Meeting 17 October 2018

The writers

Helene, Trevor, Terry, Fran

The words of the day

Nether – lower or under

Dubbo – red earth or idiot

Ermine – expensive white fur from a stoat (weasel)

Stoat, weasel - Ermine

Trend – a general direction of development

Partisan – strong supporter of a party or cause

Termagant – harsh tempered or overbearing woman

Piazza – public square or marketplace especially an Italian town

Weasel words – statements that are intentionally ambiguous or misleading

Writing from words of the day

The writers took the words of the day and wrote about - Please explain, Meaghan in Dubbo, The wife of the PM and By the lake.

Reading of homework

The writers read out stories about - Six million dollars, We will remember them, Kameruka and In Thailand.

Spring into Spring in Sanctuary Point

The group will hold a stall at the above event on Saturday 27 October 2018. We want to publicise our group and will need volunteers for the day. Further discussions next week.

Homework

Pink

Record of meeting 10 October 2018

The writers

Helene, Trevor, Terry, Fran, and apologies from Pauline

The words of the day

Leery – cautious

Tinder – kindling

Ineluctable – inescapable

Belligerent – eager to fight

Rambunctious – wildly boisterous

Praline – a chocolate candy with a filling

Misanthrope – a person who dislikes humankind and avoids human society

Writing from words of the day

The writers used the words of the day to write about - The former Boy Scout, Mother of the groom, Donald is a goose and Joined the dating scene.

Reading of homework

The four writers read out stories about - Murder by the double, Mike and Steve, Blood dripped from his nose and Identical hair styles.

Exercise –Happiness

The writers cheerfully wrote about - A happy rabbit, Self esteem, Empire day and A sunny morning.

Exercise - one thing you can change right away

The writers wrote about - I’ve had enough, On his game, The final answer and Magic weeding wand.

Homework

Setting sun 

Record of meeting 26 September 2018

The writers

Helene, Trevor, Terry, Fran, Pauline

The words of the day

Albeit – although                                                 

Nobble – persuade, influence

Pathos – evokes pity or sadness

Abby – cloister, monastery, convent

Secrete – to deposit or conceal in a hiding place

Glade – an open space surrounded by woods

Tautology – saying the same thing twice

Ranunculus – large group of herb plants

Writing from words of the day

The writers were not nobbled and wrote about - Liberal party funds, A good job, by the sea, In an Abby garden and Vegetarian cooking.

Reading of homework

Four writers read out homework on the topics - Battles with beasts in Rome, Eye lash perming, Getting ripped off and Beautiful blonde curls.

Exercise – Not to burst your bubble

The writers used an old neighbour, an overused expression, a physical attribute and personality trait and wrote about - On the insular peninsula, The envy of your friends, Fairy dust, 110% dangerous and At the airport.

Exercise – leap of faith

The writers took a leap of faith and wrote about Garden leaves, 12 boys in danger, When I hit the greens, Gold fell from heaven and He had to do it.

Homework

Investigate the discovery on a bush track of a shoe splattered with blood. 

Record of meeting 19 September 2018

The writers

Helene, Trevor, Pat, Fran and Pauline and apologies from Terry

The words of the day

Psychosis – disconnection from reality

Ruminating – think deeply about something

Insidious – treacherous, proceeding secretly,

Crankle – turns and bends, to change the angle 

Inviolate – free from attack or disturbance

Writing from words of the day

The five writers wrote about – a shooting in Queanbeyan, Why I became a social worker, The Royal Commission into Aged Care, I hope it’s not catching and A long loaf of bread.

Reading of homework

Four writers read out clock related stories about – Cold Play on clocks, It’s dark in this box, Probably with baggage and Fifi loves clocks.

Exercise – your sports coach or the clock was ticking

The five writers shared memories and imagination with stories of - My hockey coach, London is changing, My PE teacher, My kitchen rules and Boot camp.

Exercise – I hung up on him twice

The writers happily embraced the role of a nurse and wrote about - He was allergic to peanut butter, The hacking cough, A huge bunch of roses, Allergic to shell fish and This place makes me crazy.

Homework

Write about three curly haired people and start with “It’s been said that blondes have more fun”.

Record of meeting 12 September 2018

The writers

Helene, Trevor, Pat, Fran and Pauline and apologies from Terry

The words of the day

Ascorbic acid – Vitamin C

Culpable – deserving blame

Moral – ethical, good decent

Wedged – force into a narrow space

Ornament – something used for decoration

Acerbic – sharp and forthright way of speaking

Morphology – study of form, structure eg biology

Morpheme – smallest unit of meaning in a language eg word

Palpable – so intense as to seem tangible, able to touched or felt

Loop hole – an ambiguity or inadequacy in the law or set of rules or an arrow slit in a wall

Writing from words of the day

The writers wrote palpably about - Blood on the sand, Professor Peter – Orange man, Too seriously, Memories of lavender and So much has happened.

Reading of homework

Four writers read out crime stories about - Tom’s travel companions, Bianca, The explosion and Ode to M Beaton.

Exercise – The perfect plan

Juan emailed his crime story the Perfect Plan asking us to find forensic type mistakes in the story. Fran read out the crime story and the writers identified around 14 mistakes.

Exercise – Setting for a crime

The writers each created a crime scene as follows - The TV was on, Umbrella on the roof, Always a cliché, The waterfall and More mistakes.

Homework

Write a story or poem including a clock.

Big ben

Meeting 5th Sept 2018

Attending...Terry, Pat, Fran, Trevor....Apology from Helene

Words.
Parry..............       ward off
Qualm........           uneasiness, misgiving
Misnomer...          incorrect use of a name...eg French fries are actually Belgian fries and your "funny        
                             bone"
                             isn't actually a bone but a nerve as opposed to a malapropism which is replacing a
                            word with an incorrect one that sounds the same but is not. e.g. the boon on a yacht
                            is actually the boom, the mask is actually the mast.
Patronise...........belittle, demean
Contemporary...current
Derogatory........a put-down, compromising someone's dignity

As usual a range of subjects using these words

Homework.
Homework read by Pat, Trevor and Terry and Terry read Helene's contribution. All related to the
"Crime Noir" genre.
We discussed Helene's suggestion that if people don't want to write crime then they can do whatever they wanted. We agreed that selecting a particular genre, as we have done, allows us to focus better.

Homework.
Continuation of short stories in the "Crime noir" genre.

Record of meeting 29 August 2018

The writers

Helene, Trevor, Pat and Terry.  Apologies Pauline

The words of the day

Germane – relevant

Nefarious – wicked or criminal

Chamois – small European Antelope

Chamfer – grove or channel cut on an edge

Mugwump – an aloof or independent person

Bagatelle – something of little value or importance

Jabot – Frill or ruffle at the front of a shirt or blouse

Exoplanet – a planet which orbits a star outside our solar system

Writing from words of the day

The writers wickedly used the words of the day to write about - No religion please, I was hunting, In the Pyrenees Mountains and Scandals in Parliament House.

Reading of homework

The writers were not afraid to readout stories about - A dark flash, Winter is with us, Dancing shadows and Shadows are my friends.

Exercise – Breath holding champion

The writers held their breaths while writing about - Free diving, The Guinness book of Records, Next to the WC and He always was political.

Exercise – the secret to a successful life

The writers concluded the secrets to a successful life are - Stick up for yourself, Bubbling with energy, Vivid imagination and Be tough.

Homework

Write the outline or a short story of crime noir. Pat has proposed we publish an anthology of crime – submissions welcome from past, lapsed and present members.