Snakes, Spiders and Palmetto Bugs

Our own Rodney DiGruttolo, chief cat herder and master of ceremonies for our FWA writers group meetings, has published his wonderful anthology of Skeets and his buddies growing up in southwest Florida. We have listened to the many great tales over the years and wondered if and when the stories would be available in a single, continuous story. Well, we wait no longer, the book, "Snakes, Spiders and Palmetto Bugs," is available both as a paperback and an e-book from Amazon. Congratulations to Rod on publishing "Snakes, Spiders and Palmetto Bugs"

January 29th, 2014

“It was a dark and stormy night....” Apologies to Edward Bulwer-Lytton, but for Florida, it was a cold and rainy, if not really stormy, night and I was surprised to see 17 names on the sign-in sheet. I expected the turnout to be quite a bit smaller. Die hard writers, this group.

We greeted new guests Mary and Jim Hanna from San Francisco, and Dennis Quinn, from Massachusetts via Alabama, who is also a seasonal resident, but hopefully, they will be full time members while they are here in our odd little corner of paradise.

First, my sincere apologies to everyone for unintentionally skewing our calendar, and our schedule, by slipping everything back in January due to the scheduled meeting that would have been held on the 1^st! I wouldn't have made it to any writers meeting on New Years Day, and I'm sure there wouldn't have been as much of a turnout on the unofficial National College football day as we had this last meeting. I scheduled a meeting on January 29^th to fill the gap and everything scheduled behind that went in the proverbial dumper. We resume our regular schedule on Wednesday, the 5^th, and will meet on the first and third Wednesdays of each month as always.

Rod DiGruttolo handled the duties as MC and allowed me to make several announcements, including a reminder about the upcoming Dearborn Street Book festival in Englewood. While we are past he deadline for writing entries, table space may still be obtained at www.facebook.comDSBookFest.

Due to the short week turnaround, and my being out of town for three days, this blog will be uncharacteristically truncated. We opened with Bill Elam reading “The Physician”, Don Westerfield reading his “The Man Who Never Was – along with the poem “High Flight” – and George Collias, who has a screenplay in the oven, followed by the delightful Kathleen Schwartz and her bi-polar cat. 

Jim Kelly brought more than enough copies of his great poetry, and a story about the fifth graders he so diligently works with. “Lightning looks like a strip of death,” a marvelous comment from one of his young understudies, followed by Cathy Marine and her next chapter of her non-fiction “Wings in the Water.” Suzi Lynch read for only the second time, and once again enthralled the group. “Wonder what I would have thought of myself at that age?” and nuances – twenty-five at a time... Great stuff.

Jenny Oberg continued the reading with “Observations at a Red Light,” followed by George Mindling with an excerpt from a published Waterline article from years ago. We wrapped up the evening with the introduction to Rod DiGruttola's sinister character “Horace.” I have the advantage here of having read ahead, chapter 4 is a real change for Rod, and is outstanding stuff. I can't give anything away here, it'll come out at the next meeting, Wednesday, Feb 5^th.  If I left anything out, my apologies yet once again.

George

Wednesday, January 15, 2014

We had our first official meeting of the new year with many familiar faces returning to rejoin our group, and a few new faces as well! It was great to see so many folks in attendance.

George Mindling kicked off our meeting with the following announcements:

• We received our "Thank You" letter from the Nokomis fire department, along with an invitation to continue meeting there for as long as we'd like.
• George will have a table set up at the Dearborn Street Festival on February 15th in Englewood and is welcoming those who'd be interested to speak to him about joining him.
• Based on the fact that we bypassed our first meeting date of the year (January 1st) to watch football and spend time with our families, we'll be meeting again on January 29th.
• Elizabeth Sims was recently interviewed in Writers Digest where she was kind enough to mention our writers group. She has also agreed to come speak to our group on April 16th, so mark your calendars!

Rod DiGruttolo took over moderator duties as we headed into our first meeting by introducing several of our newer folk, people we hope to see again soon, and moved into our readings.

Laura Heath was our first reader of the evening with a meditation for the new year for writers she titled, "Getting Back to It." In her somewhat tongue-in-cheek piece she encouraged writers to clear their bad habits "unless saving them for lent." Easier said than done, right? Well, saving it for lent sounds like as good an excuse as any...

Next, Ed Ellis shared a piece he called, "Very Short, But True, Story." In his story the protagonist introduced us to life as a sole male in a female dominated household. With four daughters and a wife, the home was "a democracy." The primary catalyst for conflict appeared to be the toilet. After all the training to master the art of putting the lid down, he made the "mistake" of being overzealous in his learning and also lowered the cover. His wife found this out the hard way in the middle of the night in the dark. Though it didn't bode well for him, we found the story to be quite humorous. His defense was that he was trying to "protect" his family and their tooth brushes because he'd heard bacteria from flushing actually travels six feet! Yes, this little factoid was good to know. Toothbrush is now safely kept in the medicine chest.... Thanks, Ed!

 

Local author of Myahmuh: a Novel of Miami, Florida and Sandspurs: Limericks by a Native Floridian, George Collias, shared more from his book, Myahmuh. After learning that Charles, one of the main characters, lived with an alcoholic (an most likely abusive) father, we, along with the boys, the boys discovered, as they were about to leave for their camping trip, that there might be a multiple murderer on the loose. I don't know about you guys, but after all that, camping didn't exactly sound like the safest or smartest idea.

 

Jim Kelly, poet author of  the Place and From the Embers, shared two recent pieces called "Mourning Dove" and "Blue Notes." With his permission, I'll share one of them now. It's easy to see why his poetry is so beloved by the group.

Blue Notes
(written 12/19/13)

Blue notes frolic on the inside of the window,
hinting of soft and easy.

Some say it's a national treasure--
others...a place where heaven comes
to score its music.

In a dingy room, almost too small for itself,
fan blades chase each other
through a blue-gray haze clinging to the ceiling.

That horn...jumps right up front, demanding every ear--
polished notes tumbling from the flare,
rising, falling, melting away,
making room for others.

That mute...dodging in and out
of progressions,
wailing, weeping, coaxing emotions from shells.

That steel brush...prancing across the snare,
measuring its steps,
offering only what is needed.

That sax...with the smoker's voice
pretending to go unnoticed.
And that flute, that ebony flute laced in silver buttons,
stands up and flaunts its credits.

An old man sits at a table for two--half-full, half-empty.
Eyes closed, head cocked in silence,
his lips finger the sounds he knows by heart--
ones that take him where he yearns to be.

Bill Elam returned from the cold north to share more of his tale with us. In "The Gardener" we revisit the ripples that the old man's actions had at the end of his life. We learned that as the old man, knowing his time was nearly done, gave his earthly possessions away, he helped turn dreams into realities. The simple lawn mower he gave away helped to start a new life and career for a man who was floundering....how apropos that it was in landscaping. Those of us who've heard most of this tale truly appreciated the beauty in the circle he created.

Next, Kathleen Schwartz, also back from up north (and hopefully on a more permanent basis), had us rolling with laughter as she shared an excerpt from her current piece with a working title of "Jazzed On Life." In this chapter, the realities of aging, new relationships, and Viagra took a wrong, if not hilarious turn. What began as a serious discussion about the status of their relationship devolved into hysterical laughter as honest communication regarding sex and the pressure to perform were discussed. There was not a dry eye in the house as she read, but then, stomach muscles got a much needed work out, too as we cracked up along with the main characters.

