Craft Chat and Critique Workshop: Point of View

Achieving a strong point of view (POV) is critical to storytelling regardless of the genre. Should you keep the same POV throughout the story? When can you change? Can you have several different points of view? One of the more difficult elements of the craft is learning how to use varying points of view and maintain them throughout the course of your story. We'll be discussing the differences and offering some ideas on how to assess which type of POV works best for moving the story along in this week's Craft Chat.

EVENT: Chico Writers Group Craft Chat and Critique Workshop

DATE:   Saturday, December 19, 2009

TIME:    1:00 to 3:00 p.m.

LOCATION: Butte County Library, Chico Branch, Meeting Room
                  1108 Sherman Ave., Chico (cross street: First Ave.)

CONTACT:  
                  (530) 521-4264

AGENDA:

1:00 - 1:15 PM - Free write.
                         Bring along your pad of paper and pen or laptop and spend the first portion of our meeting writing to a prompt that will tie into our Craft Chat.

1:15 - 1:30 PM - Craft Chat: Point of View

1:30 - 3:00 PM - Critique Workshop - manuscript has been sent out to all members in good standing for review. Critique to be conducted round-robin fashion.

 

Next Meeting: Saturday, January 2, 2010

Happy holidays and a very happy, healthy and prosperous New Year to all!

Where Do You Get Ideas? Craft and Critique Workshop

So where do you get ideas for your next novel? How do you get them? How can you tickle your muse and get her to speak to you? This is our topic for our upcoming Craft and Critique Workshop coming up on Saturday, December 5, 2009 from 1:00 - 3:00 pm at the Butte County Library, Chico Branch (1108 Sherman Avenue, cross street First Avenue) in the meeting room (directly across the breezeway from the circulation desk). Don't forget to bring your writing gear for our kick-off free write session!

Agenda

1:00 - 1:30 p.m.  Free Write
1:30 - 1:45 p.m.  Craft Chat: How do you get ideas for your next piece?
1:45 - 3:00 p.m.  Critique Workshop: Two pieces have been selected to be critiqued during this session. All members in good standing should have a copy and be prepared to review them at our meeting.

Next meeting: Saturday, December 19, 2009 1-3 pm @ Chico Branch - Butte County Library

For more information about the Chico Writers Group, membership, manuscripts and formatting and more, visit our official website at http://www.ejourn.net/cwg/ or look for us on Facebook!

 

Update on Meetings and Write-Ins

Here's a list of our upcoming meetings which are open to new members. There is never a fee (no dues or membership fees). We just ask that if you plan on attending to please leave a comment here to let us know to look for you!

The following are held at the Butte County Library, Chico Branch (1108 Sherman Avenue, cross street First Ave.), Public Meeting Room (directly across breezeway from the Circulation Desk).

1-3 pm Saturday, October 24, 2009
1-3 pm Saturday, November 7, 2009
1-3 pm Saturday, December 5, 2009
1-3 pm Saturday, December 19, 2009
1:30-4:00 pm Saturday, January 2, 2010
1:30-4:00 pm Saturday, January 16, 2010
1:30-4:00 pm Saturday, January 30, 2010

We will also be holding closed session meetings, only open to active members in good standing. The locations are to be announced via email prior to the session. The tentative dates for these sessions are as follows:

Saturday, November 21, 2009
Saturday, February 13, 2010
Saturday, February 27, 2010
Saturday, March 13, 2010
Saturday, March 27, 2010
Saturday, April 10, 2010

Our meetings are structured in the following format:

15-30 minutes (by member/participant votes) free writing from prompt followed by with sharing (optional, not required)
30 minutes craft chat - each session we will be talking about various elements of the craft of writing on topics selected by member interest during the previous session followed by a selection of the upcoming meeting's craft chat topic
Remainder of time is spent critiquing manuscripts that have been distributed to the current, active members of the group whom are in good standing. New and interested members are more than welcome to stay for the critique portion of the meeting (unless an author scheduled for critique prefers not to have their work discussed with others outside of the current group), however, we regret we are unable to provide extra copies of the manuscripts selected nor are we able to distribute manuscripts to anyone prior to the session as we do require all recipients have attended at least one full meeting due to privacy and copyrights.

For more information, take some time and browse this site as we have published a number of articles and links to supporting documents and sites pertaining to our group.

