PEACE with Penny

I’m In Love With Someone Else & My Husband Thinks It’s Cool…

Don’t worry, my husband hasn’t lost his mind.  It’s just that I’m besotted, passionate, and beside myself in love with these creative, intelligent human beings called writers.  As many of you know, I recently established Writers4Writers, a writers’ support group in Rancho Santa Margarita, California.  For once, it’s even in my neighborhood : )  What a wonderful night we had discovering each of our backgrounds, projects and what type of support we want from Writers4Writers.

It was so exciting to meet the eighteen talented writers that gathered to learn with one another.  They ran the gamut from those who were award-winning, published authors to those who had journaled all of their lives, but never shared them with anyone.  No matter, everyone is welcome.  Who knows, maybe the least professionally experienced of us, with our support, will turn out to be the next J.K. Rowling, Maya Angelou or Dan Brown.

I had to laugh.  One gentleman had come into the library, noticed our group and decided to join us.  In fact, he is an accomplished writer.  However, once I heard that he had six children, I couldn’t help but think he would have joined us if we were discussing Aboriginal basket weaving – any nice quiet place to get a break from home : )  We even had a librarian attend from north Orange County who wanted to start her own writer’s group and she stopped by to see how our night unfolded.  Digging a bit deeper, we soon realized that she too was a writer : )

I’m so eager to learn from every one of our members. There were writers of so many varied genres including sci-fi, mysteries, historical romances, murder intrigues, memoirs, literature, crime novels, food blogs, children’s stories and some writers who write for religious readers.  Both non-fiction and fiction and a wide range of types of narrative formats are represented, from memoirs, to novels and short stories.  There was a veritable smorgasbord of topics and my mouth was watering, curious about the colorful story lines that would be displayed in the future meetings.  I loved the breadth of interests and looked forward to the impact of the cross-fertilization of perspectives.  As one of our murder mystery writers eerily remarked, he was beginning to imagine a story line of our writing group members disappearing one-by-one.  I knew that the creative juices were starting to flow – yikes!

Just to get to know more about everybody, I asked what they like to do for fun.  As expected, the responses were also diverse:  Reading (no surprise), travel, explore the stars, magic, cooking, eating, playing a vast array of instruments, being out in nature, hiking, back packing, biking, shopping, movies, politics, photography, triathlons and my favorite – ecstatic dance.  I don’t know what ecstatic dance is, but it definitely sounded like something I thought everyone should try at least once in their lives : )

One of our published writers is Racheli Morris.  She’s an Israeli event planner – think, a Jewish Martha Stewart.  Her book, “Celebrate the Jewish Holidays,” is filled with entertaining ideas for the Jewish holidays.  The photographs are strikingly colorful, with spectacular place setting and decorating ideas.  It’s just gorgeous and would make a wonderful gift for a new bride : )  But don’t think she’s just a one-trick

Celebrate the Jewish Holidays with Racheli Morris
Celebrate the Jewish Holidays with Racheli Morris

pony. Like all of our writers who attended, she has many interests and talents. She’s been a tour guide in Israel, teaches Hebrew and she even is currently working on a Christian children’s book Mazal Tov! (Good Luck!).  For our published authors, we have a table where they can display their books and hopefully inspire some sales : )

Writers often support their habits with day jobs and there was just as much diversity here.  Amongst our tribe was an engineer, nurse, systems consultant, fitness trainer, stay-at-home Mom, theologian, attorney, leadership development trainer, insurance salesman, teacher, programmer, tour guide, event planner and even some lucky enough to make their living writing : )

When asked why they decided to join Writers4Writers, there were many different reasons. They responded:

 

Love to write

Love to be around other writers

Want to improve technical writing skills

Direction

Wants to follow her dream of writing a book

Feedback, is my writing good enough?

