writing groups

In the very early days of Pixar, John, Andrew, Pete, Lee, and Joe made a promise to one another. No matter what happened, they would always tell each other the truth. They did this because they recognized how important and rare candid feedback is and how, without it, our films would suffer. Then and now, the term we use to describe this kind of constructive criticism is “good notes.”

Before we get to the good notes part, let’s look at the promise to tell the truth. That’s the critical thing a good writers group needs—not an implicit promise, but an actual commitment. Every single member of your group needs to understand the promise about telling the truth, believe in it, commit to it, and welcome it when it is their turn in the hot seat. This starts with a shift in mindset, which Catmull describes beautifully:

Naturally, every director would prefer to be told that his film is a masterpiece. But, because of the way [our group] is structured, the pain of being told that flaws are apparent or revisions are needed is minimized. Rarely does a director get defensive, because no one is pulling rank or telling the filmmaker what to do. The film itself—not the filmmaker—is under the microscope. This principle eludes most people, but it is crucial: You are not your idea, and if you identify too closely with your idea, you will take offense when they are challenged. To set up a healthy feedback system, you must remove power dynamics from the equation—you must enable yourself, in other words, to focus on the problem, not the person.

Try the following fixes for your writing group:

2. Struggling writers are not often the best judges of struggling writing.

At Pixar, giving good notes happens in a meeting of what’s known as the Braintrust. “The Braintrust,” Catmull writes, “is made up of people with a deep understanding of storytelling and, usually, people who have been through the process themselves.” This is a critical concept that most writing groups don’t adhere to, because they can’t adhere to it. They’re often comprised of writers who are struggling to find their way for the first time, and it’s one of the main dangers of being in a writing group.

There is not one single thing wrong with struggle. Struggle is part of the creative process for everyone at every level, but why would you think that being in a room with other people who are also struggling with the same things you are, and who have no experience with that struggle, would be a good way to nurture your work? Yes, you might get camaraderie and community, which is nice, but by design, the odds of getting specific, focused, useful help with your story are low. Why is that? As Catmull writes:

While problems in a film are fairly easy to identify, the sources of those problems are often extraordinarily difficult to assess. … Think of it like a patient complaining of a knee pain that stems from his fallen arches. If you operate on the knee, it wouldn’t just fail to alleviate the pain, it could compound it. To alleviate the pain, you have to find and deal with the root of the problem.

A group of writers who are not trained to assess problems with a story or argument often get it wrong, or get it partially right, or demand specific remedies—not necessarily on purpose, but by a sort of unconscious group-think approach of what they like or don’t like. It’s not good. It comes without any assistance in how to move forward. You get the “it’s not working” feedback, but not the nurturing and patience you need to fix your problem, and certainly not the editorial understanding you need to prevent it from happening again. People may offer ideas for how they would fix things, or how they see your story or what they would do, but this is a sure path for crushing fragile new projects and wavering confidence.

So what exactly IS a good note? Here is the principle as Catmull describes it on his website:

Truly candid feedback is the only way to ensure excellence. When giving notes, be sure to include: What is Wrong What is Missing What Isn’t Clear What Doesn’t Make Sense A good note is specific. A good note does not make demands. Most of all, a good note inspires.

Copy that principle down and laminate it so you can look at it during your writing group critiques. It is so smart. It’s not about praise of any kind whatsoever (although Catmull does say that most Braintrust meetings start with the members praising the director.) And it is not about ways the writer should fix the problem. It’s about identifying weakness in a very specific way, articulating them, and helping the writer to see them, and to sort out how to go about fixing them.

3. Struggling writers are not often the best judges of struggling writing, Part 2.

This point is so important that I’m making it again, in a different way.

Let’s assume that neither you nor your writing group members can hone their story analysis skills overnight. This is, in fact, often the reality. Many writers think they understand story and narrative because they love to read, and they are great readers, and they recognize a great story when it’s on the page. But that is very different from knowing how a dramatic narrative (for fiction) or a narrative argument (for non fiction) is constructed, or knowing how to get the emotion on the page, or knowing how to hold the readers’ expectation in your mind as you write. These are very different skills. Some writers are native geniuses at it, but those people are very rare. Most writers are honing their story analysis and narrative design skills in terms of their own writing, not in terms of being able to articulate it to other writers.