Write-Ins

During the month of November when many of our writers participate in the National Novel Writing Month, otherwise known as NaNoWriMo (visit http://www.nanowrimo.org for more information and registration), we typically beef up our write-ins. These are open sessions for writers of all kinds, ages, genres, etc. It's a time to set aside and meet at an agreed upon location to do little more than write. It's a great motivational event, if you haven't done this before, give it a try!

Because this was popular and a great motivator, we've continued to hold write-ins. We usually meet every Wednesday from 9:30 to 11:30 am* at the Butte County Public Library, Chico Branch (1108 Sherman Avenue, Chico, cross street is First Ave.) at the very back tables just before the magazine and newspaper section. As the attendance varies, we suggest you leave a comment here to let us know you plan on attending. Also leave your current, working email address and check prior to attending as we do sometimes cancel and don't always publicize cancellations for a number of reasons.

*Write-in update: Our next write-in is scheduled for THURSDAY, November 19, 2009 from 9:00 am to noon in the conference room at the Chico branch of the Butte County Library (First Ave. and Sherman Ave.).

We will have another write-in on FRIDAY, December 4th, 2009 from 9-11:30 am in the same location.

CONFIRMATION OF ATTENDANCE AND TIMES you will be attending the two aforementioned write-ins is required. You are not required to stay the duration, however, since this is a very open chunk of time, if there are not writers using this space, out of courtesy to the library and their patrons, we should return any unused time enough in advance that they are able to schedule for other use. (Updated Thursday, November 12, 2009)

Do you have to arrive and leave on-time? Absolutely not! This is your time to write.

Can we chat while we're attending a write-in? Generally this is frowned upon as (a) we're in a library and (b) we're there to write.

For more FAQs on this topic, see our post: Upcoming Write-Ins and What is a "Write-In"?

Craft Chat: Describing Setting through Character's Eyes

The Chico Writer's Group will be hosting a Craft Chat Saturday, September 12, 2009 on the topic of how to describe a setting through the character's eyes. This is a free event, writers of all walks, all levels of experience, are invited to attend.

Craft Chat and Critique Workshop

Date:	Saturday, September 12, 2009
Time:	1:00 - 3:00 p.m.
Location:	Butte County Library, Chico Branch
Address:	1108 Sherman Avenue (cross 1st Ave.)
	Chico, California
	Public Meeting room directly across breezeway from the circulation desk.
What to Bring:	Pen/pencil, writing tablet or a laptop/notebook
	Agenda
1:00 - 1:20 PM	Free write. Using prompts, writers will be given the opportunity to write for fifteen minutes, then share what they've written to the other members of the group.*
1:20 - 1:30 PM	Craft Chat: What are some effective ways to describe the setting in your fiction through different character's eyes that is unique to the character's own voice? We'll explore this question, exchange ideas, and review resources available to add to our writing toolbox.
1:30 - 3:00 PM CLOSED SESSION	Critique Workshop: Members in good standing will be offering critiques to authors of assigned manuscripts which are distributed prior to the meeting. Members: Please attempt to use the critique worksheet, available for download, when reading the manuscript, complete it and bring it with you to the meeting.
About:	Closed sessions are still open to the public, we just ask that anyone interested in this segment enters prior to the session, understands they are only there to observe, and may ask questions, enter into a conversation with the members after the session concludes (however, after session discussions should be conducted outside the meeting room). Anyone under the age of 16 must be accompanied by a parent at all times due to the nature of the conversations that take place. If, however, the authors do not feel comfortable having their manuscript reviewed in the presence of minors, we reserve the right to ask anyone under the age of 18 to please leave the room.
*Sharing written free write work	This portion of our group meeting is not critiqued. Other writers are encouraged to give feedback, provided it's positive. The free write portions of our group meetings is meant to inspire, challenge and bring about new and exciting ideas about the written word to those participating. While you are not required to read your work aloud, this is an invaluable opportunity to hear the differences in points of view and often quite enjoyable both for the writer and the members of the group. Alternatively, provided your writing is reasonably legible, you may always invite another member to read your work out loud to the rest of the group.

