SPRING AT LAST
Finally had some dry weather this week and there were five of us at the Meeting here on Wednesday. It was wonderful to see everyone!
Charity read first from “Trixie Trouble”. Trixie’s Ma saves her from any further beating by Mundy when she shoots him in the arm. Trixie is moved upstairs, the doctor is called, her wounds are addressed and she’s given morphine for the pain. When she’s healed enough to notice things, she sees a tattoo on her collarbone that hadn’t been there before, and knows her Ma has claimed her as her own and Trixie is furious. We are relieved Trixie isn’t being hurt anymore, but we want to know if she is being saved or if she’s being used?
Luke read to us about Goren and Galeena reaching the river, where he retrieves his boots and then they travel further, in search of his sister. As they proceed, Goren tires of Galeena constantly asking questions about everything. When they reach Tunnel Road, they discover the Inn has been destroyed and Galeena admits that is where she woke up in the earthquake that morning, something she remembers. Goren searches through bodies and ruins for his sister, but doesn’t find her. He and Galeena help others look for survivors in the ruins, and then also help bury bodies. This is a very sad chapter looking at the devastation after a natural disaster.
Darlene read to us more about Ethel and Ralph and the saga of watering restrictions. Due to all the protests about the restrictions, a public meeting is scheduled at the City Hall, where registered parties may voice their opinions. In a dress embroidered with vines and fruits, representing her love of gardening, Ethel heads to City Hall, with her husband protesting her attire and objectives. He sits in front and leaves her at the back of the room where she has a young man present her slides, showing the hypocrisy of the establishment. The whole meeting hilariously degenerates into total chaos. This is an excellent depiction of democratic foibles and follies.
Annette read to us about Maxine being in a hospital lounge, extremely upset that Jarod doesn’t remember her. Instead of going home, she drives to the big store where she works. Her boss, Carl, wants to know if she has left Jarod and when she says Jarod needs her, Carl really pushes her to dump the guy. In her present state, Carl won’t let her work out front, but sets her to work in the back of the store. When her cell phone rings, she sees it is the hospital calling. That was a good hook to end the chapter and keep readers turning the page. We have seen Maxine torn between wanting her freedom from a bad relationship, and feeling duty-bound to help a man who is not yet able to look after himself. That’s a tough dilemma.
After a previous discussion with Annette about murder stories and how to commit a perfect murder on paper, I decided to read my short story “Sandy The Sailor”. It’s about the older sister of a young exotic dancer who had committed suicide after contracting Aids from a sexual encounter she was forced to endure in order to collect her pay for dancing. To get revenge, the older sister takes up stripping and sets in motion the events that kill the evil bar owner. Darlene said it was a good story and I should send it out somewhere. Bryon had given me the details of how to engineer the murder. I wrote this about 15 years ago and hadn’t looked at it for at least 5 years. It’s amazing how much work I’ve collected through the years. Is that good or bad?
The next Meeting will be Wednesday, May 2nd at 7:00 p.m. here at my place. I know the sun is coming out before then, but don’t get sidetracked by it. Write on, Rams!!!
Lisa A. Hatton
Author
Friday, April 20, 2018
Thursday, March 22, 2018
THE REVIEW
WRITE WHAT YOU KNOW
There was a very interesting Meeting here last night. Charity was unable to attend. Annette became ill and we wish her a speedy recovery. Luke is probably still packing/moving house. And Chris is stuck in a bi-weekly parenting schedule that doesn’t sync with our schedule for Meetings. I wasn’t able to reach Darlene to tell her it might be just the two of us, so she arrived. Thankfully, Jessica Taylor also arrived at the door. We first talked about a year ago, but this was the first time we met. So the three of us spent two hours filled with readings, discussions and lots of laughter.
I have been working on my collection of ‘Honey’ stories and am two thirds done this final edit. After discussion at the previous Meeting, I decided to re-read some of these stories at Meetings. Last night I read “The Best Thing”, the first story in the manuscript, but probably the last one I had written. It’s about how I met Honey (Bryon), and how we became a couple. Darlene said it sounded polished, and that’s most likely because it was one of the last stories I had written over a twenty year span. When I put all my stories together, I needed something to start the book and let the reader know what to expect. One would hope my writing had improved after twenty years!
Darlene read the next section of her story “Watering Restrictions”, about wife and husband, Ethel and Ralph, having different views about a recent local by-law that limited watering. We hear they have reached Phase 3 of the restrictions, which means hand watering only, and Ethel is still watering beyond the restricted allowance and Ralph catches her at 3:00 a.m. Somebody hangs signs on the city’s dying trees decrying the restrictions. Then Ethel discovers fines for defying restrictions tied to her trees. There are water outages at City Hall and the administrative staff all walk out and Council has to find a different venue for meetings. Ethel complains to a TV news crew and Ralph gets mad. Ralph and Ethel stop talking. One day he hears her voice, but only from the TV. We were all laughing by this point. I see shades of Desi and Lucy, or Ralph and Alice, in this depiction of marital disagreement. Very funny.