Next, a prose piece called "Moments" was shared by Jenny Oberg. In this piece she discussed how simple moments can become snapshots of memories; the thoughts, the feelings, the love. It was beautiful in its simplicity.

JoAnn Phillips, author of Adventures of a Sea Hag, continued with her newest work in progress, "Matrix of Life." In this chapter, on her mother's birthday, we're introduced to a friend of her mother; a guy named Jerry. Although there was some humor in young Joanne's first attempt to make a birthday cake (she didn't know what shortening was, so she substituted corn starch figuring that something was better than nothing), it was also filled with a lot of scary moments for a child to go through. Finding out about Jerry through an innocent story told by Joann, her father accuses her mother of an affair, and causes a scene in front of Jerry's home and wife. Despite their denials, her father leaves them. Her mother punishes Joanne by destroying her horse collection. The entire scene was cringe-worthy. Joann continues to grow by leaps and bounds in her writing style.

As Kerri Dieffenwierth continues to tweak her memoirs, we get to be the fortunate listeners. This particular portion was called "Race Track." She is working at a stable, training horses. The particular one she was to work with that day was big and strong, but considered "El Caballo Defectiva" or a defective horse. The line that most spoke to me was, "Horses sense fear like solicitors sense you're home." As she works with the horse, he takes off, out of control. All her attempts to stop him were unsuccessful. She found herself thrown hard, hurt, and rushed to the ER. After numerous attempts to realign her collar bone properly to set, she'd had it and walked out. Oddly enough, the thing that came through was that through all the self doubt, the sense of unworthiness, the misery....it was then that she seemed to find her inner strength and her realization that she was better and stronger than she ever thought she was. She finally began to discover herself. It made me want to stand up and cheer.

Next, Ernie Ovitz, shared more from his work in progress, "The Seventh King." In this portion we travel back to 302AD and meet Princess Amatus, a maiden aunt...sister to the queen who'd passed away. Her 15 year old niece came to visit her, bored, and discussing how she wants to get married or to meet a "man." She warns her ward that not only is such talk unseemly, it would be best should her wishes not make their way to her father's ear.

Don Westerfield, another of our resident poets, shared some of his older works. One depicted his love of flying, described what it must feel like to be a pilot. The other was quite appropriate to today's world where we have all sorts of subtitutes from meats to sugar to so much more... That's the one I'll be sharing with you today.

 

IMITATIONS

 

I find it's a counterfeit world we live in,

nothing is what it appears to be.

Oh, it may look like the real thing,

but it's a false reality.

 

I first noticed it in the store one day,

(I hesitate these words to utter),

but they were selling imitation margarine

and I think it was mostly butter.

 

Yet the cheese was made from soybeans

and other labels made it clear,

the lemonade didn't come from lemons

and there was no alcohol in the beer.

 

The sweet stuff wasn't sugar

from what I could deduce,

it was all some chemical mixture,

like the orange juice - it contained no juice.

 

Even my shoes are no longer leather

and I find that quite pathetic.

It's all man-made materials, except the rubber heels

they're genuine...synthetic.

 

Why the wood in my house, I believe,

is nothing but pressed sawdust.

I'm beginning to wonder how long it'll stand;

what is there left to trust?

 

You see that proverbial last straw has hit me.

Right after our matrimonial whirl

my sweetie told me about her operation,

yep,...seems she's only an imitation girl.

 

 

Kitt Crescendo finally published her book, Three For All, over the holidays. She came with business cards and bookmarks to share with the group. We were thrilled for her and wish her much success. As a thank you for all of our support, she shared the excerpt that she'd posted on her blog to announce her new release and continued to read a bit more. If there were windows in our meeting room in that firehouse, the windows would have been fogged. If you missed her excerpt, click on her name. It leads back directly to her blog post announcement.

 

George Mindling shared two things. First was humorous reminders of common writing mistakes and how to avoid them. The second was a short piece he wrote called "Disappointment." In his story he shared how a memory, from a child's perspective, can be perceived so differently when shared with an adult audience. As a smile child he'd been enamored of penguins and had been disappointed to learn that they were small. Of course, sharing this memory to his adult daughter was met by her with laughter...probably mostly because it's hard for us as adults to imagine our parents as children, making childlike suppositions. Needless to say, penguins are now a part of family lore and a way to tease dad.

 

 

Lois Stern, originator of inspiring compilation book series, Tales To Inspire: Topaz & Emerald was back in town and shared her cautionary tale called "Hubris." In this piece, she shares, with self deprecating humor, about an email she'd received to be a guest speaker at a very reputable university in England. At first she came into the "opportunity" feeling as though she'd been patted on the back, but wondering "what's the catch?" As she did her due diligence she discovered that the person who reached out to her was on staff at the university, very easy to work with, quick to answer questions. She became more excited. Just when she thought it was safe to pack her bags, "the catch" presented itself. To expedite her "work permit" she'd need to mail them money to "grease the wheel" in a timely manner. Yep, it turned out to be a long, drawn out scam by some skilled con artists. Thankfully, she caught it before she'd actually "invested" anything of monetary value into this "opportunity." There's definitely a reason why the saying, "If it seems too good to be true, it probably is" has lasted.

 

On that final note, our wonderful, eclectic group closed out the night. We look forward to seeing what the next meeting holds in store for us. 



Wednesday, December 4, 2013

Our first meeting of December found us without JoAnne Phillips as she'd been in an accident earlier. Her feisty personality was missed. Thankfully, we've heard that she's okay and has been seen out and about enjoying the holiday festivities.

Rod DiGruttolo facilitated our meeting and did a great job, as usual.

Our first reader for the evening was Ed Ellis. He shared a piece for critique called "The Power of Abstraction." This piece is one written for his training manuals. In it he helps to define abstraction as it relates to perception and reality.

Next, Jenny Oberg read a piece she called "Letting Go" from her Big Book. In her piece she talks about how finding a way to let go of the past and other things that hold you down open you to freedom. It was beautifully written and spoke to the joys of a well lived life.

Ernie Ovitz decided to change things up a bit, and instead of sharing from his work-in-progress, he read something he'd created for work. In it, he writes a "buyer beware" type alert for flood insurance and the rate increases due to the ambiguity in the way the policies are written...and that a fast fix is unlikely.

Author of  Sandspurs: Limericks by a Native Floridian and Myahmuh: A novel of Miami, Florida, George Collias, shared an excerpt from the second book about the killer and his bouts with sore muscles and headaches due to the exertions his killings have been putting on his not-so-in-shape body. He followed it by sharing a piece called Misadventures of a Fly Fisherman written by Jack Hemingway, a personal friend and son of Ernest Hemingway. In the portion he shared, Jack finds a creative way to smuggle his fly fishing rod with him as he parachutes from a plane into German occupied territory during war time.

Next, one of our resident poets and author of The Place: a collection of poems, Jim Kelly, shared a couple of his newest writings. Below is one of the pieces he wrote on 11/5/13.

Ocean

Sunrise and sunset
pamper the sky
on the edge
where the sea meditates.

Waves tumble ashore:
searching for shadows
they can not own,

wrestling castles from moorings,
erasing memories
little feet scatter in the sand.

