Present: Keith, Tricia, Alan, Heather, Simona, Hillary, Liz, Nathan, Harry, Sarah

Apologies: Peter

INTRODUCTIONS:

We welcomed our guest, Harry, with warm introductions and hope that he will continue to join us. Harry likes to write horror poetry, poems that make you feel uncomfortable, sometimes cosmic but in general quite modern.

NEWS

Alan’s short story ‘Temporary Accommodation’ was published in Gosnell’s Writers Circle – Circle of Friends June Publications. Congratulations Alan.

Liz continues her marketing efforts of her recently published Haiku book, called ‘Images’. She was interviewed by Woking News and Mail and was very happy to relate her story.

Heather requested collating a list of telephone numbers and email addresses and asked for group’s permission to circulate a list of emails to all active members. The telephone numbers will remain known only to officers with assurance that all GDPR precautions will be take.

READINGS:

HEATHER’s poem, ‘A longing for sky’ uses natural elements she felt connected to evoke emotional states. Hillary noted that although the poem appears simple it gets more and more complex as you read it and suggested that it would be suitable for publication. Hilary also suggested that the removal of some words might make the flow slightly better or in one breath. Liz thought that the poem was increasingly good wondering what ‘grasping unseen coils’ might mean to which Heather provided a brief explanation. Tricia noted that Heather’s long relationship with her environment coming to an end is well expressed.

HILLARY wrote the continuation of a story she had brought in the past to the Circle. The story focused on how a black cat, ‘Sable’ came to live with a witch. Tricia noted that Hillary captured a really genuine voice for Sable. Heather appreciated the imagery of the muted ghastliness of the children and the cat’s discomfort and the emphasis of the cat walking alone. Simona liked the sensorial imagery, and the strength of the connection expressed. Alan noted that hinting of a pentagram which gave the environment a different mood.

ALAN wrote a very short story on the homework topic titled ‘The Carrion Crow’ which focused on a dialogue between 2 characters having lost their opportunistic scavenging to an unknown third party. Tricia said that the story was very tight with Alan’s trademark twist at the end. And Heather was taken by surprise at the abrupt ending but noted the story was very good.

KEITH’s poem, ‘Dunkirk’ centred around his father’s experience with war and the triggers which had brought the horrors back into his mind. Heather noted the poem being very powerful, particularly in describing the detachment of ‘war being televised’. Harry liked the juxtaposition between different generations and how desensitisation and vivid horrors were well executed. Tricia brought into discussion PTSD triggers and how this was well expressed in the poem. Sarah noted that the poem had a unique way of expressing the horror of historical events.

NATHAN’s poem ‘Sunset eyes’ raised a few questions about the general topic of the poem which Nathan clarified to be about saving someone from attempted suicide. Hillary noted that the poem has very gothic vibes and that Nathan uses his words very creatively. Tricia liked some of

the imagery, in particular the ‘salt eats at her thick coarse skin’. Nathan then read his new haiku which engaged the group in a lengthy discussion about the correct use of certain words, contradictions and how these may be resolved.

HARRY’s poem ‘A bird flew’ was well received by the group. Hillary noted the sinister elements work very well and that the audience is engaged to unpack the poem. Simona commented that the protagonist appears almost unhinged in their need/ want of the bird and Tricia commented that the unattainable beauty concept is expressed really well. Heather said the poem was very clever and Sarah found it very interesting to visualise.

LIZ wrote 3 poems inspired by her journey to Newcastle and titled the collection The Death of Great Ships. She read all three together and titled them: Part 1: The fighting Temeraire, accompanied by various visual aids including a £20 note (the note portrays J.M.W. Turner), Part 2: The Tyne Pride and Part 3:The Keyside near Newcastle upon Tyne. Hillary commented that Part 3 was a very 3-dimensional piece. Simona liked the historical elements of Part 2 while Tricia suggested that it could be possible to knit the 3 poems together into a grander piece. Other suggestions were made to enhance the first 2 poems through prose and lighter language. Sarah liked Liz’s performance and particularly the accent used.

TRICIA’s piece was Part 2 of her recollection of her Tanzania trip, titled ‘Materoni Falls’. The group consensus was that the travel log is amazingly vivid and will be added to the website as a part 2.

SIMONA read part of a chapter from her book, but she expressed dissatisfaction at the pacing and character engagement. Alan suggested removing some of the narrator commentary as it slows down the reader’s attention, Hillary encouraged rewriting the piece by identifying which elements achieve nothing in the chapter and comparing to the original piece. Other suggestions were mentioned to either not overburden the dialogues with reveals or conduct the reveals in a more natural way. Simona was grateful for the feedback.

SARAH took the group through an artistic journey inspired by her walking tour of the Chertsey Abbey Museum. She outlined to the group the historical facts that make the Abbey special and then she read to the group a poem made entirely of haikus relating to the Abbey’s history. She then delighted the group by turning the poem into a song which she sang and recorded herself. Heather commented that the poem/song works beautifully and does not feel forced and enjoyed hearing the unravelling of the journey before enjoying the poem and song and that it really set the tone. Tricia noted that the poem works really well as a song and is almost pastural.

Next meeting: Thursday 19th of September at 7.30 pm

Chair: Tricia

Minutes: Heather

Wine: Simona

Milk & Biscuits: Sarah

Homework: Ups and Downs