The first post in this series looked at the practicalities of setting up a new writers’ group, and this post explains how you can run the group in a way that keeps your members coming back for more!
In the early days, it’s a good idea to keep the format consistent so that everyone knows what to expect from the group, but once you’ve got a regular core of members and have got the hang of running a group, it’s time to mix things up a bit so that the group doesn’t get stuck in a rut.
Involve The Members
It’s their group, so you need their input! Announce that time will be set aside at the next meeting to discuss the group – what’s working and what isn’t – and remind members ahead of the meeting to bring their ideas. You don’t need long for this sort of discussion; twenty minutes to half an hour should be plenty. Try to find two or three new things to try – some of your members might have brought along some really good suggestions, so put them into practice! Or perhaps they want to address some practical issues, such as making the meetings longer or shorter, earlier or later, more or less frequent. Give it a try – you can always change it back.
Special Events
An event either instead of or as well as the usual meeting can be just the thing to add sparkle to the group. Are there any local authors who would be willing to come along to the group and give a talk? Or is there a literary event nearby that you could car-share to? Or would you like to invite a tutor to your group, who will look at your work in advance and give a critique and some useful pointers? These things might need to be paid for – either out of your subscriptions or as a one-off levy. If the idea of organising your own event is rather daunting, see whether another local writers’ group is holding an event and ask if you can join in. They might appreciate the extra numbers – and you could always invite them along to your event next time!
Social Occasions
At the meetings, you will probably be too busy talking about writing to engage in casual chat, so in order to get to know each other better, you could hold a social event. Perhaps you could host a summer barbecue, or meet up for a Christmas meal? You could even invite spouses as well. An event of this nature really does help everyone to make friends, and builds an atmosphere of camaraderie and trust, which could be helpful at future meetings. Your members might feel more comfortable to discuss their own work and that of others if everyone knows each other a little better.
Awaydays
Sometimes a change of scene can help to stimulate the creative process, so you could book a venue for a day or half a day, then all turn up…and write! Suitable venues might include formal gardens or historic buildings, and there are plenty of writers who host events in locations such as these, offering a facilitated service to give attendees help and encouragement with their writing. The DIY version will probably be cheaper, but the facilitated one could result in everyone benefiting from a fresh perspective and some guidance.
If you want to try it out in a low-key way, you could have a ‘write-in’ instead of your usual meeting or as well as it, to see how members feel about enjoying the creative process together.
Competitions
These give your members something to work towards, and can help to foster the feeling of being a ‘proper writer’. You could have your own competition, judged by another local group – one month, your members could send their work to the other group to judge, and then your group could return the favour a few months later. You could have small prizes in the form of book tokens, and perhaps delegates from one group could attend the other group for the prize giving. It would also be helpful if a one paragraph or even one sentence mini-critique could be done on each item submitted – concentrating on the positive.
Or why not find a competition which closes in a few months’ time, and get the whole group to write a suitable entry and submit it? This tactic might be a great stepping stone for those who are would like to start entering competitions but who are hesitant about doing it alone.
All it takes is the commitment to review the group periodically to see what’s working and what isn’t, and the courage to try new things now and again, and your group will continue to thrive! However, the final post in this series will focus on what to do if the group isn’t going as well as you’d like.
Tracey Dawson is a long-term writers’ group member and chair, and also a committed compliance professional. She has combined her two passions in her fifth novel, which follows the offworld adventures of Greville the compliance auditor, which is available on Amazon here.
