When you join a critique group you must realize you are joining a group with varied perspectives. Since that is true, each one of the group that critiques your work will see it in a different light. While you may not always agree with what a member suggests, be gracious and accept their critique. They are looking at your work from their frame of reference.

Although you are gracious in accepting the critiques of those in the group, you must always be true to yourself. Remember, your work is being written from YOUR perspective. If a member suggests something that doesn’t “feel right” to you, you must evaluate the suggestion and go with your gut instinct about making a change.

That said, a good critique member is willing to consider the possibility that what a critique member has suggested will improve their manuscript. Don’t fall in love with your own words so much that you are not willing to consider that a member might have a better way of saying something.

You must trust your critique group to have your best interest at heart. If you don’t, perhaps you are in the wrong group!

Thankful for the perspectives of all my critique members, Gloria

What a blessed gift we have, to write to help others. It can be through a personal testimony how God delivered us from heavy burdens, or just a cheery paragraph that can bring sunshine to a gloomy day.

Maybe a Christian sister or brother thinks they have no more ministries and we can encourage them that God always has something more for us to do.

A gift could come through a short devotion in a church newsletter, or a book of Bible studies. In the same way we look for opportunities to give an uplifting word or smile to people, even strangers crossing our path, we can look for opportunities to write those uplifting words to give a smile to a hurting heart, especially.

Just like with Jesus, writing can be a gift that keeps on giving.

Shirley

Where is He who has been born King of the Jews! For we have seen His star in the East and have come to worship Him…And when they had come into the house, they saw the young Child with Mary, His mother, and fell down and worshiped Him. And when they had opened their treasures, they presented gifts to Him: gold, frankincense, and myrrh.
-Matthew 2:2, 11, NKJV

As we open our hearts to write the words God has called us to write, let us do so as an act of worship to the King of kings!

If we write for the general book market, may we give Jesus the gift of words that are wholesome, encouraging, and godly instead of words that promote evil or darkness or ungodliness.

If we write for the Christian market, may we give Jesus the gift of words that speak truth and light to a hurting and troubled world instead of words that don’t offer hope or a strong biblical foundation.

May we always strive to honor Jesus through the words we write no matter which market we write for. May this truly be our gift to the Savior as the writers He called us to be. If we do, it will also be a precious gift to the world.

-by Nancy I. Sanders

I think I’ve received the most joy as a writer by giving many of my books and magazine stories away as gifts. No, I don’t hand out books on the street corner, or give them to everyone I know.  I’ve never ordered box after box of my picture books so I could sell them at conferences.  I usually order several boxes just for me.  That allows me to occasionally surprise a child with a book, give one to my plumber, or to my electrician to take home to their children, or give as a “thank you” to a friend.  I love to delight a grandparent or teacher with a book and a few magazines for the children in their lives.  It’s always fun to wrap a picture book and give it along with a baby shower gift.

One day while sitting in my ophthalmologist’s waiting room, one of the women who worked for the clinic called me to the window. She said her seven-year-old son shared the book I gave him for “Show and Tell” day at school. He told the class it was his favorite book.  Later he sent me a thank you note written in crayon, and a picture of his little Chihuahua named “Moosey.”  Are you smiling yet?

A year or so ago, I saw a photo of a little girl in Clubhouse Jr. She had a small collection of Clubhouse Jr. Magazines spread out in front of her as she smiled for the camera. The caption mentioned that she was displaying her collection and was excited about adding more. I immediately contacted the magazine editor and told her I wanted to send this little collector more magazines with my stories—beginning with my first that appeared in the November 1993 issue. I had several hundred magazines in files in my garage!  Needless to say, the girl and her family were thrilled with the large envelope full of magazines. The thank you note from the little girl was sweet, and the mother emailed me about how much fun her daughter was having reading all of my stories.

I cherish thank you notes written in crayon, photos of smiling children with a pet, and comments from moms who mention how much their child loves my books and/or magazine stories.

So, I’ll keep giving a book or two away for those “special” occasions until my stack says, “Stop! Keep the rest of us for the family.” It will be kind of sad, but I’ll never forget the joy of giving, and thank you notes written in crayon.

Sheryl Crawford

It’s that time of year…time for the “dreaded Christmas letter.”  At least that’s what some people say.  These yearly, neatly-printed-out letters, telling friends and family the details of our lives, have a bad reputation.  At least one “Ann Landers-type” column always has a sarcastic version of them.  Quite often this viewpoint is well deserved.  We’ve all received overly-long, bragging letters in which every family member is a star, whether it’s in the workplace, in the classroom, or on the athletic field…sometimes all three!

Knowing how some people viewed Christmas letters, I tried to avoid them.  But a number of years ago, after I’d written nearly the same information on Christmas card after Christmas card (and gotten a case of tendonitis in the bargain) it occurred to me there should be a better way. I knew family and close friends did want to hear at least a few things about year, so why couldn’t I put my writing skills to work composing an interesting letter that didn’t boast or brag but gave information that they’d like to read?

This would take time, I knew, but it would be less time-consuming (and easier on the hands) than what I’d previously been doing.  I approached this project as I would an article assignment, and it seemed to work well.  I’ve been following this procedure ever since.   Here’s how I go about it:

*Be brief.  All writers know cover letters should be one page, ideally, and  a page and a half is tops.  The same is true of Christmas letters.  At this busy season, people don’t want to read pages and pages about another family’s life.

*Hit the highlights.  I like to check the past year’s calendar to jog my memory about what happened during that time.  Then, I need to remember that  it’s not necessary to tell every single thing everyone did.  Just some fun, possibly unique happenings will let readers know you’re happy and well.

