Okay, so here's the thing...I'm part of this critique group called the Sunday Morning Romance Writers. We get together every other Sunday and go over selections of our novels that we've traded and pre-read. I give my opinion on whether or not Lord Stunningly Handsome would realistically fall for Lady Shy-But-Gorgeous. I get to hear about why my characters are too prickly, or not prickly enough for their profession. Its all very motivating. Only thing is...there's just two of us that show up. Me and a woman that writes Regency Romance. I've learned a lot about corsets.
Our numbers are, as of yet, on the small side. Sitll, one great perk is that the eople watching is so great during this time. I can't tell you how many study groups, mommy groups, old people that read the newspaper and don’t talk groups, seem to keep our exact schedule. I’ve taken to jotting down the weird quirks for my characters. There’s a guy, who I think is learning to be a phlebotomist that smacks his Splenda packets against his thumbnail exactly five times. Every packet, every time. He takes like twenty in his giant cup of coffee. He apparently also hates raisins with a passion.
I wondered how one coffee shop attracted so many unusual people until I realized the other day, that if the authorities were watching my friend and I, we’d be in trouble. She talks about daggers, sabotage, and usurping the throne. I’m constantly asking her what she thinks the weight threshold in an air duct is, or if she knows how to pick a lock. Easily misinterpreted stuff.
All this to say that even though right now its just me and another dedicated writer showing up for our critique…semi-circle, that’s okay. I know that this is what I am supposed to do. I have faith. We’ll both make it. Until then, though our network is limited, it's definitely valuable to me.