Jessica didn’t bring any of her writing to read, but gave us verbally her own background story about falling in love at first sight and then eloping to marry an American Marine. In true military fashion, they have detailed plans for how to proceed so they may eventually find themselves living together in one country, without the prospect of deportation for one or the other. Jessica says a lot of her writing has been personal memoir about lessons learned through living, and she hopes to improve her writing abilities, as do all of us. If she can write a story as engagingly as she tells one, she is well on her way.
So after considering what was read and discussed last night, it was apparent most of our writing was based on personal experience, usually with our significant other. That’s when I said the adage for writers might be true: Write what you know!
We had some discussion last night about changing dates for Meetings. We were thinking that instead of meeting the 1st and 3rd Wednesday of the month, maybe we should meet every other Wednesday, and pick the be-weekly schedule that would coincide with Chris’s parenting schedule. What do members think of that? Let me know what you think, and we’ll discuss this some more at the next Meeting.
The next Meeting will be Wednesday, April 4th at 7:00 p.m. here at my place. Hope to see you then!
Lisa A. Hatton
Author
There was a very interesting Meeting here last night. Charity was unable to attend. Annette became ill and we wish her a speedy recovery. Luke is probably still packing/moving house. And Chris is stuck in a bi-weekly parenting schedule that doesn’t sync with our schedule for Meetings. I wasn’t able to reach Darlene to tell her it might be just the two of us, so she arrived. Thankfully, Jessica Taylor also arrived at the door. We first talked about a year ago, but this was the first time we met. So the three of us spent two hours filled with readings, discussions and lots of laughter.
I have been working on my collection of ‘Honey’ stories and am two thirds done this final edit. After discussion at the previous Meeting, I decided to re-read some of these stories at Meetings. Last night I read “The Best Thing”, the first story in the manuscript, but probably the last one I had written. It’s about how I met Honey (Bryon), and how we became a couple. Darlene said it sounded polished, and that’s most likely because it was one of the last stories I had written over a twenty year span. When I put all my stories together, I needed something to start the book and let the reader know what to expect. One would hope my writing had improved after twenty years!
Darlene read the next section of her story “Watering Restrictions”, about wife and husband, Ethel and Ralph, having different views about a recent local by-law that limited watering. We hear they have reached Phase 3 of the restrictions, which means hand watering only, and Ethel is still watering beyond the restricted allowance and Ralph catches her at 3:00 a.m. Somebody hangs signs on the city’s dying trees decrying the restrictions. Then Ethel discovers fines for defying restrictions tied to her trees. There are water outages at City Hall and the administrative staff all walk out and Council has to find a different venue for meetings. Ethel complains to a TV news crew and Ralph gets mad. Ralph and Ethel stop talking. One day he hears her voice, but only from the TV. We were all laughing by this point. I see shades of Desi and Lucy, or Ralph and Alice, in this depiction of marital disagreement. Very funny.
Jessica didn’t bring any of her writing to read, but gave us verbally her own background story about falling in love at first sight and then eloping to marry an American Marine. In true military fashion, they have detailed plans for how to proceed so they may eventually find themselves living together in one country, without the prospect of deportation for one or the other. Jessica says a lot of her writing has been personal memoir about lessons learned through living, and she hopes to improve her writing abilities, as do all of us. If she can write a story as engagingly as she tells one, she is well on her way.
So after considering what was read and discussed last night, it was apparent most of our writing was based on personal experience, usually with our significant other. That’s when I said the adage for writers might be true: Write what you know!
We had some discussion last night about changing dates for Meetings. We were thinking that instead of meeting the 1st and 3rd Wednesday of the month, maybe we should meet every other Wednesday, and pick the be-weekly schedule that would coincide with Chris’s parenting schedule. What do members think of that? Let me know what you think, and we’ll discuss this some more at the next Meeting.
The next Meeting will be Wednesday, April 4th at 7:00 p.m. here at my place. Hope to see you then!
Lisa A. Hatton
Author
Thursday, March 8, 2018
THE REVIEW
MY APOLOGIES
Charity, Darlene and Annette joined me last night for us to read our work and discuss writing and life in general. Luke said he was busy packing for a forthcoming move and we all know how daunting that can be. Chris would like to make the meetings, but his parenting schedule comes first. We know what that’s like, too. All you can do is just keep writing in the meantime.
My apologies go out to Charity. In the previous Review, I omitted mention of Charity’s reading at the last Meeting, posted the Review and sent out the link to everyone. Charity read it right away and noticed the omission. Later that day, I awoke from a nap suddenly, realizing the mistake I had made and promptly corrected it, including mention of Charity in the Review. But I didn’t send out an announcement about it, hoping no one had read it yet. I was too late. So I apologize sincerely. My only excuse was that I was tired that day, or you can blame it on advancing years. I am sorry.
