By Stewart Ferris
Writing circles: my experience
Stewart Ferris · 18 October 2026
I created this website to help authors find like-minded people to ease the lonely path to completing manuscripts and getting published. The listings of writing groups are updated each month, so even if you don't find the perfect solution straight away, bookmark this site and keep coming back to it to see which new groups are listed.
I first attended a writing group when I was about 15. I wanted to write comedy, and I was the only one in the group trying to create something humorous. So when it was my turn to read out a sample of my work, I was very nervous and I don’t recall anyone laughing at my material. Then the folding chair I was sitting on collapsed, sending me sprawling to the floor, and the room erupted. The old gags are the best, I suppose, but I realised that perhaps this group of serious wannabe novelists wasn’t really the best fit for me.
Some years later I became a regular attendee at the monthly workshops hosted by novelist Iris Collier. It was a relaxed ambience, no pressure to write but if you did have anything new the group was always ready to listen to a few pages and offer kind and constructive feedback.
Later still, as a published author, I’ve been a guest speaker at writing groups, and I’ve always been impressed by the dedication and determination of writers who have made the effort to join up and open their souls to the honest feedback and opinions of their peers.
The Creative Writing MA I studied (and later taught) included a Creative Writing Workshop module. Two students each week were tasked with submitting a piece of writing to the group for everyone to read and comment on. Here is some actual feedback I gave to my fellow students (first names only, and no titles of their pieces to preserve anonymity). I provide this as an example both of what kind of feedback you might expect to receive, and how to phrase comments in a (hopefully) positive and encouraging way.
Example 1: Ellie’s piece
This has an imaginative and original structure that sets up the story at multiple points very quickly. It’s hooked me on many levels, and I’d love to read the whole book.
Page 1
- The opening paragraphs blew me away. It’s an absolutely stunning beginning to a book. I love the concept that there is a single omniscient narrator who had told all the narratives in literary history. And then to learn that the narrator hates the job is a great twist. I don’t know if the narrator is male or female, but maybe that doesn’t matter?
- Should be lower case after a colon (unless writing in US style) – ‘succinct: My’
- ‘I’m a little tried’
- I would consider writing ‘700’ in words, not numbers, and perhaps vary it by using ‘seven centuries’ sometimes.
Page 2
- Fantastic mini-screenplay summarising the narrator’s frustrations. If I’m going to be really pedantic I could suggest the layout of the two lines of dialogue isn’t quite correct for a screenplay, but I don’t know if it matters!
- ‘the back of my neck had burned from its gaze’ – a little awkward. Try something like ‘burning the back of my neck with its gaze’
- The revelation that the narrator’s job is a form of punishment is delivered very great subtlety.
Page 3
- Given the liberal use of ‘grey’ description in the opening lines, perhaps you don’t need ‘sooty grey smoke’? ‘Sooty’ implies grey anyway.
- Also, it’s probably not necessary to describe snow as ‘cold’
- I love the second paragraph about backtracking. Lots of intrigue developing.
- ‘yet to taste snow’ – great image
- ‘shrapnel-like change’ – very appropriate image for the era
- Watch the use of apostrophes – there’s one missing from ‘yesterdays’. You can fill the gap with the superfluous one in ‘your’s’ from the bottom of the page.
Page 4
- More apostrophes missing in two uses of the word ‘brothers’
- I like the way the narrator’s personality comes back into the story in the ‘sake of honesty’ paragraph. It means there are two layers of story happening at once.
- After ‘defeatedly’ should be a full stop.
- ‘against his protestations’ – this could be shown instead of told.
- Great description of the sky and the weather at the bottom of the page. Very colourful and evocative.
Page 5
- I think it should be a comma after ‘twelve doors – down’ instead of a full stop, if ‘panted’ refers to his delivery of those words.
- ‘Her name fell wearily from his lips’ – that is beautiful!
- Ruthie…” She began – should be lower case ‘s’ and a comma after ‘began’.
Page 6
- Lord Kitchener poster – in my print-out it was missing ‘your country’ because it was split between two pages.
- ‘mans chin’ – needs apostrophe
Page 7
- First line – consider replacing second dash with a colon or a full stop.
- ‘twisted pillars’ of smoke – wonderful image
- ‘For where I’m taking you now’ – I like these personal interventions from the narrator. Keep them coming!
- Excellent description of the ‘waif-like’ boy and his ‘sore thumb’ of a home. I also like the description of air ‘pressed tightly against a sealed window’. But you don’t need the full phrase ‘window sill’, since we know it’s the window by now. Just ‘sill’ will do.
- Apostrophe needed in ‘fires’ (bottom of page)
- There are several more uses of the word ‘grey’ on this page. That’s fine if it’s a deliberate theme, otherwise sprinkle some synonyms around.
Page 8
- I haven’t seen this kind of page since Tristram Shandy. Wonderful!
Page 9
- Move the apostrophe in ‘pictures’
- The J spine is intriguing, but I don’t yet understand its relevance. I suppose that will come in later chapters?
Page 12
- Consider using a full stop before ‘he gripped Jack’s shoulder’ and after ‘forced to look at him’.
- ‘the’ is missing from ‘strewn across floor’
- Double passive in bottom line – ‘was broken’ ‘was flung’ – try to make it more direct
Example 2: Susan’s piece
This was a refreshing and entertaining poem that had me laughing out loud. It reads like a topical stand-up comedy piece, and I could imagine it going down well with a live audience and getting a great reaction.
Playboy recently announced the end of naked photos, so this is very relevant to today’s society. I like the metaphor of the ‘last beautiful bunny’ picking up her clothes as if from a one-night stand to represent how the media is modernising and reacting to a changing world.
The word ‘pants’ has the dual meaning, of course, taking a gentle dig at the commercialisation of sport and sports stars.
‘the soul that launched a thousand kicks’ – a wonderful modern take on a classic line. But later there’s the line ‘the legs that launched a thousand kicks’ – not sure if this partial repetition is deliberate.
‘That make the brand of Bex or Sex’ – seems to be a large gap before ‘Bex’
‘Cos allis lost or all is won’ – missing a gap
‘Thou art lovelier’ – great juxtaposition of Shakespearean language sandwiched between ‘bum’ and ‘pubic hair’
‘It seemed to not be about cash’ – consider avoiding split infinitive, not that David Beckham would be likely to notice
I love the punchline about getting posh to cook the dinner, followed by the poetic epilogue with a tongue-in-cheek final line. Very entertaining and lyrical piece of writing.
Example 3: Jesse’s piece
This is an amazing piece of writing. It has an energy and style that reminded me of Martin Amis’ The Rachel Papers.
Structurally it’s fascinating, spinning backwards around itself, further and further, until it questions its own validity and truthfulness, and then hints at drug-induced insanity on the part of the narrator. This is further hinted at earlier with the phrases ‘as crazy as I was’ and ‘equally nuts’. Initially they seem like mild self-deprecation, but by the end of the chapter it takes on a more serious meaning.
It might be worth considering placing the final paragraph at the opening of the chapter, which would be a very interesting way to start a book.
Some additional detail would make this roller-coaster journey between girlfriends easier to follow.
But the story has wit and honesty and grabbed my attention from the start. Looking forward to reading more of it.