Tides rise and fall
through the stillness of night
sifting windows of broken shells.

Full of itself,
the moon reappears
to dance on a glass-like floor;

the ocean unravels in whispers,
like the hem
on a ballroom gown.

Jung Sok Yo asked Kitt Crescendo to read the next portion of his work-in-progress where Father Sebastian and Helga are reunited on her father's passing. This particular part uncovers illicit feelings between Helga and the priest as he tries to come to terms with his feelings and do the right thing based on his vows to the church. The writing has improved significantly since the beginning. The biggest suggestions given were about chapter length (too long right now) and overuse of certain words.

George Mindling, author of US Air Force Tactical Missiles, shared some interesting discoveries he'd made surrounding some of the strange idiosyncrasies regarding the English language in relation to BBC. He also shared with us a list of collective nouns he'd found in a recent post called Fun With Words: Collective Nouns. He also shared a site where you can find editors marks and what they mean.

Kitt Crescendo shared a poem she'd written called Redemption where she put a bit of a twist on the child's prayer "Now I lay me down to sleep". Overall it was well received, but she was asked to speak more slowly next time.

Finally, Rod DiGruttolo closed us out by sharing a portion of his manuscript called "Disciple of Darkness" in which the father of his protagonist is introduced. The man is definitely not a nice person and has ties to the criminal underworld. In this particular chapter, World War I was just beginning and Mr. Wilkes has drawn the attention of the local law. Although nothing is ever proven, it becomes obvious that no charges will ever be filed against Mr. Wilkes because every witness to his misdeeds has a strange way of turning up dead.

Overall, the meeting was enjoyable and there were new faces who joined our group. We look forward to our Christmas party tomorrow.

Wednesday, November 20, 2013

I know I'm a bit behind on the blogs, but I will be catching up this week.

Please remember that our Christmas meeting is on December 18th. Please feel free to bring your families and some munchies. Any final donations for the use of the room can also be given to George to give to the firehouse.

Rod DiGruttolo and George Mindling shared facilitator duties for our last meeting in November.

Our first reader was Susan Davis. She's in the process of creating a workbook. She shared with us her prologue which dealt with Innovation & Collaboration and Beliefs v. Limits. This will be a Self Help workbook that combines goal attainment with philosophy. She needed some fresh eyes and insights into her work-in-progress and the gang was ready with some great ideas.

JoAnne Phillips, author of Adventures Of A Sea Hag, shared the next portion of her current project, Matrix of Life. This chapter, Jack, was about Legion the dog's competition...a hare named...(you guessed it)...Jack. He gave a new name to "mating like rabbits" and he was indiscriminate about his choices of partners. He'd had affairs with anything that moved, leaving young JoAnne to wonder if the eggs the hens laid would be bunny-free. Grandpa made excuses for the lothario, stating, "That's his job, and he loves his work." Unfortunately, Jack made the mistake of trying to plant his seeds in their goat, Billy...who kicked Jack into the afterlife. JoAnne also shared with us a poem called "Out There" that left us to think.... We are not alone.

Don Westerfield followed with a story written about the first Monoplane and how a man named Lou came to build it. It was an interesting tale of how the building of this particular plane was inspired to be built and that it was only due to the fact that he was the lightest of the group that Lou's friend, Bill, found himself in the cockpit.

Next, Ed Ellis shared a short story he'd created called "A Glowing Green Thumb." This particular story was set in the year 2035 where everyone lived in pods and all communication came through something called "The Pep." The communiques were called PIPs and utilized both shorthand and a limit of 140 characters per message. Think Twitter. The end game to this particular tale? They were invaded by dandelions.

Author of Sandspurs: Limericks By a Native Floridian and Myahmuh: A Novel of Miami, Florida, George Collias, shared Chapter 5 from the latter book with us. In this portion we got to watch the other kids from the perspective of their friend killed in a hit & run accident. Basically, this chapter walks us through a morning with Ray as he gets up to start his morning paper route with his dog, Mo, in tow. George also treated us to one of his little shorts...memories of joining the Marines and Boot Camp. There he learned new insults and how to do push ups with an 80 lb pack on his back.

Kerri Dieffenwierth returned to us to share a moving piece she wrote called "Flesh Undone." Thei piece was so powerful, it brought tears to many eyes that night. In this story she drew us in with the eyes of a young mother, terrified and angry as her child was born both ill and too early. She shared with us the fear and rage and the sense that the world is spinning out of control as she waited by her son's side in a Neonatal ICU, willing fight and life into the son she wasn't sure would make it. Against all odds, he survived. Now he has the ability to infuriate and frustrate just as any child can.

Bart Stamper also came back and shared a piece called "Insertion." In this particular story he was assigned to a special killer team mission to find POWs. There was a thick fog over the mountains as they flew. Although the fog hid them from sight, it also hid the mountains from them, making the flight to the drop zone almost as dangerous as the mission. I strongly recommend you click the link on Bart's name to visit his blog and his incredible stories of his time in Vietnam. Also on his site is a Memorial. If you visit there, you'll be introduced to those who didn't make it.

Andrew Parker shared Chapter 4 from his newest work, "Playing Chess at 91." In this particular chapter we learn that the protagonist is not a fan of the physical therapist assigned to work with him. Unfortunately he's injured and has no choice but to accept her care. Unfortunately she falls asleep on him naked, and no one will take him seriously when he asks to be rescued from beneath her prone form. They keep insisting that she knows what he's doing. Of course, what else can one expect in a boardinghouse run by pharmacists drugging the food. Did I mention the pharmacy plans on bringing more monkeys? Andrew always leaves us guessing...even as we're laughing.

Gene Brown got the courage to stand up and read a Prelude to his current project, a historical piece surrounding the Incans and how they made their gold and silver disappear before the "bearded warriors on horses" could come in with their greed and steal it. The protagonist in this story is a young warrior who is to be entrusted to hide the precious metals from the greedy folks who are willing to hold hostages and kill to get their hands on wealth. It's a good start and a very interesting concept. We're looking forward to seeing the direction he takes with his story.

Ernie Ovitz took the feedback we'd given him and re-read the chapter he'd done on the chase with Red Beard and the Romans when they kidnapped the ambassador's wife. The storyline ran much more smoothly as he adjusted some of his description and the way he laid out the dialogue. Well done!

Jung Sok Yo asked Kerri to read the next portion of his manuscript. The scene was well written as a party at the Waldorf-Astoria to honor Sam, one of New York's elite. Unfortunately, the three women in his life are all there and appear to be drawing invisible lines in the sand for a big, non-verbal cat fight. The female claws and the nuances that happen among jealous women was definitely caught in this scene.

Robbin Thorpe was our final reader of the evening with a piece entitiled "Retired." In this story are bickering spouses on a trip in colder weather who can't seem to agree on much of anything....and with whom technology is beginning to pass by. My favorite line was "The computer is in the clouds." It was clear that the protagonist had no understanding of cloud technology. Definitely a playful way to end the night.

Wednesday November 6, 2013 Meeting

Last week many of us hoped to see Kerri Dieffenwierth so that we'd have an opportunity to congratulate her on her most recent accomplishments. Kerri recently won the 2013 Creative Nonfiction Contests Judge's Selection in Still - the journal for her piece called A New Bitterroot. She was also a finalist for the 2013 VanderMey non-fiction prize in Ruminate Magazine for her submission, Swamp Angel Stomp. Unfortunately, she was unable to be there, but we still cheered her in spirit.

