Just Write

Facilitator:  Muhammad

Present:  Richard, Jane, Muhammad, Jo Ann.

Approval of Minutes:  The minutes for 7/22/09 were approved.

Discussion/Planning:  Jo Ann informed the group of an email from Anne approving October 21, 2009, for the group to hold a reading, on site, to which the public would be invited.  We also were informed that we could still have our regular meeting nights of October 14 and 28.

In-meeting Writing:  Muhammad, as facilitator, provided the prompt for in- meeting writing.  This began with a substantial introduction, which ended, "...the bad news is...."  All wrote and then read their offerings.

Writing Submissions:  Muhammad had prepared the beginning of a fiction piece, which is not his usual style.  The story was set in Sri Lanka (his country of origin), and included customs and information unfamiliar and very interesting  to the group.  This was well received, and he was encouraged to continue this work.  There were some suggestions for possible ways needed descriptions might be improved.

Meeting adjourned at 8:45 p.m.

Scribe: Jane Harre

Facilitator:  Jane.  The meeting began at 7:00 PM

Present:  Jane, Richard, and Muhammad

Approval of Minutes:  The minutes of 6/10 and 6/24 were approved.

Announcements/Planning: 

• Discussion of proposed Reading Event in October.
• Muhammad mentioned that he needed someone to cover for him as Facilitator for the second meeting in August.  Jane suggested that Leah would be the person to contact and that an email may be sent to her asking whether she and Muhammad could switch dates in August and September.

In-meeting Writing:  Jane provided the prompt: "Olivia!  What do you carry in your handbag?"  Three different responses were read and discussed.

Reading and Critique of Writing Submissions:  Richard read a 10 page fictional submission, "The Strike", further elaborating his theme on the necessity of the villain - if there are no villains there can not be heroes.  Suggestions on how he can take his work to the next level of submitting for publication were discussed.

Writers' Reports:  Muhammad reported on progress made in his dream study project.  Some of it is a continuation of his paper read at the anthropology conference in April in Portland, OR.  He also discussed some further, minor changes done on "Benjamin Franklin and the Genealogy of Writers Groups".

Meeting adjourned at 8:45 PM

Recorder:  Muhammad, with thanks to Jane for a correction.

Facilitator:  Jane

Present:  Bill, Muhammad, Jane

Approval of Minutes:  The minutes of 7/8 were approved.

Discussion/Planning:  Jo Ann had sent an email concerning the dates available to use the large room for our planned evening of readings.  If 10/21 is available, those present could participate on that date.  If that is not good for others, it was thought we should stick to our regular meeting date of 10/14.  Other groups may be invited to listen.  Jane will reply to Jo Ann.

In-meeting Writing:  Our in-meeting prompt was, "When he saw her sobbing, a deep anger welled up within him".  Everyone wrote, and then shared their writing.  Bill wrote on spousal abuse.  Muhammad wrote about a bus stop meeting, and Jane wrote about a brother and sister.

Writing Submissions:  One submission read by Jane on "The Armor of God".  This was a recent writing on a topic written about and used for teaching in the past.

Writers' Reports:  On works in progress, Muhammad spoke of his research for his dream project, hoping not to lose sight of his original idea.

Meeting adjourned.  Next meeting August 12, 2009  

Scribe:  Jane

Several new books of interest to writers arrived this week at the library:

• Thanks, But This Isn't For Us:  A (Sort of) Compassionate Guide to Why Your Writing Is Being Rejected by Jessica Page Morrell

Review from Library Journal:  Morrell takes us through the school of hard knocks faced by writers who are struggling to get published. Without removing the creativity from creative writing, Morrell convincingly portrays the craft of writing for publication as no accident of fate by revealing the "trade secrets" of the publishing industry through the eyes of that all-important gatekeeper, the editor. Having seen too many writers making the same mistakes, Morrell examines what makes a book publishable and what makes a story suck. She goes over dozens of common writing mistakes—from character, to plot, to dialog—and helps the would-be author find the ways in which to fine-tune a manuscript to avoid another rejection letter.

• Teach Yourself How to Write Your Life Story by Ann Gawthorpe

From the publisher:  If you've ever wanted to write down your life story, but never found the time or the confidence, this book is for you. It will help you to find a style that suits you, to collect and structure all the information you need, to plan your story and discover your voice. There are lots of practical tips and reassuring advice if you're feeling daunted, and there is a complete list of all the options available for publishing your book.

• The Elements of Story:  Field Notes on Nonfiction Writing by Francis Flaherty

Review from Library Journal:  Playing on the title of Strunk and White's The Elements of Style, Flaherty, a New York Times editor who teaches journalism at New York University, shares 50 simple and insightful tips on the many elements writers can convey in stories. Not a style guide, this is instead a nuts-and-bolts examination of the larger elements of a story. First and most adamantly, he stresses the importance of bringing a human face to every story. Flaherty gives us real and invented examples of the cream of the crop of nonfiction writing in the form of narrative news articles. VERDICT This book can be read in one fell swoop to expose yourself to the full spectrum of story elements—such as theme, motion, artfulness, truth and fairness, leads, and titles—or it can be used as a guide during the process of writing non