Authors By Design Blog

Private Critique Groups

Since 2005 Authors by Design (AbD) offers to its members the option to join or create their own private critique groups for free. That means no paid memberships, the only requirement to join an AbD critique group is to be an active AbD member.

What are private critique groups?

Private Critique Groups, unlike public groups, can only be viewed by the members you chose to be in your group. No more worries about who's reading your work or if your work is now considered 'published'.

How does it work?

Each group decides its own rules and chooses its own moderator. Usually the moderator is the person who formed the group unless otherwise stated. If you were never a moderator before then one of the Administrators will explain how all the tools work. Its very easy.

Each group has a general discussion area and each member of the group has his/her own area to post their work in.

Example:

Private Group General Forum

Member 1 Forum

Member 2 Forum

Member 3 Forum

This helps members keep track of their own posts as well as their critiques without having to sift through everyone's post to find the one they need.

Authors by Design also offers a chat room and conference room. Groups can use these to meet and discuss their group's needs, offer on the spot feedback to their members, or even engage in some character role playing. Some of our groups have a rotation chat, where they meet once a week and focus on one member's story to offer suggestions, support and brainstorming.

How many members does a group need to have?

As many or as few as you like. The requirement to form your own private group is two members, after that you can add as many new members as you want.

What genre should the group be?

That is up to you. AbD is open to all genres therefore we will host groups of any genres. Usually its a good idea to form a group with members writing inside the same genre, but we've had mix-genre groups that have worked very well together.

Are there any requirements/rules for private group members?

Yes. Membership is free but there's a posting requirement for private groups. Members inside a private group have a mandatory posting requirement of one (1) post per week in the public areas of the AbD forum. This can be a reply to a topic posted by another member or you can start your own topic.

If you have further questions feel free to join us and contact one of our Administrators.

Happy writing!