Chip MacGregor .com

Critique Groups

This email came from Jess: "You once said we should get all our words down on paper, in order to create a crappy draft. I know you're talking about writing a nonfiction book here, but I've heard the same thing about fiction. My question: Where do our critique partners come in? I sure don't want to pass along a crappy first chapter or two to them...so I write and rewrite, trying to make it perfect before moving on. Any advice on how to make a critique group faster and more productive?"

Sure. First, let me explain to everybody what a critique group is: A collection of fellow writers who come together to improve each other's writing. (And, yeah, occasionally they come together to smack down the arrogant, or to make themselves feel better by criticizing someone else...but the GOAL of the group is to help everyone improve.) Sometimes you'll just have one or two people who are your crit partners; other times you might be part of a group that gathers on a weekly or monthly basis. You pass your work around ahead of time, the others make notes, then they come and share them with you.

Second, let me take issue with a couple things you said. I'm talking both fiction AND nonfiction. In my experience, nearly every writer benefits from having crit partners. And I think you may be stressing too much on showing people your bad work. Everybody has some bad work now and then. The point of the group is to IMPROVE. So get it out there -- let your partners see your work. It will help them as much as it helps you, since they'll be able to see how you handle certain writing problems.

Years ago, in another life, I made my living doing dopey magic tricks and telling jokes. (Really.) I played some nice places (the Comedy & Magic Club of Hermosa Beach was one), and I played some awful places (insert the name of any smoky bar where the customers are more interested in Budweisers, Camels, and the opposite sex). One thing I noticed about the venues: Even if the place was a dive, I learned lessons. Being in front of a living, breathing audience forces you to change your act. You have to work really hard to get people to laugh. All the rehearsal in the world wasn't going to cause me to perfect my act -- for that, I had to go be bad in front of people.

There's a lesson there for writers... A lot of potential writers are simply too sensitive. As a writer, you need a place to bad, so that you can learn to be good. So if your ego is too fragile to allow someone else to read your work, it's time to learn this lesson. Allow yourself to be bad. Give somebody else (preferably not your mom, your spouse, or your best friend) the permission to be honest with you about your writing.

Yes, this takes courage. And it means you're going to have to find a couple people you trust. If you get into a large crit group, chances are you're going to have one person you don't like, who always hammers you for something. Learn to live with it. Paste a smile on your face, say "thanks very much," and move on to somebody whose opinion you actually care about. BUT somewhere, in the midst of all that fake niceness, be willing to at least hear what that individual has to say about your writing. A fresh set of eyes is exactly why you joined the group, so at least listen to the criticisms others have, even if you think they're all wrong and you're above this sort of thing.

Scottish people have a saying: Learn to unpack a rebuke. In other words, don't reject a criticism out of hand. You don't have to like it. You don't have to agree with it. But give it a little time. Take it and play with it. Be willing to at least examine the criticism and see if, just maybe, there's an ounce of truth in it.

I recently had somebody challenge me on this blog -- they basically snarled at me, "You're playing it too safe! Where's the edgy Chip I've seen on other sites? You've pulled it all in, hoping this 'nice' Chip will be more appealing!" My first response? I slapped her. (No, not really. There I go again, playing it safe.) My first reaction was to defend myself. "No, that's not true." Then I offered a bunch of reasons why I was Mr. Edgy. Except...she was right. I've felt the same thing -- that I was toning it all down. I don't know why, but I felt it, and when I read back over my replies, I could see it. So I unpacked the rebuke. And now...um...I don't know. I'm not going to become Mr. Snotty, but I probably need to cut loose a bit more. I don't want people checking my site at bedtime in order to help them nod off.

Of course, sometimes you'll get a rebuke that's wrong. Somebody will tell you "that idea will never sell" or "you shouldn't do that novel in first person," and your only response is to smile, say thanks, and ignore the moron. That's okay. At least you got another perspective. But you gain an immense amount of wisdom when you allow other people you respect to look at your words.

