February 2023 Meeting

Hightown Writers’ Workshop Meeting

Tuesday 28^th February 2023, 7.0pm in  Peepo’s Spirit Room

Chair: Liz

Present: Alex, Adam, Irena, Marie, John, Liz, Tony T., Jennie, Tony H.

Apologies: Sue and Stuart

We welcomed a new member Tony H. and hope he can stay as long as possible with us before his work takes him elsewhere. There were nine of us and a very lively evening of writing and conversation ensued. For instance, some of us had no idea that robins and thrushes were part of the same bird family or that Adam could tell the difference between a robin’s song and a blackbird’s. Turns out some HTWs are very ornithologically knowledgeable whilst others were taking bird ‘lessons’ to tell the difference between a sparrow and a seagull (slight exaggeration!). We took rabbit hole diversions into the realms of high fashion and Vivienne Westwood and into space hunting for the aurora borealis. All very interesting.

Unfortunately Stuart was unwell so Liz chaired and drew upon a visit she had made on Monday to Hereford Cathedral for writing inspiration.

We began with a warm up activity: a word maze using mediaeval-themed words: abbey, chamber, cellar, Lady of the Manor, cave, oil, torture and castle. As always, people produced 9 quite different interpretations. Tony T, Tony H, Alex, Adam and Liz created mediaeval stories; Adam’s as a first-person narrator, Irena’s mediaeval protagonist was a cruel, psychotic lady-ruler and John’s twentieth century lady, resident of a grace and favour apartment at Warwick Castle, shared occult and ghostly experiences with George V! Marie’s lovely interpretation was set in our Bridgnorth Museum which we could see from Peepo’s window, and involved an overwhelmed curator hilariously trying to field the increasingly bizarre and bloodthirsty questions (and actions) from a group of visiting schoolchildren. Jenny managed to write a poetic saga about starving Welsh invaders who sacked the rich estates of their English neighbours, massacring all the servants but missing the lord and lady of the manor who hid away in an abbey – amazing writing within a 20 minute time-frame!

The mediaeval theme was explained by Liz who introduced the next month’s writing task, Hereford People, which was to use one, some or even all eleven characters imagined from their tombs in Hereford Cathedral. Liz had taken portrait photos of the faces from many of the mediaeval tombs and we were all surprised at how unexpectedly individual they looked. Tony T pointed out that one was a dead ringer for Daniel Craig! The task and photos will be shared by email with everyone who couldn’t come tonight.

It was also decided to hold another supplementary meeting on Tuesday 14^th March as some members will be away for Easter holidays on the next main meeting Tuesday 28^th March – and because members enjoyed the supplementary meeting in February and thought the exercise worth repeating.

On to February’s writing on the theme of ‘Valentine / Love’ or one of the many optional topics suggested by Alex at the 14^th February meeting which appealed to TonyT., Irena and Alex whilst Marie and John drew inspiration from their travels.

On love:

Jennie wrote movingly of her father’s beloved pet dog, Jock, who travelled the bus routes of Driffield in Yorkshire and came to a sad end under the wheels of the neighbouring coal merchant’s lorry.

Adam wrote the next instalment of the romance between Alex (not our Alex!) and Christina whom we had first met stuck on a Canadian sleeper train marooned in the winter snow at our January meeting. We’re hoping for the next chapter in March!

Tony H. wrote a ‘Scandi’ late nineteenth century/early twentieth century sci-fi mystery of the love between Jacob, a patient of Dr Lindstrøm, a psychiatrist, and his beloved Dagny who seemed to have perished in a risky experiment to capture not just the appearance of a person but the total sensory experience of an event or the person being ‘photographed’. Dagny had disappeared – but had she? And was Jacob really insane?

Liz wrote a story in haiku about Belle who had fallen in love with a designer ball gown in a sale only to be mocked by the fashionistas at the ball she attended.

Irena wrote a 200 word flash fiction inspired by Lockdown about an evil prisoner who was released on parole and eager to escape the confines of her jail for the freedom of the Worcestershire home she loved – only to face the reality of being released on the 23^rd March 2020 – the date of the first COVID lockdown.

On travel:

John wrote of a bizarre flight he had taken from Sicily and the worrying behaviour of a fellow passenger who insisted on fellow travelers wearing Christmas hats.

Marie wrote of her Valentine’s Day round trip from Manchester Airport, with a friend and her daughter, to view the Northern Lights with an on-board commentary from an astronomer who knew what was what in the clear night skies.

Other:

Tony T was inspired by Alex’s story prompt to write something ending with And there she was: lying under the piano! which took a young estate agent, Harry, into a mysterious old house.

Alex and Jennie both wrote sonnets with unusual takes on life above and below ground as Spring wakes up most living things from their winter slumbers … the exceptions being the human beings more welded to the digital world than the natural world around us and beneath our feet!

Do look out for all these pieces of writing which will be shared over the next few weeks on our blog:

hightownwriters.blogspot.com

Next meetings Tuesdays 14^th and 28^th March at 7pm in Peepo’s Spirit Room

Volunteers to chair please!!