May 2023 Meeting Minutes

HTW Meeting 23 May 2023

Chair: Jennie
Apologies: Liz, Marie, Tony H, Tony T, Kath, Andy and Stuart.

Once again, we had an enjoyable High Town Writers’ meeting at Peepos. Because the restaurant was not busy it closed early and so we finished at 9pm.

There were six of us; Adam, Alex, Sue, Irena, me (Jennie) and John Ayres-Smith. It was good to welcome John back as we haven’t seen him for a few months.  

Our first discussion dealt with a possible change of venue and of changing to a Wednesday or Thursday.  Alex found that The Crown over the road is willing for us to meet in an upstairs room which is free mid-week.

Peepos is still a popular place to meet so we agreed to stay with that venue for the regular 4th Tuesday in the month and to try the Crown on the 2^nd Thursday. We will meet both days at 7pm.

 

The following meetings will be held:

Tuesday 13^th June Peepos

Tuesday 27^th June Peepos

Thursday 13^th July The Crown

Tuesday 25^th July Peepos

I can already see that this arrangement is going to be confusing but let’s give it a try.

 

The first task was: ‘You want to attract a new partner, male or female so write a To do list’

This turned out to be entertaining although some of us took it quite seriously. 

John set out to be a model of behaviour and appearance; clean, well- groomed, positive, interesting, wouldn’t dive in and hog the conversation, would try not to be boring and talk about his new fridge, etc, etc. What a wonderful man!

Irena would take an interest in the other person, find common ground, have fun, have a private joke together, assure the person how much she has enjoyed their company and above all, try not to appear desperate. Worth remembering!

Adam sitting on a bench in the park would start a conversation with a young woman sitting on another bench opposite. They would get to know each other and learn about each other’s characters.

Jennie didn’t take it at all seriously! She wasn’t going to tell him that she had had 4 husbands, that she snored, had a large overdraft, had false teeth and an artificial leg, wore a padded bra, had a dad in prison as a serial killer, and had filled out her lips with Botox – etc!

Alex wrote an interesting short story where the main character has three women in his life who probably never meet. Two are former girlfriends with serious problems, both older than he is (one is in prison), and now he’s meeting a third, also older, who has controversial views. This man seems to court trouble!

 

We went on to read our own work.

Adam had written on the homework theme of Three Girls on a Day out. Megan, Rachel and Olivia hire a kayak and are sailing off the coast of Tenby. They can see the outline of the medieval castle and as always Adam’s writing is very descriptive. He uses his skills in writing believable dialogue between the girls. They are first caught in the wake of a big boat and nearly capsize, then an argument develops about visiting the nearby island with a monastery. Megan wants to go home to dry land but the other two want to go to the island and lie on the beach. Their arguments become both environmental and philosophical as they talk about the healthy air as opposed to pollution in town and look out at the universe and see the beauty of the sky. A poetic piece. 

Irena read her amazing Lurcher Anthem/Lurcher Law. She describes, their beauty, their brightest eyes, their strong muscles, their zest for life. Lurchers are mischievous and like to steal, right in front of your eyes. The Lurcher loves his master and keeps his place. Irena is totally in touch with the spirit of the Lurcher and demonstrates this in her beautiful script.

 

John told us about The British Ironwork Centre Oswestry. It is open 10-4pm Tuesday to Saturday and there are suits of armour and many sculptures in iron. There’s also a cafe. It’s £7.50 entry but free to young people under 18.

 

It was good to see Sue and she is keen to write about the wonderful huge bull that was constructed for the Commonwealth Games held in Birmingham in 2022. He was a big success and was on display in Centenary Square in Birmingham throughout the summer. We look forward to hearing your thoughts Sue when you have time.

 

hightownwriters.blogspot.com

Alex posts a huge amount of work on the blog and didn’t bring anything along last night but do look at it on the blog. We are grateful to Liz for creating the blog and I want to encourage everyone to look at it as often as they can. It’s good if you can make a comment. Just click on Comment, to do so

Search the above blog address and you will find it.

If you want to post anything on the blog or want any information, go to Liz at: hightownwriters@gmail.com

 

Next meeting: Peepos 13 June 7pm

Chair Irena

Homework: The Bell 

If you prefer to bring some other writing or just come and listen and chat, please do. We always welcome new members.

 

Jennie Hart