Thinking of writing that book that has been buzzing in your head,
but don't know where to start? Start by searching the Internet for
"Writing your first book." If you use Google, you'll find
around 49,300,000 hits, some of which may even be useful. There is a
big market for helping new writers. Perhaps not a very big market for
new writers themselves, but helping new writers is big, big business.
You may come across the suggestion to join a writers group in your
area. A writer's group can be important in developing a beginning
writer's skills simply by allowing a new writer to mingle with people
who are familiar with typical beginner's problems. Helping writers of
all ages and genres is a basic premise of most writer's groups. Many
are listed in the Arts and Entertainment section of your Sunday
newspaper, and Internet searches show most writers groups as well.
Most public libraries can usually point you to a local writers group.
Writers groups vary in their format, with some groups
welcoming all writing genres while others are strictly for poetry or
novels or non-fiction narrative. Don't expect in-depth discussion of
your historical fiction novel at a poetry writers group. Writers groups usually welcome new writers with enthusiasm and
understanding, they are glad to see you taking that first step. I
have been asked what the difference is between a writer and an
author, and while the differences may be arguable, to me an author is
the visionary or creator of the idea to be conveyed while the writer
is the conveyor of that thought or concept to print. It follows that
most authors are writers. I've been told that authors have published
books. I argue many books by celebrity authors are actually written
by ghost writers. It doesn't matter to me. A writer may do journals,
blogs, newspaper columns, or magazine articles or any other form of
written communication. A writer is someone who puts words into print
to convey thought.
While you will welcomed by a writers group, do not expect them to
pat you, a newcomer, on the head and lead you by the hand down the road to
literary stardom. Don't expect a group of writers, almost all of whom
have other day jobs, to dedicate their priceless time at a writers
group meeting just for you, at least not more than once. Almost
everyone in a writers group will help a new writer as best they can,
from writing and editing, to proofreading and suggestions about
publication. A new member may even find a mentor who will take them
under their wing. However, if you are looking for free editing for
your book or novel, you're wasting their time and yours as well.
- Writers groups are not a substitute for English class
You don't have to be a great typist to be a writer, but a good
dictionary will do wonders for your acceptance in a writers group. If
you don't bother with spell checking, you're off to a bad start
unless you are a really gifted story-teller. I was once told a writer
who doesn't have a grasp of grammar is like a color-blind person
trying to paint a portrait. If you are offended when someone points
out spelling errors in your manuscript, or your grammar is
horrendous, you might want to try something besides writing, Unless,
of course, you have a really great friend who likes to edit.
- An effective writers group is a symbiotic relationship
between its members.
I have had the pleasure of watching members develop and grow into
marvelously entertaining writers during the several years I've been a
Writers Group Leader for the Florida Writers Association. However,
I've watched people attend several meetings, then drop off, either
discouraged or disappointed in what they found, or in some cases,
what they didn't find. We may be in Sarasota, but Stephen King does
not attend our meetings.
William K. Zinsser, in the Introduction to the 7th edition of his
revised and updated "On Writing Well" writes:"My concerns as a teacher have also shifted. I'm more
interested in the intangibles that produce good writing –
confidence, enjoyment, intention, integrity – and I've written new
chapters on those values."
New writers are often cloaked by intimidation or insecurities as
they venture into an unfamiliar world that glaringly exposes their
shortcomings and lack of experience. A good writers group will help
define the writing process and help develop the mechanical and
technical skills that allows new writers to express themselves while
understanding most writers do not have a Bachelor's Degree in English
or creative writing.
- Writers groups are not a substitute for professional
counseling.
There isn't much sympathy in most writer's groups for personal or
political vendettas, ie: it was all his/her fault and the world needs
to know what a bad person he/she really is and you all are going to
sit here while I read chapter after chapter of this agonizing
diatribe. Many writers get that personal story off their chests and
find they don't have a second book in them, which leads to the
question:
Question 1: Why do you want to write?
Are you looking for something to do in place of having a life?
Believe me, if you become addicted to writing, you won't have a life.
Are you telling a story? A personal memoir or an autobiography? Are
you planning on making a fortune writing? Well, good luck, I know
hundreds of writers but only a few who can call it a profession.
Question number 2:
Whom
are you writing for?
Who is your target audience? If you are writing an autobiography,
which is the usual genre for new writers, there are only two
possibilities to determine who will read your looming masterpiece:
- You are already famous and people know you by name and image
- You are like the rest of us
If you fall into the first category, you probably don't need a
writers group, your book will probably sell very well. If you fall
into the second category, however, the writers group probably doesn't
want to read it, but they'll help you write it. You may find even
your relatives won't read your manuscript, but they will tell you
they will read it when they get a chance. But, they won't, although
they skim through it to see what you wrote about them.
The best advice for new writers is to finish your autobiography
and put it on a thumb-drive. Put it away until you're famous and can
update it. Now sit down and write for fun, write because you enjoy
writing. Write because you have a story to tell, you know the one you
just made up. Then bring it to a writers group and read it out loud
in front of people you don't know. Unreasonable? Yes, you may want at
least a warm, comfortable feeling with the group before exposing your
soul, but when you do read in front of a writers group:
- Read only enough to make them want to hear more.
You are giving a sample of your writing, a taste of your
descriptive powers or wit, to the group to view their response. If
you are intent on reading every single word of your book, don't
expect anyone in the group to buy it when it's finished. After all,
we heard you read it. There isn't enough time at any meeting to
listen to more than 500 words or several pages of material from any
one writer. It only takes several hundred words to appreciate a
writing style or the dialog between characters. Listening to someone
read page after page of their own work can be an endurance test for
the audience.
