Formed over forty years ago, our Writers Circle is based in Felixstowe, Suffolk. Meetings are held in The Room at the Top in Felixstowe Library, normally on the first and third Tuesday of each month commencing at 7.30pm and finishing by 10.00pm. Check this weblog for details of meetings.

There is an annual November to November fee of £30, April to November is £20 and June to November £15. For members preferring to pay at each meeting the charge is £5 per meeting. To contact Felixstowe Scribblers simply email scribblers.1@btinternet.com or the Secretary, catherine.stafford1@ntlworld.com

Saturday 28 February 2015

From the Ipswich Star

Simply click on the image to enlarge.

Our next meeting

Just another weekend quickie to remind you about next weeks meeting on Tuesday 3rd March. The meeting starts at 7.30pm with the homework assignment to produce up to 1,000 words on the subject 'In the Moonlight'.  It's a fair bet that there will be some romance generated by this subject!

Hope to see you all Tuesday,

Keep Scribbling!!!

Dave

Wednesday 25 February 2015

SUFFOLK READING FESTIVAL BROADCASTS THIS WEEK

Wed 25 Feb 1900-1930
Felixstowe Radio FXR 107.5 fm or via the internet
Program 56
The Sword of the Kings by Tony Shearman
The Road Hill House Murder by David Morrison (theme by Sarah Jane Scouten)
The Trouble with Scruff by Beryl Sabel
What is the Sun/Special Occasions by Jack Wilkinson

Performers: Giles Meehan, Ryan Guilder, Tony Shearman, David Miller,
Sheila MartinStella Day, Debbie Coveney, Alan DixAlison Miller,
Beryl Sabel, Robin Saunders.

and

Fri 27 Feb 1230-1300
Ipswich Community Radio (ICR) 105.7 FM or via the internet
Program 51
The Sword of the Kings by Tony Shearman
The Road Hill House Murder by David Morrison
Fireworks by Suzi Griffiths
Good and Bad by Jack Wilkinson
Performers: Angela Ashby, Ryan Guilder, Angela Silburn, David Miller,
Sheila Martin, Brian England, Debbie Coveney, Robin Saunders, Su Steadman,
Tony Shearman, Alan Dix, Martin Jarvis.

Hope you enjoy them
Tony

Monday 23 February 2015

Richard holding both the Bill Budner Cup
and the Jack Wilkinson Memorial Trophy.
Once upon a time a certain Felixstowe Scribbler tried to monopolise our two in-house competitions. Here, at last, is a photo of Richard whose wonderful work saw him holding both trophies albeit for a short time.

It was a great achievement, the honour well deserved with two excellent stories, and something that will be hard to equal in future.

Saturday 21 February 2015

Meeting report...

Minutes of Scribblers meeting held on Tuesday 17 February  

Present: Dave, Caz, Liliane, Beryl, Richard, Dick, Barry, Suzie, Gerry, Tony, Jane, Cathy

Apologies: Carolyn, Tom, Les

It was nice to see the numbers up again for this meeting.

Bill Budner trophy presentation:

The cup hadn't been available at the January meeting when Richard won the competition, but it was presented to him tonight instead.

Jack Wilkinson Trophy competition rules:

Beryl suggested we should more closely follow the Bill Budner competition format, with entries being read anonymously, rather than by their authors as has been the case previously with the Jack Wilkinson Trophy. This was agreed, and both she and Dick kindly offered to do the readings for us. Our thanks to them for doing this with their usual enthusiasm!

As usual, all the entries were of a high standard, with stories on very varied themes. When it came to voting, all those present found it hard to select their favourite piece, but when the result came in, it was Dave with his story ‘Joey’s missing’ who was announced as the worthy winner, and he was duly presented with the trophy –  see photo on the Weblog.

Caz thanked everyone who entered, telling us how much pleasure and comfort she derives from sharing her memories of Jack with us.

Dave's win:

Dave cannot understand why his story came out as winner but he says, "I feel honoured and privileged to have been lucky enough to win Jack's trophy. It is a really beautiful trophy and a tribute to a shining star and friend who left us six years ago. I would like to thank Caz for donating the trophy in the first place and to everyone who voted for me. I confess that the evening was a real thrill for me." I think we all completely understand Dave’s sentiments, and join him in his thanks to Caz.

Extra readings:

Although Caz and Dick hadn’t been able to attend our previous meeting, they’d both written pieces on its theme ‘Troubles’. Luckily there was time towards the end of last night’s meeting for them to read their work out for us. Two very different stories, but both equally enjoyable to hear.

Dave’s update on Les:
Les sounded quite happy on the phone on Wednesday, though he is absolutely fed up with the plaster cast on his leg. He has two visits to the hospital in coming days when he looks forward to hopefully having the plaster removed on Monday. He hopes that he will soon be back at Scribblers.

Update on MairĂ©ad:
MairĂ©ad hopes to be back with us at the next meeting. With the warmer springtime weather fast approaching she hopes to be able to attend more regularly. 

Synopses of competition entry stories:
Dave: Joey’s missing
Young Joey is accidentally separated from his mother at the station and swept onto a London train by jostling commuters. Reported missing by his mother, railway staff try to locate him. Discovered on the train, he sits with the driver all the way home to where his relieved mother waits.   

