Critique Partners – Becky Levine

I’m sure I’ve talked about this before, but my mind is pretty much swimming in critique group stuff these days, as I get ready to head out to Pittsburgh to talk about it all at the Pennwriters conference this week. I’ll be talking about how to grow a strong group, how to develop a truly helpful critique, and how to revise from critique feedback (without losing your mind!). What keeps coming to the surface, though, as I get the talks ready, is–once again–how important I think critique groups are.

Obviously. 🙂

I find myself, over and over, using the word “magic.” The magic of a critique group. That phrase keeps popping up in my workshops, out of my mouth, onto the keyboard.

So today, I thought I’d do a quick post on what I think that magic actually consists of:

The magic of a critique group is:

The comfort and trust that lets you be motivated to write more, simply because there are people at the other end waiting to read that more. This is, obviously, the flip side of being in a not-so-good group, where you’re actually hesitant or worried about sending those pages out. Build that trust–you’ll never regret it.
The joy of surrounding yourself (in-person or online) with people who get this writing thing, who–like you–live with and for words as many hours of the day that they can.
The spark of an idea as it jumps from one brain to another, as it literally bounces around the critique table, gathering momentum and depth and absolute right-itude, until it lands in the writer’s lap as a gift, all wrapped up in shiny paper and bright, curly ribbon.
The delight of reading the work of someone you care about and being completely wowed at their talent–that line that makes you laugh out loud, that character that pulls you into story, that scene that has you holding your breath. getting to be part of these authors’ writing world.
The explanations and examples, from several angles, that your critique partners give you about a problem in your manuscript. The feedback that lets you, at revision time, erase the worried frown on your face, snap your fingers, say, “Yes!” and start writing the new words. The better, stronger words.
The education you get in the writing craft, not just from what you hear about your own writing, but from what you tell the other writers in your group about their projects. Every time you push yourself to dig deep into someone else’s book, every time you resist the impulse to not address a problem, every time you get your explanation as absolutely clear as possible, you’re learning. How easy is it for us, in our own books, to skate over the stuff that isn’t good enough–out of fear that we don’t know how to fix it. When we commit to a critique group, we commit to not skating over anybody else’s writing–and as we work to help them, we teach ourselves. Oh, yeah.

Those are just a few of the things that I’ve been thinking about and sort of re-realizing all over again this last week. What about you? What’s the magic of your group? What’s the magic you hope to find in a group some day?

In The Writing & Critique Group Survival Guide, I talk about ways to find a critique group and ways to start your own. There are lots of reasons why you might build your own group–from not finding an existing group that works for you to wanting just a little bit more control over how your group is run.

If you’re setting out to grow a critique group, I really recommend starting small–with one critique partner. Why? Well, I’ll tell you.

It’s often easier (and faster) to find one other writer who’s looking to critique, than it is to find several all at once.
Building a critique group is a little bit like cooking. if you throw all the spices into the pot at once, it’s hard to tell–if the recipe doesn’t taste right–which spice might be the problem. If you get together with three or four other writers/critiquers at the same time, and the group is having some problems, it may be tricky to figure out which critiquers you fit with and which you don’t.
To carry on the cooking metaphor, once you’ve tossed in all those spices, it’s a little tricky to pull out the one that makes the recipe too bitter, or even too sweet. 🙂 Ditto with a critique group, if you invite several writers all at once, and one doesn’t click with another, you have some not easy choices to make and actions to take. If you and a critique partner aren’t a match, it’s simpler to back up and both start over on your hunts.
With one critique partner, you can test things out. You can more easily see what works for the both of you, from things as basic as what time to meet to deciding what to do when you don’t have anything to critique (Hint: You could always write!). You can set the group up so that the two of you are happy, then add another member.
You get a chance to find that one, at least, critique partner who is your dream. From then on, you have a core group. My “rule” is that, once you have a core group that works–whether that core is two critiquers, or three, or four–that core is what matters. If you interview a new writer and one of the core members isn’t comfortable with them, the new writer isn’t invited to join. If you add someone to the group, and one of the core members has a (consistently bad) problem with their critiques, the group talks to the new member about troubleshooting and, if necessary, asks them to leave. Again, starting with one good critique partner lets you establish this core.

Of course, the next question is, where do you find this critique partner. Well, the same places you look for a group–in writing clubs, at conferences, by posting on craigslist or at the bookstore, and online. I’m not saying it’ll be an easy search, but I do believe your writing is worth it.

Tag: Critique Partners

Monday Musing: What IS the Magic of a Critique Group

Critique Partners–Why Start with One?