Hurricanes and the teacher's lounge

January 24, 2014

Happy Friday, writers,

I hope you’ve had a wonderful week.

I’m not sure what we’re doing this weekend in our household, but I’m looking forward to writing. I love journaling with pen and paper. How about you? Are you a computer or pen and paper journaler?

A few years ago, I started writing three pages longhand in my journal every morning. I began the process after reading “The Artist’s Way” by Julia Cameron. In the book, she shares how writing three pages each morning can help remove blocks to creativity.

Here’s a recap of Tuesday’s workshop led by moderator, Lisa C. Thanks for running a great workshop, Lisa!

Warm-ups

Choosing from prompts below, we all completed a writing warm-up.

1.      Glasses

2.      Least favorite types of music

3.      Irons

4.      Right vs. left

After a few of us shared our warm-ups, we introduced ourselves, shared good news and started our critique session.

Critique overview from January 21 CCWW

Connie W. started the session by reading the fifth installment of her hemp rope story. Many members complimented Connie’s powerful descriptions (i.e. tears and stitches). Michele N. continued by reading another part of her Katherine and Wyatt story. Members noted the forceful language Michele gave Katherine in this confrontational scene. I, Nancy B., then shared a poem written to the “hurricane” prompt. I received compliments on the theme of man vs. nature as well as the inclusion of hurricane names.

Lisa C. kept the session going by assigning parts to her play, “In the Teacher’s Lounge.” Ending with laughter and applause from the group, Lisa’s piece showed what teachers really think about kids they teach. Richard N. read another installment of his novel. Members said his dialogue and pacing worked well, especially at the end. Robert O. continued by reading a fresh piece about the inner workings of a council. Members complimented his powerful descriptions (i.e. hissing) and his fluent writing in script format.

Matt Y. read a piece about Elizabeth, a mother of two in Barbados awaiting a hurricane’s landfall. His ending twist (which worked extremely well) revealed the hurricane was in a book being read by a teacher on break. Connie K. shared “Emily’s Secrets: High School Dropout.” Both her “pink” teacher descriptions and her character’s realization of what’s involved in a communications class worked. Cameron S. read a satirical piece in defense of straight marriage. Her piece piqued group members’ interest and reminded several of us of “The Twilight Zone.”

Kaitlyn S. read the fifth chapter of her dream story. The humorous, narcissistic tone of her narrator worked well. Thomas E. ended the session sharing a continuation of his hospital story. Several members complimented the tension he created (i.e. the nurse’s grip on the chair) and the mystery surrounding the nurse.

Great writing, everyone!

Links of Interest

Freelance writing jobs

I mentioned this site at the workshop. It’s full of paid job listings for writers. You may want to sign up to receive their e-mail updates.

More here: http://sunoasis.com/

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Writing Challenge: The Fun Way to Write Your Life Stories

Free, 14-day writing challenge submitted to CCWW by member, Cheryl L. You sign up and participate for 14 days in February. Looks intriguing!

More here: http://writingyourlife.org/writing-challenge/

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Online writing group

Here’s a link to an interesting online writing group. I’ll be exploring this one a little more.

More here: http://www.scribophile.com/

Prompts for Tuesday, Jan. 28

The first prompt is matchmaker. The second prompt is life before cell phones. You’re free to write in any genre you like (fiction, drama, non-fiction, poetry, etc.). If you’d like to bring a WIP (work-in-progress), please do.

Please keep pieces to 1500 words or less and bring copies if you can.

See you Tuesday at The Sweet Spot!

~Nancy B.