When I lived in London, I threw literary evenings twice a month. Ok,
I’ll be honest, it wasn’t strictly literary there was some wine
involved. It was a small group of four and the idea was to critique
each other’s works—positively. Not criticize. No one was above each
other, irrespective of academic qualifications. We started with
personal works that we were working on and moved on to works from a
topic that was agreed on from the previous session. I especially liked
the idea of picking a topic at random then write something about it. It
certainly made my creative juices flow. I truly was inspired by this
aspect and as a result, have many writings including poems. Now, I
disliked writing this genre. I couldn’t wrap my head around rhyming
couplets, iambic pentameter, alliteration and all that fluff. But after
some words of wisdom from the group, I joined a writing class at
university and I can now write about a light bulb and make it
interesting, I kid you not and, I’ve grown to like this style of
writing. I have short stories and articles too, though none ever
touched an editor’s desk—from choice. I learned a great deal from my
fellow scribes and those meetings sharpened my need to be disciplined
and dedicated to finishing a piece of work. It also brought out my
competitive edge. I refused to be the odd one out. I wanted to
participate and made sure I produced at every meeting. This is
the beauty of working with like-minded people. You can bounce off each
other and in the process learn something new. More importantly, you
could learn something about yourself. I learned I had a hidden talent.
I never thought that I would write a poem, let alone enjoy it and I’m
really quite good at it. What about you? Have you found a hidden talent
while being in a group? Chances are, you haven’t been in one and you
should. If you are a writer—it doesn’t matter at what level—you should
make it your professional duty to be involved in one. There are things
that you can do alone, but it is much better to be with others who
share your interest. I have since moved to North America and I’m in
several groups. So don’t procrastinate, join a group? If you are unable
to find one nearby, create one. Here are some tips on how to go about
it.
Develop a list of people who you know would be interested in
attending. Look beyond experienced writers. There are people who simply
like to write as a hobby and you would be surprised to know there are
many closet-writers lurking in your town or city. You can find them on
the Internet in such places like MySpace, FaceBook or Yahoo Groups.
Invite them to join. The more varied your group, the more diverse will
be your discussions.
Next, select a good time to meet. If
meetings will be on a weekday, don’t start at five or six. People work.
7 PM is a good time. If weekends, bear in mind this time is used to
catch up with domestic chores and such like. Also parents will be
chauffeuring their children to soccer or hockey practice.
How
long will the meeting be? Two-hours is a decent time line.
What about
location? This could be anywhere, though you ideally want somewhere
that is not noisy i.e. a pub or bar. If it is at someone’s house, have
a kitty and ask the group members to contribute towards refreshments
and light snacks like cookies. Ok, you could throw in some cheap plunk.
If
you are going to produce a newsletter or have minutes taken, set
guidelines as to whose responsibility it will be and when it will be
available. If they are going to be other areas of member involvement,
again set guidelines. Remember, you are a professional group and should
conduct the meeting as such. Feel confident in your abilities. Everyone
should approach the group as equals and express their thoughts and
feelings. Manage your emotions. Different perspectives make the
discussion interesting. Although you may have opposing points of view
at times, respect the ideas and point of view of each member. Enjoy
stimulating discussion and share thoughts and communicate in a positive
way. This is an opportunity to see things through the eyes of each
member in the group and this will expand your thought process and
strengthen your writing. Go for it and have a writetastic week! If
you would like to use or quote one of my articles in your E-zine,
newsletter, or magazine or you want me to write an article for your
publication? No problem. If quoting, please do so in its entirety. If
you would like me to write an article, simply contact me at:
cherry@writercacarew.com
Cherry-Ann Carew is the former editor of Blaqsport Journal and former freelance sports journalist for The Voice Newspaper in England. She currently lives in the USA and works as copyeditor and writing coach. See http://www.writercacarew.com for more info.
