By Tyler Wright
The Emerald Writing & Critique Group, otherwise known as the Sandwich Club, is making a comeback after Covid stopped members in their tracks.
The first session, on Wednesday 29 June at Emerald Library marked the beginning of the fortnightly meetings from 6:00pm to 7:30pm.
Organiser Terri-Ann Varga originally started the group in 2019 and said she wanted to get like-minded people and a “community of writers” excited about the art form.
“We’ve set up a workshopping email account so we can all share our work with each other and then we can come together and discuss each other’s work,” Terri-Ann said.
“It’s also an arena for people to chat about what books they’ve read and how it’s influencing their writing and bringing together the knowledge we all have.”
Members of the group range from beginner writers to published authors; with the aim to create a welcoming space for all.
“[Writing is] a pretty subjective world, like any art form, so it’s more about sharing the ideas and giving some feedback on pace, adding more description and things like that,” Terri-Ann said.
“When people are new I like to keep it sandwiched; say something good, say something more constructive and then say something good again so people are encouraged to keep writing,” she said.
Currently made up of five writers, genres range from children’s literature and fantasy to historical and drama – and residents from suburbs throughout the Dandenong Ranges are welcome to join.
Work is sent around to participants beforehand, so the hour and a half session is solely dedicated to chatting as well as giving and receiving feedback.
“I find it very inspirational to hear what everyone’s doing and writing…it’s good to get feedback on creative work you’ve let your mind go crazy with…it gives you accountability and you think ‘oh, I better write something for the next one,” the organiser said.
If you’re interested in joining the group or learning more, a new instagram account (@emerald_workshopping_group_vic) has just popped up and you can find them on Facebook at Emerald Writer’s Community.
For more information, contact Terri-Ann at emerald.workshopping.group@gmail.com
