Chattanooga Writers’ Guild — A Group to Reckon With
Did you know the Chattanooga Writers’ Guild has more than 1,000 members on their Facebook group, as well as a core of 90 paid members?
Did you know up to half of those 90 come to regular meetings?
Did you know they have six critique groups, some meeting monthly and some bimonthly?
Did you know they’re streaming a regular author interview series on Facebook?
Counter to the stereotype of the writer hunkered over her typewriter with a cat perched on her head (I don’t have a cat, but I do talk to my plants), many writers are gregarious folks when they aren’t actively working, and the CWG is exactly the right place for writers of all stripes to get together, talk shop, and share.
“Writing is usually an activity you do by yourself,” says Kate Landers, vice president of the Chattanooga Writers’ Guild. “But it’s nice to connect with people who enjoy that activity, whether a hobby or a profession.”
With the CWG, that connection can be as deep as you choose to make it. There’s a monthly meeting, formerly at the public library downtown, now on the group’s Facebook page and YouTube channel. Most of these meetings feature interviews with published writers who discuss their craft.
“Our program for April, National Poetry Month, featured poet John C. Mannone,” says Mark Anderson, 2019–20 president of the Chattanooga Writers’ Guild. “John is a widely published author and former president of CWG. May featured poet Helga Kidder as we discussed her new book, Loving the Dead. Helga was a co-founder of the guild in 2001.”
Just recently, on June 9, Anderson interviewed local short fiction writer Paul Luikart, doing a deep dive into “some of the finer points” about his writing. And with summer coming, things are really going to get exciting.
“On Tuesday, June 16 we have Marsha Mills and the Rhyme N Chatt Interactive Poetry group,” Mark says. “Rhyme N Chatt is known for their fun poetry experience — they actually make poetry a fun community experience!”
In addition to the monthly meeting series, CWG also offers critique groups. At present, six are listed on their web page, including Creative Nonfiction & Poetry, Fiction @ Hixson, North Georgia Writers Group for Fiction and Nonfiction, Poetry, Sci-Fi, Fantasy, Horror, and Paranormal, and Rogue Christian Writers Anonymous. If you don’t see a group for you, just ask, Landers says.
“I would really encourage anybody who does any aspect of creative writing, whether it’s romance or children’s literature or graphic novels, to reach out to us,” she says. “We are always open to starting new critique groups, getting new community members in contact with each other.”
If you visit a well-established group, you’ll be entering into a long tradition; the CWG has been in existence since 2001. Some members have been around all that time.
“It’s humbling and inspiring,” Landers says. “I’ve always been writing and I’ve tried to join a writers’ group in the various cities I’ve lived in. This is the first one that had presentations every month.”
At first, she didn’t go, Landers continued, but when she began, “every meeting I went to, I learned something different. Even if it was something I don’t do in my own writing, it made me reframe how I thought about myself being a writer.”
Landers likes the challenge of reading the works of other writers she admires and being in critique groups with them.
“You’re not supposed to be in competition but I’m a very competitive person, apparently,” she says. “If I hear about somebody else and admire that person, I’m inspired to do well!”
That sounds like a very affirming kind of competition — the kind I’d like to be part of. The CWG’s activities have gone online during the pandemic, but it’s still a great time to check them out.
“It was always nice to have the second Tuesday at the library, but Mark has been good about putting something together for everybody to watch,” Landers says. “Our critique groups are online instead of in person. It is important for writers to have groups where we can meet; we maybe sit in our heads too much. Mark is going a good job keeping the community together.”
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Find the CWG on Facebook at facebook.com/groups/chattanoogawritersguild, on YouTube at youtube.com/channel/UCiBNuUrQXixtpC_kguao5Tw/videos, or at their website, chattanoogawritersguild.org.