So how can you help each other with your work? If the people in your group don’t have the knowledge and expertise to diagnose problems, don’t do it . Seriously. Don’t. Consider skipping the editorial analysis completely and make the group be about accountability, camaraderie, support, and information-sharing instead of about the words on the page.

4. Failure is not an option in a writer’s group, but failure is a part of the writing process.

Writing is a creative undertaking, and all creative undertakings are messy. Things sometimes get worse before they get better. Things can take a long time to come into focus, as you ping back and forth between what you thought you were doing and what you are actually doing, between the start of the story and the finish, between one narrative thread and another. Failure is part of the territory—a big part of it. Writing groups, however, tend to exclusively celebrate forward progress, and clean, linear thinking.

This happens because writing groups focus on only on one tiny slice of work at a time. If that slice happens to be logical, chronological, clear and well written, you get a thumbs up. Problems related to how that slice fits into the whole sweep of the story, or how it supports the premise, or how it aligns with the overall structure are largely ignored—and yet many of the most common problems I see are the result of flaws in these areas. When seen through a micro lens, a chapter can be beautiful and moving and polished yet be an utter failure at doing what it needs to do on a macro level—which is to drive the story or the argument forward towards a clear and resonant resolution.

Some of the best passages in Catmull’s book chronicle the early, messy stages of beloved stories like Toy Story . Can you imagine Woody ever being a character who was fuzzy and unformed? He was, and as you can imagine, that impacted every element of the story. The writers and producers wrestled with his character for a long time before hitting on the slightly neurotic little toy cowboy who adores his owner Andy and is nervous about the newcomer, Buzz. Catmull’s point in letting us inside Woody’s transformation is to show us that the creative process is never linear and straightforward, and that you must make room for failure:

Pixar films are not good at first, and our job is to make them so—to go, as I say, “from suck to not-suck.” This idea—that all movies we now think of as brilliant were, at one time, terrible—is a hard concept for many to grasp. … Creativity has to start somewhere, and we are true believers in the power of bracing, candid feedback and the iterative process—reworking, reworking, and reworking again, until a flawed story finds its throughline or a hollow character finds its soul.

Try the following fixes for your writing group—which are all reiterations of the points we’ve outlined, above.

Jennie Nash is an author and book coach, and the Chief Creative Officer of Author Accelerator . Sign up for her weekly coaching lessons at JennieNash.com.

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You’ve spent a lot of time writing your story. But how can you make it perfect before you start thinking about publishing?

Scribophile is a writing group focused on getting you feedback on your manuscript. Our points-based peer critique system guarantees you’ll get feedback from writers from all walks of life. You can then use that feedback to polish your writing before you take the next step in your publishing journey.

How Scribophile works

1 earn points by giving feedback.

Earn karma points by critiquing writing. Giving feedback to other writers is fast, easy, fun, and helps improve your own writing, too!

2 Get feedback on your own writing

Spend karma points to post your own writing for critique—anything from flash fiction to novels. Our busy community of writers from all over the world will give you detailed feedback on how to improve it.

3 Make friends and meet beta readers

As you participate in our writing group, you’ll meet and form relationships with other writers. These friends will be your beta readers, ready to help with your current manuscript, and your next ones too!

Scribophile was the first place I stopped when I went from being an I-wanna-be-a-writer to I-am-an-author. Now I have four international bestselling novels with major publishers, and when authors come to me I always send them to Scribophile. Genevieve Graham Tides of Honour and others published with Simon & Schuster

Take writing classes and level up your writing

Our writing classes are taught by bestselling authors, expert teachers, and industry insiders. We have workshops for writers of any skill level, where we cover everything from beginning topics to advanced techniques.

Our writing classes are designed to be both comprehensive and transformational— they’re your fast track to becoming an unforgettable writer.

Improve your writing, at any skill level

Our writing group welcomes writers of all skill levels —from beginners to published authors, and every writer in between.

Each critique you receive on your manuscript is a fresh perspective for you to incorporate. Our bustling writing forums feature writers discussing the craft twenty-four hours a day. And our extensive Writing Academy is full of insightful articles on the art—and business—of writing.

