I've proposed a whole MS read swapping group here- which has been talked about for a while. Am I right in thinking people would post in the group forum for what they need/will do eg. 70k chicklit MS needs whole read and crit, willing to do same for one other person in same genre? and would you then WWmail the person whose work you fancied critting, or just respond on the forum? is it something you'd then email to each other privately or post in the group in sections? do you post a brief/synopsis to entice a reader etc? and do you then agree a deadline with each other? The group would function on the site as a noticeboard and/or a messaging place, or would the critiquer post their response so that others in the group could see it?

http://www.writewords.org.uk/groups/proposed_groups.asp

sounds interesting, Anna. I know in CWG some of us swap manuscripts and read for each other, and there's nothing more helpful.

Thanks, Anna.

For me, the mechanics are of less importance than having the opportunty to read-swap with like-minded members.

Saturday proposed the original idea, and she may have definite ideas about organisation.

It only needs 3 more members now ...

A marvellous idea, oft mooted.
G

quote]Saturday proposed the original idea, and she may have definite ideas about organisation.[/quote]
I remember doing quite a long post last time it was discussed, but I can't find it now.

However, I think the gist was that I thought it would work as a match-making group in which members who were looking for readers would post a kind of lonely-heart profile. This would describe what they have written (genre/ length/ a bit about the storyline) and also say a bit about what they are looking for from potential readers, e.g. are they looking for someone to read the first three chapters or the whole thing; do they have specific concerns that they want the reader to think about, or do they just want a feel for pace, likeability, or how the plot hangs together - it would be entirely up to the 'lonely heart' to describe what they want. Prospective readers would reply either openly through the group or, if people thought it was more discreet, by wwmailing the poster. It would be then be up to the people involved to decide if they want to proceed and how they would like to take things forward.

On another thread MartinEx made the point that it shouldn't be too prescriptive, which I think is absolutely right. However, I'm not sure how many people will be willing to invest time reading someone else's mss unless there is a tangible benefit for them - the most likely benefit being 'I'll read yours if you read mine'.

I[quote] think if it's 'compulsory' that in order to read someone else's work, you have to have some of your own work read, then the whole scheme will fizzle out. [/quote]

If some people are altruistic enough to respond to posts and read other people's work without a benefit for him/herself (except, perhaps, that they really like the sound of a specific piece of work), then obviously that is fantastic, but based on observation of how the groups normally work, I suspect this will be a minority.

I'm glad the group might finally become a reality - I think I would have found it very useful over the past few years. I haven't signed up for it yet because I'm feeling quite ambivalent about WW (and indeed, writing generally) at the moment, and am just trying to get a few things straight in my own head.