What Will I Get From An Online Critique Group?

    

The following is an article published 9 years ago about online critique groups. I am posting it today with comments in parentheses and blue to add to what was written long ago.

The masterpiece is finished. You've written it, revised it, and revised it once more. The piece is ready to market. You're elated until doubt floats by, but you ignore it while you scour the market guide. It isn't long before doubt creeps into the back of your mind and settles in. Maybe my work isn't as good as I think it is. Maybe no one else will note the beauty, the joy, the passion of these words like I do.
It's time for an opinion from your peers. It's time to join a critique group, time to expose your manuscript to other writers. No matter where a writer lives, all have the opportunity to join an online critique group. How do they operate? What will the writer receive, and what will the writer be required to give in return?

I joined an online writers critique group several years ago and have no regrets.(true!) I have turned some so-so stories and essays into marketable pieces. I’ve now been in two groups, and being a member has become a major part of my writing life. I consider its members a family. But like all families, they don't hesitate to tell me when I have done a good job, nor do they hold back with criticism. In fact, they can be quite harsh in judging a submission. These groups have no “atta girl” philosophy. Praise is given when earned, but honest and fair criticism is also rendered.

The group I’m in requires participation on a semi-weekly basis. For each submission the writer is required to complete two critiques for other members.(now 2 subs per month/4 critiques) One of these must be a line by line (LBL) critique. Not all online critique groups operate the same way and with the same honest opinions. Members have related tales of(other) critique groups that do nothing but praise, never giving constructive criticism. Their aim is to pump up the writer and stroke the ego. All well and good, but it won't sell a manuscript that needs work.

To submit your precious words for praise and/or criticism puts you at high risk. The first time your work is harshly judged, negative emotions come raining down. Frustration, fear, and fury dart back and forth attacking your head, your stomach, and your heart. Depression becomes the companion of the day, and your old friend, doubt, takes up residence once again.

All is not lost, however. Once you swim through all the above, you stand ready to accept suggestions to make the piece marketable. Those who critique offer a clear(er) vision of what the manuscript needs. It may be a marvelous story but filled with unnecessary words that serve to detract. You might be vying for the award for the longest sentences in a manuscript or have too many awkward and choppy sentences. The critique may question areas that are clear to the writer but not the reader. Critique group members become masterful in pointing out passive verbs, places that tell rather than show, and unnecessary adverbs -easier to find in the writing of others than in your own. When we read our own writing, it’s that old “can’t see the forest for the trees” but red flags pop up easily when reading the work of another author.

I developed the habit of reading the critiques of other members. To do so was akin to taking a course in writing and critiquing. I put my observations to use in my own writing and have become a better writer. Writing exercises, grammar guides, and market information the group offers also enhance my writing ability.

My group has a closed membership with a waiting list.(sometimes) Members come and go, but there seems to be a core group of serious writers who continue to commit the necessary time
required. And rest assured that belonging to a group like this does take time.  Those who do not participate fully are asked to leave. A group like this is not for the sometime writer.

There are many online critique groups. Activate a search engine or watch for announcements in writers' newsletters. (This does not mean all are great ones/assess carefully. Try one and leave if you are not getting benefits.)

The group I belong to is trying something new. A full three-fourths of our members are meeting in a regional park outside Washington DC for a four day retreat. We will meet face to face for the first time. Several members will present workshops covering various aspects of writing, and a computer expert will be on hand to answer questions. We’ll wade into the writing waters and create even stronger bonds within the group. Participants will gather from the USA, Canada, Ireland, Shanghai and the Turks and Caicos Islands. (At the end of March, we will meet again after having several face to face conferences. The benefits of such a conference are pure gold.)

Decide what you want from a critique group. A pat on the back is nice, but honest criticism will aid your growth as a writer and push Mr. Doubt right out of your mind. (Join with the attitude that the criticism you receive is meant to help you become a better writer. )

(Another big benefit is that you can participate in your group looking like the lady above. I must admit that she resembles me on many a morning!)
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Writers Need A Thick Hide

Today's post is a repeat from a year ago that was well received when originally posted. It may be worth a second reading for those who read it earlier. The points made here are ones I frequently need to revisit myself. Learning to accept criticism, no matter how well meant, is not an easy task.  Read on...





