I'm thinking about starting a local writing circle. There doesn't appear to be one anywhere near me (at least, not that I can find any pointers to) and for the last six months I've thought about starting one in my own area.

Now, with the snow melting (again), and the sniff of spring in the air, I thought that perhaps now is the time.

What I'm wondering is, what are people's experiences of such things? Are they beneficial? Are they difficult to run? Difficult to maintain?

And is there anyone out there who has a copy of the rules of engagement under which these circles operate? Their constitution, I guess.

Any thoughts would be welcome.

Thanks,

jumbo

Hi John,

You should contact NAWG (National Association of Writers Groups)

http://www.nawg.co.uk

They'll help you with lots of advice about setting up and running a group.

Dee
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You know - this site is amazing - there's always someone out there with the answer!

Yet again, you're a star! Orion, I think, this week - or is that a collection of stars? A consternation, perhaps!

Much obliged

j xx

Be nice if it was a premonition...

Dee
x

But it is ... it is!

Our group celebrated its 10th birthday last month and now has over 40 members. I think the secret is having a guest speaker each month. We fund this by charging a membership fee of £15 a year and we raise more funds by having a bookstall at every meeting. We donate books to the group and buy them for £1 each. Many books have been sold several times. In fact we almost have too many now.

We run two writing comps a year; one for adults and one for children, both advertised nationally. The editor of the local paper is an honorary member so we get lots of free local publicity for the comps. We're lucky to have a published author as our chairperson and she held her last book launch at the local independent bookshop so now they donate prizes for the children's comp.

We also have manuscript evenings where we can read out our work for comments. (luckily not everyone comes to them) They are enjoyable - but we have a tendency to be too nice to each other - unlike on here...

Dee
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I've often thought about joining one, or perhaps starting a fantasy/horror/sci fi based group. Perhaps in time I will. Or then again maybe not. Maybe I'll just think about it and never get round to it. Alternatively, I could start one and it would go really really well. Or not. Hmmm. I wonder.

Still, I'll always have WriteWords.

JB

This is a serious comment - what can a physical writers group offer that WriteWords can't? In my circumstances time to devote to writing is a rare commodity indeed and any regular or planned meetings will almost certainly fail. With WW I can come in at 3am on a Sunday morning if I want to.

I can appreciate that the 'personal touch' brings added benefits but can anyone quantify them?

J

Maybe you'd meet someone and fall in love over a favourite book?

Actually, I think I prefer the idea of WW. The fact that we communicate in writing is so much more pertinent to the art, I feel. Reading and talking are two very different things to writing.

JB

Jon, in terms of feedback on work, WW wins hands down because it’s more immediate.

Group benefits?

Having a speaker: In the last year we’ve had a small-press publisher, a solicitor who specialises in crime (he’s coming back this year, due to massive demand), the Yorkshire Air Ambulance, a TV scriptwriter, an expert on researching local history, as well as several published writers. It’s all grist to the mill. It helps us with research, sparks off ideas, gives us contacts.

We’ve also raised the funds for a one-day workshop with a short story expert. That resulted, for me, in Tot’s Wake and Carter’s Money, two short stories I’m pretty damned pleased with - and there’s another one on the boil.

Lastly, there’s the personal contact. The discovery that there are so many people in your immediate community who are passionate about writing… or just interested enough to get off their backsides once a month and come out to meet other writers.

I know, from various sources, that my local group is one of the largest, most active and successful in the country, and I count myself lucky to be a member.

Dee

Jon

I take your point that life-styles will often prevent us from being able to attend group meetings on a regular basis. At the moment I have the advantage of quite a lot of flexibility - so I could probably manage it. But I do understand that's not the case for everyone.

JB

You mention 'reading'. I am more interested in the type of group that looks at each others work, not a reading group that reads and then discusses an already published work.

Dee

I agree with you when you say that WW has some incredible advantages, but I would also like to have the opportunity to interact with other writers in a more direct face-to-face situation.

Much obliged to you all for your thoughts.

Regards

jumbo

I meant reading out loud, sorry. It is a totally different thing to writing.

JB

Got it!

I'm devoted to my writing group. I don't feel like it's an either/or matter. I think WW and my writing group complement one another beautifully. And my WW organises workshops and we swap books and we read our stuff out loud - or ask someone else to read it out louad for us (very instructive - shows how differently people can interpret the same text) and we can just drink coffee together, which I would love to do with WW'ers but we just can't do that in a very effective manner.

In fact, I have just joined a poetry group and a reading group, too! :-)

Thanks Anne.

I've just discovered my local writers' group (thanks for the link, Dee!!) and I'm going to meet them for the first time on Thursday morning.

Scarey stuff!

Lots of black coffee, methinks!

j x