Writing Careers: What do you want from a writers group?

Illustration by Tad Richards

Here is the main reason why any writers' group can be good for you:

You write more.

There is almost nothing that lends itself to procrastination like writing. We procrastinate because life gets in our way, with its silly little demands like making a living, shopping for groceries, picking up the kids from soccer practice, or just...because.

But if you know that every Tuesday evening, you're going to be meeting with a bunch of like-minded, supportive people, you're going to want to write. You're going to want to do your part. It’s as natural as…well…as procrastinating.

What do you want from a writers group?

You need to know. Basically, there are two kinds of groups. Each is valuable, but only one is likely to be right for you.

The supportive group. The rule in supportive groups is no negativity. Writers share their work, share the experiences behind the work, share their dreams and their goals and their concepts. These groups are safe havens, where a writer can take chances, try new things, dream big and share those big dreams, in an atmosphere that’s nurturing and positive,
The downside: The members of the group may all just be encouraging each other to be self-indulgent.

The critique group. Members of these groups have to trust one another to be supportive at heart, because they may not be supportive on the surface. Their job is to probe, to find the soft spits in your work…the places where you were self-indulgent. Their goal is to make one another better writers.
The downside: Critiques can get predictable. You can find yourself being nudged into a safe, middle-of-the-road, critique-proof position, Like poor Will Shakespeare.