Motivation        

Discipline

Editing

To hear others’ stories

Exploring diversity

Networking

I need to

My New Year’s resolution was to call myself a writer

Listening to new ideas and concepts

Education, learning

Encouragement

To give support

Improve creativity

Guidance, collective wisdom

Want to learn about the business of writing

Inspiration

Accountability  

Multiple opinions

Wanted coaches & mentors

To gain courage for first steps

Ignite my spark to write again

Every meeting, we will take time to do at least some of what is commonly known as readings and critiques.  The writers have been asked to bring along 5 pages of their work to read to the other writers – ONLY, if they are comfortable doing so.  It takes courage to lay your soul out before the world.  In order to create a safe place to share the depths of our creativity, we created a set of:

Writers4Writers Feedback Guidelines

  • We are grateful that you’ve chosen to share your work with us and help us to be better writers
  • Ensure that Writers4Writers is a Safe place to share our work
  • Golden Rule: Do to others, as you would have them do to you
  • Give the reader our undivided attention
  • Start with what’s right about the work
  • Provide feedback sensitively
  • Cellphone-free zone – please leave the room, if you must send a text or make a call
  • Remember, it’s your work. Listen to the feedback, accept what feels right & let go of the rest

At this first meeting, because of taking time to get to know our members, there was just enough of our meeting left for two brave people to read their work.  I always wait with baited breath to hear the content of writers’ imaginations, intellect and voices from within.  We hung on each word, feeling and absorbing each phrase and the impression that it carved into our being – you could have heard a pin drop in the room.

These first readings were both based on real life experiences.  This was just coincidence as I’ve already indicated, we have many different genres in our group.  Anyone can read and these were chosen solely based on who had rsvp’d to read first.  The first reading shared was a “coming of age” story about a posse of kids, who grew up together and their captivating adventures.  The next, was based on the life experiences of a woman growing up in Chicago, in 1996, whose grandmother was the only white woman left in the neighborhood due to “white flight.”  As she gratefully looked over at an African American man in our group, she quietly said, “It changed my life.”  Do you begin to get why I’m so thrilled about being amongst my peeps?

One person in our group said that she didn’t want to do any readings, she said her “feelings are too tender.”  That’s perfectly fine, we came together to be amongst other writers for many different reasons. I can’t help but wonder what delicious life wisdom we would taste, if this sweet soul was comfortable enough to share : ) Perhaps a time in the future she will change her mind – only time will tell.  What we can do for now is allow everyone to make their own choices and feel supported in their decision.

Being around other writers who love the written word is contagious and motivating.  The creativity in the room was palpable.  The craft of writing is primarily a solitary pursuit.  The next phase of writing requires support from others.  We need our editors, agents, publishers and publicists.  Yet, sometimes, many of us feel the need as we write, to get out and connect with other, like-minded companions.  To see the encouraging smile, the nodding of the head in solidarity with our experiences or hear the cacophony of laughter – validating that others actually think what we intended to be funny, hit the mark.  Or if not, we need to know that too.  Every writer has to accept that rewriting, is still writing.

As writers, we want our readers to feel our words – have a visceral reaction to what we are trying to communicate.  Sometimes we want to titillate your senses, scare you, make you laugh, or make you think – I never thought of it that way!  In our memoirs we let you in to inspect the deepest recesses of our lives.   As we examine our own internal world and reflect upon the cause and effect of our innermost secrets, our readers get to be voyeurs into our most private experiences and emotions.  Perhaps they even see themselves in our angst or childhood memories – Do you remember how the shutter sounded as it banged against the house in the wind the first time your parents left you at home by yourself?  Did your closed closet door suddenly take on a dark shadow that you had never seen before, and you wondered if somehow, someone was hiding in there?

Oh and did I forget to mention, it’s FREE?  You ask, why should I join a writing group? If you are reading this and it makes you sad because you feel like you missed out, come join us.  Our next meeting is February 10, 2016 at the Rancho Santa Margarita library.  You can rsvp by clicking on the Writers4Writers tab above or here at http://pennystee.com/events/. We have a seat and a word of encouragement waiting for you.

Come Join Me On My Journey…

1 comment

  1. As I read your blog it made me all the more appreciative of the gift you created by taking the initiative to start our writing group. Thank you again

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