Okay, so third (and yes, this is really "third" -- look way up there and you'll see there was a "first" and a "second"), I want to suggest that handing around a bad first draft is EXACTLY the point of a crit group. Let them see what you're doing and offer some direction for your writing. You may not agree with all of it, but the point is that you're getting another set of eyes to review your work. I've seen thousands of pages of paper wasted on under-written book proposals. Sometimes these were good ideas, they just needed more work. But I rarely seen an over-written book proposal -- one the author simply over-designed, over-thought, and over-wrote. So my sense is that you probably need to spend more time on your project.

Having a critique group can help you move forward. Besides, having writing friends gives you somebody to share your success and failure with. When those rejections come in, they'll pat you on the back and tell you that, yes, you're a fine writer, you just need to stick with it. Maybe they'll go buy you a Guinness. (Another reason to like critique groups!)

Fourth, you asked how to make them faster and more productive. As for "faster," send the writings out one week  and talk about them the next week. (That said, I don't know that making a group faster is the goal. But I know how frustrating it is to get into a group where one person dominates all the needs.) In terms of making things more productive, I encourage groups to WRITE their comments. It's too easy to weasel out of a tough criticism when we're all sitting around the living room, drinking tea and commenting on Daphne's stupid prairie romance. ("Um...I don't know...but since this is set in the 1830's, maybe you shouldn't have your heroine eaten by intergallactic space aliens.") Instead, ask people to write their criticisms onto the page, then you can talk through them, and hand them to the author, before giving her (a) a kleenex to wipe her eyes, and (b) the number of a good suicide prevention counselor.

Fifth and last, don't think about trying to make it perfect. Seeking perfection in writing is what freezes people up and keeps them from writing (or from participating in an honest crit group). Look for progress, not perfection. You ain't going to make it perfect. So try to make it "better than last week."

Hope that helps.

Yikes!

I can't believe a week has gone by and I've not logged on to resond to questions. Sorry! Sometimes I think it would be better to go online and do ONE question every day or so...that would be shorter, but I'm afraid I'd be prone to give short answers. And I figure writers can go elsewhere for quickee answers. So let me get to some questions people have posed...

1. Someone wrote to ask, "How do you brainstorm titles?"

At most publishing houses, they create a "titling committee" -- which is often an ad-hoc group of fairly creative types who come together to bat around ideas. Everybody in the room has read the material, so they know what the book is basically about. They start talking about ideas -- what are the themes in the book? The images? The lessons? The principal stories? The character traits? The action? The setting? Anything that would help define this book is quickly noted. One person writes those down -- often on a whiteboard, so that everybody can see the words. The next step is to begin writing down words that play off that list. All bad ideas are welcome. People will say words that seem appropriate, they'll look for familiar phrases, they'll open a thesaurus in order to find similar or more vibrant words. And all those ideas (the bad and the good) are captured. The goal isn't just to come up with one title, but to come up with several potential ideas (especially ideas that can be used as jumping off points for other ideas). For example, I once wrote a book about "why people call psychic hotlines." We couldn't come up with a title that worked, so a group of us sat in a room to brainstorm. We had words like "psychic" and "money" and "grifters" on our list. We wrote down things people say about psychics: "He knew everything about me" and "I can't believe she read my mind." Pretty soon we were creating a list of great words that came up in our discussion: frauds, magic, the future, the X-files, deception. the discussion turned to the way we talk about the stupid TV commercials you used to see, with the Jamaican woman promising to give you insight. Eventually someone used the term we've all heard when discussing emotional manipulaton: mind games. Perfect! We had our title. And that same process gets repeated at publishing houses all over the country.

2. A nonfiction writer wrote me to ask, "What's the best advice you can give me in order to help me get my book published?"

