Introducing the SJW Girls Write-In

Last month I asked the ladies of the See Jane Write Members Collective what they were struggling with most regarding writing and blogging and nearly everyone responded with the same reply: TIME! They’re constantly struggling to find the time to work on their book or blog.

Unfortunately, I can’t add more hours to the day but I can provide a space for women to hang out and write. After all, that’s why I started See Jane Write in the first place. And that’s why last month I started hosting a weekly virtual “girls write-in” for See Jane Write Collective members. (If you’re not a member you can apply to join here.)

But I’ve decided to take this a step further for the women of Birmingham and offer an in-person girls write-in for members and non-members.

The See Jane Write Birmingham Girls Write-In will be Thursday, May 24 from 6 to 8 p.m. at DISCO, 5500 First Avenue North in Woodlawn.

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Why Writing Is a Communal Act

Writing is a communal act.

Now you may be thinking, “No, it’s not! We must write in solitude to produce our best work.”

But as Natalie Goldberg says in her book Writing Down the Bones, “Contrary to popular belief, a writer is not Prometheus alone on a hill of fire. We are arrogant to think we alone have a totally original mind.”

In other words, everything we write is somehow influenced by the work of writers who have come before us.

But it goes even deeper than that.

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My Journey from Lady Blogger to Boss Lady

I sometimes call myself an accidental entrepreneur, even though a part of me has always wanted to own my own business. In fact, as a kid, I started a “boutique” in my bedroom and tried to convince family members and friends to buy purses and costume jewelry I no longer wanted.

Nonetheless, it would be a blog, not a boutique, that would be the start of my first real business.

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What I Wish I’d Done Differently While Growing See Jane Write

When I returned to my hometown of Birmingham, Alabama in 2009 to teach I immediately knew I wanted to surround myself with creative women who write. For two years I searched for a networking group for women writers that would welcome bloggers, poets, journalists, and creative nonfiction writers (all hats I’d worn at some point in my writing life), but to no avail. Finally, in 2011 I decided to start one of my own and See Jane Write was born. My little writing group is now an award-winning business and website. I am so proud of what I’ve built over the past 7 years, but if I had to do it all again there are some things I would do differently. Here are some confessions about my See Jane Write journey.

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#SquadGoals: How I Started See Jane Write

Danielle LaPorte once said, “Find your tribe and love them hard.” I live by this motto because I believe it’s the key to a fulfilling personal life and even a successful professional life. But sometimes we find ourselves in situations where we can’t seem to find our tribe.

That’s exactly what happened to me when I moved back to my hometown of Birmingham, Alabama in 2009. I began searching for a group for female writers and bloggers. I found groups for aspiring novelists, but I specialize in non-fiction. I found groups for journalists, but, even though I’d spent years working for newspapers, I didn’t fit in with these groups either because some of their members scoffed at blogging, which has been a passion of mine since 2007.

After two years of searching for my tribe, in 2011 I decided to build my own. On March 24, 2011, I launched See Jane Write, a networking group for women who write and blog. Seven years later See Jane Write is now an award-winning business and has members across the country. But my goal is that no matter how much See Jane Write grows,  it never stops being a community and it never stops being my tribe.

If you’re seeking to build your own tribe, if you’re seeking to build a sense of community around your blog, book, brand or passion project, I believe you need five things: 1) an idea that ignites 2) an event that excites 3) an invitation that intrigues 4) a meeting that sparks a movement and 5) a forum that forges friendships.

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