Why join a Writing Group?

The writers life is a solitary one, so hanging out with like-minded people is very good for motivation, support and feedback. It isn't very helpful to you in the crafting of your stories, if no-one else gets to see your work. By being involved in a group, you can have others read your work and help you polish it before you send it out into the big bad world of publishing.

The Yarra Plenty Regional Library has several writing groups running that meet in various branches. During these sessions, participants will share their work by 'workshopping' excerps of stories. A workshop is a chance for the story to be looked at closely:

• does the style of writing read well?
• is my grammar of a good standard?
• is this character believable?
• is the plot interesting?
• how can I format my documents for submission to publishers?

Even if you don't plan on sending work out to publishers but just enjoy writing as a hobby, these groups are a way of sharing your love of the written word.

Contact your nearest branch to see if they are running a group.

Writers @ Watsonia are meeting next Thursday 19 August 6.30pm-8.00pm at Watsonia. New members are welcome. Contact Lynne Siejka on lsiejka@yprl.vic.gov.au