Last night Charity read first from Trixie Trouble. It was a detailed chapter about Trixie being tied up in the cellar of the saloon. Mundy and Carmen want to know where the rest of the stolen gold is hidden, thinking she knows where it is. They recognize her Pa’s gun. She refuses to tell them anything and they start beating her. The saloon owner arrives and stops the beating. The saloon owner turns out to be Trixie’s Ma. Great way to end the chapter, which had been full of gruesome happenings.
Darlene read the next section of her story “Watering Restrictions”. Ethel is against newly passed watering restrictions because she has a very “artistic” garden. Neighbours think she uses too much water. Her husband Ralph loves his wife but wants to get along with everyone. Ethel starts watering before and after allowed watering times. When a By-law Officer starts watching her sprinkling one day, she offers him a coffee. This story gives us a picture of the challenges home owners in suburbia face during a hot, dry summer.
Annette said she had started writing stories based on her life. She also said it was because I told her she should do so. The title (just this one story or the collection?) is “Bringing Up Grandma”. Annette’s Grandmother died in 2001, and Annette had to read a eulogy at her funeral. We learn Grandma had moved to B.C. from Saskatchewan and lived in the Aldergrove area. She outlived her husband. She loved going to church, and prayer was her answer to most problems. And we also learn she had mothered Annette for the first two years of her life. This is a good depiction of a definite character and we hope to hear more, especially since Annette told us she had left things out!
I read a new short story I wrote last week called “Caller Unknown”. This story is straight fiction. I had used a writing prompt that said ‘tell of ending up with the wrong cell phone’. The story tells of a young woman retrieving a cell phone her friend left behind at a Karaoke bar, and ending up being stopped by police who are tracking the friend through the phone. Charity said she wanted to know more about the point of view character and Darlene wanted to know what had made the two women friends. So that made me realize the story needs more work. I think I want to emphasize how two people from similar backgrounds can make different choices in life and end up going down totally different paths. I usually want to make a point of some kind when I write a short story, whether it’s a true story or not.
The next Meeting will be Wednesday, March 21st at 7:00 p.m. here at my place. Hope to see you then. And if you’re suffering a writer’s block, be sure to go out and kiss the Blarney Stone on St. Patrick’s Day, March 17th!
Lisa A. Hatton
Author
Charity, Darlene and Annette joined me last night for us to read our work and discuss writing and life in general. Luke said he was busy packing for a forthcoming move and we all know how daunting that can be. Chris would like to make the meetings, but his parenting schedule comes first. We know what that’s like, too. All you can do is just keep writing in the meantime.
My apologies go out to Charity. In the previous Review, I omitted mention of Charity’s reading at the last Meeting, posted the Review and sent out the link to everyone. Charity read it right away and noticed the omission. Later that day, I awoke from a nap suddenly, realizing the mistake I had made and promptly corrected it, including mention of Charity in the Review. But I didn’t send out an announcement about it, hoping no one had read it yet. I was too late. So I apologize sincerely. My only excuse was that I was tired that day, or you can blame it on advancing years. I am sorry.
Last night Charity read first from Trixie Trouble. It was a detailed chapter about Trixie being tied up in the cellar of the saloon. Mundy and Carmen want to know where the rest of the stolen gold is hidden, thinking she knows where it is. They recognize her Pa’s gun. She refuses to tell them anything and they start beating her. The saloon owner arrives and stops the beating. The saloon owner turns out to be Trixie’s Ma. Great way to end the chapter, which had been full of gruesome happenings.
Darlene read the next section of her story “Watering Restrictions”. Ethel is against newly passed watering restrictions because she has a very “artistic” garden. Neighbours think she uses too much water. Her husband Ralph loves his wife but wants to get along with everyone. Ethel starts watering before and after allowed watering times. When a By-law Officer starts watching her sprinkling one day, she offers him a coffee. This story gives us a picture of the challenges home owners in suburbia face during a hot, dry summer.
Annette said she had started writing stories based on her life. She also said it was because I told her she should do so. The title (just this one story or the collection?) is “Bringing Up Grandma”. Annette’s Grandmother died in 2001, and Annette had to read a eulogy at her funeral. We learn Grandma had moved to B.C. from Saskatchewan and lived in the Aldergrove area. She outlived her husband. She loved going to church, and prayer was her answer to most problems. And we also learn she had mothered Annette for the first two years of her life. This is a good depiction of a definite character and we hope to hear more, especially since Annette told us she had left things out!
