THE REVIEW

LIGHT AND DARK

We had a great Meeting Wednesday night. Margaret, Jason, Annette and Charity all joined me with The Muse in tow.

Margaret read first, a fictional short story based on the popular suspicion that the mother was the one who killed the two children in the ‘Babes In The Wood’ unsolved murder. The story depicts the stark reality of life on float houses on False Creek, under the Burrard Street Bridge in 1947. It showed a desperate woman with two children trying to survive, living with a man on his float house. He tells her to take her kids and leave and she turns her fury and despair on her children. The story is mesmerizing in its desolation. We hope Margaret can find somewhere for it to be published as we all thought it was a story that needs to be shared.

To lighten the mood and avoid comparison in quality of writing, I read my story “Clueless” from my ‘Honey’ stories. This is the second story in my collection and is a viewing of Honey’s character quirks that can be both maddening and hilarious. It talks about laundry and cell phones and lost keys and dirty tracks on the clean floor and, of course, his need for a beer. Charity said the stories feel ‘homey’ to her. Comfortable. I hope that’s good.

Jason read the next chapter in his novel. This is a scene with Damianos trying to get Kwen to tell him what planet they are on and who populates it. There is a lot of sexual tension between the two and she very reluctantly tells him, but he still doesn’t know why he’s there. Charity observed there was a lot of information dumped on the reader in this scene, and thinks it could be done differently so as not to detract from the sexual nuances between the two characters. Something to think about.

Annette read the first two chapters of her new novel “Within The Tangles”, a novel of abused children who all end up in the same counselling session. It starts out showing us eight year old Janna and sixteen year old Abby, two cousins. Janna is motherless, and her father is hospitalized. Abby learns her mother is turning tricks in their own home when she walks in early one day with Janna in tow. In defiance, Abby falls in with a much older boyfriend. Readers fear for the safety of both these girls.

Charity read another scene from her book showcasing Hornby Island. It is the day after the storm, summer tourists are gone but the weather is still summery. We learn seventeen year old Percy had been sent to the island to live with her grandfather by her own father in Vancouver. She meets a boy by the store and would like to get to know him, but he collects his art materials and runs off. She hates being cold so stays away from the water, and goes mountain boarding instead. After a tumble, she runs into the boy again and tells him she has some of his art supplies in her car and invites him to follow her. This scene showed more of the island and how laid back it is compared to Vancouver. I told Charity I was having trouble seeing an aim to the story, that it just seemed to meander. Unless, of course, its purpose is to be a relationship between Percy and the boy! Their meeting was definitely the point where I thought something was going to happen.

Had a phone call last week from Bob Jacoby to say his beloved poodle, Sydney, had passed away. A number of Rams had met Sydney when Bob hosted a Meeting at his home once, a number of years ago. We are sorry to hear she is gone.

The next Meeting will be Wednesday, December 2nd at 7:00 p.m. here at my place. That will be our last Meeting before Christmas. Hope to see you then.

Lisa A. Hatton
Author

THE REVIEW

WELCOME TO NEW MEMBERS

At our Meeting on Wednesday, Margaret F. and I were joined by our two new members, Chris Potter and Charity Gosling. With just the four of us present, we were able to spend some time getting to know each other and exchange information on our writing pasts as well as our goals. Chris has an extensive background in writing and making a living at it, at newspapers, magazines and as a freelance writer. Charity has written a number of novels, YA urban fantasy and one western, and also writes a regular online column, for pay. We are impressed by both these ladies.

Charity read first from a YA modern horror book she has started called “Saltwater Mermaids”. It is set on Hornby Island and starts as a first person narrative by a female teenager. She describes the gathering of unusual people in her grandfather’s home, and tells of the mythical witch in the harbour. And she gives a haunting description of the local setting. We hope to hear more of what happens in this story. Charity said it will be the first time she has tried writing instinctively, without following a previously constructed outline.

Chris read next, a story titled “Sam Rickl”, which she wants to include in the memoir she is writing about fascinating people she has met around the world. This story tells of Sam being an elder in the Amish community of Lancashire County, Pennsylvania. Chris gave us lots of detail about their customs and way of life, but after her reading of it, she thought she needed to tell more about the people rather than just facts about the way they live. Having written for many years to specific word counts and as a journalist giving facts, it is a new way of writing for Chris.

Margaret read Chapter 3 from her “Babes In The Wood”. This chapter shows her going home after visiting the exhibit on the unsolved murder and having seen children’s bones strapped to the wall as if they were just artifacts. She discusses the case and all her questions with her husband, Chris, as he makes soup the reader can almost taste. He eventually tells her emphatically she is the one who should be asking questions and getting people wanting answers so authorities would again actively work on the case. Margaret has definitely found her voice for writing this book and it is fascinating to hear each chapter.

After Margaret mentioned the importance of setting writing goals at the previous Meeting, I decided I would get busy and work on my collection of stories in “Honey Signed The Waiver” and have set a goal of re-writing and editing at least one story each week. So at this most recent Meeting, I read the first story, “The Best Thing”, about meeting Bryon and deciding he was the best thing that ever happened to me. We all laughed and I had to wipe away tears to keep reading, so I hope that means it meets the test for humour.

Charity had asked how the Ram’s came up with their name (The Ram’s Head Writers’ Group) and had thought it might have some mystical or mythical meaning behind it. She was disappointed when I pointed out the brass talking stick with the blue ram’s head on top and explained what it was. So, if anyone wants a writing prompt, maybe you could come up with a more inspiring story on how we assumed our auspicious moniker?

Annette was away, caring for her mother. Kristie had to attend parent/teacher night at her children’s school. Jason had no babysitter. And Lorelie had a cold and wasn’t well. We missed all of them.

The next Meeting will be Wednesday, November 18th at 7:00 p.m. here at my place. I do hope to see you then.

Lisa A. Hatton
Author