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first and foremost on the overall atmosphere, and the attitudes of the writers there. Are they extremely harsh and critical, making it so that the overall mood is one of arrogance, anger or bitterness? Or are they all overly nice to each other, giving heaps of praise but not an ounce of criticism, making it so that while the mood is very pleasant, no one's really learning anything? Ideally, you'll want to find a group that's comfortably in the middle and not at either extreme, though you should remember that there will always be harsh (and sometimes rude) people, as well as those who are at the meetings just to have their egos boosted.

If you feel comfortable at the meeting, consider presenting some of your work, and listen very closely to the feedback. Is the criticism constructive, or just meant to put you down? Do the members actually listen to your work or read it, or pretty much take a nap unless their own stuff is being presented? Do the members seem genuinely interested in helping you out? If so, you might have found the right group for you.

It might seem discouraging at first, especially if you live in a smaller town where there aren't as many writing critique groups to choose from, but don't give up. If worse comes to worse, consider getting together some writer friends and making your own group.

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