That one is easy. The BEST advice? Become a better writer. Often times at conferences I get the feeling there are some people wandering around, hoping someone shares the "secret" to getting published. But it's not really a secret. Every publisher is looking for a great idea, great writing, and a great platform. You may or may not have a great idea in your head. And you may be a well-known celebrity or a complete unknown. But if you can't write, you're going to find this business awfully tough. Because in the normal course of things, publishers aren't buying ideas. (Occasionally, but not normally.) Nor are they going to do a book with you just because you're famous. (Again, it happens occasionally, but not normally. And they're always crappy books anyway.) So the single best thing you can do in order to improve your chance of getting published is to become a great writer. Study the craft. Write a lot. Take classes. Attend workshops. Do your exercises. Work with a mentor. Get a group of stud critiquers to help you improve. Make friends with an editor and ask him or her to hack away. Do anything you can to improve your writing...and you'll find you stand a much better chance of getting published.

3. A novelist asked, "If a new author is committed to a long-term career, but is not yet trying to pay the bills with her writing, does it makes sense to buy copies from a friendly book store (at, say, $1.50 above invoice price) and get the credit toward earning out?"

My advice: Be careful trying to be too crafty with book purchases. One big-name author (and his agent, who apparently masterminded the whole thing) got into hot water a few years ago for buying cases of his book through a certain bookstore. He did this in order to manipulate public opinion by purchasing enough quantities to get his book onto the best seller list. (And it worked.) They got caught when people noticed there were a ton of orders coming from one store, and figured out what was going on. What you're basically saying is that you're willing to pay more than you need in order to make the book appear to sell more. If you get caught, people are going to wonder if you're honest. Is it worth it?

4. Someone wanted to know how tall I am, how old I am, and how long I've had a mustache. (Really.) I have no idea why.

But since you asked, I'm 5'7" on a good day, less than that most other days. (Alas, one of my life dreams has been to dunk a basketball.) But I come across as much taller in print, don't you think? I'm 48 years old, my teeth are all my own, and I don't use Rogaine. And I've had the mustache FOREVER. It showed up as I sprung from the womb. My mom (who was all of 4'9") used to tell me that I was born with a lot of hair, a mustache, and a full set of the Encyclopedia Brittanica. I think she was kidding.

On mentoring...

I've had several people ask me about what a writing mentor does. The idea of having a mentor is simply to have someone who is a bit further down the path than yourself -- someone able to show you how he or she did things, talk about their experiences, perhaps help you make some connections in publishing. 

A while back, I put together a list of the thirty things that, as a writing mentor, I've tried to cover in my times with others...

1. The basics of sitting down to write (i.e., have a time, have a place, have a schedule, know what you're writing toward, etc).

2. The goal of writing (1000 salable words per day).

3. Get it down on paper, revise later (don't rewrite your book while you're creating it).

4. Give yourself short assignments (that takes a big writing project and breaks it into bite-sized chunks).

5. The importance of crummy first drafts (if you're not familiar with this, it's the concept that it is easier to revise something than to create it -- so don't worry about the fact that your first draft is awful, just create that awful first draft and you're on your way).

6. Story and plot (in other words, talking through the story to make sure writers understand a story arc,  what classic plot lines are, and how to move a plot along).

7. Creating great dialogue.

8. Establishing your setting. (I suppose this includes description and imagery in your writing.)

9. Creating strong characters.

10. Instilling themes, morality, and depth into your fiction (having your characters explore the great questions of life and make decisions that are open to interpretation).

11. Organization (how to organize your writing and your life).

12. How to balance writing, ideas, and platform in your career.

13. Original vs adaptive creativity (the difference between coming up with your own unique idea and revisiting older ideas in a new way).

14. The concept of "voice" (how you sound like yourself in print).

15. Establishing relationships other authors, editors, and collaborators (and possibly helping the protege meet some of the folks in the industry).

