Help Please! Newbie questions. Getting started on Litopia

[JoanUP]

@Jonny

I'm having trouble understanding two things.
Until now, I'm not a paying member. I don't mind becoming a paying member but trying to weigh what the advantages are.
1) I'm having trouble figuring out how to access the Discord server.
I found an instruction document, but I don't even understand the first line:
"Use the Litopia invite, as it’s a private server".
What is Litopia invite?
2) I see I can request critiques by posting to the forum. I start a thread with an attachment, and hopefully someone responds. If I understand it, I can also get critiques as a paying member, but I don't understand what this entails.
I can't make use of Huddle sessions due to it occurring at a time when I can't make it.

Thanks in advance!
Joan

 

[RK Wallis]

@JoanUP I wouldn't worry about Discord. No one is really using it. We all have the best of intentions, but the different time zones (which give Litopia it's flavour) make it pretty hard to coordinate.

 

[Ed Simnett]

There is an alternate hours huddle at the start of the month on Wednesday. That said unless you are in Hawaii the UK afternoon huddle is likely easier- can’t speak to your weekend schedule of course…

 

[Jonny]

Hi @JoanUP

Yes, as @RK Wallis says above. The Discord Server was something we tried but that didn't really catch fire. So it is rarely used... if indeed at all.

As @Ed Simnett mentions - there is also a monthly Huddle (Huddle South) which takes place on the first Wednesday of every month at 8.00am UK time (GMT). This is to facilitate participation from members in more far flung regions of the globe (mostly the Southern Hemisphere) where the 5.00pm UK Saturday schedule isn't convenient.

Worth noting that because New Year's Day fell on the the first Wednesday of this month, the Huddle is actually happening this coming Wednesday. January 8th. However to take part you must be a Full Member.

Regarding giving and receiving critiques and feedback. We have a Labs Monitor (@Sedayne ) who looks after this part of the Colony.

Essentially, we have adopted a system whereby after offering five critiques or feedback on the work of others, you will have the ability to post your own work for others to comment on. This was introduced as a means to help new members interact and build networks with others, as at Litopia we believe a collegiate and mutually supportive approach is the best way for us all to improve our skills. In particular, most find giving feedback to others really helps us focus on and improve our own work, too.

I hope this helps but if you need any further clarification please don't hesitate to ask.

Jonny

 

[Sedayne]

Hi @JoanUP

With regard to critiques in the Lab, you don't need to be a full member to use this, but you do need to critique minimum of five pieces before you can request a critique for your own work. This system was brought in because (believe it or not) there were people signing up just to get a critique on their work. We showed willing and helped them out, then never heard from them again.
After your first five, it's up to you how much you contribute to the Lab. Everyone understands that this can very depending on other time commitments, but the idea is that we critique more for others than we ask for ourselves, which makes it fairer for everyone.
All about the Lab can be found here but let me know if you have any other problems or questions, and I'll be happy to help.

I can't make the Saturday Huddles either, even though I live in the UK. It's just not a good time for me. But I go to the Huddle South most months now. I usually have to leave before the end to get to work on time, but nobody minds. People often have to pop in and out depending on other things. The hour and a half I do get is definitely worth it.

Hope that helps. Lovely to meet you, and I'll see you around the colony.
Rachel

 

[JoanUP]

Thanks for the clarification(s)
But now another question, sometimes someone asks for a critique of a chapter or two.
Does this count towards the five critiques? Or does it have to be novel-length?
The Wednesday huddles sound perfect for me!

 

[RK Wallis]

Thanks for the clarification(s)
But now another question, sometimes someone asks for a critique of a chapter or two.
Does this count towards the five critiques? Or does it have to be novel-length?
The Wednesday huddles sound perfect for me!

@Sedayne can let you know

 

[Sedayne]

Thanks for the clarification(s)
But now another question, sometimes someone asks for a critique of a chapter or two.
Does this count towards the five critiques? Or does it have to be novel-length?
The Wednesday huddles sound perfect for me!

Just five short pieces - chapters, short stories, synopses even - is all you need to do. I wouldn't recommend doing a whole novel to start with. And let's face it, none of us have time to critique five full novels.
Most of us would likely start with posting a few chapters anyway, and then ask if anyone is interested/willing/able to read the whole thing a bit further down the line.

 

[Vagabond Heart]

Hello Joan,

First, can I just say how much I appreciate you asking questions. To have a new member be so clearly trying to connect with us as a group, and ready to learn how to get the most from being here, is a real joy.

As to your query about giving/receiving crits, I’d just like to add something.

Another reason we ask for five given critiques before people post their own works is that many newcomers to the group have never had the opportunity to give feedback before.
And that unfamiliarity with the process can limit their ability to make best use of the feedback they are likely to receive.

Plus, learning to give a good critique is a valuable tool in and of itself. It is always easier to see a mistake in someone else’s work than it is to see it in our own.

We have a distance and objectivity, when looking at another person’s work, that is impossible to have with something we’ve slaved over for months.

