RENEGADE WRITERS’ GROUP
Renegade Writers’ Group :
(because your shit won’t write itself)
A workshop with Janelle Hanchett
***
November 10 – December 15, 2024
Sundays at 9:00am PST / 12pm EST (1-hour calls)
Here it is: six weeks. You, me, 8 other writers. You have a project in mind. You decide on its length. You set a goal on day one for how many words you need to write to meet that goal.
And then, you do it. Every day. For 30 days. Well, we do it together.
Each week you check in with me and the group through a video call. You ask me anything, individually, personally. Whatever you’re struggling with, whatever isn’t working, whatever questions you have.
So yes, this is individualized weekly feedback and mentoring. To keep you going. This is the time we get it done.
(Oh come on, you can do anything for one fucking month. I mean I think you can. We usually can. WE CAN.)
Every day, you post the number of words you’ve written (not the actual words) in our private Facebook group. At 11pm you feel the pain of your phone dinging with notifications. 500 words. 1,500 words. 900 words.
DAMNIT THE BASTARDS ARE DOING IT.
You roll out of bed and write yours with a tiny wave of hatred for yourself (for signing up) and those other people (for doing it). But as the days pass, and you watch the words add up, you realize you’re doing it, and that’s a feeling I cannot adequately describe. You just have to experience it.
After 4 weeks of writing every day, you will have an entire first draft or at least a good portion of it. Or a collection of essays. Or poems. Or journal entries. But perhaps more importantly, you will have experienced what it feels like to make creative work a priority for 30 days–what has to be set aside? When do you write best? What messes can you leave? What’s your personal version of resistance and procrastination? How long do you have to write before the voices in your head are drowned out by the work itself? (We’ll talk about this if it doesn’t quite make sense yet.)
In our last week you will reflect on your work and we will discuss first steps for revision.
So, at the end of the 6 weeks, you will have a first draft and a plan for how to start revision. You are thus on your way to a publishable piece of writing. Will it take a lot more work? Probably. But you will have something to work with. And that’s all most of us start with, really.
And in this workshop you’ll have a space to share how your soul is bleeding and you’re considering running away, because writing is hell.
Maybe.
Or you’ll talk about how it feels so damn good to actually finally really be writing the words as opposed to thinking the words and wishing you were writing the words.
No matter what (if you stick with us), at the end you will have done it.
READ WHAT PEOPLE ARE SAYING…
“Janelle has facilitated a life-changing group here. We all possessed the stuff already, but I never knew how or why to bring it out. and now I have a book. A BOOK. One that had been banging around in my head for years and I never had the stamina or discipline to bring it out and she did that, along with the incredible members of this group. So just sign up for it already. Shit will change in the coolest way…it has changed the way in which i see writers and myself within that world. – Amy E.
“You would think after all this writing that I’d have a more creative description for this group than ‘life-changing,’ but that is really the only word for it. Janelle leads from the middle (as one of us), and provides a safe, encouraging space to explore ideas, share fears, rant when required, and support each other. It really is magic. I’m living a totally different and more creative life as a result.” – Holly W.
“I’ve always been talking about writing “my novel”, I’ve just never worked past my own fear that I could actually do it. Janelle’s writing group was everything that I needed. Not only did I finally write that novel, I learned so much about myself as a writer. It changed everything for me!” – Danielle B.
“BUT JANELLE WHAT IF MY WRITING SUCKS?!”
It’s a first draft. It is supposed to suck. The point here is that we are writing The Thing as opposed to not writing The Thing and even if it’s 90% crap we’re developing a routine of writing, a system of writing, a life-stream of composition and THAT’S WHAT REVISION IS FOR. You have to get something down. You have to get material to work with. This is you mixing the paint from which you will paint the masterpiece (isn’t that a song). I mean it. This is how it works. Read Anne Lamott’s “Shitty First Drafts.”
In addition to getting the first draft done, in each call you get personal coaching from Janelle and the group. You will be able to articulate your struggles and get ideas from others to empower you to move on and keep going, and you’ll probably learn we all have the same ones. They lose their power. You keep writing.
Your craft will improve by doing the work and talking through the process with somebody who’s done it. Your writing will improve by committing to the process no matter what life or your brain throws at you. More than any other piece of feedback, I hear “This is the first time in my life I’ve ever felt like a ‘real writer.'”
That’s because that’s all there is: writing. Real writers write. The end.
So, if you have a project in mind (article, short story, novel, memoir, caveman erotica, collection of poetry, etc.), and are READY TO WRITE but want/need a no-bullshit group to keep you going and help you through to the almost-endpoint, register below.
This workshop is for people who are ready to get started with a project. If you’re still struggling with fear and resistance (to the point that it keeps you from writing), please sign up for my Write Anyway workshop. After that, join this one!
THE BEST PART
Oh, and the best part: I AM DOING THIS WITH YOU. That’s right. I’ll be right alongside you, with my kids, house, and general malaise. I will mess up, try again, whine bitch and moan write alongside you. But we’ll do it.
And at the end, we’ll both have something to work with.
Let’s do this.
November 10 – December 15, 2024
Sundays at 9:00am PST / 12pm EST (1-hour calls)
Join us:
Option 1: €329.
- Weekly live online workshops
- Guidance creating/defining your project & goals
- Private Facebook group during the workshop to support each other and share ideas
- Invitation to join a private FB group into perpetuity (likeminded writers/alumni of my workshops and retreats)
Option 2: €359
- Weekly live online workshops
- Individual email support throughout the workshop–ask me anything & receive 2-5 emails/week from me to keep you going
- Guidance creating/defining your project & goals
- Private Facebook group during the workshop to support each other and share ideas
- Invitation to join a private FB group into perpetuity (likeminded writers/alumni of my workshops and retreats)
Option 3: €559
- Weekly live online workshops
- My feedback on up to 20 pages (5k words) of your writing
- One 30-minute 1:1 video conference with me to discuss your project, process, plans for moving forward (or whatever you want!)
- Individual support throughout the workshop via email
- Guidance creating/defining your project & goals
- Private Facebook group during the workshop to support each other and share ideas
- Invitation to join a private FB group into perpetuity (likeminded writers/alumni of my workshops and retreats)
*Refund Policy: I offer a full refund as requested on or before October 3, 2024. From October 4, 2024, through October 18, 2024, I can offer a 50% refund. After October 18, 2024, I cannot provide a refund. By signing up for this workshop, you are agreeing to this refund policy.
