Writing workshops: How to make group discussions positive and productive
by Joni B. Cole
Excerpted from Toxic Feedback: Helping Writers Survive and Thrive by Joni B. Cole. © 2006, University Press of New England, Lebanon, NH, pages 119-122. Reprinted with permission. For more information, contact the author at jonibethcole@gmail.com.
Writing workshops are one of the best resources out there to keep you motivated and help you improve your work … but only if the discussions are productive and positive. Below are some useful tips for making the most of every feedback session, one story, one constructive comment, at a time.
Take every submission seriously.
Writers don’t submit anything frivolously; too much is at stake, emotionally speaking. What may look to you like a dashed-off piece or a scant few pages may represent a world of effort on the writer’s part. As workshop participants, it is not our place to judge the worthiness of someone else’s submission. If it matters to the writer, it matters.
Meet the story where it’s at.
Is the submission a first or fifth draft? Is the writer looking for a general response or line edits? This kind of information can help you tailor your feedback appropriately. Think of it this way. You don’t fault a baby for not being an adult. If the writer’s submission is in the early stages of development, you will want to focus your feedback on the piece’s potential, rather than its lack of sophistication. Conversely, if a mature work is presented, you will be doing the writer a favor by pointing out any lingering traces of babbling or self-indulgence that undermine the story’s refinement.
Invite the writer to do a mini reading.
Before launching into the discussion, invite the writer to read a few pages aloud. This lends dignity to the submission. It also magnifies a work’s strengths and glitches, and allows you to pick up on nuances of voice or other aspects of the writing that you may have missed when you read it silently.
Be up.
It’s important to create as much positive energy as commentary because the latter without the former can leave the writer nonplussed. “Geez,” the writer leaves the meeting thinking, “They told me they liked my story, but then why didn’t anyone act like it?”
Start with praise.
Why make things harder than they have to be? Start the session by talking about what you like in the piece and why. Here is an example, “I like how the character of the grandma swats flies while she is canning, and her sweat drips into the preserves. Those details really showed the heat of the kitchen and the old woman’s perseverance.” Starting with praise makes the writer feel good (for good reason) and gives her the perspective she needs to counterbalance any critical remarks that follow. It’s a lot easier on you, too.
What do you notice?
Telling the writer what you noticed in the text is another terrific way to launch the discussion, especially if you are having trouble coming up with something you liked about the piece. “I noticed the alliteration in the first stanza.” “I noticed the father was absent for most of the story.” “I noticed that the part of the story from the aunt’s perspective was written in the past tense, and the part of the story from the niece’s perspective was written in present tense.” These observations may seem small, but they are useful because they tell the writer what aspects of the writing are drawing your attention.
Emphasize what’s there, not what’s not there.
It’s time to let go of the deficit model of teaching that has been ingrained in most of us since birth (or at least let’s loosen our grip). Instead of focusing the discussion primarily on what a submission lacks so the writer can fix it, focus instead on what the piece offers so the writer can enhance it. What characters pique your interest? Where is the language powerful? What themes are emerging? Emphasizing what’s working in a draft helps the writer know what to keep, and where to build.
Critique in a continuum.
Good dog! Bad dog! Maybe you need to be that definitive when training Trixie the Wonder Dog, but writers respond better when feedback is part of a continuum (not working, almost working) rather than categories (good, bad). After all, which would you rather hear, “I don’t think your plot is working yet,” or “I think your plot is bad.” Incremental feedback softens the blow. More importantly, it helps the writer gauge how close he is to achieving his intent. It tells him whether he needs to rethink or refine.
Burst into reading.
Think of your writing group as a movie musical. Just as the characters in a musical burst into song at opportune moments, you too can burst into the discussion reading aloud your favorite sections. What better way to display your appreciation for a particular passage of writing, and pump up the energy of the workshop.
Turn suggestions into what ifs …
Half the time writers resent suggestions, and half the time they glom onto them, which means you probably shouldn’t make any, except it is so much fun (and useful at times). If the writer is open to suggestions, be sure yours have more to do with the writer’s story than your own version of the writer’s story. It is also helpful to phrase your suggestions as “what ifs” rather than declarations. Consider the difference between “Cut the opening!” vs. “The opening about the character’s marital history didn’t hook me. What if you filter all this background info into the story later?”
Go beyond yes-or-no questions.
Say you ask your best friend, “Does this dress make me look fat?” If she says, “yes,” you are crushed. If she says, “no,” you are happy, but what you don’t know is that the fringe on the bodice make you look like an aging Dallas Cheerleader, and the back of your hem is bunched up in your pantyhose. This speaks to the importance of asking open-ended questions in a story discussion—What does everyone think about the ending? Why are you confused? How does the language affect the pacing? Open-ended questions help stimulate the discussion and deliver useful insights that give the writer the whole story.
Take yourself out of it.
Most How-to-Give-Feedback worksheets tell us to “own” our opinions by expressing them in terms of “I feel” or “I think.” This makes sense, but you may want to ban the use of the “I” construct (at least temporarily), if it is limiting the depth of the constructive criticism. Notice the difference between “I think the diner waitress is really greedy.” (The “I” construct makes it easy to stop with your opinion.) vs.” The waitress in the diner comes across as greedy because she steals the other waitress’s tips.” Another example, “I don’t like the long flashback starting on page two.” vs. “The long flashback starting on page two stopped the action right when it seemed to be picking up momentum.”
Try different formats.
Even if your group’s existing format works just fine, it can be fun to experiment with new ones. Here are four options: 1.) Allow each feedback provider three minutes to say his critique (yes, use a timer) then move on to an open discussion. 2.) Organize the discussion around four areas of critique: What is the piece about? What did you like about it? What didn’t you like about it? How would you improve it? 3.) Only put forth positive feedback, not a word of constructive criticism. 4.) No written submissions; participants simply read aloud and follow-up with verbal comments.
Show your appreciation.
I still remember the first time a feedback provider thanked me for allowing her to read my submission. Somehow, this unexpected show of appreciation made me feel more like a “real” writer. It reminded me that, even though my piece wasn’t finished, my work already had value for the reader. I think the nicest way to close a group discussion is to say to the writer, “Thank you.”
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Joni B. Cole is the author of Toxic Feedback: Helping Writers Survive and Thrive (© 2006, University Press of New England). Her latest book, Another Bad-Dog Book: Tales of Life, Love, and Neurotic Human Behavior, hits the shelves September 2011.
Joni teaches at writing conferences throughout the U.S. and runs the Writer’s Center of White River Junction, VT. To learn more about her books and writing retreats, visit jonibcole.com or write her at jonibethcole@gmail.com