Also, a friendly reminder.... our annual Christmas Party is scheduled for Wednesday, December 18th. Families are welcome. Everyone is encouraged to bring some festive food to share with the group. Any leftovers will be given to our gracious hosts, the Nokomis Fire Department. Also, if you haven't contributed to the room fund, please feel free to hand your donation to George as we'll be presenting it to the fire department on the day of the party.

George Mindling, author of U.S. Air Force Tactical Missiles, was our first reader. He shared with us an old treasure he found while going through some of his old projects and found a piece about a conversation with Shirley MacLaine. In his story he documents a call in to a local radio show where Shirley was the guest. As the call came from his home (and his daughter), he was prompted to record it for posterity purposes. The subject brought up by his daughter on the call was the metaphysical and pets. I don't think it surprised anyone to hear that the subject matter was too complex for a mere call in to the radio show. The cheekily dry humor at a celebrity giving spiritual advice was fabulously spot on.

Next, Kitt Crescendo shared her poem, Brave, about personal strength, compelled by the bullying situation that hit the headlines based on the situation in the Miami Dolphins locker room. The topic sparked a lively discussion surrounding what peoples' perceptions of bullying are as well as how to respond to bullying (and our personal responsibility to be stand up for ourselves).

Pat Patterson followed with a big thank you to the folks who gave him critique on his manuscript. Included on his list were Ernie, Ed, Don, JoAnne, Jack and Peter. He also shared his discovery of a software program called Clear Edits that assisted him with both line and content edits for his WIP. The cost is $80 and comes with email support. Instead of sharing from his manuscript, Pat has boldly branched out with his writing into the world of poetry. He wrote a lovely piece called "To My Grandson" where he answers the boy's question about where the wind comes from. His second poem was simply called "Dan", a loving tribute to the brother he lost and the son he gained who honors his name.

 

Our next reader, George Collias, author of Sandspurs: Limericks by a Native Floridian and Myahmuh: A Novel of Miami, Florida read an excerpt from the latter book. In this part we are introduced to a murderer through the eyes of a dead boy's ghost as he performs his rituals of putting cigarette burns on the body of his victim post mortem. The tone is definitely eerie and leaves us wondering how this horrible criminal will be caught.

Ernie Ovitz follows with some information surrounding how he researched his book and characters. He explained that his best sources of information were on descriptions he found of Armenia and the great persecution in 301 AD that were outside the traditional text books/history books/encyclopedias. He then continued on to Chapter 5 of his WIP in which the ambassador finds out that his wife has been kidnapped and makes plans to give chase to get her back.

Our in house comedian, Ed Ellis, read a short story he wrote entitled "My Feathered Friend." In the story he talks about the ice shanty he and the other half of his "honey do" twins build together. Their whole goal in building this fancy shanty was to drink Wild Turkey and escape their wives and the "honey do" lists that went with them. Once it was complete, their days were filled with the three "F"s. Fishing, Football and Feathers...until the blizzard that came that winter. The cold combined with the turkey caused them to hallucinate bikini clad co-eds out on the ice. As is always the case with an Ed Ellis story, the ending wasn't that simple...or that boring. The punchline came when the "honey do" twins discovered their missed opportunity. They found out that the co-eds weren't hallucinations at all, but participants in a contest held by the local radio station.

The sweetly soft spoken Barbara Frickel took a turn at sharing next. Het two pieces were inspired by her meditations (along with her mother's birthday) and magic pencils (her magical version of colored pencils). Her first piece was a dedication to her mom called "The Color of Comfort". For Barbara, the color umber reminds her of softness and warmth...and her mother. The second was called "My Tree" and was written while at Myakka Lake looking at her tree and meditating. To her, that tree spoke of strength, friendship and a promise of good times. Between the art work and photo and Barbara's sweet words, she warmed our hearts and left us smiling.

Don Westerfield wrote a couple of poems to honor those like him who served our country well as we headed towards the Veterans Day holiday. The two poems were entitled "The American Fighting Man" and "Fields of Stone." Both of his poems were powerful pieces for different reasons, so I selected one to share on the blog.

Fields of Stone



 

Taps ever echo o'er this hallowed place.

Flags adorn where fallen heroes lie in grace.

Here, each dawn reveals an alabaster glow

of white stones in perfect patterns, set

Row on row.

 

They honor those who served this country well,

reminding us why; why each hero fell.

On each stone a name, for Ages to cite;

memories etched in glory on a field of

White on white

 

Letters spell only of who the grave;

Even requiems can't acknowledge all they gave.

Our tears yet flow like the blood most shed

upon foreign shores where they

Bled and bled.

 

Not for self, did they fight and die,

but for country and all; now in peace they lie.

They paid freedom's toll and so here they bide

under silent white sentinels, resting

Side by side.

 

Followed by Don's patriotic and heartfelt words was JoAnne Phillips, author of Adventures of a Sea Hag.

She read from her current work in progress, "Matrix of Life". The chapter she shared with us was called "Legion" and surrounded a special gift that the local chapter of the American Legion and their gift to her grandfather. In honor of all his years of dedication the guys gave him a hunting dog (a beagle) named Legion. As often happens in these more humorous moments in her book, humor and chaos ensued as the "hunting" dog became spoiled and babied under her grandfather's "watchful" eye. Laughter filled our meeting as JoAnne described the day that Legion stole the "turkey-duck-chicken" (the turducken moniker came much later with John Madden and the turkey bowls) her grandmother had prepared for Thanksgiving dinner, managing to eat a large portion before it could be saved.

Suzi Lynch, one of our newer members, decided to be bold and share a trilogy of poems she'd written a few years back for us. "Why I Don't Write or This Will Be On Your Permanent Record" was a powerful piece where she explored her fears of being published and how, in her mind at that moment in time, being unpublished also felt like being protected...from critics, reviewers and from the world at large. Her follow up, "No Love Lost" explored how when dreams come true (in this case, her classroom curriculum), it could be taken and changed and turned into anything...possibly even something completely different from what she'd intended. In her final piece, "A Happy Pregnancy", she discussed the hope, potential and something greater than herself growing within her writing...and that as long as she chose to hold it within and "not deliver" it, her thoughts, her writing was safe. Her three poems were powerful pieces to which every writer, artist or creator can relate. The strength of her voice was beautiful even as it probed insecurities and fears.

Andrew Parker introduced us to his newest WIP, a piece called "Playing Chess at 91." The first character we meet is the protagonist, Simon Shuster. He lives in a rent controlled boardinghouse filled with other senior citizens who do a lot of drugs (which he doesn't partake in) and "brownies" (which he does). They spend the larger part of their days playing chess while under the influence. Their handyman is over 100 and on crack. There are only 2 younger people who live in this house with them. One is in charge of their "nutrition" and the other "therapy." We're still unsure where Andrew's piece is going to take us, but one thing is guaranteed. Laughter and the outrageous will follow. It's one of the joys of hearing Andrew's work.