Scribophile played a major part in helping me polish my novel for submission. I learnt a huge amount from critiquing other people’s work, as well as from reading critiques of mine. I now have a wonderful agent and have signed a three-book deal in the UK, a two-book deal in Germany, and a TV option. The book was also shortlisted for The Debut Dagger! Roz Watkins The Devil’s Dice and others published with HarperCollins

Giving and receiving critiques on Scribophile made a big difference to the quality of my writing. I learned how to write a query letter here and that led to an agent and a book deal. Ruth Lauren Prisoner of Ice and Snow and others published with Bloomsbury

No more writing alone— meet your new writer friends

Sometimes, the hardest part of being a writer is how lonely it can get.

That’s why the most important part of Scribophile is our community of hundreds of thousands of writers from all over the world. No matter what genre you write in, or how far along you are in your manuscript, the friends you make at Scribophile will finally take the loneliness out of our solitary craft.

My years on Scribophile have given me a master’s level education in writing. The critiques are great, but I’ve learned as much from reading and analyzing other writers on Scribophile. I don’t think I could have polished my novel to a publishable level without this site. I’m an addict. Laura Creedle The Love Letters of Abelard and Lily published with Houghton Mifflin Harcourt

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23 Facebook Groups for Writers You Don’t Want to Miss

by Carson Kohler | Mar 29, 2021

Whether you’re a freelancer, a blogger, a fiction writer or anything in between, we could all use a little company on the sometimes lonely road known as the writing life .

Maybe you just got your first offer to ghostwrite a book and have no idea what to charge. Maybe your characters refuse to do what you want them to do (isn’t that just like them?), and you could use someone to commiserate with. Maybe it’s after midnight and you’re still up trying to wrestle the words into submission, and you find yourself searching for “writing groups near me” just to find a few writer friends.

Whatever the reason, online writing groups can be a fantastic way for writers to connect, trade advice, swap war stories and find new opportunities. Knowing there are other people out there who “get” what it’s like to be a writer can be a huge comfort, and the chance to share experience and tips with people on all stages of the writing journey is invaluable.

These online writing groups are supportive and helpful

We polled writers to find out which online writing groups they personally could not live without — and many of them relied heavily on Facebook groups.

Note: Even if a Facebook group isn’t currently super active with members posting, you can still find a ton of great resources. We suggest searching groups to find topics you’re interested in. For example, search “rate,” “pay” or “compensation” to find topics on money.

So here are some of the best Facebook groups for writers.

1. The Write Life Community

Before we dig in deep about what’s out there, we hope you’ve joined The Write Life Facebook group! Writers of all experience levels share their struggles and wins, ask each other questions, and generally support and encourage one another. Recent topics of discussion include how to beat procrastination and the best ways to find remote writing opportunities.

Size: 28,100 members (as of March 2021)

2. Author Success Collective

This group for aspiring and current authors was created by Self-Publishing School to allow a place for authors to come together, talk about what’s working and not, along with a place to connect with like-minded people with a single goal—to write and publish high-quality books that sell. They also host challenges with unique, themed-based content to help you along your journey.

Size: 4,000 members and growing

3. The Freelance Content Marketing Writer

Created by Jennifer Goforth Gregory, who has a book by the same name as the group, this space is for writers who work in content marketing. Most have a background in digital marketing, journalism or freelance writing, and they discuss topics like how much to charge for specific services, where to look for a virtual assistant, and alternatives to getting paid with PayPal. Plus, each week a jobs thread is created, so you can check out new opportunities.

Size: 6,300 members (as of March 2021)

4. Writers Helping Writers

Whether you’re a newbie looking for advice or an established pro who’d like to pay it forward, this community is a great place to support and learn from other writers, as well as editors, publishers, agents and more. Posts include writers asking for feedback on cover designs, sharing motivational quotes and comics about writing, and sharing writing wins.

Size: 286,000 members (as of March 2021)

5. What’s Your Plan B?

This group is for journalists who have left the industry, are preparing to leave the industry, or fear they might be forced into leaving the industry… and what they’ve gone on to do with their careers. It’s full of ideas from writers and editors who have used their skills to make an income in new ways and requests from journalists who are struggling with the change. It’s a supportive space!

