THE GREAT INTENDERS
a Writers' Group
in Humboldt County, California
Who We Are and What We Do
We are a writers' critique group with six active members. We are all published authors, working in various genres, and each of us has a major work or long-term project in progress. Our emphasis is on producing our best possible work with the intent to sell.
The founding writers (Sue Jones, Nancy Only, Joseph Cohee) came together in June of 2000 with a common vision that included a metaphysical outlook on life. While their projects covered a wide field, this outlook guided their commitment to help each other and to produce work intended to elevate readers to a loftier plane. Like any organic process, the group has evolved over time. Though the founders have moved on, we their heirs aim to keep the group's dynamics as honest and focused as originally conceived.
We're both writers and readers. Over time, our aggregate interests have ranged all the way from the classics and ancient civilizations to the arts and sciences, literature and health, sports and religion, the possibility of alien contact, the near-certainty of enlightenment and the absolute certainty of getting published in this lifetime, and a lot of other things -- all peppered with a generous serving of humor and not necessarily in that order.
We strive to create a safe, noncompetitive environment where we can all feel comfortable sharing our work. Any ideas a writer brings to the group belong to that writer. Ideas arising out of brainstorming sessions around the writer's work also belong to that writer. Thus, suggestions are freely given with no expectation of credit or compensation.
Since the group started, typical works under review have included fiction, screenplay, biography, memoir, humor, essays, food columns, travel writing, how-to and self-help. During our meetings we read each others' work (see Critique section below) and share learning and marketing resources. We do not critique poetry, or technical or other non-literary writing.
Current Members and their Works in Progress
- Lance Hardie -- literary and speculative fiction
- Janine Volkmar -- historical mystery, travel, memoir
- John Daniel -- literary fiction, murder mystery
- Mary Wilbur -- horticulture, gardening, mystery
- David Fix -- nature writing, fiction
- Nancy Wheeler -- short stories, personal vignettes
- Sharon Levy -- science, literary fiction
Meeting Format
Though we are a leaderless group, one of us volunteers to facilitate at the beginning of each meeting. Since we may read as many as 50 pages during a single meeting, we have to make the most of the time available. Hence we adhere strictly to our meeting format and do our best to honor our agreements about time, place, and agenda. Writers are responsible for letting the Host know if they plan to miss a meeting. The Host is the member at whose house we meet. Given enough notice, the Host will notify the rest of the group so we make only enough copies for those present.
Unless we agree otherwise beforehand, we meet on Wednesdays at 1 PM. Meetings last about four hours and have three segments: Check-in, Centering, and Critique.
CHECK-IN (3-5 minutes per person)
We start each meeting by "checking in" with each other. If a new person is present we also go around and introduce ourselves. Writers tell the Facilitator how many pages they've brought and if they need to leave early. The Facilitator then determines the order in which the work will be read, giving preference to those who must leave early.
CENTERING (3 minutes)
A short centering or attunement exercise helps us rid our minds of mundane concerns, become clear and focused for the task at hand, and move us out of our egos and into a state of trust and cooperation. In general, we maintain silence for this short period during which all present may engage in their own personal centering or meditation practice.
CRITIQUE (30-40 minutes per person)
This is the center of our focus: it helps us to improve the overall quality of our work and stimulates creativity, growth, learning and trust. The group process is to do the critique on the spot, with everyone present. Hence we don't take work home to read later.
We strive to give each other the same kind of thoughtful, thorough critiques that we want to receive ourselves. Mindful that our purpose is to give feedback about the work, not to criticize the author, we strive to be positive, respectful, helpful and honest.
There are three phases:
- The reading
We don't read our work aloud. When a writer's turn comes, s/he distributes copies of his or her work, explains briefly what it is and specifies what s/he wants us to read for. As we read the material silently, we write our comments and suggestions directly on the author's review pages. We note our names on the top page so the author knows later who wrote the comments.
- The feedback
Speaking one at a time, reviewers offer comments, suggestions, marketing ideas, etc. Throughout this phase, the author remains silent, listening, making notes and resisting the temptation to defend the work. This can be hard to do, so the Facilitator needs to be vigilant here -- that's why the Facilitator has a whip.
- Open Discussion
After everyone has had a turn with a critique of the work under review, the Facilitator declares Open Discussion. Everyone, including the author, may now ask or answer questions, respond to comments, offer additional insights, debate ideas, etc. The marked-up copies are then returned to the author, and we move on to the next writer.
What to bring
Bring up to 10 pages (approximately 2,500 words) of your work, with enough copies to pass around to the group. It's okay to come empty-handed once in a while: your comments and suggestions alone will be helpful to others.
Submission standards
- Black print on white paper, single-sided --
okay to use blank side of previously used paper
- Double-spaced, 12-point Times New Roman or Palatino (or equivalent)
- Approximately 1" margins
- Page numbers on every page
- No staples!
We like to socialize a bit before and after our work, and sometimes in between. Though we have no organized system for munchies and drinks, some of us bring something when the Muse of Munchies has whispered in our ear. The Host will generally provide something in any case, though not reliably pleasing to all.
We may have an opening in the future
To be fair to ourselves and review the maximum amount of work at each meeting, we have agreed to limit our membership to six writers. If a vacancy occurs, we may consider the addition of another writer to the group. The "ideal candidate" is someone who...
- is committed to writing (any adult prose genres
except poetry and tech writing)
- shares our commitment to the group process --
attendance, punctuality, honoring the needs of others
- produces a steady stream of work for weekly critique
- is writing to sell
- is computer-savvy in the ways of word processing and email
- has read widely in many fields (note our range of interests above)
- and whose past work has been accepted by an editor and
subsequently published -- at least three instances
(self-publishing doesn't count)
When the occasion comes up to consider new members, we like to follow a step-by-step procedure. Before inviting prospective members to join our group, we ask them to attend two consecutive meetings as guests, bringing their writing and fully participating in our process. After a prospective member has attended two meetings, the group decides by consensus whether to extend an invitation for permanent membership. The Membership Coordinator notifies the prospective member of the group's decision by phone or email.
Want to follow up?
If you feel that your orientation resonates with ours
and that our "ideal candidate" qualities
are mostly true for you most of the time,
send an email query to
The Great Intenders'
Host Writer in the Sky
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