Many writers will at one time or another inadvertently revert to
writing about personal experiences. The memories are often painful
and unexpectedly personal. Writing is often cathartic, especially for
new writers. While an insensitive writer's group might dampen a new
writer's candid honesty, most members understand the self-discovery
process. Shared experiences can become part of the camaraderie of a
writers group, but don't overdo it. Constant repetition of personal
problems is a sure way to shut off a receptive group of listeners
anywhere, much less a writers group.
I have watched people join our writer's group and grow beyond
their expectations, and conversely, I've seen talented writers drop
by the wayside, discouraged or disappointed with their work. Many new
writers take critique of their writing as criticism, and
unfortunately, depending on the critiquer, sometimes it is. A new
writer must be thick-skinned when submitting work for critiquing, but
at the same time be open to change if the criticism is valid. Being
poorly critiqued has probably discouraged more aspiring authors than
any other single factor. Most critiques I've read are given in good
faith, meant to improve the caliber of the work under review.
Unfortunately, critiques are a direct reflection of the talents
and skills of the critiquer. I've seen great writing attacked because
the critiquer was repulsed by the subject. It is often hard for those who
aren't professional editors to separate the stimulus to an emotional
response from the writing that triggered it. Often religious or
political viewpoints become the focus of the critique instead of the
writing itself. Novels in the sexual realms tend to be fire-starters.
I can only imagine what kind of responses E L James would have gotten
with her Fifty Shades of Grey from most writers groups. On the other
hand, the book, in my opinion, could have used the help of a good
writers group. Sir Salman Rusdie said about the book: "I've
never read anything so badly written that got published." I
doubt James would have abandoned her book because of a bad writers
group critique, but good critique could have definitely have helped
the quality of her writing. The fine line is critiquing the quality
of the writing itself as opposed reacting to the emotionally charged
nature of the subject.
First, you need to understand:
- You can't please all readers
Arthur Godfrey once famously said, "Some people just don't
like ice cream." As long as you please those you are writing
for, you are by my standards, a successful writer.
Sometimes critiques are ego based, or subconsciously prejudiced
and those are deadly to a new writer. I can read anonymous critiques
from members of our group and tell who wrote it by the style of the
critique. Alan Sherman wrote a parody of Peter and the Wolf,
performed by the Boston Pops Symphony Orchestra, and one line from
the work has stuck with me since I heard it almost fifty years ago:
"A camel is a horse designed by a committee." That's
exactly what happens when several critiques vary in their assessment
of a given work. The poor writer being critiqued doesn't know which
way to go, or, which path to follow to gain acceptance with the
group. I was once critiqued for using too many adjectives in a
manuscript while another critiquer said the same article was bland
and needed better descriptions. I know one writer who attends several
writers groups, and much to his dismay, can't satisfy any two of them
with any one piece of writing. One group felt a narrative he wrote
was flippant, distasteful, childish, while the other group thoroughly
enjoyed the same piece of work. Some people just don't like ice
cream.
- Writers groups are basically mutual admiration societies
If you read in front of the group, rejoin the group when you are
finished. Be polite enough to listen to others who read their
material, after all, they were polite enough to listen to you. If you
head for the door as soon as you're finished reading, don't expect
the welcome mat to be out when you return.
Don't let your speaking style detract from your writing. If
you sound like you're reading the telephone book when you are reading
Steinbeck out loud, get someone else to read your material to the
group. We have a regular member who is in demand to read other
people's work. We call her the "Voice of FM," and her
interpretation and inflection when reading makes even the
aforementioned telephone book a pleasure to listen to. I recently
read a member's final proof and was astounded to find myself
intrigued by the book that I had a hard time following during the
readings. I realized then that every reader embeds their own images
and emotions on the written material, quite different from having it
interpreted for you by a reader who flavors it by the way they speak.
So, once again, don't expect an audience to cheer your first attempt
at explaining how you helped develop nuclear fission if you, like me,
read out loud like Elmer Fudd. Get a good speaker, or hand out enough
printed copies for everyone so your audience can read for themselves.
I've attended writers groups that follow a specific reading and
critiquing format almost religiously, often intent on developing
writers in a competitive environment such as winning awards for the
group members. Other groups tend to mix up the readings with
presentations from outside guests, from published authors to
publishers and editors while critiquing is done separately from the
meetings. Comments are almost always called for after a reading so a
writer has immediate feedback on their work. Every group is different
in its makeup and purpose and rarely are there any fees associated
with writers groups. If the group you visit doesn't offer the
education or experiences you are looking for, try another group. We
have members who routinely drive thirty miles one way to attend our
meetings, while active authors who live in the neighborhood prefer a
different format and attend other groups in the area.
I have one piece of advice for new writers: It is your story and
you are the one telling it! Write it your way and let your writing
reflect your heart and your soul if necessary. You are the artist and
this is your medium. I like my own writing, I can read it for hours
and I'm sure you can read your own writing for hours as well. Bring
it to the next writer's group meeting, well, 500 words of it at
least, and see if others hear it as you meant it. Don't be
discouraged if the group you meet doesn't like your writing. Take the
criticism and find another group and see if they accept your style
and content. Our group likes vanilla, pistachio, chocolate, and just
about every other flavor of ice cream, but every once in a while,
someone is looking for upside-down cake instead.
George