Size: 16,200 members (as of March 2021)

6. Pat’s First Kindle Book (From Start to Finish)

Ever wanted to write a Kindle book or wondered how the process works? Join this group to get a behind-the-scenes look at popular blogger Pat Flynn’s own journey to publish a Kindle book from start to finish. In addition to watching Pat’s journey, readers have a chance to ask questions, share their own advice and experiences and get feedback on similar projects they’re working on.

Size: 16,700 members (as of March 2021)

7. Inner Circle Writers’ Group

Created by Grant Hudson of independent publisher Clarendon House Publications, this group is for new and established writers who are interested in the craft and practice of writing. Many of the posts are writers cheering each other on as submissions are accepted and published, so if that’s something you’re working toward, you’ll be in good company here.

Size: 9,000 members (as of March 2021)

8. Ask a Book Editor

This group is all about asking questions you have about the writing process and getting answers from editors. Admins prefer participants ask specific questions, rather than posting excerpts and asking for feedback. This is a great place to lurk and learn even if you don’t have a reason to participate! There’s also a Help Wanted section for writers looking to hire an editor.

Size: 7,600 members (as of March 2021)

9. 10 Minute Novelists Group

For novelists looking to improve their craft, especially those who are crunched for time to write. As one member told us, “10-Minute Novelists is my all time favorite…the group is so supportive, the admins are very active in discussions and post regularly…It’s helped me so much!” Look for inspiring features like Tuesday #BuddyDay (when you can find critique partners and beta readers) and Wednesday #AuthorHappiness chats (where members celebrate their weekly successes).

Size: 15,900 members (as of March 2020)

10. Beta Readers and Critique Partners

If you’re willing to become a beta reader or critique partner, or you want to find one for your work, this is the place to connect with other writers. You’ll see calls for reads of poetry, action, drama, historical fiction, personal essays, non-fiction…pretty much every type of writing.

Size: 18,700 members (as of March 2021)

11. Word Nerds Unite

Run by Gabriela Pereira at DIY MFA, a do-it-yourself alternative to a master’s in writing, this group focuses on all things writing. Topics have included how to beat writer’s block, call-outs for beta readers and grammar questions. Pereira herself interacts regularly, sharing Word Nerd Wins and hosting weekend writing sprints, which she says are like virtual writing retreats. This is a fun and motivated crowd!

Size: 8,400 members (as of March 2021)

12 . Calls for Submissions (Poetry, Fiction Art)

This group collects submission calls for poetry, fiction and art and presents them all in one easy-to-follow place. If you’re looking for publication opportunities, it’s worth checking out.

Size: 66,300 (as of March 2021)

13. Indie Author Group

This group of indie authors and self-publishers focuses mainly on fiction. It’s a great place to get advice, air your grievances and discover new authors.

Size: 12,100 members (as of March 2021)

14. Indie Writers Unite!

Open to indie writers of all kinds, this group allows self-promotion only in admin-created threads, and has a fair but firm panel of moderators who keep spammers and trolls at bay.

Size: 8,200 members (as of March 2021)

15. Journey Feed Blogging Community

Founded by blogger Edwin Covarrubias, this is a place for bloggers to connect and share ideas. You’ll also find opportunities to promote your blog if you’re a new blogger looking to find readers.

Size: 4,900 members (as of March 2021)

16. Blogging Boost

Another group chock full of advice, resources and support for bloggers, this group limits self-promotion to Mondays only, which helps save your feed from over-saturation.

Size: 33,000 members (as of March 2021)

17. Write On! Online

An extension of a live group that started at a Barnes & Noble in California in 2002, this group aims at helping writers set goals, troubleshoot and network. It’s hosted by hosted by Debra Eckerling of The D*E*B Method. As one member told us, “They have a supportive environment…to provide that much needed ‘kick in the pants’ without the guilt.”

