Meeting report...

Meeting report for 17th July 2012

Members present were Dave, Dick, Suzy, Beryl, Martin, Liliane, Les, Tony, myself and our new Scribbler Becky.

This was another of our critique evenings where two of our team read out some long work for our appraisal and critique. Martin was the first to read with his short story/ beginnings of a novel called Finding April.

The story concerned a young girl, April, going missing and the thought processes behind Charley taking up the task of searching for her, having been employed as a private detective by the girl's father.

Unbeknown to the detective he is but one of many people employed by the father with the promise of a million pounds reward. Charley is an out of work White Van Man and turns his hand to detecting and ultimately finds the missing girl. He then astounds the millionaire father with the revelation that he did not do it for the money. The millionaire, however, had learned of his previous predicament and purchased a new van and a contract for Charlie to pursue his dream.

There was a lively discusion after the reading with many helpful suggestions coming from all present. Martin was unsure as to the ultimate length of the story but has perhaps decided to develop the story as is and produce a very interesting and well constructed short story.

Dick was the other reader last night and for our enjoyment had produced the second draft of a play

'Wot he wrote' concerning the ghost of Maria Harrison, a terrified woman who ultimately was driven to commit suicide by leaping from the battlements of Landguard Fort. It is an engrossing tale of life in the 1700's at which time the new governor of the fort decides to leave the structure in the hand of his second in command while he ingratiated himself with the Court in London. While he was away his appointed second in command had a situation arise concerning a missing lace handkerchief belonging to a soldiers wife.

The subsequent fruitless searches revealed nothing and a Portugese woman, Maria Harrison, married to the paymaster sergeant, was accused by two women to the extent that the sergeant went missing to bring the injustice to the attention of the Governor. Unfortunately he was accused and convicted of desertion and eventually executed by firing squad in the moat of the fort. This event led Maria to commit suicide and is said to roam the fort and its battlements to this day.

Dick hopes that this play will eventually be performed, if he can get the support, inside the fort, timing the ending with the fall of darkness. A brilliant true story read in Dick's inimitable fashion. The critique, as in Martin's case, was minimal, and provided us with hope for two excellent pieces being completed and in Dick's case, performed.

Our new recruit Becky had two great examples of what can come from being dedicated to ones's writing and said she thoroughly enjoyed her first Scribblers meeting. Welcome Becky.

Barry.