Workshopping at the retreat

​For those of you who may not have workshopped before, this is—in brief—a process of giving and getting feedback on your work. I have certain protocol suggestions to make the process comfortable and productive, for beginners and pros alike. There is one two-hour workshopping session each day. If workshopping, you will be expected to attend all three days; your work will be workshopped at one of the sessions.
 
Length
You may workshop a prose piece of up to 2,500 words--a short story, a chapter of a book, an essay, an article, etc., or a group of poems or act of a play or some equivalent combination. (Shorter is fine.) Please respect the maximum length; this retreat is short!
 
Preparation
On the day you are being workshopped, you will need to distribute copies of your piece to everyone in the workshopping group. You should decide in your groups if you want to do this digitally or print up copies. (Highlights has a printer in one of the small rooms off the kitchen for our use.)
 
Feedback protocol
I strongly suggest being both descriptive and prescriptive in your feedback. Both are useful in communicating how a piece has landed. Consider incorporating the following:

• I heard/felt (description of the piece—what you read, what it was, what you got, what the heart and soul of the piece was, for you)
• I noticed (language, tools, devices, voice, structure, characterization or other facets of craft)
• I wondered (questions, suggestions)
• Any other comments you feel may be helpful to the writer

 

• Make margin notes
• Write a summative comment
• You can put a ✔ or a ✔✔ for a word, phrase, idea, image, etc. that is particularly strong, and a ? for a question or something that perhaps needs a second look. Emojis work, too, if you like them.

 
Workshopping protocol

• The writer tells the group if there’s anything in particular they would like them to read for, in addition to general reading.
• The writer reads the first paragraph or two or poem or little chunk aloud to the group. Then the readers read to themselves and mark up their copies (digital or print) as per the feedback protocol.
• In the first part of the discussion, the writer listens quietly and absorbs. You can try speaking about the writer in the third person. We’re discussing an author’s work.
• We share strengths of the piece before we share suggestions.
• Ideally, the sharing of our comments and observations takes the form of a conversation; we are discussing something we’ve read. It’s more fruitful than going around the table and sharing comments one person at a time.
• In the second part of the discussion, the group invites the writer in to ask clarifying questions, describe their process, get suggestions on challenges, or anything else that would be helpful.
• After the discussion, please give the writer your copy with the written feedback. Put your name on it.