The Good, The Bad, and the AAARRGHHH!!!!

Writing groups and critique partners. This is a topic where writers nod sagely to each other over the heads of new folks asking the question…

How do I find a critique group?

Maybe it’s because I live in Los Angeles and worked in the film and television industry before I started writing full-time, but I have one word for you: audition.

I’m so serious. ‘Cause here’s the thing. Everyone looks at writing differently, especially when they are critiquing it. (Honestly, what are some of those Amazon reviewers thinking?)

Take a sweet old woman who used to run a Christian bookstore for 70 years and ask her about your novel.

“Lies! It’s all lies!” she said to me, all fired up. “How can you write such nonsense?” I stared at her dumbly for a moment, seriously weighing whether she was teasing me and this was my cue to laugh. Then I mumbled something about Jesus telling stories and abruptly changed the subject.

Bring in an English teacher with 30+ years of red-pen-marking experience and ask her what she thinks.

“I counted 27 uses of the word ‘was’ in the first five pages, and made a note that you abuse contractions and exclamation points,” she said, handing me back my now-bleeding pages. “Other than that, I don’t understand why you would make the point of the story about her finding a man. Not in this day and age.”

Uh, thank you?

It doesn’t take much of the wrong kind of critiquing to squelch the lively, fun, creative kid in you, and dry up your page count. Fast. So decide what kind of group you need – critiquing each week or each month, plotting, brainstorming – and what kind of people you want in that group.

I’ve accidentally ended up with three trios of groups. Lauraine and Kathleen and I do a lot of “plot-storming” together, usually about once a year with a lot of emails flying in the meantime. Kathleen is the The What-If Girl you’ve heard from here (see archives), and she is a master at brainstorming plots and characters. Lauraine has been writing for 20 years and has over 2 million books in print so she brings a lot of experience to the table. And all three of us are strongly motivated by our faith in Christ as we build stories that we hope move people. So there are times when I really need their input.

Shonna and Stephanie and I hooked up when we were all members of the Tempe Christian Writers Group in Arizona. Half a dozen of us were seriously writing fiction and met separately from the rest of the two dozen members who wrote primarily non-fiction. We found that we could be great critique partners because we had about the same level of experience and motivation, and we enjoyed each other’s writing even though we don’t write the same kind of fiction.

In the last few months, I’ve been getting together more and more often with Kimberly and Lynn. (Kimberly has also written guest blogs here, and will be joining us again next week.) They’re the only partners that I actually live near, so that’s a plus! LOL! But honestly, these two are just freaking brilliant! We’re all members of Romance Writers of America, so we’re already on the same page topically. And again, we really enjoy each other’s writing. That makes critiquing and brainstorming more fun than work, which is extremely important for long-term success.

I’ve been a member of several groups, and have found myself growing as a writer by actively working with these three pairs of women. But that isn’t always the case. So again – audition. Audition people who might want to join your group. Ask a group if you can audition with them. Then you can all see how the others operate and whether it seems like a good match. When my friend Andrea asked me to stop sending her my work because she really didn’t like the genre I wrote and didn’t think she could critique it in a helpful manner, my respect for her as a writer and a friend soared! Know your own strengths and know what you’re looking for in a group.

Let me tell you what I’ve learned about finding and being a good critique partner.

First and best rule – start by telling the other person what you liked. Not only does everyone need encouragement, but it builds a positive foundation for constructive criticism.

Second, be sure to ask the person what they’re looking for today. If they want to know if the plot makes sense and you do a line-edit, you’re both going to be frustrated. On the flip side, be sure to tell people what you need when you ask them to critique. If Lynn is sending her work to an editor next week, she does need a line edit so there is not a single mistake. But if Kimberly is working on her first draft, she may only want to know if the plot makes sense and her characters are believable. When they tell me what they need, they get what they want. And vice-versa.

Third, remember whose story it is – not yours. On Monday I was working with Lynn and Kimberly, and I made a suggestion to Lynn about not going a certain direction. I tried to make it clear that it was only my opinion, and I suggested some alternatives, but in the end I tried to make sure she knew I supported her in her choice. Because it’s her story.

Which brings me to an important fourth point – constructive criticism gives a reason why (not “it just doesn’t feel right”) and offers suggestions or alternatives (“I’m not sure why this doesn’t flow… maybe it’s a POV switch? the wrong word usage for the time period? a wordy sentence?”).

Finally, end again with a positive note. Force yourself if you have to (but if you’re in the right group, you probably don’t have to), but be sure to end with what you like or love about the book so far. You need this yourself, so offer it to others as well.

I hope you found some helpful tips in here. If you’re looking for a critique group, do some searches for local groups in your area – non-affiliated groups who meet at the library, or organized groups like Romance Writers of America, Mystery Writers of America, etc. Many groups develop online, sometimes just “meeting” people in an online class. Keep looking, keep trying. Worst case scenario, write up what you’re looking for and start your own group! Good luck!