Writer's of Speculative and Other Fictions:

North Eastern Branch Founded 2005 by Miri, Brendan, Katy and RobB

Our Aim:

is to follow Heinlein's Rules

• You must write.
• You must finish what you write.
• You must refrain from rewriting, except to editorial order.
• You must put the work on the market.
• You must keep the work on the market until it is sold

Meeting Format:

• 1. One writer reads at a time. Other members should listen and not indulge in private conversations out of courtesy - but mainly so they can provide a very thorough critique.
• 2. The order of reading will be decided at the commencement of the meeting. If time is limited, out of fairness, the writer who has spent the least time reading their work over the previous 3 months will be given priority to read and the order will ascend to the writer who has had the most time. This may unfortunately mean some group members do not get to read in a particular meeting. At this time a review will also be conducted in accordance with Rule 3 and some people may have their membership temporarily suspended.
• 3. Writers must be prepared to read current work of the length specified in Rule 4 at least once per quarter for group critique and as useful training for after they're published. This is fundamental to the working of this writer's group, which aims to improve each writer's work until they achieve mainstream (for profit) publication. Any member who does not meet this rule will be temporarily suspended and barred from attending meetings until such time as they do bring along work for critiquing. At this time they will be given priority and read first (as per Rule 2). This rule has been included as a means of spurring all members into writing regularly and getting their work "out there".
• 4. The maximum reading time is approx 2,000 words, or fifteen minutes to give most writers a chance to read each week. Partial works are perfectly acceptable i.e. part of a chapter of a novel or half a short story.
• 5. After the author reads, the listeners give their critiques clockwise starting from the person immediately to the left of the author. It is not obligatory to give a critique if a member does not wish to or feels the issue was covered previously. Guidelines on how to critique are listed elsewhere on the website if people are not sure how to do this.
• 6. After each critique, the author may ask for clarification. The author may not rebut or dispute the critique, or explain or defend their work. Critique is offered as a potential and well educated reader's opinion of the author's work so that it may be improved. The author is however at liberty to use the critique or not as they see fit when editing their work i.e. they are not obliged in any way to act upon any other writer's critique if they feel it is at odds with their own vision of their work. Errors of fact in the work are the author's responsibility to research (or ignore) and therefore should not take up meeting time beyond their initial mention by other members.
• 7. If a member exhibits behaviour that is considered unacceptable or offensive by two or more other members of the group they will be offered one warning, and, if the behaviour does not cease, be barred from membership. Members should note this bar may well be permanent and irrevocable. Unacceptable behaviour includes but is not limited to:- abusive language and actions; bullying and harassment; expressions of any form of intolerance including sexism, racism, homophobia, ageism etc; excessive bad language; tantrums; rudeness or disrespect to other members; in fact any behaviour that disrupts a meeting.