Our meetings serve several purposes. First, they give us a chance to get out of our “writer’s cave” and connect with other writers. Writing is naturally a solitary endeavor, and can be a lonely one without the support and encouragement of others who understand our trials and challenges. Family and friends may be supportive, but they often don’t understand “why it’s taking your so long” to finish honing your work. Other writers will understand that, and may be able to offer you strategies from their own experience that will keep you going when you get discouraged.
Another important purpose of our meetings is to provide peer critique. When you spend hours, days, weeks working on a writing project, you may get so close to your project that you have trouble seeing it with fresh eyes. If you bring copies of a current work-in-progress to a meeting, you can get valuable input from other writers who can bring a fresh perspective on how your work appeals to readers, and offer suggestions on how to improve. I’ve heard that some critique groups can be quite brutal in their “honesty,” but I’ve never found critique sessions in our group to be anything but charitable and helpful. So if you are looking for kindly, but honest, feedback on your writing, the DFW Catholic Writers Group is a good place to get it.
And we are, of course, not just any writers group, but a group of Catholics, who are motivated by a desire to dedicate our talents to God and to infuse our writing – whether it is intended for a religious audience or not – with a Christian vision. When we help and encourage each other, we act out of a sincere desire to help each member communicate their own vision clearly and effectively through the written word.
I can tell you that I come away from every meeting reinvigorated and eager to get back to my own writing projects. I think the same will be true for you if you join us. And remember, you have two opportunities this month: Tuesday, March 8, at lunchtime in Dallas, and March 29 in the evening at the University of Dallas in Irving. I hope we see you there!
If you want to make sure you never miss a meeting, contact Nancy Ward to get on the email list. You can also sign up to receive all blog posts by email. Just fill in the form in the right-hand sidebar.