*If your family is an extended one, as mine is, with grown children, spouses, and grandchildren, do give each family a separate paragraph.  And, it’s a good idea to mention each person by name.  However, this can often be done in one sentence.  Try to include things you know will make each person mentioned pleased when he or she reads it.

*Watch the boasting.  Of course, we all want to tell of exceptional things our families have accomplished, but the appearance of bragging can be tempered by a joke or other comment.  For instance, if I want to mention a particularly great writing sale I’ve made during the year, I’ll add something like, “this makes up for the numerous rejections I’ve also received!”

*Edit.  When I’ve finished writing the letter, I like to go through and see if there’s anything I can eliminate and still keep the spirit of the letter…and the season.   Quite often, I also find ways to combine sentences and events and keep things flowing.

*I also remember to add a few lines, usually at the end of the letter, that have a spiritual theme, such as mentioning the blessings we’ve received, a special church service we’ll be attending, and wishing readers a blessed and holy Christmas.

When I follow all of these steps, I do, indeed seem to achieve my goal: a letter people want to receive and enjoy reading.  I’ve even gotten good “reviews” about it!  And with the price of stamps today, it seems to me that sending something other than just a card is worth the effort.  Try it and see if you don’t agree!

Merry Christmas!

Marjorie Flathers

For the past several weeks, the students in the class I teach on Writing Your Memoirs have been submitting stories, vignettes, and memories in various poetic forms about the Thanksgiving season. I was impressed with the multitude of ways in which they expressed their feelings . . . and I had an idea.

I marched into the Adult School office and said, “Do we have any money?” You can imagine what the answer was! But I thought my idea was a good one, and I wasn’t ready to give up. I told my supervisor what a boost it would be for these students to see some of their work “published.” We could create an in-house book for the cost of paper. Someone on staff would do the spiral binding for free. “Besides,” I said, “think how impressed the school board will be when they see how creative a program for older adults can be.”

Before you start clapping, let me tell you that I hadn’t thought all this out. Though many of the papers I collected were typed neatly, others were written in long hand on lined paper. I even received several that were torn from something that had part of a grocery list on the other side.

Here’s where “Using Your Writing as a Gift to Others” comes in. I realized that the book we were producing needed an editor. It needed a preface. The individual submissions would have to be examined not only for spelling and punctuation, but for continuity of thought  — and appearance. I didn’t want Times New Roman on one page and an unreadable scrip on another. Neither did I want bold face mixed helter skelter with regular type.

I decided to type the whole thing myself. It would be my gift to them — a sharing of my talents so that they could enjoy theirs more fully. Yes, it took hours. Yes, I sometimes grew frustrated, especially when more manuscripts arrived by e-mail when I thought I was finished.

Was it worth it? You bet. I can hardly wait until these books with autumn leaves on the cover are ready to be distributed — no, not distributed. They will be presented, with my love, to the people who teach me every week far more than I can ever teach them.

Contributed by Marilyn Donahue

To be a successful critique group member, you must be an encourager, for we gather together to help one another become better at our craft. I think the Apostle Paul says it best in Romans 1:11-12: “For I long to see you, that I may impart to you some spiritual gift, so that you may be established — that is, that I may be encouraged together with you by the mutual faith both of you and me.”

There is a give and take in a critique group: we give of ourselves and take back what we have learned from one another. The glue that holds the Wordsmiths together is our mutual faith in Christ, who taught us to love another as He loves us. And that love is what allows us to come alongside and lift up and encourage so we all can learn.

-Catherine L. Osornio

This past month, we’ve been sharing ways we can work on to improve as members of our very own critique group.

One of the most important ways we can improve as a member of a writer’s group is to continually be working to improve our skills as writers.

Here’s a fun exercise you can download as a pdf file, print out, and take to your next critique group. Complete the game with your writing friends and sharpen a few of your writing skills with a more thorough knowledge of the industry’s most common acronyms.

Acronyms

Enjoy!

-by Nancy I. Sanders

Being part of a critique group is one of the best things you can do for your writing and the writing of others in the group.
What do you bring to the table in a critique group?

Are you honest but kind? It does not do any good to only praise a writer and not show them ways their manuscript can be improved. But, it does not help a writer to only say negative things about their work. Finding positive things will encourage your critique member to keep writing. Finding only negative things may discourage them so much that they quit writing.

Do you respect the time of your fellow critique members? When another member is sharing their work or information, especially if it is during a time allotted to them, be considerate and save comments about your own work for your allotted time.

Are you committed to your critique group? Attending your critique group only when you “want to” or only when you have something to have critiqued is not being a commmitted member. Being there for the other members is important, even if you have no manuscript to share.

Is your goal to see that the other critique members have the best manuscripts possible? It’s not just about you is a good thing to consider. Your goal should be to see that each member of the group develops a manuscript that is at its best.

If you are part of a critique group, you are very fortunate. Try and be the best member you can be!

Hoping I am a good critique member, Gloria

As we read the manuscripts along with the writer we’re careful to catch typos and make suggestions for improvement. We also make comments of sections well done or  what makes us laugh.

Studying for voice, setting, hook if it’s a beginning, dialogue, and all the other good things keeps our minds busy. But there’s one other thing that I find important as we critique after the reading, and that is to listen to the suggestions given by other writers. If I’m thinking about what I want to say I might miss some excellent points I’d never thought of.

When I listen carefully to these critiques of other’s work, I learn a lot that I can use in my own writing. Isn’t that part of what it’s all about?

Shirley