16. Getting to know CBA and ABA.

17. How to get the most out of a writers conference (and why it's a good idea to participate).

18. How to create a great proposal.

19. Why you should know publishers, the industry, and market trends.

20. Writing that sells (in other words, "how to sell fiction" and "how to sell nonfiction").

21. Selling your proposal.

22. What do know about literary agents.

23. Career planning for writers.

24.  What's in a publishing contract (how to read it, what it means, etc).

25. Negotiations (how to negotiate a contract, what a pre-negotiation is, how to prepare for it).

26. How to market your book.

27. Filling in the financial gaps (every writer has times when the money is lean -- talk to writers about how to manage their spending and saving, as well as explore ways to increase income through small writing projects).

28. Everybody needs a Paul, a Barnabas, and a Timothy (for those not in the know: it's good to have a more experienced person in your life, a fellow writing friend, and someone who you're helping who is not as far along as yourself).

29. A healthy perspective of a writing career (keeping in mind that publishing is not life).

30. A system for working your plan, so that you move forward in your writing and publishing.

Those are the 30 things I came up with to help proteges. Your list will no doubt be different, but having this written down has help me immeasurably. Now when I'm talking with a younger writer, I don't have to recreate the list -- I basically know what I think they'll find important.  Hope you find this helpful.

-chip

Random things people ask...

I've had a bunch of questions come in to me, so let me try and offer short replies...

1. "Did you like THE LIFE OF PI"? -- I did. In fact, I liked it very much. I found it thoughtful, creative, and a moving story. The author, Yann Martel, touches on some of the great themes of literature: faith, survival, adventure, friendship. A wonderful novel.

2. "Why are you such a fan of THE TIME TRAVELER'S WIFE?" -- I simply found it to be one of the most inventive novels I've ever read. The basic story is that a librarian was born with a strange physical problem: he is sometimes jerked out of the here-and-now and transported into another time. But what's so fun about this is that the book is NOT a sci-fi novel -- it's more a love story, as he repeatedly meets the love of his life at various points of time. The amazing thing is that the author, Audrey Neffinegger, makes it all work wonderfully...and it's her first novel!

3. "You keep talking about asking agents questions in order to get to know them. But WHAT questions should I be asking?" -- Fair enough. Some questions that come to mind right off the bat... Who do you represent? Could I talk to a couple of them? What books have you contracted in the last year? What houses were they contracted with? How many books did you contract?  What would you say are your greatest strengths? What would you say is the unique thing about your agency? What do you like to do? What are the things you don't like to do as an agent? Would you say you're more a "words" person or a "contracts" person? Are you more of a "big picture" person or a "details" person? Are you a full time agent?  That's not a complete list, but it should get you started.

4. "I've just received an offer from a publisher. They want to give me a two-book deal, but I don't know what I'd write for that second book. What do you suggest? Help!" -- You raise an interesting point. Some writers would love nothing more than a multi-book deal, knowing it's going to keep them busy for a year or three. But I've known writers who hate multi-book deals, since they have to live with the pressure that "more books are due." But here's the thing to keep in mind: a publisher is offering a two-book deal because they believe in you. They don't want to just turn out one book and allow it to be orphaned. They want to help you create a career, so they're planning to do THIS book now, and THAT book later. For most of authors, that's a good thing. And I'm surprised they're willing to allow that second book to be untitled. We used to see a lot of those types of contracts, but any more publishers are asking for a detailed description of what that second book is going to be. It's protection, so that they know you've got some basic idea of what you'll write next. My advice: If you like the publisher, and feel you've got more books in you, agree to the two-book deal. If you aren't sure about the publisher, or if you think this may be the only time you write in this genre, you may want to ask if you can just make this a one-book deal.

5. "So that photo of you on your blog...you look sort of angry. What's up with that?" -- Um...really? I look angry? I wasn't. Patti took that shot of me as I was standing on the balcony of our home in Nashville. (A home we've now sold.) I must have been thinking about the size of the payments on that place.

