MEETING DATES 2014 - GRIND WRITERS GROUP

THE GRIND WRITERS  2014 Meeting Dates 10am - 12:30pm
Sat	Oct 4	Out trip – not meeting @ the Grind
Sun	Oct 19
Sat	Nov 1
Sun	Nov 16
Sat	Nov 29
Sun	Dec 14

Medicine in Your Pen - the Writing Rx

Science Shows Something Surprising About People Who Love to Write

“The benefits of writing go far beyond building up your vocabulary. No matter the quality of your prose, the act of writing itself leads to strong physical and mental health benefits, like long-term improvements in mood, stress levels and depressive symptoms. 

“In a 2005 study on the emotional and physical health benefits of expressive writing, researchers found that just 15 to 20 minutes of writing three to five times over the course of the four-month study was enough to make a difference. 

“By writing about traumatic, stressful or emotional events, participants were significantly more likely to have fewer illnesses and be less affected by trauma. Participants ultimately spent less time in the hospital, enjoyed lower blood pressure and had better liver functionality than their counterparts.
“It turns out writing can make physical wounds heal faster as well.”

You'll want to read the whole article by Rachel Grate  

(Sept 15, 2014) here: 

http://mic.com/articles/98348/science-shows-writers-have-a-serious-advantage-over-the-rest-of-us

GRIND WRITERS NEWS SEPT 2014: Still a little juice left in summer edition

The STILL A LITTLE JUICE LEFT IN SUMMER edition.

Contents:

Who says crime don’t pay? 

Detective fiction in Canada

Lost your mojo? Maybe Bonnie Nish can help

Psst. Does your manuscript have something to tell you?

Submit. (You know you want to.)

A call for spooky

Wordplay in the Royal City

Stuff about … stuff

Things to do, places to go….

Book Talks – a Vancouver book club

A novel process

Open mics - not just for poets

Grind Writers – where we meet, when, but not why 

The free-write photo prompt. Just do it!

View the GN on Issuu.com at
http://issuu.com/grindwriters/docs/grind_writers_news_-_sept_2014_/0

Robin Williams

Writing prompt:

Robin Williams' death: how has it affected you? What sort of issues has his suicide caused you to think about? 


Bring your output to the next meeting.
 ________________________

About writing to a prompt

Get your writing stuff ready.

Set a timer for 15 minutes.

Don’t think it.

Just start writing.

Keep going.

No stopping.

No editing (that comes later).

Forget grammar. Forget spelling.

Forget any “rules” you’ve ever been told.

Forget everything else and just write.

Now.

Grind Writers - Meeting Dates

Please email grindwriters@gmail.com before you attend the first time - for location and other details.

THE GRIND WRITERS  2014 Meeting Dates 10am - 12:30pm
Sun	Aug 24
Sat	Sept 6
Sun	Sept 21
Sat	Oct 4
Sun	Oct 19
Sat	Nov 1
Sun	Nov 16
Sat	Nov 29
Sun	Dec 14

GRIND WRITERS NEWS - AUGUST 2014

Read this edition or past issues here.

Contents:

--Writing – the first antidepressant

--Liar, liar pants on fire? Memoir writing: decisions, decisions

--New memoir Meetup group starts in Kits

--Could you write adult fiction?

--Free online course, on relationships

--Submit. (You know you want to.)  Contests and calls for submissions --

--Platform platform platform

--Tarot for Poets & Storytellers--workshop

--Literary agent blogs & other marvels

--Sebastian will be swashbuckling; Y’s author reading; Sunshine Coast literary festival

--Contest for indie-published books

--10 reasons why that other writer always seems to get ahead

--The CAA’s new mag

--Places to go, things to do, people to….

--Grind Writers – where we meet, when, but not why 

--The free-write photo prompt: just try it!

GRIND WRITERS NEWS - July 2014

Contents:
--Platform-platform-platform: but do you really know what it is (and isn’t)?

--7 letters to write before you turn 70

--Avoid these clichés like the plague

--Careful to whom you liken your characters:  Scarlett Johansson wins damages in book character lawsuit

--Are you missing out on something important when you type?

--Yes, okay, you do need to know this

--How to support your published colleagues

-- BC Writers Autonomous Fan Region

--Places to go, things to do, people to see

--How often do you get to write poetry with bill bissett!

--Congratulations Renee.

--A chance to hear Susan Musgrave reading—live in Vancouver

--Wordplay – in the Royal City

--Submit. (you know you want to) Contests and calls for submissions

--How to upload your ebook, step by step

--Grind Writers – where we meet, when & why 

--First sentences of 100 classics

--The free-write photo prompt:  just try it!

If you’d prefer to view it online in the flip-the-page magazine format, it’s here: 

http://issuu.com/grindwriters/docs/grind_writers_news_-_july_2014/0

Giving and getting feedback in a writers' group

Grind Writers Group

Giving and getting feedback

Getting feedback

If you’re going to read a piece, bring half a dozen paper printouts. Some people do not do well hearing things read aloud; they need to follow in print.

1.     Do not argue and justify why you wrote this or did that. That takes up way too much time, then others don’t get a chance to read. 