Our final reader for the night was Jung Suk Yo, back from his recent hiatus from our group. He shared a chapter from his current WIP called "In the Boat" where he described a frightening scene where his protagonist, Bach (a lawyer) is kidnapped by two masked men from his home in Florida where he'd been hiding and brought out to a ship in the Gulf of Mexico. Bound and gagged, he's uncertain if they came for him because the billionaire whose wife he'd been sleeping with found out about their nefarious plan to kill him with an insulin overdose or if it was something else entirely. It definitely left us a bit chilled and nervous about walking out into the dark Florida night to go home.



Wednesday October 16, 2013 Meeting

We had a special guest speaker for our group at our last meeting. Jack Harney, author of The Millstone Prophecy came to share his writing experiences with our group.

Inspired by a documentary called Deliver Us From Evil, Jack felt compelled to draw attention to the very controversial subject of pedophilia in the Catholic church and the steps taken to hide and cover up these crimes against children. Initially intending this to be a non-fiction tale, he began to research the different categories in the non-fiction universe and found that it's very much a niche market. He wanted the message brought to light on a larger scale, and found himself writing his very first suspense fiction novel.

His intent was to follow the traditional route. Get an agent, then pursue traditional publishing. So, he attended writers conferences while he worked on his project and had the opportunity to pitch agents. He quickly found that most were put off by the subject matter. The same was true for publishers (and it took anywhere from 9-12 months to get it to print through this venue). As he continued his pursuit of making this manuscript a reality, he came to the conclusion that he needed to self publish this piece and a great cover.

What he did find was a writing partner. This was the person to run ideas by, read drafts, ask if certain scenarios worked. He also found a few beta readers. With their feedback and his edits and hard work, the book came to fruition. Despite having a printed copy available, he quickly found that 99% of his sales came through Amazon in "digital sales" or ebook format. Since Kindle has created Kindle Direct Publishing, he's seen an upswing in his sales and has officially sold over 31,000 copies of his novel worldwide. Kindle Direct gives you 5 days in a 90 day period to make the book free. He chose to utilize these days for big "reading" days...like holidays, Mothers Day (hey, reality is there are more women readers than men), and Sundays.

After Jack's interesting presentation, we met our newcomers and Rod DiGruttolo facilitated our readings.

Peter Frickel, author of My Frog Sings, Lotha and the Three Crosses and his new blog, ThinkFree, was our first victim reader. He read an article he'd found about Literary v. Pop fiction and studies on the human brain. Apparently, despite the love for Pop fiction, those who "pushed" themselves with Literary works were more likely to score higher on exams, etc, regardless of how much reading the Pop fiction fan might do. It was something to think about. Personally, I still appreciate the escapism that Pop fiction gives me. Next he shared a piece from his current Work In Progress, "Lillies Of the Vlai." In it, he described riding a "ski" in the water that sounded much like a stand up paddle board. In his story, he was able to be at one with nature...and risk a bit of life and limb. It sounded like quite an adventure.

Ernie Ovitz read next, bringing us back to his manuscript, "The Seventh King." In this part we realize that there is a spy in the governor's house, a servant named Cena. As Red Beard plans to steal the governor's wife, he plans to use her to get close. Fortuitous circumstances for him prevent that from happening when he and his band of outlaws run into a small group of riders. Julia, the governor's wife, had been inside the carriage, heading to town to discuss the arrest of the Christian gets kidnapped. Lots of great descriptions were used to draw us into the era. With some minute adjustments on the dialogue, the book will be ready.

Next came the ever entertaining Ed Ellis. This time he chose to share a poem called "The Beacon Of Reality." He called us to use inspiration, to give universal acceptance and encourage broadening of the mind....and back into nature. Turns out, the guy who "wasn't a poet" is finding his poet's soul, after all.

Author of Adventures of a Sea Hag, JoAnne Phillips, participated in the dialogue challenge Rod DiGruttolo rolled out during the beginning of the summer. The piece, "Car Conversation", was a discussion between a mechanic and the "easy mark" he thought he'd scam...until she showed him she knew a thing or two about how the legal system works and what happens to businesses who make a practice of cheating clients. The back pedaling was hilarious. Next, she continued with her current manuscript, "Matrix Of Life." This chapter finds them at the Christmas holiday with both parents unemployed. In an attempt to infuse holiday cheer into their small home, her dad cut a tree from the forest and they decorated it in tin cans and a tree topper her mother made. They also informed her that Santa wouldn't be coming this year because she was more grown up now. She informed them that she felt he'd been a bit premature in making that call. The humor in the face of hardships has been a charming addition to JoAnne's newest work.

Andrew Parker continued with his manuscript, "Drunk and Calling From a Pub In London." He starts the tale off with Jacqueline Aurora's parents handing him a hand gun and encouraging him to "end it" so that all his suffering will be done. Unsure of whether this is the right decision he looks toward his new girlfriend, Jacqueline. She reassures him that this is what he needs. When he pulls the trigger, instead of a bullet, gas is released. He wakes to a monkey with a crush on him and a butler who may not only be a butler. The whole thing was, quite literally, insanely hilarious.

Laura Harrison shared two 20 year old books written by James A. Michener about the art of writing. One is James A. Michener's Writers Handbook and the other, My Lost Mexico. In them he discussed his thoughts on growth, editing, making books, how he organizes his thoughts and how he decides on the order of chapters. It was fascinating to see things from his point of view and view samples of his work while he was creating. What a find that discovery was for Laura!

Wendy Brooks, one of our newer members and an illustrator of children's stories, took her first try at sharing a piece of her writing. She'd been inspired by a story she'd seen on the news of a woman who pushed her brand new husband over a cliff to his death. They'd only known each other for 5 days before marrying. In her piece entitled "There Are No Heroes" she speculates as to what could have driven a young, 22 year old bride to murder her new husband. It was compelling to try to understand and relate to someone so obviously not likeable. The work has potential to be the beginning of a very intriguing story.

Susan Davis shared a short piece by Alice Munro in honor of her Nobel Prize in literature. In her honor, and to introduce her work to those who were not familiar, she shared a part of her short story Gravel, published in the New Yorker. Feel free to click the link and read the rest for yourself. Susan also took on the dialogue challenge and entitled her piece "Cat & Mouse." In her dialogue one person is inviting another to go to a jazz club to enjoy great music. The other person questions if this will be okay with the other party's "other half" and is told yes. She accepts and states that her significant other will be joining them. The first party is taken by surprise..."I never realized you were an 'us'!" Ah, the cheater, trapped. Loved the creativity.

Kitt Crescendo shared an article she wrote for Bring Back Desire called Pleasure Partnerships and Helping Hands...officially introducing us to the racier side of her writing. Although it was non-fiction, it definitely opened some eyes and dropped a few jaws. It's not like she hadn't warned us that her writing delves pretty strongly into the erotic, though.

George Mindling, author of U.S. Air Force Tactical Missiles, ended our evening with a short fiction piece he'd written called "Aufwiedersehen, Kaiserslautern!" In the story we're introduced to a young, drunken military GI stationed in Germany. He's at the bar drinking beers and heads upstairs with one of the local prostitutes after receiving his reenlistment bonus. It was definitely a hilariously salty tale of why it's so important not to get drunk with strangers unless you want to be robbed blind.

Our evening came to a close with a reminder that the next Writers Group Meeting is 11/6/13.

Wednesday September 4, 2013 Meeting

Our meeting commenced promptly at 6:30. Rod DiGruttolo, our moderator for the evening, introduced Peter Frickel to the group, though he needed no introduction with us.

