Critique Group Criteria
By Carol Peterson

PART I – What type of group is right for you?

    Yep, the Write Marbles ARE fabulous! But don’t be jealous. Get in a group. Or form one yourself. “How?” you ask?
    The options are endless. Like to party, gab, hang out? Then you’ll probably love the effervescent energy of an in-person group. That means getting together in one place with like-minded writers and physically exchanging manuscripts. Do you have problems with scheduling or a preference to work whenever you wish? An online group might be the answer for you. There are advantages and disadvantages to both.

In-person Group:
Some of the advantages of meeting in person with other writers are:
1.    Getting together in person tends to grow relationships quickly. You get a great sense of who your critique members are—their likes and dislikes, styles of writing and personality.
2.    Meeting in person provides better communication. Tone of voice and body language all help improve the communication and critique process.
3.    You get instant feedback. If one person has a comment you don’t understand, it can be clarified right then and there. If one person disagrees with the comment, a discussion can begin. If one person has a comment, it might begin a robust brainstorming session.

Some of the disadvantages of an in-person group are:
1.    Greater time requirement. When a meeting is scheduled, the members need to be present. The meetings can vary in length from a couple of hours to a full day. They can occur weekly, monthly or “whenever.” Additionally, you may need to spend time before the meeting reviewing manuscripts or even critiquing them. And often there will be follow-up discussion (perhaps online) of points raised but not entirely understood or resolved at the meeting.
2.    There may need to be one person who organizes the group, monitors events, facilitates the meeting and provides follow up. This person must make arrangements for when and where to meet, make sure everyone in the group receives notification and assures that manuscripts are sent out ahead of the meeting, if needed. Then that person must make sure the meeting functions smoothly, reel discussions in when needed, and generally assure that all members’ critiquing needs are met.
3.    There needs to be a meeting place. Many critique groups meet at a library or coffee shop or café. Others will meet at homes or at a park, if weather is good. Any place will do as long as folks are comfortable yet able to work efficiently. You may need to assure that there is adequate access to electrical outlets if members bring laptops.

On-line Groups
The advantages of a cyber group are:
1.    You can hook up with writers from all over the world. Take the Marbles. Deb lives in Canada.  Angela is in Germany. The rest of us are spread out across the west, northwest and Midwest. Location is no longer an issue. This is especially important if you live out in the boonies or in an area where there aren’t many other children’s writers.
2.    Personal schedules are irrelevant. You can log in and submit a manuscript or provide a critique whenever it is convenient. That means you can participate after work, when the kids are asleep or even when you’re out of town. It also means you can participate in your jimmies!
3.    The cost is minimal. Although meeting with a group in person usually happens locally, you still have the cost of gas and parking and perhaps coffee or food if you meet at a café. If you provide manuscripts or print off other members’ manuscripts on your own computer, you incur the cost of paper and ink. If you’re in an online group, your only expense is the Internet service, which most people have anyway. Or you may be able to use the Internet at your local library for no cost.

The disadvantages of an online group are:
1.    It may take longer for the group to bond. In-person groups tend to grow friendships more quickly due to the personal interaction. With an online group, friendships grow through the give and take of written exchanges.
2.    There is a greater possibility of miscommunication. Let’s face it. When you look someone in the eye as you’re talking; when you see that person’s body language; when you hear his tone of voice, you know very quickly whether or not you’re communicating what you intend to communicate. With written email, that additional form of non-verbal communication is absent. Thus more questions of meaning occur. That means that when you’re on the commenting end of a critique, you have to be extra careful to explain your meaning and the emotional state behind your comments. It also means that if you’re on the receiving end of a critique, you have to establish a mind set that always assumes the other person is commenting from a positive point of encouragement.

Once-in-a-while Groups
    There are alternatives other than just meeting regularly in person or meeting in cyber space. You might simply form a loose coalition of writers with whom you form a community. You may decide just to get together (in person or online) and share news and encouragement. Or you might combine the two formats where you meet online to share general news and encouragement and then get together occasionally for a massive critique session or writing retreat. The options are as unlimited as the imagination of the participants. And writers have oodles of imagination. So get started.
    “How?” you ask. That’s for Part II of this article. Stay tuned.