Of the People

My apologies for getting this off so late. We have a meeting scheduled for this Sunday, but first...

Our last meeting took place on Sunday, April 19, at the Pobanz residence. Present were Kerry Pobanz, June Saunders, Valerie Shimoyama, Jerry Chesnut, Russell Giordano, and Bob and Karen Beebe (and we thank Carol for all the nourishments provided during the course of the meeting). Bob began by reading something about "Turning Your Characters Inside Out", in other words revealing the inner thoughts and emotions of the characters in your writing (the main ones anyway). This is importance if you want your readers to care about what happens to them. They have to be able to get inside their heads, to "be" them in a sense.

Then we heard from someone who is very good at doing that, June, who presented a newly written chapter of her Civil War novel that goes back and tells how her two main protagonists, Gabriel and Simeon, first met each other and what happened to build a friendship between these two very different kinds of personages. She even threw in a little known story about young Abe Lincoln getting into a fistfight with the local tough, ultimately winning the respect of the townspeople and the tough himself.

So, our next meeting is planned for this Sunday, May 3, 3:00-5:00 pm, at the home of Russell Giordano (91 Warren St., Apt. 1B, Nutley). Russell will present a little something (haiku, poem, some kind of vignette?). Then Jerry will come forth with the latest installment of his work-in-progress. Should be exciting, so I look forward to seeing you there despite the late notice (mea culpa).

God bless you all!

Bob