I read a new short story I wrote last week called “Caller Unknown”. This story is straight fiction. I had used a writing prompt that said ‘tell of ending up with the wrong cell phone’. The story tells of a young woman retrieving a cell phone her friend left behind at a Karaoke bar, and ending up being stopped by police who are tracking the friend through the phone. Charity said she wanted to know more about the point of view character and Darlene wanted to know what had made the two women friends. So that made me realize the story needs more work. I think I want to emphasize how two people from similar backgrounds can make different choices in life and end up going down totally different paths. I usually want to make a point of some kind when I write a short story, whether it’s a true story or not.
The next Meeting will be Wednesday, March 21st at 7:00 p.m. here at my place. Hope to see you then. And if you’re suffering a writer’s block, be sure to go out and kiss the Blarney Stone on St. Patrick’s Day, March 17th!
Lisa A. Hatton
Author
Saturday, February 24, 2018
THE REVIEW
LET IT SNOW!
In spite of the snow, and threat of snow, there were five of us here Wednesday night invoking The Muse. Charity, Luke, Annette and new member Darlene Schmidt joined me for an inspirational meeting.
I read first, a new short story of 750 words I had written last Monday. It is based on a true story, but greatly condensed and fictionalized. I plan to send it to the contest at Polar Expressions this year. The story is about an elderly writer who, along with her husband, is moved away by their son so he can look after them. But they are both seriously ill and life becomes complicated and devastating before they both die. The story is told by a third party (another writer) who goes back and reads related emails. The ending is very sad. Charity said she liked learning about the challenges that confront some elderly people. Darlene said the ending made her gasp. And Luke said the elderly lady reminded him of his grandmother.
Charity read from Trixie Trouble and we see Trixie being mistaken for a boy as she is fed by the tart at the hotel. Trixie is challenged by a man called Mundy and she shows she can shoot the gun she carries. As she waits for the doc to arrive, she drinks her coffee and feels faint and passes out. The poor girl is beset by one disaster after another. Will she survive?
Luke read the next scene with Goren and Galeena arriving back at his earthquake demolished home. He tries making plans about food and where they should go, but she is hovering and asking questions and he gets annoyed and tells her to take his cloak to wear. She sets about tearing it up and fashioning a useful outfit out of the cloak, and then makes herself shoes to wear. She knows how to do this, but doesn’t remember how she knows. They need to travel back to the river to get his boots.
Annette read the next 200 words at the beginning of Chapter 11. Maxine learns that after tests and a CT scan, Jarod has no serious brain problems, and can still answer questions by blinking his eyes. But he still doesn’t know his name, or where he lives, or who Maxine is. And nobody knows why. Annette asked us to suggest ways she could prevent this character from communicating who he really is. I had already suggested that as well as his jaw being wired shut, he should have a broken arm so he can’t write. And we thought maybe he could develop an adverse reaction of some kind to the medication he is getting. We could really make the poor guy suffer.
Darlene read to us the first section of a 10,000 word short story she has written entitled “Watering Restrictions”. A husband and wife are at the dining table discussing watering restrictions and local politics, but their opinions are diametrically opposed. He sounds pragmatic and practical while she sounds reflective and romantic. They made me laugh. We look forward to hearing more of this disparate couple.
The next Meeting will be Wednesday, March 7th, at 7:00 p.m. here at my place. Looking out the window at all the snow, I am hoping we will have a complete wintermelt before then. And may The Muse be sure to answer your call!
Lisa A. Hatton
Author
In spite of the snow, and threat of snow, there were five of us here Wednesday night invoking The Muse. Charity, Luke, Annette and new member Darlene Schmidt joined me for an inspirational meeting.
I read first, a new short story of 750 words I had written last Monday. It is based on a true story, but greatly condensed and fictionalized. I plan to send it to the contest at Polar Expressions this year. The story is about an elderly writer who, along with her husband, is moved away by their son so he can look after them. But they are both seriously ill and life becomes complicated and devastating before they both die. The story is told by a third party (another writer) who goes back and reads related emails. The ending is very sad. Charity said she liked learning about the challenges that confront some elderly people. Darlene said the ending made her gasp. And Luke said the elderly lady reminded him of his grandmother.
Charity read from Trixie Trouble and we see Trixie being mistaken for a boy as she is fed by the tart at the hotel. Trixie is challenged by a man called Mundy and she shows she can shoot the gun she carries. As she waits for the doc to arrive, she drinks her coffee and feels faint and passes out. The poor girl is beset by one disaster after another. Will she survive?
Luke read the next scene with Goren and Galeena arriving back at his earthquake demolished home. He tries making plans about food and where they should go, but she is hovering and asking questions and he gets annoyed and tells her to take his cloak to wear. She sets about tearing it up and fashioning a useful outfit out of the cloak, and then makes herself shoes to wear. She knows how to do this, but doesn’t remember how she knows. They need to travel back to the river to get his boots.