6. "Do all agents make a 15%  commission?" -- Just about. There are some old-line agencies in New York that used to make a 10% commission, but I think they've just about all moved to 15% now.  And there are some part-timers I've heard of who are charging less. Uh, you get what you pay for.

7. "Do most agents sell movie rights?" -- Yes and no. My experience is that most of us WILL sell them, if we get a call. But it's more of a reactive thing than a pro-active thing -- that is, they're waiting for the phone to ring. I know of very few agents who actually have relationships with people in Hollywood, so most wouldn't have the first idea who to call in order to sell your dramatic rights. Movies are just a different world (a world run by BS artists, in my experience). It takes a different set of relationships to make that happen effectively. (This person also asked if I'd sold any dramatic rights. I have sold dramatic rights probably a dozen times -- which isn't anything to write home about, but it's better than none.)

8. "Where does the name 'Chip' come from? I heard your real name is 'Jerry.' Are you in the Witness Protection program?" -- Books. My given name is Jerry (a name I like, in case you're wondering). When I was a boy, I was always reading  Chip Hilton books -- a series of sports themed books for boys, along the lines of the Hardy Boys or Nancy Drew. I always had one with me, and in sixth grade my buddies started calling me Chip, after the lead character in the books. It stuck. Pretty soon my mom was calling me that, and before you know it I became "Chip" to the world. But, just so you know, my wife still calls me Jerry.

Keep those cards and letters coming. Lots more questions on agents just waiting for me to ramble on aimlessly...

Back to agenting stuff...

Okay, the computer is up and running, and...we're off. Back to questions about writing careers and agents. Someone wrote in to tell me, "I think writers can still sell books without agents, especially to smaller houses. What's wrong with starting with smaller houses?"

My response: Absolutely nothing. I started at small houses. I still do plenty of deals with smaller publishing houses. In fact, I think nearly all of us start small and move to bigger things. That's how a career (any career) is built. As to whether or not you can actually sell your book to them -- that's up to you. Maybe you can. But we live in a society that's getting more and more specialized, and that's making it tougher to survive in this business without professional help.

Someone else wrote to ask, "Are there times when an agent might hinger a publishing opportunity?"

Sure there are: When the agent is a jerk. When he or she doesn't know the market (which happens a lot -- try using an ABA entertainment lawyer when working a deal with a smaller CBA house sometime). When the agent sees negotiation as a win/lost proposition. An agent ought to take the approach that publishing is a partnership between author, publisher, and agent. If he or she tried to squeeze the publisher to the point where everyone is losing money, it's no longer really a partnership. Yes, my authors expect me to protect their interestes, but I don't have muc to gain if I'm pressuring someone into a bad deal. That just hurts the market for other projects down the road. On the flip side, I've seen publishers lowball authors WAY too many times. A good agent will recognize the realities of the market and protect you.

The same person also asked, "How does having an agent affect the relationships an author has built with editors?"

My perspective is that the acquisitions editors are my friends. Ask around and you'll discover that most publishers have found their relationships with my authors actually improved after I got involved. (Really.) The best books generally come from healthy author/editor relationships, so keeping them talking and on the same page is important.

One more: Someone wrote in to ask, "What can an agent do for a writer that she can't do for herself?"

Great question. I have a number of responses in mind. First, not everybody needs an agent. If you know the business, understand contracts, have the relationships, and don't mind doing your own negotiation, you may not need an agent.

Second, I'd suggest that every business values experienced counsel. That means a good agent should be able to offer some sort of assistance in the areas of editing, crafting, reading, negotiating, revising contracts, checking royalty statements, keeping projects on track, and maintaining good relationships with the publisher.

Third, a good agent has relationships with editors and publishers that will get his or her author's proposals looked at by decision-makers. That's something many authors simply don't have. A good proposal isn't always enough -- it's got to get through the filters to be seen and sold by a person with experience. (So here's a clue: When selecting an agent, find somebody who is well thought of in the industry.)

