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Hey you! I haven't heard from you in a while, and this is old, so I was wondering how you...Jenn on #WriteMotivation Continues!
haha thanks!K.T. Hanna on #WriteMotivation Continues!
Oh I definitely agree. I think something writing related is still writing. Outlinging, Writing, Revising, Editing, Drafting out ways to improve...Jenn on #WriteMotivation Continues!
Thanks, you too! Oh...realized maybe I should have used my recommendation link for How To Revise...Ceridwen on #WriteMotivation Continues!
Good luck with your revision! And thanks for sharing the link. The site seems really interesting! :)
Find Your Next Critique Partner
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Do you write? Are you down a writing buddy or two? Do you want to get sucked into another social media site?
Join Ladies Who Critique and find your next critique partner today!
It’s like a free dating site for writers. It doesn’t matter if you’re trying to get published or just writing for fun – anyone can sign up. Join genre groups, talk in the forums, search for and message other members, and find The One. The site’s in beta right now, but it works well enough. And it’s really fun seeing what everyone else is working on!
Traditionally, writing is a solitary activity. We find secluded corners or abandoned mansions and scribble away. But if you don’t have a Writing Buddy, things can go south fast.
Writing Buddies are usually writers themselves, and have numerous uses that you can take advantage of.
- Writing Buddies are willing listeners. Or at least, more willing than other people. And if you depend on one person a lot, they’ll have a better understanding of your characters and plot than the average person, and you won’t have to explain everything over and over and over.
- Writing Buddies are willing readers. Manuscript swapping is a great way to get your work critiqued, and hone your editing skills as well. Most writers are willing to critique your work if you’ll do the same for them.
- Writing Buddies are like an extra brain. Stuck? Run your problem past a Writing Buddy. Even if they don’t come up with a solution you use, chances are their ideas will spark new ones for you.
- Writing Buddies are cheerleaders, but less annoying. Sometimes it’s difficult to get motivated. But your Writing Buddies believe in you, darn it! Fish for compliments and encouragements, and you’re good for another round of writing.
- Writing Buddies keep you sober/happy. Think back to the authors you read in school. Pretty sure they were drunkards, druggies, or depressed. Maybe you need to be one of those to write great novels, but I’m betting you’ll write better ones if you’re not. So don’t succumb to your terrible authorly fate! Make a friend or five.
Looking for Group
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So my writing group spontaneously combusted – well, maybe not spontaneously. But it’s definitely in pieces and I am currently looking for a new writing group.
Does anyone know where I can find a group? I’m looking locally and online to try to find a good fit. I think it would be best if the group was fantasy and/or YA oriented, since that’s what I write and they’d understand those styles. Other than that, I’m pretty flexible!
My writing group has decided, thanks to our shameful lack of progress in NaNoWriMo, to do writing challenges every other week. As if writing wasn’t difficult enough with trying to write and revise whole novels…
Don’t get me wrong. I fully endorsed this idea, even though I loathe writing prompts. I simply have nothing else to share. The way I’ll make the challenges work for me is to make sure everything I write can be tied back to Narrator, Gatekeepers, or Fragment of the Moon. That way I won’t feel like I’m wasting time and effort.
For example, this week’s challenge is to re-tell a myth. I scoured the internet for a story I could use to explain the (as yet unexplained) enmity between two of my gods in Fragment. Last night, I finally found one I liked about Artemis and Apollo. My version of this myth may even find its way into my novel. Two birds, one stone, etc.
Does anyone out there adore/despise writing challenges? Any tips to share with the rest of us?
Writing Group Benefits
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After little over a week, my writing group is in full swing. I can’t tell you how awesome it is to have this group.
Not only do I get a chance to have people read The Narrator and have them tell me what they think and make suggestions, but I get to read their stuff!
Great writers all, it’s fun to read through my friends’ own NaNoWriMo novels or scenes. It’s also educational. As I see how they write, I see how I can improve my own writing.
If you write, and haven’t joined a group yet, I strongly urge you to do so. You’ll be glad you did!
How to Critique
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My writing group’s writing our first critiques this week. In honor of that, I thought I’d review what goes into a useful critique.
Critiques are tricky things to write. A good one will help the author whose work you’re revising to improve both their piece and their writing in general. A bad one will, at best, be useless, and at worst, make them feel like utter crap.
What to include in a good critique:
1. Positive feedback.
This isn’t just to cushion any blows you might have up your sleeve. You need to make sure to mark what you like so that the author knows what works. Also, you don’t want to see good stuff get edited out by accident.
2. Constructive criticism.
Don’t just say you don’t like something. Suggest a way to fix it, or improve it. This is much more useful to the author than a stuffy opinion. But let them know what doesn’t work.
3. Basic edits.
Authors can read through their work ten times and not catch all the grammar or spelling typos. Help them out, fix what you spot.
Together We Write
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My friends and I are going to start a writing group!
Not sure yet on the details. We might have topics to write on, or we might just work on our WIPs. Might be weekly, might be monthly.
The point is to hold ourselves accountable and write.
Oh, but encouragement and critiques are good too!
Getting my work critiqued in fiction writing class was always so valuable to me, and really helped me improve. If you’ve never been part of a group, join one! It can be with your friends, people in your community, or online. Get your work out there so you can receive feedback. It’s the best way to grow.
Have you been part of a writing group? Any good stories (fiction or non-fiction) to share?
Welcome
Official Progress
4/21 segments
A narrator hijacks a cliche fantasy story, much to the chagrin of its characters.Status: Second revision
A young noblewoman with strange powers must choose: her king or her soul.1,639/70,000 wordsStatus: First draft
When a girl's heart is stolen, she's plunged into a world of magic and shadows - but can she get her heart back before she loses it completely?1,087/70,000 wordsStatus: First draft
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