May 1st, 2019

Welcome back!

The first of May and many of our northern friends already returned to their homes. Last night a nucleus of regulars gathered to discuss our writing experiences. Our Ernie Ovitz has the pleasure of judging some historical novels for an FWA writing contest. In the early rounds of judging a few pages of a book are read for the sake of expediency, but a synopsis of the entire novel is on the list of the requested information. Why? What happens if a synopsis is not included?

When reading only 20 or 30 pages of a novel, a judge cannot determine if the book is starting out in a manner leading to the conclusion expected by the writer. Does the writer make salient points at the beginning of the tome, or do they wander off on a tangent early? A synopsis helps guide the judge looking for such issues. Remember, the hook for your book must come early so readers become interested quickly. The quicker you hook your reader, the more likely you are to sell your product. The same thing applies to judging literary contests. Hook your judge but give him a synopsis as a guide.

Have you ever wondered if a comma is necessary or not? Have you read those rules of grammar about using commas? Do they make sense to you? Well, all of us have fought that battle. My suggestion is to use commas sparingly and if in doubt, leave it out. Those of us using writing software which includes grammar and spell check have all found ourselves confounded by the little squiggly lines of various colors telling us of a grievous error in our writing. We make the correction suggested, and it doesn’t like that either. Oh, gracious, what do we do now? One thing I have found, if the program is persistent in asking for a correction, you might consider rewording the passage to make it easier to read or understand. This doesn’t apply to commas only, sometimes we use words that make sense to us, but readers, not from our geographical area, may find those words unfamiliar. That’s right, I’m fixin’ to tell you about a few of these. While ordering a Frap in Georgia, I was faced with a quizzical stare and a waitress saying, “A what?” Well, I near-bout spun a bearing when she brought an order of cream-o-wheat to the table with salt, pepper, and red-eye gravy slathered atop.

See what I mean, if you think the previous sentences are confusing, you’re not from the south or northeast. Or maybe, you have learned a few things over the years and aren’t surprised when colloquialisms appear in that wonderful novel on the NYT best sellers list. Unless you are attempting to use localized words to date, locate, or make your work authentic it can cause issues in getting your message across. Commas, semi-colons, and ellipses can create confusion as well. 

Lastly, in our discussion time, Bruce Haedrich brought some samples of Japanese school textbooks to show us. His daughter is a writer, designer, and publisher of these textbooks used in Japanese schools. In a departure from the standard textbook, her team has begun using popular illustrations and a storyline tailored toward students in the appropriate grade level. Each lesson is part of an overall story and encourages the students to find out what happens next by returning for the next lesson. The system has become very popular and may pave the way for reform in learning.

To begin our reading portion of the meeting, Peter McNally presented a speech to give us a background for his work. After building a successful business and beginning to enjoy the fruits of his success, he suffered a massive stroke followed by a second stroke, Grand Mal Seizure, fell into a coma, suffered a broken vertebra, while having the seizure, a burst appendix, Brain malfunction from over medication, Chest Pains, Gaul Bladder removal, and suffered schizophrenia. After all this, a sleep study revealed extreme apnea requiring the use of a breathing device. To date, it’s been a twelve-year struggle leading up to his writing a book documenting his struggles. Good luck, Peter, you deserve a little luck.

The Roman Empire in 311 A.D. was fraught with peril. Constantine waged successful campaigns in Gaul and Hispania in previous years and now returned to his family. Fausta, his wife, bore him a child as he left for war; he’d not seen the little girl until he returned after several years of fighting. He has changed thinks Fausta, and her sister compounds her worries.

At the same time, Valencia, wife of a co-emperor mourns for her son, Romulus, a youngster who died of a virulent fever. Her emperor husband denied her access to the dying boy and blames her for showing weakness. His abuse if physical as well as mental.

At a special festival, Fausta deigns to entice her husband back to his loving ways by dressing in a provocative gown and accessories only to be upstaged by the return of Constantine’s long-absent mother, rescued by his trusted aide.

Life and Death in South Caicos is a chapter from Dennis Cathcart’s book detailing the adventures of a reptile and exotic flora collector. Living on an old LST barge in South Caicos, Dennis searches the islands for exotic specimens. The life wasn’t too rough as at the end of the dock to which his barge was moored, a small hotel with a well-stocked bar catered to the needs of locals and tourists alike. The locals depend on two main sources of revenue, tourism and lobster trapping. Unfortunately, poachers from other island nations tend to raid the traps with regularity. The Marine patrol keeps an eye out for the nefarious poachers and often have dangerous run-ins with them. On this day a Cuban boat makes the mistake of trying to outrun the swift patrol boat and a crewman fires on the patrol. Armed with a 50-caliber machine gun, the patrol boat fires back and kills the crewman, disables the boat, and tows the poachers, the boat, and the illegal cargo to the dock beside Dennis’ barge. Look for this book in the future, it has more stories of intrigue and danger.

"Pepe", our own Peter Frickel read a piece entitled Waltz With the Shadows. An aged former Legionnaire sits down to write a long overdue letter to a former lover to whom he’d not returned. With a glass in hand, he begins to write but suffers an attack of frustration, he drinks more and returns to his task. At his side is his always faithful canine companion demanding little, giving all, and waiting patiently. A long day draws to a close as does the letter voicing the regrets and secrets of the old man’s life. The old man leaves his faithful companion to await his return and sets out to post the letter. A stop at the café and a final reading bring peace to the old man. There’s more, but I think you better look for this story in Peter’s next publication.

Two poems from Don Westerfield were special and as usual inspiring especially knowing he’d written The Joys of Love for his wife on their wedding anniversary. The other verse was equally touching, even without a special occasion. Wind, Earth and Rain carries so much symbolism you feel, more than hear the words as they flow from the page.

Having been away for a few meetings, Jeffry Kutcher returned with another chapter in the life of young Amauri. Cuban history class includes another view of what the world sees. Fidel and Raul Castro are cast in a different light to the Cuban youth. We look forward to seeing Jeff’s work published in the future.

After a prolonged absence, Joanne Dunlap made her way back to a meeting. We’ve missed her and the humor she usually brings with her writing. Tonight, was no different. All That Jazz describes the joys… and maybe a few downfalls of bringing a new puppy into your home. After finding the perfect dog Joanne brings Jazz home. Not quite as agile as she once was, Joanne finds the puppy’s enthusiasm a bit dangerous as leashes wrap around ankles, pillows are shredded, and furniture is defaced by tiny teeth and sharp claws. But, Jazz is still the perfect dog.

A Girl in a Red Shirt by Bruce Haedrich inspired another story, this one a flash fiction piece whose opening line promises action galore. Jessie Plotnic begins with, I sit at a table ten feet away from three men I will soon kill. I may not have quoted that opening line word for word, but close enough. Look for Bruce’s work on Amazon, the original story is in his book entitled Hadley Pennsylvania Stories.

We ran short on time with Deb MacAvoy and Scott Anderson remaining on the reading list, they’ll be up first and second at the next meeting, May 15^th. Until then, keep on writing.