Size: 2,500 members (as of March 2021)

18. Writers Write

If you’re looking for less of a participatory experience and more of a compendium of all things writing, this group is a fun news source of recent doings in the writing world. Notable posts include reaction to Bob Dylan’s nomination for (and subsequent radio silence towards) the Nobel Prize for Literature and Kanye West penning a poem on McDonald’s french fries for Frank Ocean’s new art mag. Dare we say it’s a great way to kill a little “writer’s block” time?

Size: 19,800 members (as of March 2021)

19. Writers World

As one of the phrases on this group’s logo image indicates, you need “lizard skin” to be an active member in this critique-only group. You’ll find no pep talks or ego-fluffing here, simply polite, but pull-no-punches assessments of any pieces members offer up for critique. (One of the admins has edited for Disney and NBC, if you wonder how useful those critiques are.) If you want to get serious about your work, and you can handle bold honesty, this group can help you hone your skills.

20. NanoLand

Have you ever participated in National Novel Writing Month (aka NaNoWriMo) ? This group can help you through the challenge by offering support, tips and empathy as you type, type, type your way to 50,000 words in 30 days. It continues to stay active outside of November, too.

Size: 22,600 members (as of March 2021)

21. Women Writers, Women’s Books

Ladies, this one’s for you. Connect with women writers of all genres and experience levels, from indie scribes to traditionally published and self-published authors. Member Suzanne Brazil said of the group, “They have an active Twitter presence, publish helpful essays, support each other’s blogs and author pages and are generally just a great place for technical questions, writing advice, and encouragement! Can’t recommend them highly enough.”

Size: 19,200 members (as of March 2021)

22. The Aspiring Travel Writer

Run by blogger and podcaster Alexa Williams Meisler of Break Into Travel Writing, this group’s goal is to provide “ a page to ask questions, share ideas and support each other in the travel blogging world. ” Self-promotion is limited to “Friday Free for Alls” to allow members to focus more on supporting and learning from each other.

Size: 8,300 members (as of March 2021)

23. Writing Bad

Whether you’re just starting out or you’re a seasoned author with several published titles to your name, this group welcomes you. The whole concept is they don’t believe in bad writing — just undeveloped writing that needs some TLC. The members of the group are there to offer you support.

Size: 13,700 members (as of March 2021)

Want more Facebook groups for writers to choose from? Writer Elna Cain offers more ideas here .

This is an updated version of a story that was previously published. We update our posts as often as possible to ensure they’re useful for our readers.

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The Writing Center • University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill

Writing Groups

The resources below make up the Writing Center packet on writing groups.

Getting started

Writing Group Starter Kit

Course-Based Writing Groups

What to Expect from a Faculty Mentor

Guidance for Faculty Mentors

What to do in your group

Activities for Writing Groups

Writing Exercises

When you hand out writing

Writing Feedback Request Worksheet

Reacting to Other People’s Responses to Your Writing

When you respond

Responding to Other People’s Writing

Connect With Other Writers Through These Online Writing Groups

As a writer, you probably spend many hours alone, hunched over a keyboard or a notebook and immersed in your latest first (or second) draft. But sometimes, all that alone time can get…lonely. Never interacting with other writers can also get you stuck in a creative rut and lacking motivation. Meeting with other writers can help kick-start your inspiration, give you new insights into…

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Free and Almost Free in Pittsburgh

25,321 PITTSBURGHERS! | Pittsburgh, USA

Internationals in Berlin

23,630 Internationals in Berlin | Berlin, Germany

TORONTO ARTS & CULTURE

22,503 Culturists | Toronto, Canada

Carpe Diem - Daytime in London

20,188 Daytime explorers | London, United Kingdom

SF Free School

19,695 Freeschoolers | San Francisco, USA

The New York City Live Music Meetup

16,157 Live Music Fans | New York, USA

Screenwriting Workshop with Award Winning Screenwriter

14,935 Screenwriters | New York, USA

Just for Laughs

13,404 Laughers | Orange, USA

Newest Writing groups

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Started Mar 4 in Brooklyn, USA

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Started Mar 2 in Saint Petersburg, USA

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Famous Writing Groups

The idea of writing groups goes back centuries—thousands of years, if you count the Socrates School. Plenty of people, including famous writers like Virginia Woolf, EM Forster, and C.S. Lewis have had writers groups.

