What A Writer Needs – Part 5 – Other Writers

Everyone has this picture of the writer writing alone, and for a great deal of it we do.  However, you reach a point when you just want to talk to other people who've shared your experiences as a writer.  You want to talk to other writers who know what it is to be rejected, be published, hit the promotion trail, and the million little details that come into a writer's life.

Writer's groups can be a huge benefit as it puts you in touch with a community of like minded individuals.  If there's an educational component to the group, all the better.  No matter how long you write, it's always good to learn something more about the craft.  Not all writing groups are created equal, so find out their benefits before you join.

It's much the same with critique groups.  Find out the rules of critiquing.  If people are just going to say "I love it" or "it doesn't work for me", then you're not going to get the help you need to improve your writing.  You don't need overly harsh critiques either.  See you can sit in and observe.  Try out some of the online critique groups.  Distance could be a problem for you and an online group could be the perfect solution.

Critique partners?  I found my critique partner in an online group I joined.  We just sort of always picked each other's stories to critique. I found her way of showing me what needed work and the direction to go in was very effective.  We became friends and critique partners.   Don't be so eager to jump into this kind of relationship.  Get to know people really well first.

More next week on the interactions between writers.

–Susan

Susan Hanniford Crowley

http://www.susanhannifordcrowley.com

Filed under: Helping Other Writers, Susan Hanniford Crowley, What A Writer Needs