It’s good to see all of you again. It has been a little too chilly for my liking, but it’s nothing compared with the temperatures north of Tampa, you know, in that part of the country called Canada. Why, it even got chilly south of Fort Myers, you know, in Cuba. Oh well, spring will be here soon.
We opened the meeting with a question: “Do You Title Your
Chapters?” Some do – some don’t, about fifty-fifty. Why?
1. 1. More information for the
reader
2. 2. To let the reader know what’s
happening in the chapter
3. 3. To set a time frame
4. 4. It allows the chapter to
tell its own story
5. 5. To allow a table of contents
6. 6. How about both? Chapter 1,
Bob meets Sally
All good reasons. It boils down to a matter of personal preference. Do you like titles, or will numbers do the job? I have used both methods, Titled and Untitled, but always with Chapter Numbers.
I’ve even gone so far as
to have it look like this, Chapter One, Bob meets Sally, June 5th,
2025. To be honest, do whatever you wish in this instance; there are no complex
rules unless your agent or publisher sets them. Bestseller lists break down
into three major categories.
1. 1. Chapter (sometimes called
parts) Numbers but no titles
2. 2. Chapter titles but no
numbers
3. 3. Combined numbers and titles
Remember, you are the writer, the author of a story. If you
want titles on your chapter, if you want a Table of Contents, it’s your choice.
Oh! Don’t forget, what are your chapter headings going to look like? Please be
consistent; style all your Chapters the same in your book.
1. 1. 1,2,3
2. 2. I.II.III
3. 3. Chapter 1, Chapter 2,
Chapter 3
4. 4. Chapter I, Chapter II,
Chapter III
5. 5. One, Two, Three
6. 6. Chapter One, Chapter Two,
Chapter Three
Note: Chapter numbers are rarely followed by a period unless
a chapter title follows on the same line.
As we moved into the reading portion of the meeting, Don
Westerfield led off by reading two poems, The Park Bench Poet, and
The Park Bench Poet II. Sitting alone on a park bench, our poet
watches the world go by. People, creatures, the weather; nothing escapes his
attention. As he ages, his view of all changes he may be a bit more understanding
of faults, of the good, of the strengths he sees, but he is constantly aware.
We live in a world that is constantly changing. Politics,
Social changes, and greed work their way into our daily lives. Every few
decades, we go to war with people of different ideologies. Who would know more
about this than a soldier? James H. Kelly writes of a family, the
Mackinseys, who are soldiers. His latest chapter, of Advance the Line,
follows the Mackenzie boys to France during 'The War to End All Wars,' WWI. A
charge forward as the troops go over the top, rising from the trenches to assault the
enemy, fear, religion, panic, and every emotion screams in the minds of the men
as they face death or worse on a battlefield.
From a battlefield filled with men facing the worst moments
of their lives to an equally stressful situation for a young woman. On the day
of her graduation from the University, Jennifer’s parents gave her a
nondescript manila envelope. Inside are the adoption papers and birth
certificate she had never known existed. Why did they wait until today? Do they still love her? Do they want her to find her Birth Mother? Roberta
Molaro gives us this story to ponder in Chapter One of The Reluctant
Heiress.
Remember? In an essay about the music of past decades, Bruce
Haedrich asks us to remember what many consider the Silent Generation,
those born between 1925 and 1945, and their music. Among many of the great
songs written during that era, 1940’s thru 1960’s, he focuses on a particular
song that topped the charts in 1962. Where Have All the Flowers Gone,
by Pete Seeger. Have you ever pondered the meaning of this lyric?
To open a novel about international intrigue, runaway
Artificial Intelligence, and soul-crushing government, Ursula Wong
starts her latest story in a setting where young immigrants live, meet, court,
and marry without ever leaving the neighborhood. How does this take us to
Russia and the former Soviet Bloc, where an AI program developed by an American
is creating chaos in the delicate political balance of the region?
When Bill Elam took the floor to read his Untitled
poem, which became his mantra for entrepreneurship, we listened intently. The attributes
of Honesty and Reputation took the forefront in how you must do business.
Anne Moore took a break from her interviews of mature women to delve into poetry. Reading her favorite poems, The Cows Are All
Gray. The Twenty, and Then the Bird
Anne will be reading on Feb 16, 7-8 pm, Florida Studio Theatre https://www.floridastudiotheatre.org/
Doors open at 6:30.
Several of us were selected to read a favorite poem; mine’s
“The Night House” by Billy Collins.
Feb 22, 5 - 6 pm, Arts and Central Restaurant https://artsandcentral.com/happenings/
I’ll be one of two poets, plus a visual artist, speaking at
their monthly arts reception. I’ll read four or five original poems.
Can I bribe you with (the restaurant’s) free wine and
appetizers? And if you’d like to stay afterwards and enjoy dinner with a 15%
discount, let me know before February 15th so I can include you in the
reservation.
I hope you can join me at one, or both, events.
And if you can’t make it, I know you’ll be there in spirit.
Well! There you go. That’s about all I have to say today. We
had a great time as always, and I learned something, as always. I hope you can
join us at our next meeting on February 18th, at the firehouse.
Until then, READ, Read, read some more, and WRITE, Write, and write some more.
