How to Make Friends With Writers

If you're the only writer in your group of friends, there’s a good chance the people you hang out with don't really understand what you do. They may even belittle your livelihood as "not a real job." Maybe, just maybe, you've been secretly wishing you could make friends with some other writers.

Difficulty: Moderately Easy

Instructions

Things You'll Need:

• Calendar to keep track of conferences
• Local paper to find writing events in your area

1. Find out where the writers hang out and "crash their party." Certain bars, diners and coffeehouses attract a more artistic crowd than others. And if it's a spot that attracts writers, you won't be the only one sitting and typing on a laptop or scribbling in a notebook.

2. Attend conferences to make friends with other writers. For literary fiction poetry, and creative nonfiction, hit up the AWP or MLA conference. For genre fiction, there's a regional conference for romance writers or sci-fi writers around every corner.

3. Write to fellow authors. If you come across a piece of writing in a local publication (or in a national publication that lists an author from your area), write the author a letter. Starting a correspondence can lead to lunch or coffee later.

4. Take writing workshop classes. Make friends with other writers by taking writing workshop classes through a local community college or parks and recreation program.

5. Join a critique group through your local bookstore, or start one yourself by placing ads online or at the bookstore of your choice. It may take some time to find a group you feel comfortable with, but once you do, the writers in the group may become close friends through close examination of each other's work.

Tips & Warnings

• Most new writers are ecstatic to receive a fan letter. Even some established (albeit not famous) writers admit they've only received one or two letters over a lifetime.
• Try a few different types of critique groups before you stick with one. You may want to work with only poets or romance novelists, or you may prefer a more diverse group.
• A good way to figure out where writers spend time socializing is to find the places where young and local writers give readings. You're more likely to find writers to make friends with reading at the dive bar than at a national book store chain.