Annette read the next 200 words at the beginning of Chapter 11. Maxine learns that after tests and a CT scan, Jarod has no serious brain problems, and can still answer questions by blinking his eyes. But he still doesn’t know his name, or where he lives, or who Maxine is. And nobody knows why. Annette asked us to suggest ways she could prevent this character from communicating who he really is. I had already suggested that as well as his jaw being wired shut, he should have a broken arm so he can’t write. And we thought maybe he could develop an adverse reaction of some kind to the medication he is getting. We could really make the poor guy suffer.
Darlene read to us the first section of a 10,000 word short story she has written entitled “Watering Restrictions”. A husband and wife are at the dining table discussing watering restrictions and local politics, but their opinions are diametrically opposed. He sounds pragmatic and practical while she sounds reflective and romantic. They made me laugh. We look forward to hearing more of this disparate couple.
The next Meeting will be Wednesday, March 7th, at 7:00 p.m. here at my place. Looking out the window at all the snow, I am hoping we will have a complete wintermelt before then. And may The Muse be sure to answer your call!
Lisa A. Hatton
Author
Thursday, January 18, 2018
THE REVIEW
A TEENAGE GHOST, A TEXAS TART AND MEMORY LOSS
Fabulous Meeting of The Rams last night. Charity, Luke, Annette, Chris, and Jim Williams joined me and contributed to a writer’s feast of storytelling.
Jim read first from his now published Young Adult novel, “Haunting Of The Wired Monk – The Coventry Ghosts Book 1”. In the prologue we see teenaged Leanne killed in front of a coffee shop where she wants to stay to thank the two ladies who tried to save her. Then in Chapter 16, we see the kitten Sara die and decide to stay with Leanne. The two ghosts become the haunts at the Wired Monk coffee shop, in ghastly, ghostly cahoots everafter.
We learned from Jim that this book has been published as an eBook at www.divinedestinies.com and is available at all eBook retailers. It is also available as print-on-demand at Amazon. Jim also has a romance being published by another imprint of the same company. It is “Quadratic Equations” published at www.extasybooks.com with an estimated publishing date of January 26, 2018.
We wish Jim continued success with his writing career and thank him for his time sharing his experience with us.
Luke read more from his novel, and we see Goren and Galeena (who doesn’t remember her real name) leaving the river and trekking to his home. Along the way, Goren realizes she is not from the same tribe as him, and he keeps trying to determine what tribe she belongs to. Sometimes she’s childlike, and sometimes like a stealthy hunter. This chapter is being used to help build the world that Goren inhabits.
Annette read Chapter 10 that shows Maxine back in Jarod’s hospital room now that he has regained consciousness, but he ignores her. His jaw is wired shut, so he is asked by the nurse to use eye blinks to answer yes or no questions. He answers no when asked if his name is Jarod Foster, yes when asked if he remembers the motorcycle accident, and no when asked if he remembers Maxine. Maxine fumes at being so easily forgotten. Maxine is dealing with a lot of emotion in this chapter.
Charity read the next chapter in “Trixie Trouble”. Trixie enters the town of Shaughnessy at night and then collapses in an alley. A tart tries to go through her pockets and belongings, but Trixie awakes and challenges her. She asks the woman to get her a room, a bath and a doctor in exchange for a gold coin.
Chris read Chapter 2 from “It’s Hot And It Burns”. His male character with memory loss goes through the brown paper bag as the SUV that dropped it off disappears into the desert. Inside the bag he finds enough rations for another day, and a pencil and notebook with “Konfessions” written on the first page. Also in the bag is a roll of toilet paper, which seems ludicrous as he fights against the sudden, overwhelming need to defecate, trying not to spoil his only clothes. His war within seems excruciating and hilarious. We could all see him standing stiff-legged, all alone in the middle of the desert.
I did not read anything last night. My thanks go out to Wendy Francis, another Ram who is unable to attend our Meetings, who graciously did an extensive edit of “Honey Signed The Waiver” for me. She caught all sorts of things that needed correction, such as repeated use of distinct words in the same story, an inconsistent number of cats attributed to my household from story to story, and changes needed from present tense to past tense. I think she spent a lot of hours doing this for me and I am extremely grateful. It’s amazing what another set of eyes can see.
The next Meeting will be Wednesday, February 7th at 7:00 p.m. here at my place. Hope to see you then and may The Muse haunt you like a wanton woman so you won’t forget how much you love to write her words.
Lisa A. Hatton
Author
Fabulous Meeting of The Rams last night. Charity, Luke, Annette, Chris, and Jim Williams joined me and contributed to a writer’s feast of storytelling.
Jim read first from his now published Young Adult novel, “Haunting Of The Wired Monk – The Coventry Ghosts Book 1”. In the prologue we see teenaged Leanne killed in front of a coffee shop where she wants to stay to thank the two ladies who tried to save her. Then in Chapter 16, we see the kitten Sara die and decide to stay with Leanne. The two ghosts become the haunts at the Wired Monk coffee shop, in ghastly, ghostly cahoots everafter.
