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Source: https://writers.stackexchange.com/a/41169
License name: CC BY-SA 3.0
License URL: https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0/

Source: https://writers.stackexchange.com/a/41169
License name: CC BY-SA 3.0
License URL: https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0/

The only solution I see is to let her start critiquing your novels from chapter 1; as you guys critique hers.

You can warn her your chapter 1 has been through a critique already; but she may have some new insight to offer you. She is another reader, after all, and a writer. (If Stephen King joined your group, wouldn't you like him to start with your Chapter 1?)

I (a discovery writer) typically finish my first draft in four months; but then spend _another_ four months on cover-to-cover draft after draft, six is not unusual for me. Heck, JK Rowling rewrote the first _Harry Potter_ novel for _years_, submitting to something like twenty publishers, before she got it published.

My point is, additional reviews from the start of your books won't hurt you, and will help her. I would add this is especially true of your Chapter 1: That deserves more scrutiny than almost anything, because it may represent your entire writing style to an agent or publisher. Nothing is more important than your first ten pages, when it comes to sales.

I wouldn't suggest your critique group operate on a "one and done" model. Let your new girl join and start from the beginning of your books, as you start from the beginning of hers.

If she _wants_ to catch up and be part of the main conversation, of course she can. But she can also chime in with suggestions for problems raised by others. I can certainly critique a random chapter from a book with more than proofreading, I can point out problems with dialogue, description, pacing, and I have enough experience to know how to fix them. Don't underestimate her.

Original score: 6