Nancy opened the meeting by reminding us that the focus needs to be on writing and that sometimes we stray from that. Because of that an Executive has been formed consisting of current members who have active duties within the group: Nancy, Clare, Shirley, Pat and Diane. Nancy presented a document of guidelines prepared by the Executive. This will be emailed to those who were not in attendance. Anyone who has any suggestions, please email Nancy. A final copy will be posted on the website.
Jayne presented an anthology to which she contributed called A Second Cup of Apple Cider prepared by World Vision Canada. You may purchase a copy for $20, or $15 each for multiple copies. You can check the following links: www.hotapplecider.ca and www.thatslifecommunications.com.
Marilyn read a piece she wrote called "Embracing Change" - a very thought provoking essay about how we can't go back, only move forward.
Jayne read a bit from her story "What's Next?" from A Second Cup of Apple Cider. This story is also about change which prompted the discussion that as we approach middle-age, "What do I want to be when I grow up?"
Ashley announced that she finished the first chapter of her book entitling it "The War on Words". She read this to the group.
Ron read from his book with the working title "Courage in the Cauldron". In reading it aloud, Ron realized there were things he wanted to change. Nancy said, "That's why we read aloud." The group discussed the need to add emotion to historical facts. We need to find our own voice.
At this point Nancy advised that Wayne Townsend will be speaking about war at the Grand Valley Library this Tuesday, April 19.
April is National Poetry Month. Nancy was going to bring her bag of words she uses for our annual poetry workshops but she found this morning that the cat had peed on them. So, Nancy has no words. Imagine that!
So to create a new bag of words, Nancy asked us all to write down 10 or more words and she would create a new set of poetry prompt words for future use. In the meantime, we did pass the pages we made two people to the left and members were invited to use those, or Nancy also provided a separate page of prompts.
Judy, Clare, Marilyn, Pat, Jayne and Ashley all used the words to write poetry.
On the sheet Jayne received from Ron was the word pejorative. Jayne asked Ron what that meant. Here, as provided by Merriam-Webster is the definition I found: "to become worse, having negative connotations, tending to disparage or belittle. syn. DEPRECIATORY."
Ron wrote about back in time, an event when he was 5 or 6 years old. "Yesterday was...." a description of his aunt's house and a delicacy of blue cheese on bologna. I noticed a lot of pejorative faces around the room. (Yeah, I had to throw that in there).
Nancy wrote about having writer's block and creativity not being nurtured as a child. She stresses B.O.C. - Butt On Chair.
Prompts were provided courtesy of A Writer's Book of Days by Judy Reeves and The Write Brain Workbook by Bonnie Neubauer.
1. Moving into the new house...
2. Darkness comes at three in the afternoon (after Robert Bly)
3. Write about an important, big-time event in your childhood. Write in first person as if you are, once again, that age and it just happened. Use child-appropriate language. Don't worry if it turns out to be more fiction than fact. Start with "Yesterday was..."
4. Or write about the same event, but as an adult looking back. Don't worry if the story changes this time as you go with the flow. Start with "If I could go back in time to the day when..."
5. It's only a teeny-weeny little lie...
The next meeting is May 1st. Gloria or Marilyn will be leading.
P.S. Diane, I really suck at this so please come back!
Written by: Mary Patricia Bird
Jayne presented an anthology to which she contributed called A Second Cup of Apple Cider prepared by World Vision Canada. You may purchase a copy for $20, or $15 each for multiple copies. You can check the following links: www.hotapplecider.ca and www.thatslifecommunications.com.
Marilyn read a piece she wrote called "Embracing Change" - a very thought provoking essay about how we can't go back, only move forward.
Jayne read a bit from her story "What's Next?" from A Second Cup of Apple Cider. This story is also about change which prompted the discussion that as we approach middle-age, "What do I want to be when I grow up?"
Ashley announced that she finished the first chapter of her book entitling it "The War on Words". She read this to the group.
Ron read from his book with the working title "Courage in the Cauldron". In reading it aloud, Ron realized there were things he wanted to change. Nancy said, "That's why we read aloud." The group discussed the need to add emotion to historical facts. We need to find our own voice.
At this point Nancy advised that Wayne Townsend will be speaking about war at the Grand Valley Library this Tuesday, April 19.
April is National Poetry Month. Nancy was going to bring her bag of words she uses for our annual poetry workshops but she found this morning that the cat had peed on them. So, Nancy has no words. Imagine that!
So to create a new bag of words, Nancy asked us all to write down 10 or more words and she would create a new set of poetry prompt words for future use. In the meantime, we did pass the pages we made two people to the left and members were invited to use those, or Nancy also provided a separate page of prompts.
Judy, Clare, Marilyn, Pat, Jayne and Ashley all used the words to write poetry.
On the sheet Jayne received from Ron was the word pejorative. Jayne asked Ron what that meant. Here, as provided by Merriam-Webster is the definition I found: "to become worse, having negative connotations, tending to disparage or belittle. syn. DEPRECIATORY."
Ron wrote about back in time, an event when he was 5 or 6 years old. "Yesterday was...." a description of his aunt's house and a delicacy of blue cheese on bologna. I noticed a lot of pejorative faces around the room. (Yeah, I had to throw that in there).
Nancy wrote about having writer's block and creativity not being nurtured as a child. She stresses B.O.C. - Butt On Chair.
Prompts were provided courtesy of A Writer's Book of Days by Judy Reeves and The Write Brain Workbook by Bonnie Neubauer.
1. Moving into the new house...
2. Darkness comes at three in the afternoon (after Robert Bly)
3. Write about an important, big-time event in your childhood. Write in first person as if you are, once again, that age and it just happened. Use child-appropriate language. Don't worry if it turns out to be more fiction than fact. Start with "Yesterday was..."
4. Or write about the same event, but as an adult looking back. Don't worry if the story changes this time as you go with the flow. Start with "If I could go back in time to the day when..."
5. It's only a teeny-weeny little lie...
The next meeting is May 1st. Gloria or Marilyn will be leading.
P.S. Diane, I really suck at this so please come back!
Written by: Mary Patricia Bird
