The Northern Beaches Writers’ Group welcomes committed writers with publication or republication as their goal. We are not really a group for those who write for a hobby.
We hold critique meetings and networking/Q&A sessions, one Saturday each month. To attend, you must be a member.
What do critique meetings involve?
Critique meetings take place between 11.30am-1.30pm, one Saturday every month. Well in advance of every critique meeting, our leader Zena Shapter arranges for two or three members to email around some work (the combined total of that work limited to approximately 10,000 words). Fellow members then read and review that work in advance of our next meeting, when we discuss our findings as a group and give as much constructive feedback as possible. For this reason, if you would like to attend a meeting, you must contact us prior to attending. You will need to bring your feedback with you and be ready to discuss the works in question.
How do I ‘bring my feedback’ to critique meetings?
Generally our members either (a) print out copies of the works being reviewed and mark their comments in the margins, or (b) make comments in Word or Google docs using ‘tracked changes’ then email it to the author if they’re happy to receive e-crits (just before or within a day or so after the meeting itself) or print out the document and hand it over. After discussing the works together as a group, we hand our notes over to the respective authors in this way so they can ponder their various critiques in more detail later. This also allows us to focus on thematic and structural issues during the meeting, while also informing authors of typos, punctuation and grammatical errors. For more guidance on giving constructive criticism, please pop over to Zena’s article on ‘Critique Guide‘.
How do I send in my work for critique?
When members are ready for a critique, they contact Zena Shapter with a maximum word count for their work, and she lets them know the date of the next available critique slot. Members then have an opportunity to polish their work and format it correctly – all work submitted for critique must comply with NBWG submission requirements as set out in this PDF, both out of respect for those giving their time to critique and for ease of reading. Once members have formatted and polished their work, they must send it as a Word document to Zena at least nine days prior to their allocated meeting date.
When are Networking/Q&A Sessions?
Networking/Q&A sessions take place over lunch, directly after critique meetings. It’s a time for members to socialise, network and ask each other industry questions. Anyone can join these sessions, regardless of their membership status.
Where do you meet & how much does it cost?
There are three monetary costs, plus the cost of time:
- There is an annual membership fee of $30. Your first meeting is free, so you can decide if we’re the group for you.
- We also currently meet at The Manly Club, which charges an annual $5 membership fee. Please join the club once you decide you’d like to be a member. With club membership you get discounts on food and drink.
- When you attend meetings, please also buy yourself a drink to enjoy during the meeting (tea, coffee, hot chocolate, soft drink or anything more *ahem* inspiring that you might fancy at 11.30am!). This enables us to maintain a pleasant ongoing relationship with our venue. Many of us also stay behind after meetings to talk about the industry and our writing lives over a bite to eat.
There is also the time cost of attending meetings – members must spend time critiquing others’ works. We also ask that you help us return the venue’s tables and chairs to where they were before the meeting so we leave the venue as it was – ready for other guests.
When is the next meeting date?
Please Contact us for the date of our next meeting. Once you have sent your message, please monitor your email junk folder in case a reply goes there instead of your inbox.
Who attends meetings?
Some of our members have been writing for many years, some have always wanted to write but are only just getting around to it. All of us seek critical but caring input from like-minded souls to help us get closer to publication or re-publication. The one thing we all have in common is that we’re committed to our craft.
Want to know more?
If you have any more specific questions, please don’t hesitate to ask by contacting us – but first make sure you’ve first read about us and our membership requirements.