[Newspoetry] online writing workshop

[Rob Wittig]

couple quick thoughts

from years of weird and fun collaborations . . .




I've had great fun doing this kind of cross-critique
in the course of building a new, collaborative project



it's different from having people
respond to one's "solo stuff"
but the benefits translate back
to all one's writing



two of the ways I've seen this done:

1) behind-the-scenes critiques
before thepublishing deadline

2) everything out in public;
which is to say, the style of
the Unknown or IN.S.OMNIA
where the cross-critique happens
both directly and  by competition/response/mutual parody
in the course of the work itself




in my experience
folks tend to be less defensive
when all are stepping outside their
"usual stuff"
to play around in some common project




also, interestingly, since
the 'genius system' devalues collaborations
(wrongly)
folks tend to be more relaxed, playful,
adventurous, and write . . .
well . . ..
for lack of a better word
"better"
in my experience
in "wacky" "aberrant" collabs




but maybe
critique of
your "usual stuff"
is exactly what you're after, William . . .
although in my experience
(thankfully)
you have no "usual stuff"






you're absolutely right
in detecting my wholesale bias
toward formats
that bounce people out of their school training
and the sad, yoke-like ambitions
that weigh them down
with mediocre visions of "sucess"





(steps off soapbox
and wanders in the direction of
the coffee machine)






Rob Wittig

Why can't literary writing look like THIS:
www.volumeone.com
?







----- Original Message -----
From: gillespie william k <gillespi at uiuc.edu>
To: <newspoetry at ganymede.isdn.uiuc.edu>
Sent: Wednesday, December 06, 2000 2:22 PM
Subject: [Newspoetry] online writing workshop


>
> I've been thinking about instituting next year an online writing workshop.
> I imagine that it would be structured this way: according to an
> agreed-upon schedule, every weekend (maybe say by Sunday at midnight) one
> of the participants would email a work-in-progress to a listserve, maybe
> as an attachment, or maybe post it on the web and send a URL, and
> throughout the week people would give critical feedback to the list, and
> discuss. The purpose of this is specifically for writers to get feedback
> on unfinished or nearly-finished or just-finished work. And to provide
> writers with deadlines and motivation.
>
> I'm wondering:
>
> * Whether anybody knows of anything like this that's already going on. (I
> know ELO has a workshop in the form of a chat, limited to electronic
> works which are made available on the web beforehand.)
>
> * Whether anybody is interested in participating.
>
> * Whether anybody has comments or suggestions about dealing with the
> following issues:
>
> + Participation: This idea is based on a classroom model in which
> everybody is graded on giving feedback to the writer. I would like
> everybody to feel obliged to respond to every work. There shouldn't be
> lurkers.
>
> + Privacy: I would like for these works-in-progress to be available only
> to participants. The list should perhaps not have an archive on the web.
> People should not forward emails from the list without the permission on
> the person who wrote them.
>
> + Membership: Because getting feedback on writing, when it's done well, is
> a sensitive issue for just about everybody, I'd like the list not to be
> open to everybody on the web the way this list is. At the same time, I'd
> like it to be open to people who would be good list participants whom
> nobody has ever met. And if anybody felt deliberately excluded, that could
> undermine the morale of the group.
>
> + Size: Is it possible for such a membership to be too large or too small?
>
> + Duration: If the project had a specific ending time, or an explicit
> periodic cycle, it might be easier for people who didn't like it to leave
> gracefully. I am also much happier about participating in things that will
> end, because it means it's safe to get a little burnt out on them, so I
> can be more involved.
>
> + Moderator: Should there be a single person whose role it is to oversee
> membership, or a position which is passed from person to person according
> to a schedule, or neither?
>
> + Computers are icky: Any comments on the less obvious
> advantages/disadvantages over/under this idea and a live weekly
> writing group meeting in the "meat"?
>
> Feedback is welcome, and please forward this message to anyone you think
> might be interested. This idea is still in the head-scratching stage.
>
> william
>
> w w w .
> w o r d
> w o r k
> . o r g
>
>
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>