“I would advise anyone who aspires to a writing career that before developing his talent he would be wise to develop a thick hide.”
—Harper Lee, WD

What wise words these are. Every writer should wrap him/herself in the thickest hide he/she can find. Reviews and critiques are sometimes akin to standing before a target while someone shoots arrows straight at it. 

Will you let the sharp arrows bounce off and lie on the ground where they cannot hurt you? Or will you stand still as the arrows pierce right through to your heart? 

Let's face it. Criticism of our writing hurts, even when it's meant to help us learn and grow. And when we feel hurt, we become defensive, even angry. If we allow these emotions to emerge and take hold of our good sense, irreparable damage can be done.

I was once in a small local writer's group. I became friends with one of the young women and was happy when she suggested we do a one on one critique of our writing. I was delighted because the group members all said nicey-nice things no matter how poorly written a submission might be and this might be a way to gain an honest opinion. My friend gave me several pages of a novel she was writing to critique for her. When I read it, I didn't know what to do as the writing was quite juvenile in content and filled with mechanical errors. Should I look for the positives and say nothing about what she could do to improve the story? Or should I give a critique meant to help her learn? I chose the latter and, as a result, I lost a friend. She was furious that I had found anything wrong. I'd given an honest opinion and tried to do it as gently as I could, but it didn't matter.

A man in my first online critique group was from a Central American country so English was his second language. He was crazy about American baseball and most of his writing centered on that topic. The writing was pretty poor and he received many crits from other members pointing out the problems. He was furious that anyone would criticize those words he'd written. He had joined the group seeking praise, not to learn and grow as a writer. He quit in a huff after a lengthy written rant. 

We all hope that a critiquer or a reviewer praises those words we've written. When I first started submitting my work to the original online group, I must admit that I felt eager for praise and, when all the problems with the submission were pointed out to me, it hurt. It's deflating to our ego. We're humans and we don't like to be told we did a poor job. Plus it means revising and editing a piece we'd thought was just fine.

It didn't take me too long to realize that those arrows being flung my way were meant to help me, not hurt me. I figured out that I would never grow as a writer unless I got over being hurt when all my mistakes were pointed out. In early days, there were plenty of errors in my writing world. 

Over the years, my hide has thickened considerably. Maybe that's where those ten pounds I'd like to lose came from! I don't feel hurt anymore when a critiquer tears apart the 1200 words I'd written with such enthusiasm. Disappointed, yes, but not hurt because I know that the critiquer is helping me see my own work more objectively. 

I imagine that the older Harper Lee had a thicker hide than the very young one did. We age, we learn, we grow.

How To Grow As A Writer

Doesn't this sound like something your parents would say to you in your formative years? I'll bet a whole lot of us heard this, or something mighty similar. But listen up writers, this is darned good advice.

I was once in a writer's critique group that met at a local coffeehouse once a month. Without going into detail, I'll just say that the majority of the people who attended regularly only wished for success in the writing world. They dreamed of it, they talked about it, and they came to the meeting to discuss this big wish with other writers. Most never brought a story to read to the group so that they could get some suggestions on how to make it better. They were happy to help anyone who did bring a story and they loved talking about being a writer, but that's where it ended. The group finally disbanded and rightly so. 

If you want to be a writer, hard work is involved. Write, submit, handle rejection and start all over again. It begins to feel like a pattern being set, and then one day, it's an acceptance instead of a rejection and the pattern is broken. Nothing gives a writer incentive to keep going like an acceptance. You keep working, keep submitting, keep getting rejections, but the acceptances are sprinkled in now and then, too. 

I can hear someone saying But it's so discouraging to get one rejection after another. I don't feel like writing anything new because it is just going to happen again. It might reoccur, but it also might not. If you truly want to make it as a writer, you'll keep working at it. It takes more than sitting at the computer and pounding out a new story, article or poem. 

Give yourself opportunities to grow as a writer. Try the following:

1.  read about writing

2.  attend conferences and workshops

3.  network with other writers

4.  find a writing buddy who will give help when needed

5.  join a critique group that is honest and fair with crits

6.  read frequently; assess the writing--what about it was good enough to get published?

7.  revise your work more than once before submitting

Finally, you might print the poster at the beginning of this post and place it where you see it often. Read it and believe it!