Fourth, some publishers simply won't deal with authors directly. As we become a more specialized society, that will become more true, not less. Dealing with a business professional who knows the proposal but isn't emotionally tied to it makes the discussions easier for the publisher.

Fifth, a good agent knows about contracts and can negotiate you a better deal than you'd negotiate for yourself. If he or she can't, you should find another agent. Or learn those skills yourself.

Sixth, the MOST IMPORTANT thing a good agent should offer is career guidance to authors. Let's face it, most of the authors I represent aren't just starting out. They are published authors who have had some success and realized they needed to work with someone in order to achieve bigger success.  You may not be there yet (and that is perfectly fine -- everybody starts somewhere), but once you get a bit further down the road, you'll probably see the value of having an agent. Think of it this way: You can sell a house on your own, but if you're planning to sell a million dollar home, you may benefit from the experience of a good realtor. You can write a will on your own, but if you have a large estate you're probably better off having a lawyer work on it for you.  Professionalism counts in our culture.

Hey -- keep those cards and letters coming! It's nice to see the questions people have.

Chip MacGregor

Why we should return to the middle ages...

Okay, I'll admit it: I stole that title. Back in the 80's, when George Will was known as a neo-con, and was writing a popular column about American culture, the  folks at the National Lampoon put out a fake newspaper, complete with a fake George Will column about our deteriorating values. They used "Why We Should Return to the Middle Ages" as their title, though I'll admit the title was funnier than the actual column.

But I have my own reasons for being regressive. I HATE COMPUTERS. Well, maybe not all computers. (My son tells me that a computer actually helps my car run and my high-def TV look nice, so those are GOOD computers.) I just hate the fact that my life depends on THIS computer. The one I own, which I'm typing on, and which is no doubt reading these words and thinking of ways to take retribution.

The fact is, if we returned to the Middle Ages, we would be able to live with computers. What a lovely thought. I could much more easily deal with Mongol hordes or church persecution than waste my time arguing with a stupid PC. 

Here's the thing: A week ago, my stupid computer just stopped working. I mean, I was in here at ten o'clock one night, answering emails and pretending I have a life (shuddup).  I walk down to my office the next morning, and nothing works. Not email, not the internet, not my Word files. Nothing. So I spend the day running virus scans and tweaking varous "help" menus. The next day I think I have it all working, only to find out that (SURPRISE!) I don't. Dang. So have to unbuckle the stupid thing, drive it to the Geek squad, who clean it and...well, do whatever it is geeks do to computers. (Change the oil and filter? Check the air pressure?) Then they tell me it's fine, and bill me a hundred buck. No viruses, no crossed wires, all is well. I'm happy it's fine, so I give the boy a firm handshake, pay him his money, and race home.  Only to find out that it's still not working.

I call, and Geek-boy tells me something like, "It's your ABBY wireless utility prompt. Just go to your network hyper wizard, click on 'pentroit,' then find your wired digital media JASC. That should do it."

Um...do what? I have no idea what he's just said. So I jiggled the wires and looked sternly at it for a while. Then I called somebody else -- a guy who makes house calls. He shows up, frowns, and -- poof! The computer gods smiled. Suddenly everything works. I asked him what he'd done (using as much techno lingo as I could muster), and he looked at me and said, "Nothing. It works fine. I won't even charge you." Problem solved.

You've got to understand, I have one of those jobs where I LIVE on my computer. I mean, my job consists of sending emails, working on manuscripts & proposals, and inserting words and figures into small electronic squares. So without my computer for three days, I got NOTHING done. Zero. Zip. Zilch. Nada. It even lost my BLOG, fer cryin out loud (I had created a short post that was wonderful -- insightful, witty, emotional...you'd read it and want to go speak in tongues. Trust me. And all lost. Sigh...) 

So sorry for not writing. I'm up and running once again, trying to catch up to everything I missed.  Please don't tell me how I need to get a Mac (I've already been told). And within the next 24 hours, I'll actually have something to say about writing. Promise.

Chip