Writing.Com General Discussion

Hello there.

It is both difficult and possible to have the type of group you are indicating in this discussion. The critique group is plausible using WDC. In fact, we've had them before.

The group item allows for membership, communication to the group (emails), forum options and the ability to limit the viewing of a document to only group members. So, it is possible to use sections of the site for this purpose.

Struggle comes in a few different forms. People struggle with consistent commitment both online and in person with groups. That problem will be found in any critique group. Some will be better about commitment than others. While there are many writers available on the site, it can also be hard to find people on the same page. Have to find people comfortable reading the genre/heat level/age range. They have to understand what stage a story is in and what is going to be most helpful for a writer. For instance: a first draft is better suited for big picture topics like character development and not commas or minor technical errors that won't be there after the rewrites.

It used to be a little easier when the site had a chat function. We could meet even with the time zone differences in different rooms and discuss the chapters for the week. However, the chat had some downfalls as well. I know from experience on all of that. Even before I was a moderator for the site, I was in a critique group on here. Some of the group have published items, others of us have not yet. I still keep in touch with some on Facebook and some are still members on here. However, the critique group didn't last as we branched out in different parts of our lives.

Long story short... it can be done here. But there are challenges to any group to make it efficient.