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Ideally, the group supports those writers who are already immersed in a story project, whether it be a novel, screenplay, short story, memoir, creative nonfiction, or in the early stage of story outlining. (Whether you outline or not, it is good to have a sense of the overall movement of your story before you begin. This is one of the reasons why the group starts each meeting with a discussion around a storytelling topic. (See What to Expect) One of the key goals of the group is to offer consistency. And within that framework, ranking top of the list is helping you stay connected to your unfolding story. Because here is where works-in-progress become works-in-completion.
Homework:
Issues in our writing reflect issues in our life; the two are inexorably connected. In this group we take advantage of these twists and turns by first, keeping a Daily Grind Journal for the personal day-in and day-out stuff. It can be as little as a half page per day. This is writing that no one sees. Good stuff, bad stuff, boring stuff, or salacious stuff. What matters is: keeping the emotional wheel turning. Another benefit is, when you least expect it, new ideas and creative insights can be sparked in the pages of your "daily grind." How these insights can manifest might find their way into the weekly story discussions.
Mattering:
No matter what, we all confront the dreaded blank page. This is the foremost reason for putting together a writers' writing group. Like the howls of the wild coyotes beyond the balcony that will certainly accompany some of our evenings together, voices need to be heard, on the page. Everything that preambles the writing time—exploration of storytelling topics, readings from revered authors, meditations and story prompts—are all there to serve as our personal muse for getting words to paper. Within the environment of the group, each person's input matters, even if they don't read or comment. Their presence, who they are, and certainly what they write, matters.
The Three E's: Energy, Expectation, and Elation:
The three E's represent the feelings I wish upon each member of the group following their weekly writing sessions.
Tysa