Community Resources

Being a writer isn’t a solo venture, or at least it shouldn’t be. As a writer, you need to be constantly engaging with three groups of people: trusted writers, including critique partners, who will give you feedback and challenge you to be the best writer you can be; readers, who make up the audience you are aiming to reach; and publishers, or the experts.

When you’re part of a writing community, whether it’s online or in-person, you’re surrounded by individuals who share the same passion as you. Not only do you get the opportunity to promote your work, but you also build a network of connections and discover perspectives that you might otherwise not have. Here are the best of our DIY MFA community-related articles to help you get started.

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Collaborating with Writers

Build Your Online Writing Community Since you’re probably already blogging, tweeting, pinning or doing all three, why not take advantage of social media to meet other writers? Just don’t go overboard with the social media platforms, or you could have more queues than you can manage.

The Bubble Method: How to Get the Most Out of a Writing Workshop Part of being a writer – or any professional – is learning to take constructive critique. As Jim Averback says, “You have to love writing, but more importantly, you have to love learning to write better.” That’s what writing workshops are for.

Build Your Writing Community: In-Person Events It’s easy to rely on social media for networking these days. While the internet makes it infinitely easier to connect with other people, there’s nothing like a real handshake and face-to-face introductions. Our best tip for in-person events? Be positive and open to new experiences.

Critique v.s. Discussion: What Kind of Feedback Do You Need? Yes, there is a difference. While the purpose of critique is mainly to give feedback on how to improve a piece of writing, discussion is about sharing overall thoughts on the piece. What are you working on, and what do you need – critique or discussion?

5 Lessons About Community that Writers MUST Learn Writers have one thing in common: They are all passionate about what they do. Most of them are willing to help you out.  Also, trust us: A little optimism goes a long way.

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Connecting with Readers

Why Writers Should Write Guest Posts Collaborating on guest posts is a great strategy for reaching new audiences, promoting your own blog platform and expanding your portfolio of blog articles. This isn’t advantageous just for you, but for other writers you may be working with. It’s a win-win for everyone.

Branding For Writers When you have a strong author brand, your readers can easily connect with you. They know what you stand for, and they trust you to deliver a message that they can identify. The key is consistency and a narrow focus: Choose one brand, but do it right.

7 Steps to a Better Blog Your blog can play a significant role in creating your author brand, but only if it’s functional and has a purpose. Blog often, stick to one topic and use the K.I.S.S. rule: Keep It Simple Stupid.

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Sending Work to Publishers

Why You Don’t Need to Be an Author-Entrepreneur We no longer work in a one-style-fits-all publishing world. Some authors may enjoy being independent and choose to self-publish their work, but not all authors want to be their own publishers, or entrepreneurs. No matter which publishing path you choose, though, having an entrepreneurial attitude is important – especially for networking.

Why You Should Consider an Agent, Even If You Self-Publish As an author, you want an agent to help you navigate the publishing process and jump any hurdles that may be standing in the way between you and a successful writing career.

Four Steps to a Winning Query All great queries have a hook, book, look and cook (we’ll explain in the article what each of these mean). Don’t forget to keep it short and sweet.

The Human Side of the Publishing Industry Will the book world (as we know it) eventually end? Like any business, the publishing industry is made up of people. And book people have a lot of heart. As long as we work together and help each other, the publishing industry will stay strong.

Finding the Right Home For Your Work We know, rejection hurts. But think of every NO as one step closer toward a YES. And really, all you need is one.  One agent.  One editor.  One champion for your work.

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