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Evaine, don't give up on Writers' groups just because of a bad experience of "certain age" ladies. Moira and I both go to Nottingham Writers' Club, and I can assure you despite the age range 20s to 80s, there is no real problem with Sword and Sorcery type writing. If your group is made up of older ladies it may not be the best thing for you. You definately need a mix of ages, skills and talents. In the meantime the online group may be a good idea. Keep looking for what suits you.
It's not a case of "giving up" on writing groups - it's a case of living in the depths of the countryside without my own transport. Population is very thinly stretched here in the Welsh Borders, so you need your own transport, and even then groups can cover a huge geographical area. Our "local" LETS group (a bartering club), for instance, covers the area from Llandrindod Wells to Abergavenny, a huge area, while some LETS groups only cover one housing estate in a city.
Hi there,
Just to confirm what others have already said, writer's groups vary widely.
The first one I joined was the old-lady poetry-about-daffodils variety and I soon bored of it - another local one was good, but very small and not (for me at least) critical enough. But the next one, Nottingham Writer's Club has proven to be much larger, therefore with a better range of ages and genres and also has established professional writers in the group. It really helps to know you are not the only one striving for success and to be able to pick up advice and constructive criticism from the more experienced members.
Keep looking till you find something you like and I'm sure you won't regret it.
The mix of people at a writers group will depend on what time of day it takes place. You'll get more varied ages and probably more men at an evening group.
Although I felt I could not write poetry, I joined a poetry group at the urging of a friend. The group meets once a month and is carefully structured so that a lot of work gets done. Sometimes, we are fortunate to have a published poet conduct a workshop. Other times we study published poetry under the guidance of a a leader. We become familiar with all types of poetry - contemporary and classical forms. We are given time to perhaps write first drafts to a a given theme or read our own previous work and receive criticism (in a kind manner) and encouragement. It works for me. I have had 2 poems published since I joined.
Comments
Just to confirm what others have already said, writer's groups vary widely.
The first one I joined was the old-lady poetry-about-daffodils variety and I soon bored of it - another local one was good, but very small and not (for me at least) critical enough. But the next one, Nottingham Writer's Club has proven to be much larger, therefore with a better range of ages and genres and also has established professional writers in the group. It really helps to know you are not the only one striving for success and to be able to pick up advice and constructive criticism from the more experienced members.
Keep looking till you find something you like and I'm sure you won't regret it.