Hawaii Writers Guild offers a variety of opportunities for members to share their work, offer and receive feedback, and find supportive fellowship with other authors. Some writing support groups meet in person on Hawaii Island, while others use the Zoom online platform for their meetings. The particular format, style and "flavor" of each group is unique.
Not all of the groups below are "officially sponsored" by Hawaii Writers Guild, but every group listed here includes Guild members among their participants, and has been recommended by those members as a valuable writing support group opportunity.
Guild members interested in joining one or more of these writing groups are encouraged to reach out to the contact representative(s) specified, for assistance in finding the best fit for your own written work, temperament, schedule, and goals.
Not all of the groups below are "officially sponsored" by Hawaii Writers Guild, but every group listed here includes Guild members among their participants, and has been recommended by those members as a valuable writing support group opportunity.
Guild members interested in joining one or more of these writing groups are encouraged to reach out to the contact representative(s) specified, for assistance in finding the best fit for your own written work, temperament, schedule, and goals.
Readings and Responses
Online Open Forum History: Hawaii Writers Guild's first online writers group was established in June of 2020 under the leadership of then-President Diann Wilson, and Kohala Region Board Representative Eila Algood. Their vision was that Guild writers working in seclusion would still have a place to find support and fellowship, even when the isolation caused by the Covid-19 pandemic limited in-person writers group gatherings. Seven Guild members have served Readings and Responses as facilitators since its inception. Currently four member-facilitators are active participants in Open Forum. R&R Open Forum Format: We welcome new writers who are just beginning to experiment, as well as veteran authors and everyone in between. Any Guild member is always welcome to drop by our Zoom meetings, and if desired, share an excerpt from your written work. If you want to read and receive comments at our meetings, what we've found works best is a document formatted as 3 pp., double-spaced, in 12 pt. Times New Roman font that takes about five minutes to read. We will ask you to use the Screen-Share function on the Zoom platform so all participants can view your words on the page while listening to your narration. Facilitators keep track of time, call on participants who would like to read or comment, and encourage constructive suggestions that motivate writers to grow in their mastery of craft. R&R Open Forum participants are free to attend one session or several, to come and go according to their own writing needs and writing seasons. Excerpts shared with the group are regarded as works-in-progress. Attendees are asked to respect each reader presentation as confidential. Because R&R Open Forum offers an inclusive virtual room and a revolving door, participants in any particular session may experience a broad range of different literary styles, genre conventions, and author personalities. We encourage awareness about these important differences in perspective, when listeners express their reactions, and when writer-readers reflect about feedback received from diverse participants in an Open Forum setting. Meeting Time: R&R Open Forum meetings are held at 1:00 PM 1:00 PM HST on the Third Saturdays of each month. Contact Person: For questions or more information about R&R Online Open Forum, please contact Cheryl Ann Farrell. East Hawaii Island
Writer’s Life Support Group Puna Writer’s Workshop has been around since 2016. Born of the need for a writer’s resource center on the east side of the Island. Dawn Hurwitz has been the organizer and Adam Sydney has been our main teacher till he relocated to the mainland as Covid ravaged our planet. Adam offered a basic narrative writing course that birthed a couple of writers’ groups consisting of writers working on projects. We typically read our weekly work of about 1500 words and offer constructive non-personal feedback, an art we have refined. Recently, Dawn has begun a Writer’s Life Support Group, held the first and third Thursday of the month in person at the Hawaiian Shores Stables on Kahakai Blvd in Pahoa. Prompts are given with ten minutes to write, then reading, and feedback ensues. Adam is still carrying on with a few writer’s feedback groups, but online only. Dawn is conjuring up new ways for writers to gather through the East Hawaii Writers page on Facebook, and looking forward to holding Writer’s Read Nights at The Stables in the near future. We are open to hosting guest writers for seminars. For more information on how to join this group, contact Dawn Hurwitz at ([email protected]) and include Writers Life Support Group in the subject line. |
Kohala Writers Group
There is a Kohala Writers group that restarted as of Thursday, September 1, 2022 with primarily Zoom-based meetings to help aspiring and experienced writers with the writing of their works. Every other week meetings are on Thursdays from 2pm-4pm. The original group started with in- person meetings at the North Kohala Public Library in the town of Hawi, on the verynorth end of the Big Island. When COVID caused many activities to move to the internet that group as well as a second writer support group that had met in a personal home combined into meeting every other week via Zoom. The original facilitator of each of these groups, Eila Algood, decided the summer of 2022 to concentrate on her new Hawi store she opened. To keep the writer support group going, Diane Revell, a member of the prior groups agreed to take over facilitating the Kohala Writers group meetings on Zoom. We are considering holding a few in- person meetings in the future. This is a support group and as such we encourage constructive feedback with kindness. What happens at a meeting? For those interested in participating, you will need to have a computer with the Zoom app on it. The free version is adequate to participate. Your writings you would like reviewed are best if in digital form so you can share it via Zoom when your turn comes. After a few minutes of seeing how each in attendance is doing in general with their writing and finding who has something written to have reviewed, each of those will take a turn reading their work after saying what type of feedback they would like. After their reading, feedback is provided then we move on to the next writer. Each person is limited to 3-4 pages at most to be sure enough time for everyone to participate. If you have questions or would like to be added to our group, email Diane Revell at ([email protected]) and include Kohala Writers in the subject. Waimea - Tutu's House Tutu’s House is a community non-profit organization in Kamuela that provides a facility for groups and organizations to hold meetings to benefit the health and well-being of the community. One of the groups which meets at Tutu’s House on a regular basis is a Writers Support Group. Meetings are held each Tuesday from 10 am to noon (holidays excepted), either in-person or virtually via Zoom.
Although HWG is not officially connected with Tutu’s House, we strongly approve of its activities and sponsor its use as a writing resource for our members. Many of the writers who attend the Tutu’s House Writers Support Group, including its current group facilitator, are HWG members. Emphasis is on writing skills and short reading/feedback exercises. There is no cost to participate in the Tutu’s House Writers Support Group, but donations are always welcomed to help ensure activities will continue to be offered. If you have questions or would like to be part of this group, email Dave Fouts ([email protected]) and include Tutu’s House Writers Group in the subject line. Volcano Writers Support Group
Coming soon. For more information, contact Bryan Furer ([email protected]) Kauai Writers Support Group
Coming soon. For more information, contact Frank Reilly ([email protected]) |