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How to Join

jacey(at)jaceybedford.co.uk

Initially contact us at the above address.

We meet on the West/South Yorkshire border about 15 minutes drive from Huddersfield and the M1 Junctions 35 and 37, close to Penistone and Denby Dale. The nearest rail station is 2 miles away with no connecting bus service. Buses are rural and infrequent. If you apply to join us you should be prepared to commit to a full day meeting once a quarter (usually on the second Sunday of January, April, July and October, but it can vary if everyone agrees to move the date). Currently our members come from West Yorkshire, Lancashire, Cheshire, Gloucestershire, London, Cambridge and the Isle of Arran. You don't have to be local, but you do have to be prepared to travel if you aren't. Travelling by car is a distinct advantage.

At the time of writing we don't have the potential capacity to add too many writers to our number. Members should have sold at least one short story. Initially write to us and tell us a bit about yourself and your writing. Include any sales you may have had (books or short stories). Tell us who your agent is if you have one. And your publisher. If we don't know you we may ask to see a writing sample. Please don't be offended if we ask. Tell us if you've been involved in any other critique groups, face to face or online. Give us a phone number where we can contact you. If you've attended Milford before it will be an advantage as we critique using the Milford Method, but Milford is not a prerequisite.

Why are we so picky? Because we want to know that you are a good fit with the rest of us and that you are published or seriously working towards (more) future publications.

Having your work critiqued, even by tender-hearted writers trying to be constructive, can be a shock to any writer's system if they're not prepared for it. What you thought was deathless prose might be lauded by one and shredded by another. (We don't always have the same opinions and - indeed - there is no One True Way.) We don't want you to come to your first meeting only to run away screaming, "But you don't understand my genius!" We do want you to come if you're serious about writing and improving in the craft (as we all are). We don't bite. You will be expected to offer critique as well as receive it which can involve a fair amount of time before a meeting to read, crit and prepare. So be aware that you will need to allocate time.

Please note we are genre specific. You must write SF (speculative fiction) in one of its many forms. See here for what we think SF is.