A great topic came up at our meeting tonight about about the possibility of having the occasional virtual meeting. An e-mail-based meeting that might occur when only a few members can make it to the physical meeting. Not wanting to change our day or time of our physical meeting, the odd situation has arisen where maybe three people instead of six or seven have attended.
The virtual meeting idea followed another discussion about our writing and attendance commitments as members. Aside from sickness and vacations, family, work, home AND being a writer/illustrator is a lot to fit into our schedules, and sure, there will always be issues that may prevent our presence at the monthly meeting, but we do owe it to ourselves to step back and assess where our responsibilities lie.
We agreed that we are all serious about being published in children's books, and that we should try not to procrastinate with our revisions; or shy away from the critiquing process; and to push ourselves to move forward — but time was definitely an obstacle we all need to overcome. Hence, the virtual meeting idea. Most of the group cannot attend the March meeting in person, so we are going to give the virtual meeting a try and see how it goes.
We have also agreed that — in the event of a person(s) missing a meeting — that person(s) must still honor the feedback/critique and send it to the author regardless of physical presence. We believe this is one responsibility of being a HCCWG member.
The virtual meeting is only a back-up and we stressed the importance of the physical get together, but it seems, there are times when you do what you gotta do!
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2 comments:
Having experienced my first HCCWG meeting only last evening, it is clear to even me that the face-to-face critique and ensuing dialog could never be adequately replaced by a virtual meeting. (Think “distance learning” versus being in the classroom with the teacher and your peers.)
However, for a newbie raring to go and trying to build momentum, the alternative, a two-month hiatus, seemed painfully long.
The last resort, the virtual meeting, certainly is not an ideal substitute. It may, though, provide contact enough to help maintain ones motivation or to support another’s.
Thanks to Leeza and the group for such a warm welcome. I’m hooked!
Welcome Mark and I am thrilled you are a part of Leeza's group and a member of HCCWG.
I couldn't agree with you more Leeza. We all need to make a commitment to our stories and time to write.
I think each member should reflect what writing means to them - is it a hobby, a passion, or a career path? No answer is incorrect, but knowing the answer will indicate your level of commitment.
Good luck with your virtual meeting!
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