Schedule and Location

Our group meets on the first and third Wednesday of each month at the Nokomis Fire Station. From Sarasota or North, proceed a few blocks south of Albee Road on US 41 (past Matthews-Currie Ford) to Pavonia Road. Turn right (West, toward the bay) at the Fire Station's flashing yellow caution traffic light. From the south on US 41, we are two blocks north of Dona Bay. Turn left onto Pavonia Road at the flashing yellow caution light. At the Fire Station, drive to the fire hall's far end or west side; PLEASE DO NOT BLOCK THE FIRE DEPARTMENT DOORS! We gather in the training room at the far end of the complex for a meet and greet at 6:00 pm but call the Meeting to order at 6:30 pm and take a Ten-minute break at around 7:50 pm. Meeting Adjourns: 9:00 pm

Monday, January 08, 2018

January 3rd, 2018

Welcome Back!

It’s a new year and our writers are as eager as ever to share their work. This meeting brought us one new face and a couple we haven’t seen in a while. Having been under the weather for a couple of months, we welcomed Darienne back and are glad to see her up and about once again. Also, welcome back Bill. He’s back in town, hopefully for more than a few weeks, we understand it gets cold in Kentucky, we’re glad he’s joined us again this year. As for the first-timer in our midst, Rene, an artist, joins us wanting to use her talents for writing. We welcome her aboard and will do our best to help her feel comfortable here.

At our last meeting Bruce Haedrich suggested a wrinkle for this meeting. So, we decided to give a try. At future selected meetings, a member will set forth a writing exercise prompt, a simple item or idea, and the group will spend 10 minutes scribbling away, coming up with something about the prompt. This week’s prompt being “a crumpled cup.” After the ten minutes it’s pencils down and we read what we came up with. I think it will be interesting, to say the least, the variety of this week’s musings was astounding.

A couple of meeting back, Doug challenged us to write a short, approximately 500 words, using one, or all, of the following words, Obsession, Possession, and Confession. Several of us accepted and read the vignettes. The results were varying and showed a range of ideas.

First up in reading items we would like some ideas on, we heard from Bill. Citing a busy summer schedule, he said finding time to write this summer was nearly impossible and he got more done in the few days he’s been back than all summer. He read a short piece of his story in which a nameless old man, equally nameless wife, and his airplane are the protagonists. Good work as usual. His work is entering the rewrite and edit stage now and it’s going to be good, a short novel which all can enjoy not just flying enthusiasts.

Ernie veered from his work on the Emperor Constantine and brought us a parable from the New Testament with a modern spin. Guests were amazed as a young man came to the aid of a woman at her son’s wedding. It seems she underestimated the amount of wine needed to fill all the glasses for the final toast. While knowing the outcome, it was intriguing to learn how Ernie found a way to set the story in this modern era.

Stepping back from his soon to be published memoir, Don shared a tale of two college friends traveling on a dark and dreary road. Once, in their college days, one of the boys, when romancing the daughter of an influential donor, told the girl his name was his best friend’s name instead. Poor judgement and the lack of proper precautions resulted in fingers being pointed at the wrong man. However, things worked out when the girl said she’d never seen the man in her life who’d been called to the Dean’s office. When a similar incident occurred some years later, a trip in foul weather ended with the pair being stranded at a remote farmhouse owned by an attractive older woman. The devious friend got his comeuppance, although not in a manner you might expect.

Reading from his book, A Gathering of Demons, Bruce tells of a young gypsy girl who sees the future and predicts chaos will reign. She has difficulty convincing others her vision is real. Who among us would be receptive to her predictions?

Wounded but Not Conquered from Ed’s “creative memoir,” depicts the experiences of an underage theater usher. His introduction to less than upstanding individuals unleashes a flood of exciting new adventures and lights the fuse of adolescent curiosity. Lord help us, we look forward to upcoming chapters.

A futuristic look at the fate of certain politicos, as seen by Ian in his piece entitled, Trump in Hell. Analyses the circles of hell while attempting to choose the appropriate castigation for the sins committed. Fantastic humor precedes a conclusion which is completely off the wall and unexpected. Enthusiastically entertaining.

We wish you all the best in the new year. Join us the first and third Wednesday of the month for entertaining interaction with fellow writers designed to help your writing as you help other writers as well.

Until then, 
Keep on Writing.

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