Blogger: Mary Keeley
Location: Midwest Office, IL
For those of you in a critique group, you probably celebrate daily. That is, if your group members are continually growing and learning, truly challenge each other, and don’t hesitate to voice constructive criticism. If these critical elements aren’t part of your group dynamic, you’re wasting your time at best and potentially killing your writing career if you submit a mediocre manuscript to an agent or publisher.
We’re going to celebrate the great ones today. Can you imagine writing in a vacuum, without the help your critique group provides? I want you to comment on the ways you have grown as a writer and refined your manuscript to a level of excellence as a result of your critique partners’ reviews, suggestions, editing, and proofreading.
But, first, how do you find a critique group?
Those who haven’t taken the step to join a good group need the encouragement and inspiration to do so soon. The ACFW conference this week is a great opportunity to meet and connect with a group of fiction writers. But if you aren’t a member or attending the conference, you can go to their website to join and find a group. Terry Whalin has some good advice and suggestions on finding a critique group. Here’s the link to his article: http://www.right-writing.com/critique.html
It may take trying a few on for size before you land in a group where you feel comfortable and connected. But the search is worth the effort. Strong friendships are often built in these groups because all of you are united in a common passion and goal. Some of you may have life-long friends you first met in a critique group.
Freelance editors are another resource to be celebrated today. With or without your critique group’s dedicated support, you might realize that grammar isn’t our thing–and neither is punctuation. A professional editor can review your finished proposal and manuscript. So much rests on the professionalism you present in your submission. (Although I do have to insert this caveat. Sometimes authors who have had one or two books published proclaim themselves professional editors. But being published doesn’t qualify you to be an editor. Writing and editing are two very different tasks. Being good at one doesn’t make you good at the other.)
If you can’t afford to hire a professional editor, contact the English-writing or journalism department at a nearby college. Usually seniors or grad students are looking for side jobs. One of my clients chose this route recently, and the difference in the proposal and sample chapters of her nonfiction work were cause for celebration—and we did! Her proposal is now ready to be submitted to publishers.
How did you find your critique group? Did you try more than one before you found a good fit? How long have you been in your current critique group? Let’s have a contest for the person who has been in the same critique group the longest time. And remember to comment on what you appreciate about your critique group and/or your editor. Also, what questions might you have about finding critique groups or a good editor? Perhaps we can help each other out.
Latayne C Scott
I think a very important aspect of a critique group is affinity — especially affinity of genre. Although it’s good to have writers/readers from many genres evaluate your work for you, those who write in your genre are most sensitive to the specific issues you must address in terms of style and treatment.
I am so, so blessed to be part of NovelMatters. Our agents Janet-and-Wendy-may-they-be-blessed-forever-amen put me into a group of women who will honestly say, “this isn’t working,” and then suggest an alternative; or they will say, “this is great, I’m proud of you!”
We take our support of each other very seriously. We have assigned a day of the week to pray for one of us (my day’s Thursday, for instance), and keep each other encouraged even across the miles between California, Colorado, New Mexico and Canada. In a way, we try to address each other’s writerly needs of body (our life circumstances), soul (spiritual matters) and spirit (our emotional needs for support and understanding in writing.)
I honestly don’t know where my writing career would be without them.
Latayne C Scott
Bethany Joy Carlson
I met the members of my critique group in a fiction class I took at local non-profit for the arts, WriterHouse. I picked three people in the class who demographically were all different – different ages, careers, origins, etc. etc. – and who often had differing opinions. What we all shared, though, was a love of writing, and the ability to give good, concrete, constructive, critical feedback. I feel like I’m making some good friends, which is always great. I love both the encouragement and accountability that comes with being part of a group.
We’ve only been together for a little less than a year, so I doubt I’m going to win the contest! But the group is a prize in itself. ;o)
Anne Love
I had paid help before I had volunteer critiques. To some degree I measure the quality of the volunteer critiques to the professional paid help I had because I had no other way to know if I was getting quality or “wasting my time” as Mary said.
Next, I signed up for the open critique groups from the loop at ACFW. I had some great help from that group, but mostly for the obvious editing issues I was blind to–spelling, punctuation, wording. But what didn’t click was a great understanding of my genre, good critique of the overall flow and pacing/structure of my WIP, and lastly–the time commitment. I work full time, and I couldn’t manage doing 2 crits for every one of my own. I now know I can manage a 1 to 1 commitment. And I don’t count the ACFW group a waste of time, I learned what a good fit was, and wasn’t.
So, then what?—-Pray!!! Always, pray.
I reconnected with someone in my genre at the ACFW conference in Denver–we hooked up on Facebook by IM-ing brainstorm ideas. Then we met at Indy conference, and it really clicked for us.
What clicked?
1-We mutually need each other. I have met a few others this year who have helped to the same degree–but they have already satisfied their need for a CP, and have more experience than me. So even though we clicked, the mutuality didn’t feel the same.
2-She’s in my genre.
3-We are brutally, but humorously, and graciously honest with each other.
4-She sees things I can’t see and vise versa.
5-We pray for each other.
Neither of us can afford ACFW this year, so we’ve split the cost of a train ticket. I’m going to her house for the weekend, and she’s arranged for Granny to babysit to free up some CP time for us!
Melissa K. Norris
I met (on-line) two of my critique partners. We exchanged chapters as a trial run to feel each other out, with the understanding no hurt feelings if we didn’t continue.
I think it’s important to leave yourself an out if things aren’t going well. I was involved w/ a group where no one wanted to grow, they loved the idea of saying they were a writer.
Finding a good critique partner is like finding that golden nugget along the river bed.
