by Sandra Douglas

Created on: January 26, 2008

We writers are a community, whether we meet together in a writing group, work in an on-line group, or simply communicate with fellow writers through their written words. I have stacks of books on writing, subscribe to several writers' magazines, and frequently peruse the Internet sites of other writers. None of these has given me as much encouragement and motivation as my writing group.

It took time for us to find each other. It started with a creative writing class at the local community college. When the class ended, a few of us, not wanting to lose the connection, decided to continue meeting. We invited other writer's to join our group as well. Not everyone stayed. Out of that group, two of us remained who were committed to making a writing group. We asked a few more people we knew and more left. Finally, we ended up with a group of six writers going strong for three years now. We have learned much about finding people to write with and what works in a writing group.

1. Find other writers
When you decide you want a writing group, allow your writing life to take you to places where you will meet other writers. You will find them at writer's conferences and in creative writing classes. Book signings and library events, especially if the book has to do with the craft of writing, will be attended by writers. Our library often holds free events for writers on topics such as getting published, or mystery writing.

Should you invite every writer you meet into your writing circle? When first starting your group, it may be good to cast a wide net but consider whether or not you want a group that contains only fiction writers or only poets. In our group, we have much in common with each other, but it's not the type of writing. We have two non-fiction writers, a novelist, a short-story writer, a poet, and one who writes strictly for her own therapy. The quality of writing varies between us as well but we are committed to giving each other positive and constructive feedback so that each one of us improves.

2. Find a meeting place
Where you meet is important in setting the tone of your group. Will it be in a public space, like a library meeting room or coffee house? Make sure it is centrally located to everyone in the group, free if possible. Some people like to meet in the same place every time while others like to take turns hosting the group at their homes.

3. Set the ground rules
Decide how often you will meet as group, weekly, bi-weekly, or the third Tuesday of every month.

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