To be a writer, or to write and publish a book even if you don’t normally consider yourself a writer, you don’t need to go it alone. There are many benefits to group writing sessions, but the primary one is that it allows you to come together with other aspiring and experienced writers. These sessions will provide the guidance you need at any stage of your journey, make writing progress, get motivation and support, as well as receive feedback on your writing. You can find group writing sessions in your local area as well as virtually. They might last for a specific amount of time or be ongoing, depending on the organizers or the particular program.

Before joining any group writing sessions, it’s normal to have a few expectations for them, or even to try not to have expectations. Either way, it’s also common to enjoy some bonus outcomes. To show you what I mean, today I’d like to discuss four prevalent but also typically unexpected benefits for those who participate in group writing sessions. With your own group sessions, however, you may find that you experience a whole different set of positive effects entirely!

Increased Confidence as a Writer

Getting the writing guidance you need and spending some time among other writers can lift you up higher than you imagined. For example, I’ve seen many people who want to write and who do write, but yet they still don’t think of themselves as writers, as though “a writer” were some type of mythical creature like a unicorn or a satyr. But they’re not: writers are real people who write! Like you. Do you write, or will you start writing too?

Group writing sessions can help you to change your writing mindset, get you writing, help you to believe in yourself as a writer and have much more confidence in your abilities as a writer and future author. And that’s a winning recipe for writing success.

New Directions for Your Writing

Group writing sessions can inspire you and help you to grow as a writer. But who knows just where that growth will take you? For example, you might have joined your group writing sessions as an enthusiastic writer of fiction but come away with the desire to write and publish a non-fiction book that showcases all of your hard-won knowledge about a particular topic. Or you might have come away from your sessions with a strong urge to try a whole host of exciting new structures and techniques that you might not have ordinarily considered before.

Growing as a writer can help push your writing into some thrilling new directions and open up a lot of new doors. Would you like to see where those new doors can lead?

Unexpected Friendships

Friendships are often borne of shared experience and shared interests. When you’re a kid, that’s often easier with school, school activities, sports teams and the like. Adults can have a somewhat more difficult time of it. However, I’ve seen many writers find kindred spirits in their group writing sessions, leading to some unexpected but important friendships, including among people who live far away from each other or have birth dates separated by decades. But even if you don’t find your next best friend in your group writing sessions, these types of shared experiences provide ready social connections that are beneficial at any age.

A New Audience

Group writing sessions will introduce you to some new people who enjoy books. While there’s no guarantee that other participants from your group writing sessions will want to stay in touch, there’s still a good chance that you’ll have found a new group of people who will be interested in your progress and your achievements. You can ask them if they want to be kept up to date on your writing momentum, your book launch or other key events. If so, they may help to spread the word among their friends and contacts.

Your Surprising Benefits of Group Writing Sessions

No two experiences are the same, so your own group writing sessions may provide you with other surprising benefits that can help you in different ways.

However, to reap all the possible benefits from participating in group writing sessions, I recommend that you keep an open mind, be prepared to write, be prepared to learn and be prepared to be respectful of other writers.

If you’ve already participated in some group writing sessions, or are doing so now, what unexpected benefits did you find? I’d love to hear from you in the comments below.

Dudley Court Press

Dudley Court Press works with writers like you every day. As a full-service, hybrid publishing house, we help thoughtful people write their books and become successful published authors.

For more information, including about DCP’s programs for writers including Writers’ Sprint, Memoir Writing Made Easy, and Aspiring Author to Published Pro, please get in touch at +1-520-329-2729 or info@DudleyCourtPress.com.