Tuesday 13th January

Following on from the flu ravaged meeting of last week, there was a healthy turn-out for our ‘Book Review’ session. Apologies were received from Joyce, Joan, Jackie, Marilyn and Linda.

The meeting opened with an in-depth discussion as to our responsibilities as this years adjudicators for the SAW ‘Flash Fiction’ Competition and plans were put in place as to how we accomplish the task. It was agreed that part of our normal syllabus may have to be re-structured and that completed adjudications along with the necessary crits would need to be completed by 3rd March. As a rule of thumb our guidelines should be that each entry should fulfil the following criteria

1. Have a noticeable beginning, middle and end

2. Be of an excellent standard

3. Have an identifiable thought

4.Well drawn characters

5. Be no more than 250 words

A further discussion was held as to our application for funding from Renfrewshire and it was agreed, in general, that our approach should be based on encouraging reading within the school population  of the area along with providing a ‘wellness’ avenue for retired folk. Rob and Lorna are meeting to plan out application to take forward to a meeting on January 23rd.

The real business of the day began with Sandra M’s offering “The Shapeshifter’s Daughter” by Sally Magnusson, a novel based in Orkney around the magical Maeshowe, a book benefitting from a good, well written story and a striking cover design. Brian followed with ‘Anam Cara’ by Fr John O’Donohue, an appreciation of the spiritual wisdom from the Celtic world. Morag gave us ‘Thge Island of Missing Trees’ by the Anglo-Turkish author Elif Shafa, a story set in Greece about a love affair between a Muslim Cypriot and a Greek Orthodox Christian. It is interesting to note that one of its ‘characters’ was an aged fig tree. Rob gave us his interpretation of the poetry of R S Thomas and Sandra talked about her book ‘The Women’ by Kristen Hannah. Irene was somewhat disappointed by ‘Caledonia Road’ by Andrew O’Hagan feeling it took too long for her to get ‘hooked’ and that it was over-populated. Nevertheless, she encouraged us to read it regardless of the somewhat bleak picture it painted of modern Britain. John H extolled the virtues of John MacDonald’s fourth book but was mindful not to give too much of the plot away and we ended with Hilary offering us ‘Edgelands: Journeys into Englands True Wilderness’ by Paul Farley and Michael Symmons Roberts, a somewhat quirky book about the glories of a post industrial and urban landscape covering a variety of media.

A busy meeting, therefore.

 Tuesday 6th January

The first meeting of the new year showed an attendance which was decimated by the ills of the season with apologies being received from, amongst others, Sandra M, Rob, Joan, john M, Joyce, Jackie and Linda. Order of the day was the announcement of the results of the Memoire Writing Competition adjudicated by Roger Glass which were as follows:

First was Rob with ‘Whit’s fur ye’ll no go by ye’, followed by Brian and ‘Wilderness’ and in third place was Sandra R’s ‘The Photograph’. highly commended were Irene with ‘Nineteen’ and Hilary’s ‘The Times are a-changing’ and Joan’s ‘The End’ was commended. Rodge provided very good critiques for all entries plus a general handout with advice for all the group.

Next week will be our book reviews and hopefully the gremlins will have vanished giving us a better (in both senses of the word) turn out. Just a quick reminder that the short piece of humorous writing (400 words) for our next competition are to be with Morag by midnight on Tuesday 13th January and also any SAW entries are to be sent in by 11th January.

Rob

 If the members of the club were closet fans of Enid Blyton then it showed on Tuesday as we held our end of session cum Christmas party. The table fair “groaned” with food - from Estonian chocolate to wickedly sharp chilli crisps, from the tried and trusted sausage rolls to Lorna’s sumptuous raspberry sponge, it was a delight. We entertained ourselves with a mixture of Christmas limericks and haikus which ranged from the serious to the comical and Irene produced a cruelly tough quiz and she wasn’t taking any prisoners when it came to the marking. There was the customary exchange of secret Christmas cards, a reading of Carol Ann Duffy’s interpretation of “A Christmas Carol” and the entire atmosphere was one of warmth and jollity among friends. Highlight of the afternoon was the reading of some of Kate Gordon’s seasonal poetry and we will hopefully welcome her for a visit sometime in the Spring. Until then a Merry Christmas and Happy New Year to all our members both current, postal and past or, as we say in Wales nadolig llawen a blwyddyn newydd dda!

 2nd December

Apologies were received from Linda, Sandra M, John M, Brian, Joyce, Joan and Jacky.

Hilary began by organising members’ contributions to next week’s Christmas party and those who could not make it are asked get in touch with Hilary to see what is wanted and to ‘fill in the gaps”! Members are also reminded to bring in one Christmas card as per our tradition, the card to be unaddressed so it can be distributed amongst the group. Also, written contributions for the event are to include either a limerick or haiku based on a Christmas theme. I’ll text all members with this information.

The afternoon was given over to the results of the Young Adult writing competition as adjudged by Villi Gemmill whose positive and creative critiques were well accepted by the entrants and were comprehensive in their content. There being only six entrants Vikki restricted her awards to a first and second place, the winner being Brian with his entry ‘The Best Is Yet To Come’ and second place awarded to Jacky for ‘Boy at the Window. Other offerings came from Joan with ‘Homeless’, Lorna with ‘Lost”, Hilary with ‘There are always Consequences” and Rob with ‘The Dowry’

 25th November

Apologies were received from Joan, Joyce, Brian, Jacky, Linda and Marilyn.

