help the writer revise their manuscript by pointing out its strengths and weaknesses in a kind and polite way. Writer continues to grow and hone their craft in the process. Good critique groups have stated goals and rules for exchanging manuscripts. These are established as soon as the group is formed, and revisited periodically to maintain order. When you have no manuscripts to critique, you may find you need a different type of writing group to continue on your writing journey.

 

 

Cheerleading Groups

 

Let’s say you have one published book or series, and now find yourself at the height of your writing career, with no desire to produce any more manuscripts. You probably don’t need a critique group anymore. What you might want instead is a writer’s group that will congratulate you and help you find more followers. You might need a “Street Team” to rave about your book, attend your book signings, and tweet about your success.

 

If you are pre-published, you may need extra encouragement to submit your polished manuscripts. Bringing them to your critique group, or to any group for that matter, would be a waste of time. But joining a writing group that cheers you on without reading your work can give you the confidence you need to keep going. These cheerleading groups are more likely to be found on social media than in person.

 

 

Write-Ins and Accountability Groups

 

Critique groups are great when you are revising a manuscript, but not so helpful when you simply need the motivation to keep your butt in chair and hands on keyboard (or pencil on paper, etc.). For these type of encouragement, I suggest instead looking for a “Write-In”.

 

Write-Ins are groups that meet together to, well, write! These groups can be in person or online, and usually include a specific amount of time for silent sustained writing. On Twitter, for example, you can join writing sprints under the hashtag #writingsprint. Simply tweet how long your sprint will be, or reply to another writer. After the sprint, tweet out your word count or mention something that surprised you. Other write-In groups might meet at a local cafe to socialize and encourage each other.

 

Similar to write-in groups are accountability groups. These groups tend to be more long-term than the write-ins, with each member keeping a running word count over a few days or weeks. NaNoWriMo.org, for instance, challenges writers to write 50 thousand words in 30 days. Some accountability groups meet via social media while others send running totals through email or direct messaging.

 

 

Brainstorming

 

Brainstorming is an important step in the writing process. From the initial spark to each revision pass, brainstorming can take a mediocre manuscript to a level of brilliance. However, a good critique group can separate brainstorming sessions from critique sessions.

 

As an incorrigible brainstormer, I sometimes fall into this trap when I critique. Instead of focusing on helping other writers find their own voice, I sometimes offer rewrite ideas disguised as “solutions”.

 

For example, if the manuscript says, “The scientist was sad because he failed.”

A good critiquer might comment, “How could the scientist’s feelings about failure be revealed instead of explained? Can you show us how he failed?”

 

But a brainstormer might say, “How about the scientist throws the beaker across the room? And couldn’t the scientist be a girl?”

 

The “solutions” offered by the brainstormer imply dangerous behavior that the original author may never have intended. And at this point the gender of the character is irrelevant to the problem. On the other hand, the critiquer is offering direction through questions that allow the author to find their own solutions.

 

My awesome critique group politely redirects me when I start sliding into brainstorming mode, and because of that I’ve learned to focus on critiquing. If, however, your writers’ group doesn’t seem to recognize the difference, then it’s probably actually a brainstorming group rather than a critique group.

 

 

Social Club

 

While it’s important to get to know the other members of your group, good critique groups don’t spend entire critique sessions socializing. There are, however, organizations that often do have regional social events. SCBWI, for example, have local events with such titles as “Mix and Mingle”, “KidLit Mingle”, and “Coffee and Chat”. Other socializing writers groups in your area might be found on Meetup. Like most professionals, writers need other writers who can empathize. Social events can provide imaginary water coolers where writers swap experiences and build camaraderie.

 

Writers can also find these kinds of writers’ social clubs online. Social media has the word ‘social’ in it for a reason. For example, when your polished manuscript keeps getting rejected and your thick skin is looking a little scarred, you may need to know that your experience is not unique. And trust me, it’s not. Reaching out in a tweet, posting a meme through Instagram, or posting about it in Facebook will elicit sympathetic likes and replies from your online network. Some websites, such as Goodreads, also have social forums where you can connect with other understanding writers.

 

 

The word of caution here is to always be professional and polite in these social situations. Make sure your interactions are mostly positive, and are never adversely directed toward any specific person. Receiving a form rejection is a normal part of the writing journey. And, yes, it hurts. But that’s never a good reason to insult the agent or agency that rejected your work.

 

 

Why Choose Just One?

 

Many writers need more than one type of writing group depending on their writing journey. It’s essential to prioritize your needs and decide which groups will best fill those needs. Also, consider your schedule and writing strengths. For example, I belong to several writers’ groups, but only have one that meets regularly in-person. I have found that my other writing needs are better met by online groups and the occasional in-person event.

 

 

Check all that Apply

 

Critique: I need a group of writers that will help me revise and polish my manuscripts

Cheerleading: I need a group of friends who can encourage me to meet my goals without knowing all the specifics of my writing journey.

Accountability: I need a group to whom I can report my writing progress.

Brainstorming: I need a group to help me come up with new ideas or to help me develop my manuscript.

Social: I need other writers with whom I can celebrate and commensurate the ups and downs of my writing journey.

 

 

 

JEN Garrett writes for, about and around children all day. But sometimes she finds time to do the dishes at her home in Northern California. She also finds time to be the SCBWI Critique Carousel Coordinator for her region, query agents, and read mountains of books. How? We don’t know. You can find more about her at http://ift.tt/2yyCFfN

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