Coming Saturday, September 26, 2009: Writing Conference Review. Chico Writer's Group members who have attended writing conferences over the summer will be sharing useful information with us. This is also a free event, open to the public. If you are interested in attending this special presentation, please contact us (you may leave a comment here, just be sure to provide a working email address so we can reply. Email addresses are never published publicly.) as space is limited.

The Chico Writer's Group, is not affiliated with the Meetup Group with a similar name.

Adverb Abuse and How To Avoid It: Craft Chat & Critique Workshop

Craft Chat and Critique Workshop

Topic: Adverb Abuse and How To Avoid It
Host: Chico Writer's Group
Date:  Saturday, August 22, 2009
Time: 1:00pm - 3:00pm
Location: Butte County Library, Chico Branch - Meeting Room
Street: 1108 Sherman Ave.
City/Town: Chico, CA
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*****AGENDA*****

1:00 - 1:20 pm Free write exercise
During this time, members will be given the opportunity to write from prompts provided and then share (voluntarily) with others at the end. Be sure to bring writing tools (paper and pen or laptop, stone tablets work well but can be a bit noisy)!
1:20 - 1:40 pm Craft Chat: Adverb Abuse and How To Avoid It
This is a step beyond and ten times better than Schoolhouse Rock! As writers, we sometimes slip into a habit of using and then abusing adverbs. How many times can your character be found looking, glancing, frowning, smiling, catapulting or picking the hairs out of his ears? Learn some of the tools of the craft and how to avoid adverb abuse during this insightful chat session. Handouts will be distributed at the close.
1:40 - 3:00 pm Critique Workshop
(open to members in good standing, guests and visitors are invited to listen,
but we are unable to provide copies of the scheduled author's work)
Members: Remember to have your manuscript in to Ruth by Thursday, August 13th. This is a strict deadline.

Upcoming Meetings

The following is a list of our upcoming meetings (2009). New members and those interested in the group are more than welcome to attend except when noted as "closed session." New and interested members are respectfully asked to contact us prior to attending the meeting so we can provide you with information about the session and about our group.

Except where noted, meetings are held in the meeting room directly across from the circulation desk at the Chico branch of the Butte County Library (1108 Sherman Avenue - cross street 1st Ave. - Chico).

Manuscript Due Date	Manuscript Distribution Date	Meeting Date	Time	Location
Thu., July 9	Fri., July 10	Sat., July 18	1-3 p.m.	Chico Library
Thu., Aug. 13	Fri., Aug. 14	Sat., Aug. 22	1-3 p.m.	Chico Library
Thu., Sept. 3	Fri., Sept. 4	Sat., Sept. 12	1-3 p.m.	Chico Library
Thu., Sept. 17	Fri., Sept. 18	Sat., Sept. 26	1-3 p.m.	Chico Library
Thu., Oct. 1	Fri., Oct. 2	Sat., Oct. 10	1-3 p.m.	CLOSED SESSION*
Thu., Oct. 29	Fri., Oct. 30	Sat., Nov. 7	1-3 p.m.	Chico Library
Thu., Nov. 12	Fri., Nov. 13	Sat., Nov. 21	1-3 p.m.	CLOSED SESSION*
Thu., Nov. 26	Fri., Nov. 27	Sat., Dec. 5	1-3 p.m.	Chico Library

The noted (*) closed session locations will be disclosed to members in good standing prior to the scheduled meeting.

Dates and times are subject to change. We will attempt to update this blog and other web sites where announcements regarding upcoming meetings are located with the corrections. All active members in good standing are automatically notified via email.

Meetings typically begin with a "free write" segment (time allotted is voted on by participants) typically with a prompt that leads into the prearranged craft chat portion of the meeting. Writers are encouraged to bring paper and pen/pencil or a laptop for this portion. Afterwards, everyone is encouraged to share what they wrote as this portion is not a "critique."

The Craft Chat is about a variety of topics (character development, how to name your piece, worldbuilding, adding red herrings, etc.) all pertaining to the craft of writing.  Handouts covering the topic are typically distributed at the end of this segment.

We conclude our session with a critique of (typically) two submitted manuscripts.

Rescheduled Craft Chat & Critique Workshop

Due to illness, our last Craft Chat and Critique Workshop was canceled. It's been rescheduled for this coming Sunday, June 28 from 3:00 - 5:00 pm at the Butte County Library, Chico Branch (1108 Sherman Avenue) meeting room.

