A Few Notes on Organizing the OTWC
Hi all!
With the second season of the Olive Tree Writing Club approaching, I thought I’d share a few thoughts on organizing a writing club:
I never thought I’d be organizing a writing club in NYC. I’ve never really thought of myself as a community organizer either. I still don’t. I was simply trying to figure out a way to regularly see my writing friends.
I attended a few writing clubs in NYC before hosting the OTWC. Most felt cliquey, intimidating, and focused on older mediums of writing. I wanted to change that with the OTWC.
I love meeting other writers. Writers are curious, clear thinkers, open-minded, and empathetic. Writing attracts these sorts of people but writing also transforms you into a more curious, clear-thinking, open-minded, and interesting person. Beautiful things happen when you gather people like this together.
Consistency builds loyalty.
This is by far the most fulfilling thing I do. One of the most rewarding parts is when people tell us they started a Substack or they’ve started writing more because of the OTWC community.
Communities aren’t built for people, they are built with people.
If you don’t feel anxious or scared about hosting an event, then is it even worth hosting? Even after running writing events for nearly two years, I still find myself getting stressed even over the recurring events. But that just means I care.
You can’t please everyone. Even if only a small fraction of those that attend become repeat members, that’s all that’s needed to create a sustainable community. Realizing this was a weight off my shoulders. It puts less pressure on me to please everyone because you can’t please everyone.
OTWC Season 2 kickoff is this Sunday @ 10am! RSVP here.
<3 James
I love these reflections! What a special way to communicate why you are doing... what you are doing!