I’ve written here many times about my quest to find a local writers group, and that hunt continues. One group I thought may be a good fit actually decided to shut down before I could even get there. Fellow writers have suggested groups that just aren’t logistically possible for me either because of location or the times they meet.
But I’ve also found friends spread all over the place also are looking for a writers group. So what should we do to try to connect so we can have our own community?
I’ve tried the online writers group thing in the past with varying amounts of success. Wordtrip, which I adore and have made friends through, is close to shutting down. Other communities were just not the right fit for me, including some places that were filled with people who took themselves way too seriously. Is it really necessary to attack someone and be nasty about it?
But most of that was before social media. Could there be a better way to connect with writer friends online in a “group” through social media? Google Hangouts might be one avenue. Writers already using them for group writing sessions together. I haven’t been able to do one yet since many of them are in the middle of my work day.
And perhaps there are other social media tools that could be used to connect my writer friends and me virtually.
As I think on the possibilities, I’m seeking advice and people who have created online writing communities through social media. Have you experimented or are you part of an online writing community? Share your experiences in the comments.
Jen, take a look at Facebook’s Fast Fiction Friday, which Jillstar and I started as a spin-off from Wordtrip. There’s a paucity of activity, but there’s a potential to enlarge the group.
I don’t WANT to go on the cart! (but who am I kidding? Wordtrip has been a shadow of its former self for a couple years now).
I wish I knew what the answer was/is, but I think one of the things that has put Wordtrip on life support is the way social media has made everybody connected with everybody and that means that most people who would have otherwise sought out a more specific means of socializing based on their interest in writing will now add “writing” as an interest on facebook and continue to connect with their existing circle of friends (and maybe find out that one or two of them are interested in writing as well).
For many years, Wordtrip has been a community, a clubhouse and a forum for the exchange of ideas on all things writing. One forum in particular–Fast Fiction Friday (and the Large Writing Group and WG#^)–has resulted in my writing a score of stories and seeing them published. For this, Jillstar and other commentators and critics have my undying thanks.
I haven’t left the site, but the moderators have drifted away. Charles, I think even you have been distracted by other things and left us high and dry. People do drift and attrition is to be expected, but with a little work and some “go to” directions on Facebook, the site can be revived. If you and a few others are interested.
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