Agenda:

3:00- 3:30 PM Craft Chat
Planting Red Herrings
A red herring can divert your reader until you’re ready for them to know the truth. How do you set up a red herring and make your reader follow its scent - without being suspicious?

3:30- 5:00 PM Manuscript Critique
All members in good standing have been sent the manuscripts for this week’s critique session.

Worldbuilding and Rule Creation Resources

Fantasy Worldbuilding Questions by Patricia C. Wrede, http://www.sfwa.org/writing/worldbuilding1.htm - These are specifically geared toward fantasy worlds, but they're esily adapted to any other kind of worldbuilding. This is a much more expansive look at the aspects of the world mentioned briefly above.

The Rules of Quick and Dirty Worldbuilding by Annalee Newitz http://io9.com/5039477/the-rules-of-quick-and-dirty-worldbuilding - This takes on more of a science fiction bent, but again has some advice that can be generalized to other worldbuilding.

The Mythopoets Manual by Loren J. Miller http://www.rpgmud.com/WorldBuilding/Mythopoets/tmm.html - Specifically looks at the issue of religion.

Worldbuilding Links http://www.bmarch.atfreeweb.com/Worldbuilding.htm - A collection of links to other worldbuilding resources.

World Builder Projects http://hiddenway.tripod.com/world/ - Another collection of links to other worldbuilding resources.

Our next meeting we'll discuss red herrings which is scheduled for Sunday, June 14, 2009 from noon (possibly 12:15pm) to 3:00 pm at the library. More information to come.

Crafting Opening Lines and Critique Workshop

Agenda

4:30 - 5:00 p.m. Flash Writing Exercise and Craft Chat: Opening Lines

How do you pull your readers into your story from the very first line? What makes for a good first line? When should you write it?

6:00 - 7:30 p.m. Critique Workshop

Manuscripts have been turned in and distributed to the members in good standing. Order of critiques are as follows:  R. A., K. L., D. H.

Date: Saturday, May 2, 2009
Time: 4:30 - 7:30 p.m.
Place: Butte County Library, Chico Branch - Conference Room
Address: 1108 Sherman Avenue, Chico (cross street - First Avenue)

Writers Workshop Sat., March 7

Agenda 

Craft Chat: Creating Suspense
You want your reader to both understand what's going on and want to keep reading. How do you create mystery without either giving away too much or losing the reader?

Critique Workshop
This segment is only for members-in-good standing.  Manuscripts have been delivered, please be prepared to actively critique the three manuscripts.  We'll be working in the following order:

• R. A. S.
• L. H.
• L. G.

Date:  Saturday, March 7th, 2009
Time:  4 to 7 p.m.
Place: Chico Branch Meeting Room
          (directly across from circulation desk)
          Butte County Library
          1108 Sherman Avenue (cross street 1st Ave.), Chico

Please note: members are requested to help put everything away after our sessions and check with the organizer before leaving.  Thank you.

Read and then Write

Our upcoming Craft Chat will be on how to add suspense to your novel.  Here is an excellent resource, one that is worthy of being bookmarked and referenced every now and again: Suspense Writing and Action Scenes (http://www.creative-writing-solutions.com/suspense-writing.html)

The article (be sure to read both pages) guides the author through some thoughtful ways in which to write good physical fight scenes, characters and "the hook." 

At the end there are a few writing prompts.  Why not give them a whirl? 

Writing Exercise: Creating Suspense

From Curtis Winkle's (Executive Director at Tate Publishing) blog, there's a terrific article to read, written by Meghan Barnes, about creating suspense in your story.  Highly recommended reading for anyone interested in writing suspenseful tales.  You can find the entry here: http://tatepublishingeditors.blogspot.com/2008/10/building-suspense-by-meghan-barnes.html

From the "bonus" section of the entry, we've created a little writing exercise for you to enjoy.  Have fun!

Write a scene where your character(s) have to endure a primal fear, such as darkness, the basement, etc.

Write a paragraph or two that shows the character's internal struggle between sanity and madness.  Better yet, a few paragraphs where the character is oblivious to the changes but an interacting character questions the other's sanity or lack thereof.

For our workshop attendees, if you chose to rise to the challenge, why not bring in your completed exercise and share it with us?