I am a member of two primary writing communities, RWA and the Authors Guild. I've also been a member of my local RWA Chapter, the Rose City Romance Writers for going on ten years. I very much believe in writer's communities whether you are just starting out or a seasoned pro.
I joined Savvy Authors in September 2012. I must admit, I haven't been very involved with the site due to too little time and too many books to write. However, I do subscribe to their feed and often take a few moments to read an interesting article or learn more about the changes in publishing. Savvy Authors is dedicated to helping writers and I jumped at the chance to be a small part of their blog tour to help people learn more about their new and improved site. Today I'm hosting Elizabeth W. Gibson in a guest post about her experience with
Savvy Authors.
Unlikely Bedfellows
You’ve seen it before.
If not in your own home, on Facebook or Pinterest, the fearless kitten
snuggling with the big family dog. You
see it and suddenly you’re in an oversized terry robe you’ve borrowed, along
with rabbit slippers, (yup, the ones with the big floppy ears) and you’re
holding a warm cup of hot chocolate with marshmallows floating on top. Plus there’s a smile or maybe a chuckle,
whichever, you’re feeling all’s well with the world.
Okay, perhaps I’m projecting here. But, the warm and cozies I get with this image
of pure heaven is how I feel about online writing communities. They bring writers with diverse backgrounds,
varying levels of experience and a trainload of different genres to bed down
together. Figuratively speaking of
course. Although, romance and erotica
writers can get pretty frisky, but it’s all on paper. But, it doesn’t matter what you write, if
you’re published or unpublished the door is open 24/7.
I joined
Savvy
Authors, around November, 2010 and I’ve spent most of my free time hanging
out on the site.
I met my crit buddies
in a workshop and we have met online in the chat room every night for the last
two and half years.
We sprint, critique,
make fun of each other, talk about books, the business of writing or simply
support each other to keep going.
In our
little group, which we call, Critters, Clubs and Corsets we have different
styles of writing and write in different genres.
Nonetheless, we still managed to help each
other grow.
In the group, one writer now
has a contract with Entangled Publishing and another recently went to a
conference and had agents pushing their business cards on her after reading her
first page.
As for me, I’ve had an editor
ask for a full manuscript.
Now would any of this have happened without the writing
community or the critique group.
Probably. We’re a determined
group, but I believe the environment that Savvy fosters, writers helping
writers was a key to our continued growth.
Another group within Savvy Authors I’m honored to be a part
of is the Fantasy Forge. I’ve been with
this group almost as long as the other one.
We formed our own blog for the diverse genres we write in called
Speculative Salon. I considered these women
my dear friends too.
I’ve also been a volunteer moderator at Savvy Authors for
two years plus. For me, it’s a way of
giving back the wonderful experiences I have had within their cyber space
walls. Savvy Authors has also giving me
the opportunity to co-write a monthly feature interviewing different
professionals that might pique the interest of a writer as a profession for
their characters.
I suppose, I’m biased regarding Savvy Authors because they continue
to give me the warm and cozies. But let
me list the benefits for you:
1. Learning in
workshops with professional writers
2.
Opportunities – pitching for agents and editors
3. Friendships
4. Networking
I could go on but I think you get the idea. Whether it’s Savvy Authors or another online
writing community, it’s a place where you can gain your confidence as a
writer. I could sing the little ditty in
the Army’s recruiting commercial, but I won’t.
Do you belong to an online writing community? If you do, share with me your experiences.
Till next time,
Elizabeth
Elizabeth W. Gibson writes YA Fantasy with romantic
elements. She is a member of SCBWI, RWA,
Savvy Authors and YALitChat. At Savvy,
she is a moderator and co-writer of a monthly blog featuring industry
professionals. Over at YALitChat, she is
the staff coordinator for Agent Insider.
Elizabeth is also an artist and studied in Paris for four years.
Join the Savvy Authors admin and volunteers as we tour the
blogosphere in anticipation of the launch of our improved and updated website.
We are excited to share our love of Savvy, and all writing communities, with
each of you during the summer months. Below is a list of stops we’ll be making
– please feel free to stop by and say hello! (and definitely check out the new
look of our site)
