Ideas from the sole

Last night was proof that even the smallest suggestion can result in the biggest idea. Heather was our facilitator and the writing warm up was a great as ever. Heather brought with her an array of unique items, all no bigger than what you can fit in one hand and each with distinct characteristics. We were to choose an item and write. Simple and creative. Many of us were coming off of poetry mode after a week of getting ready for the poetry contest on the 30th. Even Mike wrote a poem, more to his own surprise than anyone else's.

For the main event Heather's idea was simple, "shoe on the road", and from it all members that turned up came with varying ideas and some of the best writing we've heard to date.

Nola started us off with her first person journey from the shoe's comedic perspective. Susan weaved her story of a satin Italian hand carved heel through three generations of shoe wearers until it met its fate. Nicole (I) made the shoe the victim of a sour relationship that ultimately panned out on a city freeway. Margaret inspired us with an uplifting Father/Son piece. Heather continued with three shorter pieces one in particular that dug deep with feelings of grief. Mike was so inspired by the prompt he completed the first chapter of a new mystery novel that involved several fingers of Highland Park Single Malt.

There was plenty of applause and much hootin' &hollerin'.  I'm particularly proud to say that we're are slowly inching our way into a more critical mind frame. Heather had some suggestions for critiquing one another's work; I think we should try this at our next meeting.
1. What would you like to hear more of?
2. What did you appreciate?
3. What would you have approached differently?

I think this meeting has definitely inspired me to keep the prompts simple more often than not. With simple prompts the imagination opens a gate to a huge garden of possibility. What fun!

See new "writing prompts" in the column to the left...

The next meeting will be Tuesday May 11th. I will be loosely facilitating (I'll just bring a warm up exercise). We'll be changing the format slightly for this meeting. Many of us have been working on larger manuscripts and so this will be an opportunity to bring print-outs for everyone to look over or take home. Alternately between now and then we will also be emailing one another with our writing. I know all those in attendance last night will be happy to read, edit and give feedback so let's get those pieces circulating!


Nice work everyone!

A Fantastical Evening

So, first item, as it turns out fantastical is a real word.

Second, I've been buzzing since last night. What a great group we're going to have! Thank you so much for all the sharing and eagerness. We jumped right in didn't we?

Pleasant surprises all around! After only one night I feel I know all of you better. Funny how writing does that. Gets inside your imagination and begins to draw a picture of your persona for those you are sharing with. You can know more about someone after one evening of sharing writing than you can after months of working together or years of being neighbours. So Thank You!

We've tentatively decided the next meeting will be Tuesday January 19th but will find out first if that works for everyone. Since there are only four of us it's nice to make an effort so that we can all make it.

Still trying to put the word out and recruit new members. In the meantime, four is a great starting place and I'm getting the sense that we're all committed and excited about being a part of this.

Third, another welcome is due for the blog. I'm hoping this can be a central place for us to share and keep the writing wheels turning in between meeting dates. I will be posting prompts on here and I hope you will do the same. I would love to read your responses to the prompts- all you need to do is write a post with your response. And of course, comments and feedback are welcome and encouraged. I hope you can embrace this medium as much as I have. If you're not getting it. Swing by my store and we'll sit in the back and do a quick tutorial.

Thanks again group! I'll leave you with this... Fiction Exercise from the University of New Denver

1. Synesthesia, according to M.H. Abrams in A Glossary of Literary Terms, is a description of “one kind of sensation in terms of another; color is attributed to sounds, odor to colors, sound to odors, and so on.”  Here is an example of synesthesia from Bruno Schulz’s Street of the Crocodiles:  “Adela would plunge the rooms into semidarkness by drawing down the linen blinds.  All colors immediately fell an octave lower; the room filled with shadows, as if it had sunk to the bottom of the sea and the light was reflected in mirrors of green water.” Schulz describes a change in color by means of a musical term.  Writers consciously and unconsciously employ this peculiar method to convey the irreducible complexity of life onto the page.  Diane Ackerman (in A Natural History of the Senses) feels we are born with this wonderful “intermingling” of senses:  “A creamy blur of succulent blue sounds smells like week-old strawberries dropped into a tin sieve as mother approaches in a halo of color, chatter, and perfume like thick golden butterscotch.  Newborns ride on intermingling waves of sight, sound, touch, taste, and, especially, smell.”  Use synesthesia in a short scene—surreptitiously, without drawing too much attention to it—to convey to your reader an important understanding of some ineffable sensory experience.  Use “sight, sound, touch, taste, and, especially, smell.”  600 words. - Share a portion or all of this piece here on the blog or in our next group meeting.

Introduction to the Community

Names, Reasons, Dates & Rules

What a great first meeting we had on November 30 at Centre 6-4. Our first for the new writers' group here in Kimberley. Five of us were in attendance and everyone brought varying passions and interests to our table. Laughs were shared and it does seem that we are all on the same page - or as Susan pointed out - the same book anyway.

We will now all be working together to come up with different promotional material to generate interest and hopefully draw members to our group. Duties were passed around, and eagerly received.

The general format will likely be as follows (but I'm sure we'll learn as we go).

Rotating facilitators will bring topics to exercise our writing minds. We'll also be bringing a piece we've been working on, sharing it with the group and then engaging in rounds of constructive criticism.

As it stands meetings will be held on the Third Tuesday of the month, making the next one Tuesday December 15th.

I encourage any newbies to join us and I look forward to seeing everyone from the first meeting, hopefully no one was frightened off.

Additionally, this blog will be a tool for each of us to post anything we might see fit for the benefit of the group. One rule; label the post with your name, aside from this - just be relevant and considerate.

Look forward to stimulating discussions, extraordinary writing, and the company of people that will keep me going. Thanks!