Critique Group

I was a little nervous to join a critique group.
The reasons? I wasn’t sure my work was good enough or my skin tough enough.
Now that I’m in a group, I can attest that those reasons are true BUT only AFTER the critique. I have to put away the edited chapter for about ten days before I can fix it and that’s okay. I work on other writing in the meantime.
Because of my group (we should come up with a name!) I’ve been able to see my weaknesses and hopefully work on them while I write.
Because of my group, I’ve been able to recognize my strengthens as well.

Here are a few ideas/questions for creating a critique group:

• Do want the group to be genre specific or general? Fiction vs. nonfiction?
• 4-5 people are a good start on a group. The group needs to have rules for adding members or bringing people to the group.
• Pick a day, time, how often and how long to meet.
• Does everyone need to bring a chapter each meeting? Do you want to focus on one piece or give everyone a turn? You might need to set a time limit for each piece as well. Do you want everyone to email their work to the group ahead of time or bring a hard copy and read aloud?
• What is the commitment level of the group? Be there every meeting? Is everyone okay if someone doesn’t show up for months?
• Pick a location that works for everyone. At a home or restaurant or library, what your group decides.
• Have phone list including cell. Also, Facebook, Yahoo or Google list is a great way to stay connected. Work can also be sent through a couple of these groups to the critique group.
• Don’t talk about others work outside of the group.
• Critique the writing, not the writer.

Other Articles by Taffy:

Editing Your Book-Help!

Tips For Editing Your Book

Which Agent Is Right For Me And My Book?

Suspense vs. Mystery Novels

Point of View

Where Do You Start Your Book?

Characters in Your Book