David Todd
I have been a member of four different critique groups in real life, and one on-line, or more on-line if you include poetry groups. The first met twice a month at the public library in a neighboring town. It was mostly young people who were irregular in attendance and production. It was not unusual for me to be the only one to bring something.
When we moved ten miles in another direction, that one became too far to drive to, and it was languishing. I found a new group that met weekly. It mostly consisted of retired ladies who self-published or who wrote two rotating columns for the local weekly newspaper. No one in the group really aspired to be published through a royalty publisher except me. The group slowly died as the retired members grew too old to come or moved away to be close to their children.
Then I went to a group is a small town kind of far out in the county, that met every two weeks. This group included a mid-list author of cozy mysteries who was between publishers, and a mix of ages and genres, and I found it helpful. But it wasn’t a Christian group. One woman wrote erotica, which I didn’t like hearing or critiquing. The leader of the group showed her political stripes one meeting by wearing a campaign button. I learned all the rest of the group was at the opposite end of the political spectrum from me. As it happened that night I brought an op-ed piece, from my end of the spectrum, and it was critiqued for its politics not for the writing. I didn’t last in the group much longer. The politics drove me away, as well as the gasoline expense for the 14 mile round trip.
Our new pastor arrived in January of this year. I had lunch with him in March and asked if he was interested in my starting a writing ministry in the church. I’d heard a few things from people in the congregation who wrote or wanted to write, and thought we might have enough to form a critique group. He said, “Go for it.” I did, and our group has been meeting twice a month since April. We have 14 on our mailing list and 4 to 6 who attend. The mix of writing varies from a retired missionary telling her stories from the field to secular fiction to children’s books to family histories. We are not yet at critical mass, but I think we are getting there. Two of us are seeking royalty publishing, and a couple of others are leaning in that direction. Right now they all look to me for more expertise than I have, which is kind of scary, but perhaps that’s natural for the group leader.
Tanya Cunningham
The first thing I did when I wrote my first picture book
a year and a half ago was to have free-lance editor/author,
Pam Halter, evaluate my manuscript. Her critique was
excellent and propelled me into a year of reading and
studying to become a more polished writer.
It was difficult for me to find a critique group. Finally,
a couple months ago, I found a children’s writing group
that is fantastic. I used google and typed in “children’s
writing group.” Even though previous online searches
had been unfruitful, this time I scored. 🙂
Having unbiased feedback on my work, both positive
and critical, has been quite helpful. What a blessing
they all have been. It’s also exciting to be able give
input into other people’s work.
Rebekah P
Perfect timing: after three years of fruitless searching, I’m starting my own critique group, and our first meeting is tomorrow at the local library (expecting 20!). The real torture–I mean joy–should follow on its heels at our second meeting. The Terry Whalin article will most certainly accompany me. Thank you!
I hear a lot of discussion on choosing and sticking with a genre once an author is published. I wonder whether that is true for a critique group as well–is it more profitable to spend the time honing a single genre, or is it better to experiment with different genres to find one’s strengths?
Thank you for your informative and encouraging posts.
Sandra Ardoin
The members of my critique group came together out of ACFW’s large online group. We’ve been critting for two years and I couldn’t do without them.
Sarah Forgrave
Great post, Mary! And how fun to read the other critique group stories. I agree with the ones who commented about finding someone who writes similar genres. I’ve formed critique partnerships with some that didn’t last simply because we couldn’t be mutually beneficial to each other within our genres. But those brief partnerships still allowed for beautiful friendships to develop, and I’ll always be grateful for that.
I met one of my critique partners at last year’s ACFW Conference, and it has been an awesome partnership. She and I each write in the same genre, but we bring different strengths to the table.
As for editing, I’m very blessed to have a mother-in-law who is a former English teacher. I always know I’ll get my punctuation right when she looks over my work! 🙂
Cheryl Malandrinos
I couldn’t make it without my critique groups. Both of mine are online. I spoke to our library about local writers groups, but they hadn’t been successful in the past, and I didn’t have the desire to start one.
While I sought feedback from writers I knew, I didn’t join my first critique group until 2008, when I seriously began pursuing publication for Little Shepherd. I learned about them from a message board I belong to. A year later, I took over the management of that group, which is a blend of writers of different genres.
Seeking a group dedicated solely to children’s publishing, I started a new online critique group for children’s authors in 2010.
One person submits each week and the other members offer feedback. Most of the writers in these groups are published. We all work well together, and can be honest without being cutting–which I believe is one of the most important aspects of critique groups: they should build you up and encourage you, not tear you down.
Thanks for another great article, Wendy.
Mary Keeley
Well, this is indeed a celebration! David, I’m glad you persevered in your search and hope the group at your church becomes that “golden nugget along the river bed,” as Melissa said.
Rebekah, 20 is a large number for a critique group. At your first meeting tomorrow, you might want to break down into smaller groups, first by nonfiction and fiction because the skills and publishing requirements are different. Then by genre.
LeAnne Hardy
I joined my first critique group after going to a local children’s lit conference. I sat down next to a couple ladies who asked, “What brings you here?” It was the first time that I had the courage to say, “I write for children.” Their response? “So do we. Would you like to join our critique group?” The chemistry of that group spoiled me for future groups. There were two women I instantly recognized as sisters in Christ. Two were nice church people although I didn’t sense a personal relationship, and two thought the Bible was all a bunch of fairy tales. The group took apart my complicated sentences and challenged me to be more visual, but it was those two ladies who thought it was a bunch of fairy tales who forced me to make the spiritual aspect integral to my stories. If I could make it believable to them (in the context of my fiction), then I had succeeded. I was thrilled when one of them checked a Bible out of the library because she wanted to see the basis of something I had written!