The full-day writing conference run by Jane Wenham-Jones and Maggie Harris was successful. Chocolate eclairs were amazing! They had to be. "Mrs Corbys Tea Rooms" always offer high class old-fashioned food and good service. You taste special ingredients in all her food - KINDNESS and LOVE! Which is maybe why she won a 2011 tourism award and cafe employee of the year. See www.corbystearooms.co.uk/reviews.php This isn't tongue-in-cheek - it was tongue around the lips.
But to drag myself away from the cream cakes, the writing day produced significant applause at the end. Over 20 budding writers had been egged on their literary careers in gentle, caring ways, and asked me about publishing their eBook for them. I was pleased that Jane's hilarious book, "Wannabe a Writer?", sold out. As did Maggie's insightful book, "Kiskadee Girl", on Caribbean life.
My recent Caribbean adventures still turn up "co-incidences". On the cruise I met Gaynor, who asked me to lecture at her April conference. At today's event, I met one of her friends, who will also lecture there. As they say, it's a small world, connecting us in ways we may only imagine.
Perhaps I could pop down our writing tasks, to give a non-chocolate eclair flavour of the day?
First, we had to write the opening of a book. So the following may open Book 2 in my trilogy, "The Cosmic Corporation". (Book 1 is downloadable from the homepage.)
"It was another one of those Monday mornings. Michael hopped out of bed, smiling as usual. Another happy day to look forward to, he thought. His eyes sparkled like see-through azure sea.
"Texts and emails showed his first jobs. A lady abused by her husband wants to kill him. A mother whose child is out of control wants to throw him out. And a couple whose baby died have entered a suicide pact.
"Hmm, which to help first...
"As Michael started his God-given tasks for the day, he combed his sun-blonde curls, and unfurled his pale blue wings..."
Next we wrote 12 poetic lines about our family in 10 minutes, repeating part of the first line. Here's my attempt.
Mum (Channing) and dad (Sweeney)
(a tongue-in-cheek poem of personal 'memories')
Channings made cakes to die for;
Sweeneys meals made you want to die.
Channings loved kids, as many as their stomachs could hold;
Sweeneys made kids their life purpose, but couldn’t stomach them.
Channings were Jews, but prayed to be atheists;
Sweeneys loved business, and saved pennies like Jews.
Channings were mostly happy, and gentle;
Sweeney’s almost learned genteel happiness.
Channings played games, sung and had fun;
Sweeneys fun came through games of life.
Channings taught lessons of nature;
Sweeneys fraught lessons of nurture.
(Tongue-in-cheek. Really!)
But to drag myself away from the cream cakes, the writing day produced significant applause at the end. Over 20 budding writers had been egged on their literary careers in gentle, caring ways, and asked me about publishing their eBook for them. I was pleased that Jane's hilarious book, "Wannabe a Writer?", sold out. As did Maggie's insightful book, "Kiskadee Girl", on Caribbean life.
My recent Caribbean adventures still turn up "co-incidences". On the cruise I met Gaynor, who asked me to lecture at her April conference. At today's event, I met one of her friends, who will also lecture there. As they say, it's a small world, connecting us in ways we may only imagine.
Perhaps I could pop down our writing tasks, to give a non-chocolate eclair flavour of the day?
First, we had to write the opening of a book. So the following may open Book 2 in my trilogy, "The Cosmic Corporation". (Book 1 is downloadable from the homepage.)
"It was another one of those Monday mornings. Michael hopped out of bed, smiling as usual. Another happy day to look forward to, he thought. His eyes sparkled like see-through azure sea.
"Texts and emails showed his first jobs. A lady abused by her husband wants to kill him. A mother whose child is out of control wants to throw him out. And a couple whose baby died have entered a suicide pact.
"Hmm, which to help first...
"As Michael started his God-given tasks for the day, he combed his sun-blonde curls, and unfurled his pale blue wings..."
Next we wrote 12 poetic lines about our family in 10 minutes, repeating part of the first line. Here's my attempt.
Mum (Channing) and dad (Sweeney)
(a tongue-in-cheek poem of personal 'memories')
Channings made cakes to die for;
Sweeneys meals made you want to die.
Channings loved kids, as many as their stomachs could hold;
Sweeneys made kids their life purpose, but couldn’t stomach them.
Channings were Jews, but prayed to be atheists;
Sweeneys loved business, and saved pennies like Jews.
Channings were mostly happy, and gentle;
Sweeney’s almost learned genteel happiness.
Channings played games, sung and had fun;
Sweeneys fun came through games of life.
Channings taught lessons of nature;
Sweeneys fraught lessons of nurture.
(Tongue-in-cheek. Really!)
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