Author of Lotha and the Three Crosses and My Frog Sings along with his blog, iThink, his pieces are looked forward to for their imagery (never mind his gorgeous South African lilt).

As per last meeting's announcements, Peter kicked off our discussion regarding sentence, paragraph and page construction. He kicked it off by letting us imagine Pooh and Peter in conversation where Pooh says, "Tell me where the sentence lives.."

And then he laid out his challenge.
"What makes a sentence? Do you know the different kinds of sentences?"

As he spent the evening breaking down the various forms of sentences and their purposes...and how the right combination can create magic on a page, he pointed out a simple yet valuable fact.

"We talk too much, listen too little."

He encouraged us to find ways to inspire the senses. Music to inspire, Books of colors, images...senses.

We all came away enjoying the different outlooks and points of view that Peter offered into the way we hone our craft to constantly, consistently improve.

Our readings were kicked off by Susan Davis whose travelling gypsy spirit guided her to read from 100 Love Sonnets by Pablo Neruda. She chose to read #6. The pure beauty and passion made it easy to understand why she was inspired to share. Even more interesting was her story to go along with the poetry...when she told us of her tour of Neruda's home and the amazing view from his bedroom. The breathless natural beauty from his window combined with being in the great writer's home left her in awe.

Next, Ed Ellis read his very entertaining piece entitled "Awkward Encounter". It was a story of life after high school which included hanging out with Steve, his sidekick, cruising for chicks at "Bob's Big Boy" and some Mary Jane. Let's just say that after a bit of partying, one of the characters was uncertain if his trip to Disneyland was a dream or an actual occurrence. Yes, this piece had the whole group rolling with laughter at the characters' antics, the anticipation and the punch line.

Pat Patterson took on Rod's dialogue challenge. He called his piece "Two Old 1963 High School Class Buddies On The Telephone". In his piece we got the opportunity to hear two old friends wax nostalgic on the past and play catch up on life in general...and how their views of events had changed through the years.

Jeff Cochran read two pieces. The first was his dialogue challenge from Rod. He attributed his inspiration to Kitt's dialogue challenge from the prior meeting...and it didn't take any time at all to figure out why. With sentences like "Just slide it in" "Move it around a bit" and "I don't think that's going to fit", it was obvious that the dialogue included a lot of fun, tongue-in-cheek innuendo. What was it really about? A shoe sale, of course! His next piece was a poem he entitled "Seasons" that he'd written to celebrate an artist friend, Holly Lovely. His verses painted picturesque scenes and enabled the listener to feel each season...and appreciate how much he treasured his friend.

Our newcomer, Barry Mick, shared his piece called "Dragonfly". Although there was a literal dragonfly in his story, it became evident quickly that there was deep symbolism in that dragonfly. This is just the beginning of what we sense will be a very powerful story of love, loss and family. We can't wait to see where Barry takes his story.

Don Westerfield shared a short story he called "My Family Tree". He was researching a tale about his family tree and the family scandal that caused his grandpa to leave Kentucky and move to Indiana. To learn more about the roots of the tree in Kentucky, he headed back to where it all began and found his only remaining relative in town was the drunk guy he met on the corner. As he asked some former neighbors about what happened to his family, he was told..."Son, when you go digging for your roots, all you usually end up with is a can of worms." Yes, there was much laughter and applause that followed this entertaining short piece.

Ernie Ovitz continued with Chapter 2 if his WIP, "The Seventh King". In this part we're beginning to get a feel for the political savvy of Constantine, the Tribune, as he deals with General Decimus and his interview, hoping to learn more about the Emperor. In this part we also begin to get a better feel for Red Beard and why he's targeting them.

JoAnne Phillips, author of Adventures Of A Sea Hag continued with her current WIP, "The Matrix Of Life" with her next chapter entitled "Goodbye Mushy". In this chapter she talked about she and her mother living with her grandma who suffered from bipolar disorder, though it wasn't yet a diagnosis. There wasn't a dry eye in the house as she bravely shared the story about the puppy, Mushy, her mother's ex-boyfriend gave her and how she held it in her arms as she watched it die a horrible death at her grandmother's hand. The lethargy and inability to communicate and respond broke our hearts for her...and we were so relieved when she was placed back into the care of her grandparents on her father's side as she began her slow battle back toward healing. JoAnne's story has it's ups and downs, but the one constant is this... We're cheering for her!

Linda Shell was back with her YA Adventure about Gracie the dwarf kangaroo in "Come Along With Me". She had the group snorting with laughter at her clever turn of phrase, "Buster's last stand" as she told about the chicken who ran around with it's head cut off...spraying grandma's white, newly washed sheets that were hanging on the line with his blood. Guess that's what she gets for deciding to make him dinner. We're definitely looking forward to seeing where Gracie's adventure leads next.

Next came another excerpt from author of I'm Adopted, I'm Special and The Animal Tales blog, Beth Rice's newest WIP "Pawprints Are Forever". The next installment was called "Dr Anthony Vinelli". He wasn't the suave, handsome doc, but rather the smart, capable doc with the fabulous petside manner...who the techs didn't like much, but then...he made them work. He was also an avian specialist which meant he got to handle then snakes and their temperamental owners. He was also the resident "Friends" trivia guru and the favorite doctor for the protagonist. At this point, he was just introduced into the story along with a couple of patients who he's helped along the way, but we all sense that there's much more to their story and are looking forward to hearing it told.

As we closed out the night, we circled back to Peter. He shared with us a piece he'd written about a river called "There Runs A River". Although it was ultimately about the river, it was about so much more. It was symbolic of time and how, like a river, they both change everything as they move. He also shared some of his own poetry. With his permission, here's his piece.

The Pathway

The single line pathway
Moved humans
Carrying empty pails of sorrowed hunger
And despair they should never have owned.

Some brought extended bellies
Swollen lips and cleaved tongues,
Others empty eyes,
Faces cracked
Scabbed skin
Where tears had dried.

And the dogs
That came on burnt paws,
Pulled tails across stones,
Whimpered for those they left to die.

We walked
Slowly
Into miles,
To the horizon,
To a town.

Some groaned
Stopped and dropped
With voices that gurgled
Between cracked lips
Before they died.

For each that crumpled
I bent down
Besides
With a prayer.
Pressed eye lids
Closed
With whites covered
Each rested
In their own dark
Our misery unwanted.

By the edge of the town
With thinned ranks
We stood still,
To feel the pain
To let it run away.
To remember friends and family
Who like fallen sign posts
Now mark our way.

Lying lost upon acarpous soil
They tell others
Who seek shelter,
"It doesn't hurt anymore."

As always, Sarasota Writers Group had a great night of eclectic reading and look forward to our next meeting on 9/18/2013.



Wednesday August 21, 2013 Meeting

Our meeting started at approximately 6:30 with 20 attendees and 12 readers. Rod DiGruttolo moderated the meeting and kicked things off.

First announcement is that Peter Frickel will be teaching a course in sentence, paragraph and page construction at our next meeting on September 4th.

Kitt Crescendo had recently returned from the convention Authors After Dark. She brought back some swag to give to the group and shared her thoughts on the event. She found the event to be very interesting and the authors in the various forums she attended to be personable, open and willing to talk about anything. As time allows, she'll be adding more about the authors and events to her blog.

