Perhaps you’ve been thinking about writing for a long time. You have an idea (or more than one), but have never found the time to start. Maybe you are a published author, in the trenches and alone, looking for companionship. Or it could be you’re in the messy middle: you have a story or idea in hand but are stuck in a what-do-I-do-next moment. Otherwise known as that time when Google failed you.
We know we’re created for community, and I think, as writers, we know the need to share our ideas in a safe place. But knowing isn’t enough to create a network of writing friends. That would make life easier, don’t you think?
About a month ago, I received an invitation to look over the hope*writers membership site, for, you guessed it, writers. I had heard about hope*writers since I have happily read all of Emily P. Freeman’s books (who is one of the founders of this site.) You can imagine that it wasn’t a huge stretch for me to take the plunge into all things writing to see what I could share with you.
**P.S. You might like this: 10 Questions to Ask Yourself Before You Write a Book
There has only been one small problem in this month of investigating and mining . . . It is incredibly difficult to know where to start in terms of what to share with you.
I’ll say this, before diving in. I’ve been in many online communities and membership sites. Some great, some not so great. Hope*writers lands on the “amazing” side of the spectrum. Thoughtfully written articles and videos lead you through an orientation to the site right away. You can take a quiz to see where you are in your writing journey in order to go straight to that section of the site, or you can be like me, and wander through each room, aghast with wonder. (Click here to take the hope*writer path quiz.)
I’m being a little dramatic, but the team at hope*writers has been so thoroughly intentional in their approach of talking about the writing life, I really was quieted with wonder as I right-clicked to open window after window.
I felt led, as if by a friend, to peek in here and there, to see what waited for me. And I loved what I found. Articles and interviews with experts and videos on how to actually do the thing. Gentle nudgings of encouragement blended perfectly with the nuts and bolts. What really stood out for me was the depth and quality.
If you are thinking about writing a book someday out there, writing one right now, or in the space of wanting to learn how to better market your work, there is something (more than just something, a LOT of somethings) for you in hope*writers. Not to mention, the people are fantastically kind and smart. I loved seeing interviews from authors and editors (and many more in the industry) from all walks of life. Since hope*writers has been faithfully creating content for their community for the last several years, there is a vast catalog for you to access.
Learn more about hope*writers by clicking here. It opens again for membership next week (September 14-18, 2020.) Maybe this will be the fall you finally write the book you have brewing inside of you. Oh, in closing, let me leave you with a quote from Emily. She explains the “why” behind hope*writers so beautifully.
“That’s why we created hope*writers — to not only offer you the facts and timelines, but also to provide some perspective and encouragement for what might be happening beneath the surface as you go through each of these steps in the process.” from The Complete Guide to Traditional Book Publishing by Emily P. Freeman
Click to see what stage of writing you’re in…if you love quizzes like I do, you’ll love this one!