We learned from Jim that this book has been published as an eBook at www.divinedestinies.com and is available at all eBook retailers. It is also available as print-on-demand at Amazon. Jim also has a romance being published by another imprint of the same company. It is “Quadratic Equations” published at www.extasybooks.com with an estimated publishing date of January 26, 2018.
We wish Jim continued success with his writing career and thank him for his time sharing his experience with us.
Luke read more from his novel, and we see Goren and Galeena (who doesn’t remember her real name) leaving the river and trekking to his home. Along the way, Goren realizes she is not from the same tribe as him, and he keeps trying to determine what tribe she belongs to. Sometimes she’s childlike, and sometimes like a stealthy hunter. This chapter is being used to help build the world that Goren inhabits.
Annette read Chapter 10 that shows Maxine back in Jarod’s hospital room now that he has regained consciousness, but he ignores her. His jaw is wired shut, so he is asked by the nurse to use eye blinks to answer yes or no questions. He answers no when asked if his name is Jarod Foster, yes when asked if he remembers the motorcycle accident, and no when asked if he remembers Maxine. Maxine fumes at being so easily forgotten. Maxine is dealing with a lot of emotion in this chapter.
Charity read the next chapter in “Trixie Trouble”. Trixie enters the town of Shaughnessy at night and then collapses in an alley. A tart tries to go through her pockets and belongings, but Trixie awakes and challenges her. She asks the woman to get her a room, a bath and a doctor in exchange for a gold coin.
Chris read Chapter 2 from “It’s Hot And It Burns”. His male character with memory loss goes through the brown paper bag as the SUV that dropped it off disappears into the desert. Inside the bag he finds enough rations for another day, and a pencil and notebook with “Konfessions” written on the first page. Also in the bag is a roll of toilet paper, which seems ludicrous as he fights against the sudden, overwhelming need to defecate, trying not to spoil his only clothes. His war within seems excruciating and hilarious. We could all see him standing stiff-legged, all alone in the middle of the desert.
I did not read anything last night. My thanks go out to Wendy Francis, another Ram who is unable to attend our Meetings, who graciously did an extensive edit of “Honey Signed The Waiver” for me. She caught all sorts of things that needed correction, such as repeated use of distinct words in the same story, an inconsistent number of cats attributed to my household from story to story, and changes needed from present tense to past tense. I think she spent a lot of hours doing this for me and I am extremely grateful. It’s amazing what another set of eyes can see.
The next Meeting will be Wednesday, February 7th at 7:00 p.m. here at my place. Hope to see you then and may The Muse haunt you like a wanton woman so you won’t forget how much you love to write her words.
Lisa A. Hatton
Author
Thursday, January 4, 2018
THE REVIEW
OFF TO A NEW START
For the first Meeting of 2018, Kay, Roger, Annette and new member Chris Wnuk joined me last night. We started with my handing out some printed reminders. One was the definition of story structure contained in one paragraph which succinctly condenses the mythical story structure for easy reference. The other two handouts were about critiquing and all the elements of story to consider both as a reader and as a writer. It’s sometimes helpful to remind ourselves of what we should pay attention to in our writing.
I also read a short, short story of mine which is about an actual phone call I received from a woman asking about the writers’ group. She was a teacher of creative writing and was disgusted we were mostly a support group and then she hung up on me. I had written the story many years ago, but some points in it are worth looking at again. And I do say that everything that happens can be fodder for a writer. The bumper sticker on my filing cabinet says “WRITERS HAVE THE LAST WORD”.
We also looked at writing goals for the coming year. Kay said she wants to be done production of her screenplay by summer and hopefully see it marketed, and she also wants to finish her second script. Chris is aiming to find an agent for his novels. Annette wants to finish her current novel and work to getting it published. I want to find a publisher for “Honey Signed The Waiver”. And Roger said he wants to find a publisher for his novel and get a sizeable advance for it. We will look back at our goals next January to see what we’ve accomplished.
Kay talked to us about the use of culture and cross-culture in her script for “Porcelain”. She wants to portray how diverse the cultural backdrop of Vancouver is without her story being too “busy”. We had an interesting discussion on how culture is portrayed in different movies and TV shows.
Roger read from Chapter 1 of his literary novel (as yet unnamed), which he said has been a 3 year project so far. He asked for feedback on the development of the two characters in this chapter, and their interaction with each other. We commented on the sexual innuendos in their meeting, and the male character seeming egotistical while the woman seemed to take charge. I thought the male might be bi-polar. Kay and Chris both asked for more visual description of the male character. I asked for a time frame for the story. Roger said the chapter title included the year, so that provided the time of the story for any reader. The personalities of both characters were very evident in this chapter.