The subject for the day was humorous writing and the workshop was delivered by Kilmarnock writer David F Ross and it proved to be a very enjoyable afternoon as he led us through his thoughts and strategies regarding the subject. He concentrated on both fiction and non-fiction and his talk was liberally salted with anecdotes ranging from running discoes in Masonic lodges  through playing Subbuteo with a reknowned bully to exchanging the family budgie for a colour TV in time for the 1970 World Cup and all manner of subjects in between. The group were thoroughly gripped by David especially as he warmed to his subject.

The challenge he set is entitled “Laughing Through the Bruises” - a 250-400 word scene set in a small Scottish town where two characters deal with a mildly disastrous everyday situation (broken down bus, a botched haircut, a lost dog etc)

As we had a number of call-offs I will quote directly from David’s handout as to what must be included:

1. Humour with Bite                Sharp, deadpan, character-driven humour

                                                 Let the comedy emerge from coping rather than formal jokes

2. Pathos under the Surface        Reveal a quiet emotional truth (regret, loneliness, loyalty, resilience)

                                                    Let the emotion emerge naturally through action or subtext

3. Authentic Voice                   Include vivid, local details to ground the story

                                                 Use rhythm: snappy beats mixed with moments of stillness

4. The Turn                             End on a small but resonant shift that mixes tenderness with humour

Quite a challenge, especially given the number of words but if it helps David added that he liked “rulebreakers”!

Entries to be with Morag by midnight on 6th January.                                          

 18th November

There were apologies from Joan, Linda, Jacky and Joyce.

We began by updating the tea rota which is as follows:

25th Nov        Irene

2nd Dec         Lorna

9th Dec        Sandra M

6th Jan        Sandra M

13th Jan        Sandra R

20th Jan        John McD

27th Jan        Morag

3rd Feb        Brian

10th Feb        Hilary

17th Feb        Marilyn

24th Feb        John H

3rd March    Rob

17th Match    Lorna

24th March    Irene

31st March    Hilary

We then settled down to John H’s  ‘Wordle’/Flash Fiction exercise - each member was given nine random words which had to be used in order to provide an example of flash fiction. It is not only a fun challenge but also very demanding and writers have to be fully disciplined in order to complete the task. Initially, the lists were, by and large, individual and the results were as folllows

Brian. ‘Meal Time’

John MacD     ‘Sushi at 38,000 feet’

Irene   ‘Guava Gunge’

Morag ‘Donald Speaking’

Marilyn ‘ Supporting Children in Need’

Rob ‘The Prize’

Lorna ‘Gardening Woes’

John H ‘The Spasm’

Sandra R    ‘On the Way to Gretna’

Sandar M    ’Wacky Tam’

Hilary ‘The Scarecrows Revenge’

We were then challenged with an identical list where a wild variety of interpretations were offered based around drape, shalt, slimy, abyss, rumba. Decal, wright, exert and drier. Make of that what you will.

We then decamped to ‘The Vanishing Willows’ where we were joined by Joan and Joyce and enjoyed our annual afternoon team get-together. Next week, a workshop on humorous writing so that should be a laugh!

 11th November

Apologies were received from Joan, Lorna, Irene and Linda and there were ten members in attendance.

The meeting opened with a message from postal member Vikki Gemmell who is currently judging our ‘teen fiction’ entries. She has kindly waived her fee and suggested that we put it towards a trophy awarded in memory of Donnie. This received a warm response and, on Sandra’s suggestion, it was decided it would be put towards a prize, awarded annually, for a ‘humorous article’ which was one of Donnie’s fortes. It would add to the competitions and will be competed for in the next session. Research was instigated to find a suitable trophy.

With early entries for the SAW competitions due at the end of the month, members brought in works which they felt could be considered. They were critiqued by the members who offered suggestions, improvements and the meeting proved very useful indeed.

John Mac began with a poem, ‘A Splash of Light’. Admitting he was outside his comfort zone, it was exactly what this particular meeting was designed for. Slight improvements were suggested and John will take them on board prior to entering his verse.

Rob followed with a piece entitled ‘Double Decker Gossip’ and again suggestions were made although it was difficult to ascertain into which genre or competition kit could be entered. However, with some ‘tweaks’ it will find a home.

Hilary’s extremely moving and topical poem ‘Tommy’s Secret Hell’ , a Great War memory, was very well received and, apart from a possible change in its title, was considered good to go. 

Morag’s short sketch ‘Conversations on a Bus’ dramatised an actual encounter she had experienced when a student in Glasgow and had sat next to a lady on the said bus who had insisted that Morag was a medical student. Very funny.

Jacky’s offering in the article competition was based on her great uncle’s award of  ‘The Daphne Clock’ and again members found it fascinating and suggested small changes to the piece before it is formally entered prior to her heading off to Australia. Bon voyage, Jacky!

Marilyn gave us another article ‘The Power of Thyme and Time’ , a clever title for a piece which highlighted the role played by both in physical and mental healing.

The afternoon ended with Brian giving us a short story entitled ‘For Better or Worse’, a powerful tale ranging from Donegal to New England and ending with a somewhat brutal twist.

This was a very useful afternoon and one which should be repeated in our ‘Open Manuscripts’ slots where previous offerings can be burnished with the help of fellow members. We ended with everyone being encouraged to attend the SAW Conference in March 2026.