About

Writers in the Grove is a writing group for writers, poets, authors, and those interested in creative writing and publishing. The regular meetings are free and open to anyone with a passion for writing.

Located in Forest Grove, Oregon, the group offers two free community meeting times.

  • Mondays 9-11AM: A two hour meeting to discuss the craft of writing and publishing and experiment with writing from prompts. We meet at the Forest Grove Senior & Community Center (map)
  • Scheduled Saturday Mornings 10-12AM: These are scheduled meetings held on the second Saturday of the month at the Forest Grove Library. These meetings often dive deeper into craft and creative writing prompts.

These two meetings are fairly informal and are designed to inspire, motivate, and challenge your writing skills. While the focus is on fiction, writers of all interests are welcome. We explore fiction, poetry, non-fiction, memoir, and various writing crafts and styles. Occasionally special guest speakers are brought in to discuss some aspect of writing an publishing. Members are welcome to bring brief original work to read and share with the group, no longer than 8 minutes reading time. See the rules and guideline specifics below.

The group also presents special events, educational programs, and readings on a regular basis for free or a small fee or donation. Funds typically benefit our group scholarship funds for writing conferences and educational programs and to the Forest Grove Senior Center. Annual events include:

  • Lend an Ear: Accepted submissions read their 4 minute written works at the Plum Hill Winery in July.
  • Annual Book Sale: Held in the Summer or Fall, books are for sale at the Forest Grove Senior Center and proceeds to to the Center.

Our Member Sites

We have amazing members, and some of them have websites worth visiting.

Rules and Guidelines

The most important rules for our meetings are:

  1. Everything is considered fiction: This means that you are free to write whatever you wish, even if it is personal and private, and we are to treat it as if it is made up.
  2. You do not have to share: Whatever you write from the prompts maybe shared and discussed with the group. You do not have to share your writing.
  3. Criticism and Feedback is given from love and encouragement: Shared writings are to receive encouragement and support, finding the good in what we do. We are all here to learn, make mistakes, and work at our own pace. If the writer wishes stronger feedback, they must request it.

If you would like to bring a piece to read to the group for feedback, please state the level of feedback and input you desire, and provide 12-18 printed copies with a minimum of 1.5 spaces between lines for editing, two-sided or printed on recycled (used) paper acceptable. The piece should take no longer than 6 minutes to read aloud.

The group’s structure and policies are based upon the work of writer, poet, and writing instructor Pat Schneider, whose book “Writing Alone and With Others” is our guide.