After last week’s post, one of my critique partners who has never been within a country mile of RWA would like me to correct my earlier statement about finding critique partners through RWA and writing boards. So here I go. Another way to find a critique partner is as follows:
Have a blog. Have a popular blog for about two years. Read books. Talk about books you’ve read on your blog. Intimate your warm fuzzy feelings for the work of a particular author. Get an email from that author’s spouse, who has found your blog through Googling. (That may be the most difficult part of the equation.) Discover that said spouse is actually a talented writer as well, and a debut novelist to boot. (Actually, no, that part is. Very rare, they are.) Read her books. Be amazed. Exchange myriad emails with her about the writing life, the craft, her home continent, etc. etc. Talk about being debut novelists with series. Talk about being debut novelists in general. Talk about the industry and books we’ve read. Do this for about a year. Meet up for lunch the next time you happen to be in the same city. Get to talking about your new projects. Offer to read each other’s work. Do so.
In other words, by chance.
There are any number of ways to meet critique partners. I didn’t mean to intimate in my last post that there’s only one. And you know what, I’m surprised that the CP in question even noticed, what with her whole obsession with zombies and unicorns right now, anyway.
This week’s giveaway:
Please note that both The Astonishing Adventures of Fanboy and Goth Girl, by Barry Lyga, and Dipped in Chocolate, by Renee Luke, are signed for your reading pleasure. (Though I do have a signed Valiant, it’s mine mine mine mine mine, and I don’t actually know Stephen King, but if he or his wife wish to contact me through this blog, feel free.)
I met Barry last year at BEA, where he told me a delightful story about a friend of his who actually was among the first female members of her society. His gorgeous, signed hardcover first edition is being featured on this blog courtesy of Patrick. Would I like to keep it for myself? You betcha. Will I? No, because I care about y’all too much for that.
Leave your name in the comments section to win.
33 Comments
February 19, 2007 at 6:16 pm
Ooooh, what great books!
My critique group partners and I love these posts, by the way!
February 19, 2007 at 6:24 pm
I did find one of my two CPs by asking on my blog.
February 19, 2007 at 6:45 pm
I am so jealous.
I try to never be green, but crap, could you be any more fortunate on the CP front?
This has been a great series, btw. One I will refer others to when the question of to CP or not to CP arises.
February 19, 2007 at 6:49 pm
How great to have found her by chance! Though she doesn’t like unicorns… so don’t know if she should be trusted…
February 19, 2007 at 6:59 pm
Oooh, great books! CP’s are hard to find, but so worth it.
February 19, 2007 at 6:59 pm
HA! I had to come out of my “lurkdom” for this post.
Good call on the amount of frogs you have to kiss before you meet your one true critique partner. That made me laugh–but it’s very true.
February 19, 2007 at 7:12 pm
I may have to win the book give away again, since I have never read Kings’s “On Writing”.
February 19, 2007 at 7:19 pm
Diana’s comments on my latest were invaluable. A huge help in the rewriting. Thank you!
I’m very glad google led me to you. Chance is an excellent thing.
Um, you do mean me, right?
PS It’s unicorn lovers who can’t be trusted!
February 19, 2007 at 7:26 pm
Love all the books in the giveaway this week. You always come up with such a great variety. Have your blog bookmarked and read it every day!
February 19, 2007 at 7:46 pm
I must add that the unicorn v. zombie debate had me crying I was laughing so hard.
And natch, zombies win – hello!!
February 19, 2007 at 8:01 pm
When worlds collide: You’re giving away my CP’s fabulous book, The Astonishing Adventures of Fanboy and Goth Girl. Perfect!
February 19, 2007 at 8:02 pm
Ha! I knew you were talking about Justine before you even started about the zombies and the unicorns!
Um, I know feel like a sleazy internet stalker with too much obsessively gathered knowledge. Eeps.
February 19, 2007 at 8:03 pm
I am foreign. Please disregard the silly mistakes. I know the difference between now and know. Honist.
February 19, 2007 at 8:35 pm
How many CPs should one have?
February 19, 2007 at 10:09 pm
I found one of my CPs by going to college, becoming really good friends with a girl down the hall, having a chick break up with her after college, reconnecting because she heard me on the radio playing some dumb contest and decided to call, discovering that both of us were 3/4 of the way through our first romance manuscripts and (more importantly) that we still really really liked each other, especially after working through our late teens and early 20’s psychosis, and tentatively decided to exchange work. Now we live 4 miles apart and talk shop daily. Our 3rd CP we met at RWA, but she grew up down the street from my freshman roommate. It’s all about my freshman dorm, really.
February 19, 2007 at 11:26 pm
Love the critique posts very informative!
Cool books for the contest this week!
Terri
February 19, 2007 at 11:40 pm
May, did that work out well for you? I love your new blog design, btw. I had a really hard time reading the colors on the old one.
Heather, I don’t think you’re lacking in yours…
Annie, I think she’s right not to trust unicorn-lovers. I never have.
Carrie, I was waiting for you to see that. I thought to myself “Carrie’s gonna be in stitches!”
Marrije, we never hold typos against anyone here. If so, I’d have been flogged eons ago.
Patrick: As many CPs as it takes.
February 20, 2007 at 12:03 am
Ok, brace yourself because this is sort of like a serious question and it is coming from me.
