I’ve been a member of a few writers organizations, and I DO think I think I am a joiner… but at the same time I admit I’m not a big fan of rules or cliques.
The first organization I became a member of was RWA, and my experience with it wasn’t so great. You see I joined in 2005, back before NY publishers developed their erotic lines. I was multi-published with over a dozen erotic short stories, several of them with the very reputable Virgin Books Black Lace, and I also had a 60k novel released with an ePublisher. Yet, to them I was considered unpublished. Yes, that grated a bit.
Then there was the fact that so many of the people that were vocal on all the loops looked down on erotic fiction and were not shy on judging it as nothing more than “emotionless sex scene after sex scene”. It started to feel like I spent all my time defending my writing instead of learning how to further my career.
I readily admit that I have writer friends who LOVE RWA, and swear by the organization, but it just wasn’t for me. And I’m sure a big part of that is because I live in a City with no local chapter. From what I’ve learned form others, many of them also dislike the politics of the organization, but love the interaction and support they gain from their local chapters. So it’s good to remember there are always 2 sides to every coin.
The other organization I paid to join is Novelist Inc. Like SFWA, you have to be a published author to join, and I’ve had a way better experience with them than I did with RWA. NINC is multi-genre, with a website full of information from legal advice to a NINC Members recommend page where members tell their favorite web designers, places to get promotional items printed, and tools and gadgets that work for writers. There is no local chapters, or obviously cliques, and you can lurk or take part as much as you like on loops that are for general discussion about business issues, critiquing each others work, and research on any and all subjects. With NINC I don’t feel that I’ve found a home, or a family, but I do feel like I’ve found a place where I can go to get good solid advice and input, as well as support and feedback as I need it in the next stages of my career development.
Now I want to talk about my favorite groups/organizations. Surprisingly, they are both FREE to join.
The Erotica Readers and Writers Association is something I’ve talked about briefly before. It’s full of insider tips, classes and articles, and Calls for Submissions – all geared to ward Erotic Fiction – and all for FREE. I know there are chat groups for it as well, but I’ve not joined them, so I can’t speak about them. (So maybe I’m not really a joiner?)
Now, my favorite organization for writers is Romance Divas. And yes, it’s free to join.
It’s not even an official organization, it’s more of a group. Started up by 4 (at the time) unpublished authors who just wanted to build a place to gather and learn, it completely rocks. They have a full website where they feature authors, review archives (they no longer do reviews) and links to tons of great articles.
Don’t make the mistake of thinking just because it’s called ROMANCE Divas, that it’s only good for romance authors. All genres have, but are not limited to, their own chat threads.(And yes, we have many Male Divas too). The best part of the Divas group is the Forum. Broken up into chat lounges, business sections, marketing sections, Genre sections, and even a special STEAMY section, they offer something for authors of almost every genre. And it’s all online, so again, I don’t feel that I’m missing out just because I can’t make a local meeting. I can make any meeting because it’s online, and there are Divas all over the world in various time zones.
Run by volunteers, this group organizes charity auctions, a mentorship program, and a new author of the month workshop every month. There are critique threads, as well as thread that are there just so you can go vent and get sympathies, or brag and get kudos. It’s all about supporting each other.
All in all, I’ve learned that there are organizations out there for whatever you need, you just have to find them. You might not find what you need/want on the first try, but that doesn’t mean that they’re all bad, or that, like with anything in life, you shouldn’t keep trying. I think we’re all joiners, when we find what we’re looking for.