Chris read the first chapter of his comedy/thriller novel “It’s Hot And It Burns”. We see the main character waking up alone on a flat desert with only a tarp shelter, military cot, and one bottle of water. He has no memory of who he is or how he got there. This story is first person, present tense and the tension is palpable right from the start. This chapter grabs the reader right from the start and then also ends with a hook.
Annette didn’t have anything to read. She was tired after a stressful week over her husband’s ill health.
Charity said she was unable to attend last night as she had a cold. Carolynn said it was her husband’s birthday but hopes to attend later this month.
At our next Meeting, Wednesday, January 17th at 7:00 p.m. here at my place, former Rams member Jim Williams will be attending and reading from his newly published YA book “Haunting Of The Wired Monk – The Coventry Ghosts Book I”. Jim also said he’s willing to discuss the steps in the publication process that he went through with our group as well.
Hope to see everyone on the 17th. Take care and stay healthy and may all your goals be met this year!
Lisa A. Hatton
Author
For the first Meeting of 2018, Kay, Roger, Annette and new member Chris Wnuk joined me last night. We started with my handing out some printed reminders. One was the definition of story structure contained in one paragraph which succinctly condenses the mythical story structure for easy reference. The other two handouts were about critiquing and all the elements of story to consider both as a reader and as a writer. It’s sometimes helpful to remind ourselves of what we should pay attention to in our writing.
I also read a short, short story of mine which is about an actual phone call I received from a woman asking about the writers’ group. She was a teacher of creative writing and was disgusted we were mostly a support group and then she hung up on me. I had written the story many years ago, but some points in it are worth looking at again. And I do say that everything that happens can be fodder for a writer. The bumper sticker on my filing cabinet says “WRITERS HAVE THE LAST WORD”.
We also looked at writing goals for the coming year. Kay said she wants to be done production of her screenplay by summer and hopefully see it marketed, and she also wants to finish her second script. Chris is aiming to find an agent for his novels. Annette wants to finish her current novel and work to getting it published. I want to find a publisher for “Honey Signed The Waiver”. And Roger said he wants to find a publisher for his novel and get a sizeable advance for it. We will look back at our goals next January to see what we’ve accomplished.
Kay talked to us about the use of culture and cross-culture in her script for “Porcelain”. She wants to portray how diverse the cultural backdrop of Vancouver is without her story being too “busy”. We had an interesting discussion on how culture is portrayed in different movies and TV shows.
Roger read from Chapter 1 of his literary novel (as yet unnamed), which he said has been a 3 year project so far. He asked for feedback on the development of the two characters in this chapter, and their interaction with each other. We commented on the sexual innuendos in their meeting, and the male character seeming egotistical while the woman seemed to take charge. I thought the male might be bi-polar. Kay and Chris both asked for more visual description of the male character. I asked for a time frame for the story. Roger said the chapter title included the year, so that provided the time of the story for any reader. The personalities of both characters were very evident in this chapter.
Chris read the first chapter of his comedy/thriller novel “It’s Hot And It Burns”. We see the main character waking up alone on a flat desert with only a tarp shelter, military cot, and one bottle of water. He has no memory of who he is or how he got there. This story is first person, present tense and the tension is palpable right from the start. This chapter grabs the reader right from the start and then also ends with a hook.
Annette didn’t have anything to read. She was tired after a stressful week over her husband’s ill health.
Charity said she was unable to attend last night as she had a cold. Carolynn said it was her husband’s birthday but hopes to attend later this month.
At our next Meeting, Wednesday, January 17th at 7:00 p.m. here at my place, former Rams member Jim Williams will be attending and reading from his newly published YA book “Haunting Of The Wired Monk – The Coventry Ghosts Book I”. Jim also said he’s willing to discuss the steps in the publication process that he went through with our group as well.
Hope to see everyone on the 17th. Take care and stay healthy and may all your goals be met this year!
Lisa A. Hatton
Author
Sunday, December 10, 2017
THE REVIEW
YEAR END
Charity, Luke, Kay, Annette and guest Roger Eberle joined me here Wednesday for the last Meeting of this year. I even managed to make sure my Christmas decorations were up.
I started the Meeting by going over some news items. I proudly passed around the latest Polar Expressions anthology I received with my story “Parade Of Sorrow” inside it. Then I asked the group if they would like to have past member Jim Williams come and read to us from his newly published book in his Coventry Ghost series. The group was agreeable and Charity has even offered to read his book and write a review for it if he desires one. I also asked if the group wanted to have us visited by an authors’ services representative who specializes in editing and things like ebook conversions. To that offer the group was negative as no one felt the need to purchase such services.
Charity read the next scene from “Trixie Trouble” which shows her waking up in a muddy creek in excruciating pain from her leg injury. She encounters an old scrounger who offers her a shot of whiskey to keep her going and he tells her she needs to re-think her choices in life as she isn’t doing very well. Thankful for the whiskey, she gives him a gold coin and tells him to buy himself some shoes. She longs to belong somewhere when she gets her first sight of town.
