Meeting Minutes September 26th 2019

The meeting commenced at 6:05 in the King's Daughters room at the Swanton library.  Future meetings will likely be held there due to the expanding size of our group!  Please note: future meetings of our group will be held on the second Thursday of every month unless otherwise posted.  Below are a compilation of notes assembled by Becky and myself.

Judy spoke about the Edwin M Church Award.  The 15 entries were well received by a panel of 3 judges.  2 book stores owners/managers and an editor.  Congratulations to group member Ev Larson on taking first place!  The benefactors of the award have decided to extend the number of years the contest will run due to the quality of work which has been submitted over the last 2 years.  In future there will only be one cash prize and one contest, which will include HS seniors. It was proposed that a list of publications which might accept these stories should be made available to contest participants. 

2 possibilities: Green Mountain Trading Post (Don has been published multiple times) The Mud Season Review.

Events/Workshops

The League of Vermont Writers  is meeting Saturday September 28th from 8:30 – 3:15) in the Bliss Room at the St. Albans Historical Society. Various presentations; theme is the Art of Writing. Registration and fee required.

The Eloquent Page on Main Street in St. Albans, will host an open mic for writers from 3:30-4:30. (Immediately following the League meeting)

The St. Albans Art Walk and Sidewalk Sale will occur on Saturday, October 5th from 10 – 2. Writers wanted! To participate, simply pick a site on Main Street and contact the business you will be in front of to make sure they’re okay with you being there – then bring your own table, chair, and books to sell.

Activities

The Swanton Library is looking for book reviews. Each review should be about a paragraph long. Pitch your favorite books! EMAIL to Caleb Rupp, Swanton Library Director.

Monster Prompts.  In early October the Swanton Library will host an event for area children.  The activity will have them designing a monster (Halloween is around the corner!) and writing a short story about it.  It was proposed that writer's group members read these stories and elaborate on them.  Possibly a flashfiction piece of 500 words or less. More discussion at our next meeting.

 The Great Ghost Read is tentatively scheduled for Tuesday, October 8, 10 AM – noon, at the Swanton library.  Come read your favorite Halloween/ghost/spooky story – either one of your own or a favorite by another author.

Many thanks to the group members who chose to share their ongoing projects with the group.  We had an hour of stimulating discussion about various topics and genres!

Meeting adjourned at 7:30.

Next meeting: Thursday October 10th, 6 pm at the Swanton Public Library.

Meeting Minutes August 22nd 2019

Here is a compilation of notes created by Becky and myself.  Our group has really grown in the last few months. Wonderful to see so many new and enthusiastic faces.

Events and workshops

Brattleboro Literary Festival 
October 17-20 "The 18th annual Brattleboro Literary Festival will take place October 17-20. The theme of the 2019 festival is Identity: personal identity, cultural identity and our identity as a country. Free and open to the public." Find more information HERE

League of VT Writers
St. Albans Historical Museum
Saturday, September 28, 8:30 AM - 3 PM
Theme: The Art of Writing.  Find more information HERE

Swanton Arts Spectacular
Saturday, September 7 Swanton park We'll have a local authors' tent starting at 10 AM. Come talk to us!

Performances

Swanton Arts Council presents "The Year of the Salmon"

"Join us on Monday, September 16th at 6PM sharp at the Welden Theater for the Premiere of "The Year of the Salmon". Tickets are $5 each and can be purchased by contacting jpaxman@swantonartscouncil.org

And don't miss the After-party and Salmmy Awards Presentation to be held at Mill River Brewing directly after the showing!"

Still looking for participants for the Great Ghost Read, to air on NW Access TV in October - Halloween-themed stories either of your own or by your favorite authors. Contact Becky if you're interested in reading.

Becky reiterated the idea of "Mailboxes for kids"  A program where children could write to their favorite fictional character and group members could write back in the voice of the character. Several members signed up for this program.  Everyone is welcome to participate.

Several members new and old read their work before our meeting adjourned at 7:35.  Next meeting is September 26th at the Swanton library. One of the items to be discussed is setting a firm day for our monthly meetings. Please bring your calendars.