Comic above available as a greeting card.
Sent off my manuscript yesterday. Before printing it, I revamped the first few chapters. Yes, again. I’ve run the opening past two writing critique groups and both had the same comments, so I figured they must have a point. Over the years I’ve tried about half a dozen online critique groups but up to now, none have been a particularly good fit for one reason or another. Or they’ve been a good fit but the group fizzled.
I’m pretty happy with my current critique group, which I found through the SCBWI site. We’re all working on fiction for the middle grade – YA level; none of us have had book-length fiction published yet but most have been published in magazines or genres other than MG/YA. It’s been remarkably tough finding a group whose writing level, focus, and critiquing philosophy is similar to mine.
We critique about 5,000 words a week. It’s time-consuming, to be sure, but I’ve found that I learn almost as much from critiquing other people as I do being critiqued.
What about the rest of you? How many of you are currently in a critique group, online or offline? Any tips for those who are still looking for the right critique group?
{ 7 comments… read them below or add one }
oooo, the punishment!
First of all, good luck!
I’m not part of a “critique group” per se, but I am part of an awesome site called the Writer’s Draft. We post excerpts for critique, rant about problems, and share ideas. Et cetera. It’s awesome. It’s really helpful.
I’ve joined a few critique groups, both on-line and off-line (I even started a couple), and have had a rotten time getting people to take it seriously enough to commit to it. It’s great that you were able to find a group through your genre/intended audience — anyone know of other groups set up along those lines?
I’ve belonged to critique groups for nearly 15 years and couldn’t/wouldn’t be writing without them. They’re my soapbox–the exciting thing is I just got a contract to write a book about critiquing for Writer’s Digest, so now I get to put all my strong feelings into print. AND run those words by the critique group, of course.
I think the important thing is not to settle for a group that isn’t working–if it has potential really try to make the relationships and the timing, etc work, and educate each other about how to critique. If the group just isn’t going to fly, move on–with tact, but go. Find another one. My groups have evolved a lot over the past years–as some get published and just don’t have time to do a few chapters every couple of weeks and as we switch genres, etc.
It can be tricky, but I truly believe it’s worth it.
A few years ago I’ve tried a local critique groups/writing group but it just doesn’t matched. The quality was poor, with high ambitions – planning public readings and so on.
After two or three years without a critique group I feel the need in getting feedback on a regular basis and searched again. I find another local group a few weeks ago but im not quite happy by now.
The quality is much better than the first group’s, and the people are really nice. Too nice. We do a little bit writing, a little bit reading, but feedback comes in homeopathic
doses, and always, exclusive positive.
It doesn’t pushes me foreward.
But looks like there isn’t any other group in our area and this is one of a few things I doesn’t want to do online.
Hey, remember me? You were right above about when interests don’t mesh, you should ‘move on with tact’. You did. We’re still struggling to get the right mix exactly, but I’m more dedicated than ever to take the lead and make it happen.
At any rate, I started a blog, recently Self-Publishing, Children’s Books and Me — The Good, The Bad, The Ugly of all Three. Stop by if you get a chance. Now that I’ve seen what a nice blog you have here, I’ll have to add you to my blogroll!!
I am looking for a critique group online for a novel. Any suggestions? Any takers? Love to hear from you if so! Best of luck to all.