Luke read more from “Heart Of The Earth”. Goren offers to let the girl he has saved but who lost her temper and broke his nose, accompany him to town. She has no shoes and very little clothing. When she asks, he tells her Galeena was his cousin and he regrets he was unable to save her. The girl admits she remembers nothing, not even her name, and then asks if she can use the name Galeena.
Kay said she is working on her script with a partner and will soon want a second writer to go over it. She says she is also working on planning pre-production so that everything will be in place when shooting starts, as that’s when the minutes are money and everything has to happen in a tight schedule.
Annette read her next chapter “Searching For Claire”. Maxine is looking for Claire and spots her praying with a group of people and learns they were praying for Jarod. They were also praying for a man in their church who has gone missing. Maxine asks Claire how she can possibly be there for Jarod when she no longer even cares for him. And then she opens up and confides everything to Claire about her broken relationship with Jarod.
I read a new “Honey” story I’ve called “Keep Writing”. It’s about Honey breaking through my writers’ block when he lost $60.00 in rolled coins before he even left for the bank to trade them for bills. I don’t know if I will write enough new stories for a second book, but I did have to write this story down. Wendy Francis is currently proof reading “Honey Signed The Waiver” for me, and I’m very thankful she’s doing this.
Roger read to us a non-fiction article “If In The Living Years We Find An Eternal Flame Would It Be Like A Prayer?” It was a discourse on music and lyrics wondering if the two combined result in some sort of spiritual experience. It also brought up the sad recognition that we don’t often talk to loved ones when they are still here with us.
Lorelei had planned to attend, but then decided to stay home with her germs, she said. Hope she’s feeling better.
Next Meeting will be Wednesday, January 3rd at 7:00 p.m. here at my place. I hope everyone has a very Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year! I look forward to seeing everyone again in 2018!
Lisa A. Hatton
Author
Charity, Luke, Kay, Annette and guest Roger Eberle joined me here Wednesday for the last Meeting of this year. I even managed to make sure my Christmas decorations were up.
I started the Meeting by going over some news items. I proudly passed around the latest Polar Expressions anthology I received with my story “Parade Of Sorrow” inside it. Then I asked the group if they would like to have past member Jim Williams come and read to us from his newly published book in his Coventry Ghost series. The group was agreeable and Charity has even offered to read his book and write a review for it if he desires one. I also asked if the group wanted to have us visited by an authors’ services representative who specializes in editing and things like ebook conversions. To that offer the group was negative as no one felt the need to purchase such services.
Charity read the next scene from “Trixie Trouble” which shows her waking up in a muddy creek in excruciating pain from her leg injury. She encounters an old scrounger who offers her a shot of whiskey to keep her going and he tells her she needs to re-think her choices in life as she isn’t doing very well. Thankful for the whiskey, she gives him a gold coin and tells him to buy himself some shoes. She longs to belong somewhere when she gets her first sight of town.
Luke read more from “Heart Of The Earth”. Goren offers to let the girl he has saved but who lost her temper and broke his nose, accompany him to town. She has no shoes and very little clothing. When she asks, he tells her Galeena was his cousin and he regrets he was unable to save her. The girl admits she remembers nothing, not even her name, and then asks if she can use the name Galeena.
Kay said she is working on her script with a partner and will soon want a second writer to go over it. She says she is also working on planning pre-production so that everything will be in place when shooting starts, as that’s when the minutes are money and everything has to happen in a tight schedule.
Annette read her next chapter “Searching For Claire”. Maxine is looking for Claire and spots her praying with a group of people and learns they were praying for Jarod. They were also praying for a man in their church who has gone missing. Maxine asks Claire how she can possibly be there for Jarod when she no longer even cares for him. And then she opens up and confides everything to Claire about her broken relationship with Jarod.
I read a new “Honey” story I’ve called “Keep Writing”. It’s about Honey breaking through my writers’ block when he lost $60.00 in rolled coins before he even left for the bank to trade them for bills. I don’t know if I will write enough new stories for a second book, but I did have to write this story down. Wendy Francis is currently proof reading “Honey Signed The Waiver” for me, and I’m very thankful she’s doing this.
Roger read to us a non-fiction article “If In The Living Years We Find An Eternal Flame Would It Be Like A Prayer?” It was a discourse on music and lyrics wondering if the two combined result in some sort of spiritual experience. It also brought up the sad recognition that we don’t often talk to loved ones when they are still here with us.
Lorelei had planned to attend, but then decided to stay home with her germs, she said. Hope she’s feeling better.
Next Meeting will be Wednesday, January 3rd at 7:00 p.m. here at my place. I hope everyone has a very Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year! I look forward to seeing everyone again in 2018!
Lisa A. Hatton
Author
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