What Would You Want in an Online Writing Club?
We’ve talked about the online writing sphere before and the plethora of great communities you can find within it. Some of those sites also host online writing clubs, whether created by the organization or the user base itself. But not all groups are created equal! When it comes to finding an online writing club to join, you need to do a little research to make sure the club’s values align with your own as a young adult fiction writer.
What Good is a Club?
Similar to writing communities such as NaNoWriMo, I find one of the greatest boons a club provides is accountability. When authors write in their workspaces and on their own time, especially independent or first-time, unrepresented authors, there’s no real deadline hanging overhead to drive them.
By joining a writing club, you have other people looking forward to updates, challenging your thoughts, encouraging your creativity, and providing motivation in a variety of different ways. So for aspiring authors who struggle with self-starting, surrounding yourself with a group of peers is a brilliant tactic to ensure your writing process continues.
What Are You Writing?
Before joining a writing club, the most obvious criteria to look for is what genre or category does the group support? Walking into an adult western-focused club will only offer limited help for your next great YA romance.
So, finding a romance novel or YA-specific writing club would better suit you in that scenario. People who read and write the subject matter you’re focusing on will be the best to provide feedback and support on your own manuscript.
Similar to finding appropriate beta readers and editors, people who know the genre have certain expectations and can tell you if you’re not meeting them in your story, structure, character-building, or otherwise.
What’s Your Comfort Level?
As you’re looking into the various writing clubs available, consider who is a part of the membership. Do you want to work with and receive feedback from established authors who have published a book or two?
Or would you feel better surrounding yourself with other newer writers at your experience level? You don’t want to feel so intimidated by the members that you never connect with them or want to share your writing for fear of being judged (since that’s kind of the entire point of being there!)
There’s value in any sort of group dynamic, but take a moment to consider what will work best for you and where you’re at in your writing process.
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How Do You Want to Meet?
Something else you should think about is where you want to get together with your online writing group. I started this by talking about online groups, but you can likely find a local meetup in some places (especially in major cities).
Again, what will hold you accountable, and what do you respond best to? And what are you looking for from this group? Sometimes it’s simply for writing feedback and nurturing your manuscript, but it’s also nice to socialize.
Many people meet online and forge lasting friendships, but meeting someone local is ideal, too. Saying that, whether online or in person, please be safe out there! Don’t share personal information, and make any local meetups in public spaces to ensure everyone feels safe and secure.
What Feedback Do You Want?
I’ve peppered in some thoughts about what you expect from your group throughout, but to be more specific, what sort of feedback are you looking for? Be clear when you find an online writing club to join. Share your work about what you want to hear.
If you’re not ready for a scathing, honest review, set those boundaries. Maybe you want to focus on your character development. That’s fine, but let people know so you only get notes on areas you’re ready to review.
Conversely, if you’re there to read the work of others, support them, and get inspiration from their manuscripts, that’s fine, too. You can learn a lot by seeing how others approach the craft. Boundaries are important in all facets of life, so apply some here when you join a writing group and start giving or receiving feedback — you’ll be much happier for it!
Writing doesn’t need to be the solitary activity it seems to be. Getting together to share ideas, discuss topics and techniques, and review the work of others is an incredible way to improve as a young adult fiction writer.
Taking time to consider what you want when you join a online writing club will help you feel ready to share and know what to expect. If you enjoy my work and what I share, consider looking into my course about self-publishing, as you’ll get access to an exclusive group of peers through it.
Otherwise, you can check out various websites and find a writing group that works for you, or even start your own! Please reach out on social media or via jsims@jairesims.com with any thoughts on writing groups or to share yours and recruit new members.
About Jaire Sims
Award-Winning YA Author, Course Creator, Blogger, and Self-Publishing Consultant. At twenty-one and as a junior in college, Jaire was diagnosed with Asperger’s Syndrome. Fast forward one year, Jaire proved that he had overcome all of the challenges he had faced up until this point by graduating from Monmouth College with a Bachelor’s Degree in Communication Studies.
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