How Great Writing Workshops Work

I can confidently state that I would not have experienced success as writer without the support and feedback of my workshop group. In all honesty, if it weren’t for them, I would have quit. Thank you, Sandy, Joan, Nadine and Claire. From the bottom of my heart.

Unfortunately, not everyone comes away from a writing group feeling this way. I’ve heard countless horror stories about writers who've left groups with nothing but discouragement and dashed hopes.

When I set out to create Bardsy, I wanted to bring the positivity of my workshop experience to other writers. As I reflected on my experience and spoke with other writers, I realized that what makes a writing group great is its ability to provide three essentials: accountability, feedback and support. Here’s why each is important.

1. Accountability

From exercising to eating healthy to writing, it’s a fact that you’re more likely to accomplish your goals when you are accountable to others. Workshops mark your calendar with a recurring deadline (in our case, every two weeks) that compels you to act within a relatively short time frame. Without that, it’s easy to push your writing off…indefinitely.

Prior to my group, my writing habits were erratic at best. Sometimes, I would go months without writing more than a page or two. My group instilled consistency in my practice, because social accountability is a powerful motivator. When you belong to a group, you know that your fellow writers are expecting new work from you every meeting. You don’t want to let them down!

2. Feedback

Feedback feeds growth. You can read all the books on writing you want and attend courses galore, but you can only get so far without feedback. A great workshop provides kind, constructive feedback that allows you to maximize the impact of any given piece.

Sometimes we’re so close to a piece of writing that we become blind to areas that could be improved, or we simply aren’t sure how to improve them. I can’t tell you how many “a-ha!” moments I’ve had over the years, when another member made a helpful suggestion I hadn’t thought about.

Workshops aren’t just about receiving feedback, either. When you read other peoples’ work and provide feedback, you’re deepening your understanding of what makes a story good, which you’ll no doubt see reflected in the quality of your own writing.

3. Support

You need more than accountability and feedback from your group: you also need support. A great group is there for you, wherever you are in your journey—whether you’re facing a block on a first draft or need a confidence boost during the querying process. They celebrate with you when you reach milestones, and offer encouragement and advice when you’re feeling stuck.

Writing can be isolating. This is especially true when the other people in your life do not and cannot understand what being a writer is like (and think writing a book is as easy as “1, 2, publish”). A workshop surrounds you with others who can relate to your experiences and lend a helping hand or listening ear.

To best provide accountability, feedback and support, our workshops have a few key qualities that distinguish them from other, less effective workshops.

First off, rather than just throwing you into any group that happens to fit your schedule, we thoughtfully match you with the group that suits you best. Using our comprehensive assessment, we consider your needs carefully and place you in a group that meets them.

That’s not to say it will be like looking in a mirror when you meet other group members. No Stepford workshops at Bardsy! We aim for a blend of perspectives, personalities and processes: one that makes for richer discussions and a range of insights. What is constant is commitment.

We keep our groups small (no more than five participants), so everyone has a chance to receive individualized attention each session. Small groups also foster a sense of community, with the potential to develop tight-knit, lifelong bonds. Some of my most rewarding friendships have come out of my own writing group.

In addition to committed peers, all our groups have an expert facilitator. These are not just moderators or a volunteer group member. Rather, they are accomplished authors trained to keep the discussion on track, extract the most constructive feedback and distill comments into actionable next steps while adding their own, hard-won wisdom to the conversation. On the topic of conversations, our Publishability Index provides a common language for workshoppers, which helps avoid vagueness and misunderstandings.

If you aren’t already part of a writing group, what’s stopping you? And don’t say, “I don’t have the time/money/energy.” I’ve heard every excuse in the book. The truth is, there will never be a perfect day to prioritize your writing. If it’s important to you, you have to make the conscious decision to treat it as such. Why not today?

The best evidence of a great group is the success of its members, so I’ll leave you with this comment from one of our amazing members:

My experience with Bardsy has been wonderful. Not only was I able to achieve a long-sought-after goal of having one of my stories published, but the feedback I've received has been invaluable. As an Elite workshop member, I receive guidance from their exceptional editorial staff and my fellow writing peers. The workshop is fun to participate in and helps me with focus, content and deadlines.

— Christine R.

Want to try out a Bardsy writing group for free? Email me to request a free, trial meeting:

celeste@bardsy.com