Why? Because even in an activity as individual as writing, sometimes we need to get out of our own heads. With groups, we can talk shop, encourage one another and share objective feedback. We see new paths and feel inspired to try new things. And sometimes, we all need a gentle kick in the pants.

This is true for many creative pursuits, from writing, philosophy to art and even science, as this TED talk illustrates.

The Socrates School

The Socrates School was a group of thinkers around 400 BC including Socrates and his students Plato and Xenophon who asked big questions about life and made important contributions to Western philosophy and ethics. Socrates dedicated his life to teaching. Read More

The Bloomsbury Group

The Bloomsbury Group included Virginia Woolf, E.M. Forster and John Maynard Keynes. They were a group of writers, artists and intellectuals who lived or worked near Bloomsbury, London and met informally to share and discuss ideas. Read More

The Dymock Poets

The Dymock Poets were a group of poets including Robert Frost and Rupert Brooke who lived in the English village of Dymock. These poets met in the early 1900’s and even published their own quarterly called ‘New Numbers’. Read More

The Algonquin Roundtable

The Algonquin Roundtable was a group of New York City playwrights, actors, critics and comedians including Harpo Marx, George Kaufman and Dorothy Parker who met for lunch at the Algonquin Hotel from 1919 to 1929. Read More

The Inklings

The Inklings were a literary group in England that especially encouraged fantasy writing. J.R.R. Tolkien and C.S. Lewis were notable members. I loved these two as a child and still do. Read More

Stratford-on-Odeon

Ernest Hemingway, James Joyce, Ezra Pound, Gertrude Stein and F. Scott Fitzgerald were among the famous writers who comprised Stratford-on-Odeon. The group was so named after the bookshop they frequented called Shakespeare and Company and which James Joyce coined “Stratford-on-Odeon”. Their meeting place was destroyed during World War II. Read More

The Factory

The Factory was so named for Andy Warhol’s studio space in New York City. It was a meeting place of artists, writers and musicians, including Truman Capote, Bob Dylan, Mick Jagger and Salvador Dali. It became famous for its raucous parties. Read More

El Floridita

El Floridita was a bar outside Havana so often frequented by Ernest Hemingway in his post-Paris life that the owners gave him his own stool. Reportedly, the stool remains empty in his honor to this day. Check out this article to learn more about some of the famed literary bars.

IMAGES

Peer Feedback in Writing Groups
Writing Groups 101
Writing Groups: Handwriting + Freebie
Things Your Writing Teacher Never Told You: A Story Analysis Worksheet
W: WRITING GROUPS
Writing Groups Part 2

VIDEO

Small group writing conference
Group5: Academic Writing
Writing Groups
How to Start a Writing Group--3 Keys to Success
Creating fake fan fiction for a fictional MC’s favorite non existent tv show is hard work #fandom
Group Writing: Part 1

COMMENTS

What Comes in Groups of Nine?
Things that come in groups of nine include the squares on a tic-tac-toe grid, the balls in a nine-ball pool game and the players on a baseball team. The fruits of the Holy Spirit number nine as well.
What Comes in Groups of Seven?
Things that come in groups of seven include the days of the week, the cervical vertebrae of most mammals and the seven deadly sins. The number is frequently used for groups in religious contexts, such as in the number of levels of heaven in...
What Comes in Groups of Eight?
Historically, hot dog buns are available in eight-count packages. Spiders and octopuses also have eight limbs. The number of hot dog buns in a pack is attributable to the fact that buns are usually baked in pans that can hold eight buns. Th...
15 of the Best Online Writing Communities for Aspiring Authors
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Writing groups can cause frustration, self-doubt, and sometimes years of wasted effort. Learn the common dangers of writing groups and how
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The resources below make up the Writing Center packet on writing groups.
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Largest Writing groups · 1. Free Comedy and New Friends NYC! 29,982 Comedy Lovers | New York, USA · 2. Chicago Meetup. 25,862 Members | Chicago, USA · 3. Free and
Famous writing groups in history
Famous Writing Groups · The Socrates School · The Bloomsbury Group · The Dymock Poets · The Algonquin Roundtable · The Inklings · Stratford-on-Odeon · The Factory · El