Jack Wetherson kicked off our readings with a football story based inside a correctional facility he humorously referred to as "a gated facility". Although there was initially some confusion as to whether the game was being played by inmates a la The Longest Yard, we found this not to be the case. In the end, this was a tongue in cheek story about bad calls and "paying your dues".

Barbara Frickel, usually leaving the reading to Peter, surprised the group by stepping front and center. She'd taken Rod up on his dialogue challenge several weeks ago and wrote a piece about a lost wallet. Her dialogue was as sweet as she was, showing that people still do the right thing. The finder contacted the owner of the wallet and returned it.

Ed Ellis also took on the dialogue challenge. It was a married couple on a trip to the driver's cousin's house. As almost always with Ed's work, there was a punchline...in this case, it was all about "back seat driving". He also shared a piece he'd written called "Honeymoon Surprise" that dealt with "mixed matches". You know, big guy, tiny girl. The punch line this time left everyone laughing as the question of "who wears the pants" was answered definitively.

Jeff Cochran read another excerpt from his time travel manuscript. This chapter was titled "On The Road In Pennsylvania". In this portion the protagonist has been having a recurrent nightmare about being chased. He misses his life and the future he left behind. As he reflects on the might have beens, however, he realizes that if he hadn't gone back into the past, he might not have his love, Rebecca. Yes, the ladies in the group sighed over the romantic notion, especially from the male perspective.

Don Westerfield, never one to leave us bored, decided to change things up on us. It had been a while since he's shared poetry, so he went back to it, sharing two poems, "Spinster Mary" about a lady, a World War II bride to be that never was and "The Egotistical Poet". With his permission, here's one of his poems:

Spinster Mary

There; down a crooked road,

across a bridge; her house.

Brick, mortar and hopes

built upon un-kept promises.

 

Within dwelt great beauty;

not of youth, but of years.

It radiated outward; encompassing

all who entered without pity.

 

She moved kindly about;

sadness hidden only from a few.

Abiding alone in remembrance of

a shadow love; now gone.

 

In vain she waited for happiness

to unlock the portals of her desire;

leaving only kisses of memory

to treasure until end of days.

 

With comforting faith did she linger,

until her Sun had set. There, down

a crooked road, across a bridge;

her house, unlit and forgotten.

 

 

Asha Anderson, another of our lovely poet wordsmiths shared several poems that left everyone impressed with not only her reading style, but content. With her permission, I'll share one of her readings called "Los Viajeros". This is a poem she wrote to aid her as she was learning the Spanish language.

 

Los Viajeros

 

La ruta es larga.

El dia es corto.

La noche es

ruidosa y calor.

Estoy afuera

con la luna.

La ruta es angosta.

El cielo es ancho.

 

Translation:

 

The Travelers

 

The road is long.

The day is short.

The night is

noisy and hot.

I am outside

with the moon.

The road is narrow.

The sky is wide.

 

(Guatemala, 2007)

 

Jenny Oberg decided to take on Rod's narration challenge. In this, two people are discussing imagination and the mind being free. The conversation starter asks the question "If you could go anywhere, where would you go?" She's speaking of fantasy but unfortunately the other party is not such a daydreamer and is tied to the "here and now", which drives the conversation into an entertaining circle....as is often the case for those of us who are dreamers when we encounter the practical people. Every person in the room was nodding as writers tend to live in that "other" world.

 

Kitt Crescendo also decided to go with Rod's challenge. Her dialogue was between a female employee at a cell phone store and a customer with a water damaged phone. With little bits of innuendo flying when the phone wouldn't stop vibrating and the smart alleck back and forth between the two characters, the group was entertained. She also shared her poem called "Mystique". When she was finished reading, the ladies in the room had two words for her. "Thank You." She has it on her blog if you click her name, but decided to share it here, as well.

 

Mystique

 

“The Weaker Sex”
is what we’re called.
Generations
of velvet encased
iron core,
who have held
and nurtured
in body and heart-
souls,
Sons who become
fathers,
daughters to
mothers.
We’ve stood firm,
guardians of the castle
charged with
sacred duty
to mold, guide and nurture,
teach and love.
Dry tears,
kiss away wounds
spiritual and physical.
Healing powers-
steeped in
understanding,
forgiveness and patience.
We hold on if we can,
let go when we must.
kindness, empathy
and knowledge.
Strength is required
to be
“The softer side.”

 

Susan Davis read an excerpt from a compilation book of women's writings written by Lucy Jane Bledsoe called "Two In The Wild". It encapsulated a woman's escape by bicycle across the Mohave desert when a mother and daughter headed out on a trip of their own encountered her. They discovered that the woman was, in fact, escaping an abusive situation...yet the protagonist to the story spoke of envy because this woman had the guts to get on her bike and blindly change her circumstances. She was ill prepared for the trip, but she had determination and a sense of purpose.

 

Peter Frickel, author of My Frog Sings and Lotha and the Three Crosses along with his blog "iThink" shared an article clipping from the Sarasota Herald Tribune called "Advice For A Writer In Sarasota". Besides discussing the importance of predators v. editors, it touted the importance of researching writers groups before joining and touted the importance of a facilitator with "credentials who is knowledgeable and supportive". Rod was very tongue in cheek when he "apologized". Everyone else laughed. He then read a portion of a Hemmingway book with a quote about writing and encouraged us to join him in his journey to improved writing next week.

 

 

Beth Rice, author of I'm Adopted, I'm Special and The Animal Tales blog continued reading from her manuscript called "Pawprints Are Forever" with a chapter called "Oh, Beans!" In this story, at the end of the day, a customer brings his dog, Beans in for laxatives claiming that he suffers from constipation. The owner is insistent that all Beans needs are laxatives and requires no tests as they would be costly and he's sure of the diagnosis. The protagonist approaches the doctor who is not thrilled to have this last minute walk-in. As he's ranting, he uses the term "for shits and grins" a phrase the protagonist had never heard before. As she's sidetracked with her internal dialogue surrounding the phrase, she misses the vet's order. Not only is Beth's reading coming along, but her knack for humor and the absurd are shining through.

 

 

Last, but certainly not least, was author JoAnne Phillips, author of Adventures of a Sea Hag. Continuing from her current manuscript, "Matrix Of Life", she read a chapter called "Getting Even". In this portion, the 5 year old protagonist has developed a fondness for the bats that would soar out of the loft in the evening. Determined to catch one, she asks her grandfather for advice....which included a hat and bacon. After several days of not catching the bats she discovers, thanks to an exasperated Grams that Gramps has been having fun at her expense. Determined to get even she waits till they're at a store and claims he's a stranger...which nearly causes him to be arrested for kidnapping. As fun and witty as JoAnne's excerpt was, everyone felt the need to tell her how much she's improved in her writing which made her day.

 

Our next meeting will be held on September 4th and begins promptly at 6:30.

 



 

 



Wednesday, June 5th, 2013

After a dreary, wet, overcast day, I wondered about poor attendance as I opened the meeting room and prepared for another session of the Sarasota Writers Group's Wednesday night meeting. My worries were groundless as 22 people gathered for yet another session of reading prose and poetry and the diverse comments and discussions that follow.