2.     Keep the introduction to the piece you’re going to read short. If it’s not somehow obvious that it’s a poem or short story etc., say that. If it’s part of a larger work, give a brief synopsis. Did I say brief?  What’s important is to stop talking and start reading.

3.     Before you read, ask some specific question(s) you actually have about your work: “I’d like to know if you think character X is believable,” – “Have I used too much dialect?” – “Does the ending seem realistic?” – “Does this excerpt make you want to hear more?” Otherwise you may get general comments (“That was good”) that are not very helpful.

4.     Basically you need to be quiet during feedback, unless there’s specifically something you don’t understand. It’s not a discussion time.

5.     Instead: just listen and make notes. If you feel someone has misinterpreted something you wrote: that probably means you need to re-write and clarify.

6.     If 5 people say they thought the action was taking place on another planet and it wasn’t – you need to fix that. This is exactly why you want feedback.  Fresh eyes.

7.     Do not interrupt.  And when they are finished, say thanks you but don’t talk -- just look for the next person to start their feedback. 

8.     Use a grain of salt.  Feedback is only one person’s opinion (unless 10 people say the same thing). 

9.     You may find it useful to ask someone else to read your work out loud or even several someones.  It’s amazing what you notice when someone else reads your work out.  It may not be the way it sounded in your head – but you need to know that. 

10.   You don’t have to change anything based on feedback.  It’s your piece.  Some people may simply not like or get your style.  You may be writing an experimental piece or writing in a genre and they may be unfamiliar with its conventions. (It may be okay to explain some of that--but not at any length!)

11.   Revise the piece, then bring it to read again and see if the reactions have changed.  You may need to do this several times. 

12.   Keep in mind others want time to read their piece and get feedback. 

13.   If people note down copy-edits on your manuscript, be thankful.  They are helping you look the best you can on paper to an editor.

14.   Read #1 again. It was #5 at first but I moved it to #1 position because it’s that important.

Very important:  if you've emailed a piece to someone (or given them your paper M.S.) and they've taken the time to proof and read it, take the time to send them a thank-you. It's very time-consuming to read a piece for feedback and provide  thoughtful written feedback.


Giving feedback

It's very brave of someone to read their work ever, anywhere—and especially to a group of other writers. So when someone finishes reading, show your admiration by tapping your fingers on the table. You don't even have to like the piece to do that.

1.     Feedback should be fairly brief—and helpful; supportive.

2.     Do not talk about your work and your similar or experiences and your life as it seems to relate to the reader’s piece yada yada yada. This is about them and their work. Don’t launch into anecdotes. Keep it about their piece, period.

3.     Make sure the person has given you a couple of specific questions they’d like you to answer about the piece they're reading. General feedback is not very helpful. So stop them and say, “What is it you’d like us to look for?”

4.     You want to send them away enthusiastic about continuing to write – and possibly with practical suggestions about how they might improve that piece of writing. However, it’s not your job to rewrite their story: you may not be able to solve internal manuscript problems, but that’s okay. Sometimes just being aware of the issues is useful. 

5.     If you think what someone has read is complete crap, keep that to yourself. Harsh negative critique doesn’t help people keep writing. And by keeping writing their writing will improve. This does not mean you have to praise work you think is awful. But if that’s the only way you know how to say it, then know there’s someone else who will be able to say it less damagingly.

6.     If there were places where you stopped reading because you were distracted, or puzzling something out that wasn’t clear, or even becoming bored – put a star in that place in the manuscript – and explain to them later what was going on. The last thing any writer wants is for a reader to stop reading and be in their own head, so we want to know about anything that interrupts the flow.

7.     If it’s not a genre you’re comfortable with, don’t feel you have to say anything.

8.     If the person receiving feedback starts to argue with you, or provide justifications about why they wrote this or did that – hold your hand up and ask them to just take notes, knowing that yours is just one opinion.

9.     The idea is not to get into an extended dialogue because other people want to read and receive feedback as well. You can always talk the merits of this genre or that literary device after the meeting, together.

10.   Yes, do write your copy-edit suggestions on the manuscript if you notice typos, transpos, spelling errors, formatting errors, inconsistencies, anything like that.  Copy editing is not nit-picking; it’s saving the person from sending an embarrassing manuscript full of errors to editors who will be distracted by errors because most of them have previously been copy editors.

11.   If there are way too many, perhaps offer to copy-edit the piece at another time.

12.   Read #2 again.

©2014 Margo Lamont

Something you'd like to add?
Please email your suggestions, your pet peeves about giving or getting feedback to: grindwriters@gmail.com

If I use any of your suggestions they'll become part of my piece and my copyright.

GRIND WRITERS MEETING DATES 2014

THE GRIND WRITERS  2014 MEETING DATES 10am-12:30pm
Sat	Jan 11
Sun	Jan 26
Sat	Feb 15
Sun	July 20
Sat	Aug 9
Sun	Aug 24
Sat	Sept 6
Sun	Sept 21
Sat	Oct 4
Sun	Oct 19
Sat	Nov 1
Sun	Nov 16
Sat	Nov 29
Sun	Dec 14

Please email grindwriters@gmail.com before you attend the first time for location.  We occasionally meet elsewhere.