That distance allows us to spot things we can easily miss in something we’re too close to.

Then, having seen the same things crop up in other’s work, we learn what to look for (or to avoid doing) with our own precious manuscripts.
So, critiquing another person’s work is like boot camp for a writer. I know that each time I do it I end up thinking, ‘oh, I did that in the last scene I wrote, better change that now’.

So, start with reading the Litopia methods for both giving and receiving crits.

But then also read the feedback that other people have given.
Look at how different people spot different things depending on what they are sensitive to.
See whose feedback you agree with.
Check how they phrase things so as not to cause offence.
Notice what the common mistakes are that it seems everyone makes when starting out on this journey.

This will all help you when those same people give you feedback on your own work. You’ll know what to expect, and be prepared for it.

And, if it helps, feedback shows you are not alone: you have just done the same thing that everyone else on this group has done at some point too. It is how we all learn.

Being able to accurately assess what our work needs to make it shine is one of the great skills of a writer. And none of us are born with it - we have to learn. And there is no better place to learn it than by giving and receiving critiques.

And no, it doesn’t matter if it’s only three chapters rather than a whole book. Because those bad habits we haven’t unlearnt yet show up almost immediately. I overuse the word ‘that’. I often do ‘telling’ when it would be better to ‘show’ something instead.
I’ve learnt to self edit these to a large extent, but I still rely on feedback from others to point out the ones I’ve missed.

So, I hope you have fun joining in with us on your journey to becoming the writer you always wanted to be. It’s nice to have you here. X

 

[JoanUP]

Thanks so much for that warm welcome!

I started writing fiction about 4 years ago. Before that I did do some technical writing as part of my position as an analyst. I got laid off, and wanted to take a year to write a novel l'd been chewing on for 30years. (It entails a coed in college in the 60's struggling to leave her background of an artist to become physics student) As part of that, I was in a small local writers group, but they were all writing SciFi/Fantasy, and I have never understood SciFi. It's like reading a foreign language to me, so I felt it wasn't a good match for me. I finished a draft of that novel and put it aside.

Then, as part of my hobby of genealogy, I began assembling a trove of information about my grandfather's time as an artist in NYC from 1902-1915. Covid hit, and rather than look for a job during covid, I started work on tying this information into a historical novel. As part of that, I found a different writers group (one that specifically excludes SciFi) and we critique each other's chapters each week. This has been super helpful. But then I found myself up to 120k words and only 3 years into the 13 year timespan I want to cover. So I stopped, reviewed what I wrote, got it down to 88k words. It can now read as a stand-alone novel, even though I picture this as Part One of a much longer three part story. But now I need fresh eyes, outside of my writers group. A few friends and family eagerly agreed to beta read, but as the weeks go on with no news, I realize I'm not going to get their feedback.

I enjoyed Litopia's PopUp submissions, I was sad to see them go. I'm glad the community is still here and looking forward to taking advantage of its resources!

 

[JoanUP]

Hi @JoanUP

With regard to critiques in the Lab, you don't need to be a full member to use this, but you do need to critique minimum of five pieces before you can request a critique for your own work. This system was brought in because (believe it or not) there were people signing up just to get a critique on their work. We showed willing and helped them out, then never heard from them again.
After your first five, it's up to you how much you contribute to the Lab. Everyone understands that this can very depending on other time commitments, but the idea is that we critique more for others than we ask for ourselves, which makes it fairer for everyone.
All about the Lab can be found here but let me know if you have any other problems or questions, and I'll be happy to help.

I can't make the Saturday Huddles either, even though I live in the UK. It's just not a good time for me. But I go to the Huddle South most months now. I usually have to leave before the end to get to work on time, but nobody minds. People often have to pop in and out depending on other things. The hour and a half I do get is definitely worth it.

Hope that helps. Lovely to meet you, and I'll see you around the colony.
Rachel

Is this still part of the process for getting approval to request critiques?
Or do I simply critique 5 before posting my request.
Joan

Getting Permission To Post Your Work For Critiques
Once you’re familiar with the Litopia methods for giving critiques and you have given at least five critiques to other members, you can apply for permission to post your own work for critiques.
This involves asking the Lab Moderator to give you a status upgrade to Lab Power User. This is what you do.
Go to this page and fill in the declaration.

 

[AgentPete]

Hi Joan and welcome

Once you've given five critiques you can fill in the form. The form is simply an easy way to let @Sedayne know that you’d like to be upgraded to post work for critiques.

p.

 

[Sedayne]

Is this still part of the process for getting approval to request critiques?
Or do I simply critique 5 before posting my request.
Joan

Getting Permission To Post Your Work For Critiques
Once you’re familiar with the Litopia methods for giving critiques and you have given at least five critiques to other members, you can apply for permission to post your own work for critiques.
This involves asking the Lab Moderator to give you a status upgrade to Lab Power User. This is what you do.
Go to this page and fill in the declaration.

Once you've done five critiques, complete the declaration by following the link, it will automatically notify me, and I'll sort out your permissions for you. The form is super quick and easy