Bob Taylor, winner of the 2012 Royal Palm Literary Award for his memoir, Hardship Post, joined us for the first time as well as Jenny Oberg, Theresa Jordan, and Dean Telfer. We welcomed back Jack Wetherson, Ron Babcock, Cathy Marine and newest FWA member, Ernie Ovitz. Bob made the long drive from Punta Gorda as does regular Pat Patterson, Jenny drove from North Port, while Ernie and Linda, as well as Ron, made the trip from Lakewood Ranch and Bradenton. We appreciate their effort and time to join us for our meetings. Kat Levato also makes the drive from North Port, and many of our members drive regularly from Englewood, so our location is proving to be centrally located.

After our meet and greet session, I opened the meeting with FWA announcements, and passed out all of my past issues of The Florida Writer, the official magazine of the Florida Writers Association, as my current issues for distribution haven't arrived yet. I am trying to get more issues for those who didn't get one at the meeting. The magazine has contact information as well as giving a good overview of the FWA itself. Bob Taylor graciously addressed the group briefly about his experiences with submitting to the Royal Palm Literary awards competition.

Rod DiGruttolo opened the reading and handled the 14 readers with his usual aplomb and skill. Everyone who wanted to read material got to read, and we had another great night of original material, including Kerri Dieffenwierth's award winning poem, “Angels in my Swamp.”

"Angels in my Swamp" 

 

When the peace in me
allowed her bellow to reverberate,
to rumble past moist heated air
When apple snails clutched Sawgrass,
adrift in tannic sparkle.

While we searched for clues
Swamp offered her seasons
And mama gator
scrutinized predators
to keep her hatchlings safe.

Cypress trunks resemble aged ball gowns,
Standing in honor of Seminole, Creek, Miccosukee
…of you.

Protection.

Brown hands bent pliable shoots to mark these trails
(This is the way in. This is the way out)
If you run your hand down the wood slowly, it won't leave a splinter.

Feel who treaded soaked ground.
They are still here.
End-of-summer air.
Sweat rolling down spines.

Step into Florida's shelter.
The coolness of the water will startle.
Watch shoes and shins disappear into her broth.

Kerri Dieffenwierth

Linda Schell read first with another chapter of "Come Along With Me," the adventures of Gracie, a dwarf kangaroo from the 36^th dimension geared for the 8 to 12 year olds. Positive comments and good feedback in the discussion that followed. First time guest Jenny Oberg faced her fears and bravely read a poem dedicated to her mother to a room full of strangers. Her sensitive, emotion-evoking writing was well received by the group. Really well done and we look forward to Jenny becoming a regular member. We are no longer strangers.

Kerri Dieffenwierth, who doesn't consider herself a poet, read her award winning poem “Angels in My Swamp,” printed above, and announced she'll finish her Masters program in Maine next month. Congratulations, Kerri!  Yes, you are a poet.

Ed Ellis read a short story called “The Legend of Harbor Rock,” where in 2043, Gene swallows nanobots by mistake and becomes Nancy the Nympho. We may need to split the tables between Ed and Andrew. More great fun writing from Ed. Don Westerfield brought us back to earth with “Rain Barrel,” a melancholy piece that shows Don's ability to “taste eternity.” He warned Joanne to have her handkerchief ready. More great writing from Don.

Ron Babcock kept the group enthralled with his reading of “A Walk in Hell,” a memoir describing his battle with cancer that met with good feedback and positive comments. Ernie Ovitz, our newest FWA member, read from his upcoming, “The Seventh King,” a historical novel set in the Roman outposts of Bulgaria in the year 303. Great writing and incredible research, we look forward to more of Ernie's writing. Good feedback and really good comments followed the reading.

Jim Kelly continuously proves his prowess with poetry, and he did it once more with two great poems, “Heaven and Earth,” and “Just One.” (Alliteration is as close as I get to poetry) Jim has published two books of poetry, “The Place,” and “From the Embers,” and we look forward to his upcoming third volume. Heaven and Earth, is printed with Jim's permission .

Heaven and Earth

I gaze skyward;

heaven appears as an unmade bed―

covers and sheets tossed

into ragged heaps.

A gaunt, haggard face emerges,

wanders off―

much like the stranger in the woods

leaving his tattered tent.

Tomorrow's sky

will come and change its linens;

rain will spring through holes

in the torn, blue tarp.

I turn my head

and walk away from heaven―

the sounds of raindrops

dripping on my conscience.

James O. Kelly

Rod took us to break time with his saga about “Ron” and “Betty” in a narrative called “Betty's New Hip”. A personal glimpse into the trauma of having a loved one “land on the floor.” We all wish Betsy, oops, Betty, a speedy recovery. We don't get to listen to Rod's writing as often as we like.

After a ten minute break, followed by a few more comments about the legal issues of using trademarks, we resumed with Andrew Parker reading his final chapter of “Reality Gone Wrong,” with Dr. Blake Brimstone and Roach Rhino. Andrew is pursuing publishing on either Kindle (Amazon) or on Smash Word, and we'll know shortly when to expect Andrew's writings to be available.

Joanne Phillips read an opening from her new work, “Matrix of Life.” A completely different tack for Joanne and it sounds great so far. Beth Rice read the continuation of her first chapter of her work, “Paw Prints are Forever,” to good comments and discussion.

Kitt Crescendo, at Peter Frickel's request, read a blog about the benefits of writing, or reading, erotic romance. The discussion and comments that followed were entertaining, to say the least.

Last reader of the day was once again Rod, who read the opening chapter, “Reflections at a Funeral,” of Jung Sok Yo's “Winds of Desire.” Rod started on part of the second chapter when we realized we'd gone beyond our stop time and decided to wait until next meeting to resume reading.

It isn't often I have the opportunity to present someone's impressions of meeting our diverse, eclectic group for the first time. With her gracious permission, I have included Jenny Oberg's reflections of her first meeting of the Sarasota Writers Group. As she says “I felt like writing my thoughts of it... It has sparked "the writing bug..."

Into a unpaved, disorderly, rock filled parking lot I roll,

About to step through the threshold of a new experience,

I am greeted by a man who I have never met, yet seem to know,

His eyes glimmer with passion; a passion for the written word,

As my eyes take survey of the room; that I have set forth,

I see archaic news clippings of past fires and proud plaques of honor,

Every person that I see has a story to tell,

A man who has a melodic, British accent; one where I wish I could just sit and listen to,

I picture him sitting in an upright, leather chair with a roaring fire with a glass of bourbon,
A woman who sports fiery red hair and is adorned in a sparkly sweater; which both match her personality,

I see a lady who emits spunk and has a mischievous glimmer in her eye...

Who writes about intimate moments that make my eye brows raise and my eyes enlarge,

Then, there's the man sitting next to me; a gentle soul who sounds like my Papa...
With a voice that is deep and brings my mind back to the sweet, woodsy smell of my Papa's cigars...

It is true to say our enemies make us stronger.. for the gentle soul went to war against a sinister being called Cancer and proved his tenacity and laughed it in the face!

Amongst complete strangers, I read my inner thoughts aloud...

I hear my voice projecting every word...

I feel utter disbelief and pride, that it is me who I hear...

Amongst complete strangers....who have a story, an imagination and a churning mind,

I feel like I belong, in my chair, at a firehouse, on a rainy night.

Jenny Oberg

See everyone June 19^th!

George