Writing Group Dream Team

Now that I’m back into the swing of things, writing-wise, I’ve been thinking a lot about who my writing group dream team would be. Last semester I got to experience, for the first time, the wonders of a writing group for my writing fiction class. I really lucked out- my group was AWESOME. I already miss them. Plus, having a writing group was really helpful for my writing, surprise surprise. I got valuable and consistent feedback for my work from people that I respected and enjoyed being around, and it was fantastic. I’ve never felt more accomplished. All that said, this would be my ideal writer’s group:

Maureen Johnson. Author of nine young adult fiction books, Maureen would be an amazing addition to my writing group, first because she’d just be fun to shoot the breeze with. Her Twitter account is one of my favorite things on the internet right now, and ranges from near-mad ramblings to succinct and effective campaigns for charities and political movements. She also has an incredible grasp on the intricacies of female friendships (a subject which I am decidedly more shaky on), which would be incredibly helpful in a lot of my books.

John Green. Author of four young adult fiction books and one half of my favorite YouTube channel, vlogbrothers, I kind of just want to spend time with John. He is everything I want to become, professionally, and he appears to have a similar sense of humor to me. In addition to this, he’s an expert at tying themes into stories and humanizing characters, which I could always use advice on.

George Watsky. Quirky hip hop artist and slam poet, George isn’t really a fiction writer, but I want to be able to spend time in his presence. Also, he’d be good as a first reader, since he’s not as wired into the technicalities of fiction writing and can respond simply as an audience.

Libba Bray– Author of five young adult fiction novels, besides just seeming like an awesome person to hang out with, Libba is the queen of sarcastic humor and would be a great help in defining and mastering character arcs and believable struggles.

Steve Kluger– Author of a lot of stuff (also my favorite book!), Steve has a strong understanding of making a series of different but equally important substories/subplots coalesce.

Stephanie Perkins– author of two YA fiction novels, Stephanie could help me craft believable romances and build sexual tension between characters, which I always have trouble with.

Orson Scott Card and Suzanne Collins– I’m lumping these two together not because they’re less important, but because I want them both on board for the same reason: they write in my genre. Both are science fiction writers, and both are fantastic at building a future society that feels real. I suck at setting, and they clearly do not, so I could definitely use that resource.

Of course, I’d also like to have Rachel, and the girls from my original writing group (Kelly, Alison, and Kacey!). That makes…. twelve people. That might be kind of a lot, but we wouldn’t ALL have to meet at the same time. Either way, though, I’d love to have all of these incredible people as resources and as friends.

Did I miss anyone? Who would YOUR dream team be for whatever future career you have in mind?