Writing and Critiques

There is so much more to writing than just putting words on paper or the computer screen. Just writing will not necessarily get us published. There is a small matter called editing, or to some revising.

We all want our story to stand out from the rest. We all want that "wow" factor. We all want that letter or e-mail of acceptance for that baby that we have slaved so hard to put out there.

So, one way that we can iron out some of those flaws that like to creep into our work, is to join a critique group. Yes, we are sharing that hard work with other people. But while they are reading, they are finding all those little faults that we have more likely than not overlooked.

That fresh pair of eyes, or should I say, those fresh pairs of eyes, are a godsend. And, if we can put our feelings about our story to one side, and reflect on the comments that others have made about our story, we are bound to have a better story than before they read it.

Writing is a lonely business. How often can we go to our family and friends for constructive, helpful and positive comment. In my case, the comment is generally the same, "Oh,it's okay".

Yeah, right, its okay. But can I improve it? Did I spell something wrong? Is my punctuation correct? Questions, Questions!

I write what comes to mind, and feel that I don't really have a specific genre to put my writing into. I suppose you could say I lean more towards adventure, but then I feel I don't want to be stuck in one genre. I want to go with my heart, my feelings.

So, with this in mind, I find that open genre critique groups are few and far between. And, if this is the case, I stand little chance of getting into a critique group.

So there was a solution to this. Yes, you got it. Start a group of my own. This group is very much in the early stages, but I hope that what I picture for the group will take me and the members that join to new heights. I hope that we will all take the comments made and use them to make our work even better.

In 24 hours, I have a membership of 7, including myself. I am hoping that more people will join, and we can have a multi genre, helpful, constructive, friendly community of writers whose main ambitions are to help others to get their work published, and through other peoples help, get our own work published.

New members are welcome. Groups sizes are four to six. The first group is already established, and I hope to see the group critiquing early in the New Year.

So if you are looking for a critique group, keeping in mind that this is a group for Children's literature, please consider my group. You are not obliged to join, but would be most welcome if you decide it is for you.

I have a web site for the group which can be found at http://critiquecafe.ning.com

Take a look. You need to be a member to see the forums, but the places you can get into will give you an idea if its for you. I look forward to your membership if you join.

Until next time, happy writing.