About

The Speculators

A group for writers of speculative fiction (Sci-fi, fantasy, horror and beyond…) in and around Leicester. We meet every Wednesday evening to write together, critique new writing (sometimes) and discuss the business of writing. (Which often happens after hours in the pub!)

If you are interested in writing speculative fiction, whether you are brand new and unpublished or a New York Times bestselling novelist, you are welcome to join. We currently have a diverse mix of writing types in the group, though they could broadly be grouped as genre writers: Science Fiction, Horror, Fantasy, Urban Fantasy, Crime and most points in between. We have YA writers, Comic writers and some with literary and poetic leanings.

Members pay £3 per session in order to cover room hire, but prospective new members get the first week free as a taster for the group. 

Speculators use their time in different ways. Some use the time to work on whatever project they have on the go, others to revise work that has already been critiqued. Some find it useful to have somewhere outside of home to concentrate on their writing, away from the distractions of family or the internet.

The Speculators Workshop

We meet each Wednesday at the Friends Meeting House on Queens Road, between 7-9pm, up the stairs to the left, in the Meeting Room. Sessions usually begin with tea and a little conversation, then writing (quietly) on our own projects until 8pm, when we break for more tea and chat. Then, it’s back to writing until 9pm, when some of us decamp to a nearby pub.

On alternate Saturdays, we have extended sessions from 1pm to 5pm that we call Dojo, in order to critique longer pieces. We have a number of group members who’ve moved away from the area but want to remain part of the group, so we have adopted a hybrid set-up where dojos alternate between in-person critique sessions in the Meeting House and online via Zoom. We operate a bidding process to make sure everyone gets a fair crack of the whip to get their work looked at. We try to be flexible, to take into account longer pieces and chapters, built on common sense and fair play.

Where possible, we encourage new members to attend a few Wednesday sessions before coming to Dojo. It helps to have some sense of the group dynamics before subjecting yourself to critique.

Some of our members are currently working on novels, so use these sessions to gain feedback on excerpts of their work in progress.

Getting There

For more information please contact: jay.eales@googlemail.com