Sometimes writers need to take a break. We draft, revise, sweat over, and (hopefully) publish. We hone our craft—characterization, plot, description, show not tell, voice, and so on. We join writing groups to improve our skills and motivate us to keep at it, but also realizing that writing is sometimes not as fun as reading and discussing a work of fiction.

So, what about a writing group that focuses instead on the experience of the reader and the reason we write in the first place: to entertain and enlighten our readers?

This group will be run as a book club. Every session, one writer submits a mostly finished manuscript, which the others will have read prior to the session. Submissions can be novels, novellas, collections of short stories, plays, and screenplays. The focus is on fiction, which includes most genres, as well as creative non-fiction, and memoirs. The discussion will proceed as it does with any book club: Did your readers understand and relate to your characters and their conflicts and resolutions? Did they get moved? Did they laugh or get angry? What did they think of your themes and messages? Were they delighted by your language? Of course, there will be talk of craft. Think of it as a super-reader book club, where writers help writers create meaningful literature.

Led by Peter Villani

Each member will submit a mostly finished draft of a work of fiction. 

• Accepted: Fiction, creative nonfiction, memoirs, plays, and screenplays in all genres accepted. Please no poetry.
• Size of submission: between ~30K and 75K words
• Commitment: 100% attendance

• 24 September
• 15 October
• 5 November
• 26 November
• 17 December
• 7 January 2025
• 18 January
• 18 February
• 18 March
• 22 April
• 20 May
• 17 June