While I have had some excellent crits from people, I’ve never been in a long term CP relationship, nor really used them effectively.
So, how do YOU use them. Do you send the first draft to one, then make changes and then send it to a fresh reader, or do you just stick with one or two CPs per project?
Do you get crits on partials or do you finish the first draft first? It sounds like you do chapters, where I think I want to finish the first draft and take my first edit over it before showing someone, but on the other hand, showing someone each chapter is sort of motivating in it’s own way.
So, uhh, I know everyone is different, but I’m just curious about what your CP process is.
February 20, 2007 at 12:24 am
“Heather, I don’t think you’re lacking in yours…”
Certainly not, although technically she (wonderwoman) who shall not be named is my mentor, not my CP.
I’m just tickled when I discover CP identities.
February 20, 2007 at 12:37 am
I almost forgot, Patrick…
I have On Writing on my iPod, purchased from iTunes. It is unabridged and read by SK himself.
FYI for anyone interested in the audio version.
February 20, 2007 at 12:39 am
I have CP envy. I have author friends who I trust to read scenes but I’ve never had a luck with official CP’s.
February 20, 2007 at 2:30 am
NaNoWriMo is also extremely good for finding critique partners, if there are people in your area who are serious about it after the caffeine (enough to kill a goat) has worn off. We have a solid group of three, or we did last year, and this year I think it’s doubled. I swear, CP’s roam in the wild. All you have to do is snag the right one.
(One of those is -gaspshockhorror!- my mom, but she’s not the “Oh, honey, this is so wonderful!” dishonest type. Just trust me here. She’s as tough on me as the other guy who had never met me before November 2005.)
I really like these posts. They’re wildly helpful even when you’re already happily CP’ed.
And let me just reiterate that On Writing is an absolute must-read.
February 20, 2007 at 2:46 am
So, how do YOU use them. Do you send the first draft to one, then make changes and then send it to a fresh reader, or do you just stick with one or two CPs per project?
It depends, Patrick. I have CPs who see everything and then I have CPs who are involved in particular projects, but there’s no formal plan. I just say, “hey, do you want to look at…” and they say yes or no.
And when I send, I send to everyone all at once. I like to get different people’s opinion on the same work. I’m also not much of a “draft” writer.
Do you get crits on partials or do you finish the first draft first? It sounds like you do chapters, where I think I want to finish the first draft and take my first edit over it before showing someone, but on the other hand, showing someone each chapter is sort of motivating in it’s own way.
Actually, I recommend neither when you are first starting out. The problem with the former is that if you pull a really awful book, you’ve got to slog through 400 pages of their badness. Do you really want to sign up for that, sight unseen? The latter is worrisome for the good books. It’s pointless to get a crit back on a chapter (15-20 pages) that says, “but what about BLANK?” when BLANK is answered on page 21.
I’ll critique both partials and full manuscripts. Justine’s book was a full manuscript. I also just finished doing a final read on a full manuscript for C.L. Wilson.
But I work on partials, too. A lot of my friends are writing proposals now. I wrote a proposal in order ot sell SSG3+4. Those are chapters, by necessity. But again, when I sent the first three chapters to Marley of SSG3, she’d read the book, the sequel, and been present for brainstorming on book three. She’s read about four of my books (maybe five). We’ve been working together forever. She can trust where it is I’m going.
_____________
Heather, there’s no mystery. Most people I know thank their crit groups in their acknowledgments, yeah?
And wow… mentor. She must be blushing right now!
February 20, 2007 at 3:24 am
Faskinating! Thanks!
So, I am assuming you are a ‘cycler’ — One who fixes as they go, continually correcting the previous work as you plod forward on the new.
February 20, 2007 at 3:49 am
Hi Diana, great post as always. And some great books too
February 20, 2007 at 3:50 am
Don’t have much to say today, but I could always use a free book (goodness knows I clearly don’t have enough on my shelf that need to be read as it is).
Thanks, Diana!
February 20, 2007 at 10:33 am
The problem with the whole CP thing is if you write very sporatically, you don’t want to try someone’s patience. I’m having that problem right now – my kind-of CP is all on edge for my next chapter, which may not be done for quite a while.
I had heard of The Astonishing Adventures of Fanboy and Goth Girl and it sounded quite intriguing when I read the website for it. Very cool that you’re giving it away!
February 20, 2007 at 2:44 pm
I so need to take the plunge and find a critique partner but I’m procrastinating because I’m still not writing what I feel is a consistent enough basis (I know lame excuse) between working the full-time job, husband, and a toddler to boot I barely have time to get a few pages in on weekends. But then again a few pages a week may be all some crtique partners can handle and I suppose having a critique partner might somehow make me more accountable, I guess I better go get one huh!
Throwing my hat back in the ring for those books.
February 20, 2007 at 4:20 pm
Great books in the giveaway this week. Throwing my name in the hat. Thanks
February 20, 2007 at 7:16 pm
Enjoying your blog and love the books you are giving away this week.
February 21, 2007 at 4:40 am
Great post about cp’s. Great book giveaway as well.
Cherie J
February 21, 2007 at 6:36 am
Great books!
February 21, 2007 at 8:09 pm
Great information. Now I just need to find my CP out there somewhere.