Critique groups can be amazingly fun. You have to be in the right mindset and not take the feedback personally. The members are there to help you improve your craft. Saturday afternoon I had a very good session, including conversing with a new member. She offered to let peruse some books she has on medieval history. Not only do you receive good feedback from a critique group, you might also get the one bit of information you need to make your writing soar.
I’m a member of two groups, and I enjoy them both. But there is more to writing than just critique groups. There are workshops, conventions, seminars, and retreats. I believe the more you surround yourself with writing events, the better writer you’ll be. It also gives you a leg up on marketing. If you can get your critique group, your workshop peers, and convention goers interested in your book, there’s a better chance they will buy it. Networking is very important to an author. I hope you strive for that in your journey to be a writer.
Finally, a few historical anniversaries to mention for today. Hernando Cortez captures Aztec Emperor Cuauhtemoc Tenochtitlan in 1521, ending the Aztec empire. 90-year-old Florence Nightingale died 107 years ago. In 1941 Ford unveiled a plastic automobile. Twenty years later, the Russians put up a fence around East Berlin. The wall eventually replaced the fence. All these things and more happened today in history. Somebody wrote them down. After all, history doesn’t write itself.
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What I’m Reading – Many readers I know like to inquire what their favorite author is reading. At the end of each blog post, I’ll let you know what book I have my nose in. I may not be a published author yet, but I hope my choice of reading material inspires you to read. I’m reading The Prophecy Con by Patrick Weeks. I encourage you to read a variety of topics.