Barry: A house to let – no synopsis available
Jane: Friendship – no synopsis available
Liliane: We went to the zoo – no synopsis available

Richard: The steam whistle
A nineteen fifties seaside holiday. Timmy and his younger sister enjoy the beach but Timmy's passion is for steam engines. His mum doesn't understand, so Timmy has to compete for time at the station. Frustrated, he has fantasies about their return home, seeing himself united on the footplate of an express, accepted by the engine-driver and fireman. Bliss.

Beryl: The Morrison shelter
While home on leave Rosie's Daddy puts up a Morrison shelter in the dining room. After he goes back there is an air-raid. Mummy, who is cooking, says she can't come just yet. Rosie says in that case they'll die together. So Mummy goes into the shelter with her.

Suzie: Cedric’s computer has a bad mood
Cedric, the magical worm tries to take his young friend Felicia to visit the Old Woman Who Lives in a Shoe.  He enters 1 2 3 on his computer and presses 'Forward' but it's in a bad mood and Forwards them to a gloomy forest where Felicia is turned into a frog by three Wicked Witches.

Tony: The Gang
The eight year old had one desire, to be in the gang. Eventually he was accepted, but forced to play an important roll in revenge against a local butcher. Having successfully participated, his urge for survival kicked in, and he ran.

Synopsis of Dick’s work on the theme ‘Troubles’, entitled ‘Could I do it?’

Shy, lonely widower Harry decides discreetly to meet people by setting out chairs ready for a theatre performance to be held in the church hall. Finds himself persuaded to take on ‘front of house’ role when current holder of role retires in few months. Can he manage if there’s trouble? Because there just might be!

Next meeting: Tuesday 3 March, 7.30, Room at the Top.

1000 word homework for that evening is on the theme  ‘In the moonlight’, chosen by our trophy winner Dave.

Tuesday 17 February 2015

The Jack Wilkinson Memorial meeting...

Caz presenting the trophy
and certificate to Dave
A very healthy turn-out at Felixstowe Library for what turned out to be an excellent evening of tribute to our dearly lamented Jack Wilkinson. The stories were really top class stories - every one of them deserved to win but, in the end it came down to a single vote that swayed the result.

Before the meeting the competition rules were amended to match those in the Bill Budner Competition so that all entries were anonymous and professionally read out by Beryl and Dick.

The winner, with 'Joey's Missing', was our chairman, Dave.

An excellent evening once again.

Keep Scribbling!!!

The Scribe.

SUFFOLK READING FESTIVAL BROADCASTS THIS WEEK

Weds 18 Feb 1900-1930
FXR Felixstowe Radio 107.5fm or via the internet
Program 55
The Sword of the Kings by Tony Shearman ...
The Road Hill House Murder by David Morrison (theme by Sarah Jane Scouten)
Laura by Suzi Griffiths

Performers: Angela Ashby, Ryan Guilder, Sheila Martin, David Miller, Angela Silburn
Tony Shearman, Debbie Coveney, Alison Miller, Robin Saunders, Peter Guilder,
Alan Dix.

And

Fri 20 Feb 1230-1300
Ipswich Community Radio (ICR) 105.7 FM, or via the internet
Program 50
The Sword of the Kings by Tony Shearman
The Road Hill House Murder by David Morrison (theme by Sarah Jane Scouten)
A voice in her head by Dave Feakes
Hydrazoid by Jack Wilkinson
Performers: Angela Silburn, Ryan Guilder, Alison Miller, David Miller, Peter Guilder
Alan Dix, Sheila Martin, Brian England, Robin Saunders, Tony Shearman,
Su Steadman, Debbie Coveney.

Hope you enjoy them.

Cheers

Tony

Date change for Anne Shooter

A while ago I wrote to you about two events taking place here at the library in March as part of Bookfest, the Suffolk Libraries literary festival.  Due to circumstances beyond our control one of the dates has now changed.  So if you were interested in coming to the Anne Shooter event which will comprise a talk and cookery demonstration please note that the date is now Wednesday 18th March   not Friday 6th March as publicised.

Also, although it is not stated in the brochure,you can now purchase your tickets over the counter at any library in Suffolk.

Kind regards

Debra Rowe
Felixstowe Library

Friday 13 February 2015

Short Story Competition

FELIXSTOWE BOOK FESTIVAL

SHORT STORY COMPETITION

Calling all writers.  Why not have a go at our short story competition?   The theme is “In the margins”.   You can interpret this as creatively as you wish – on the edge of the sea; on the margins of society; in the margins of books or…?    The maximum word limit is 1000 words.  No minimum limit !    The closing date is Saturday 16th May 2015.  There is a small entry fee of £5.   The winning entrant will receive a prize of £50, a year’s subscription to the EADT Suffolk Magazine and the possibility of publication of the story in that magazine.   There are also two runner up prizes of £10 each and all three winners will be invited to read their stories at the Book Festival’s closing event.

Please use 12 point Arial or Times New Roman font and make cheques payable to “Felixstowe Book Festival”.  Details of how to enter and pay, on line or on paper, are on the Felixstowe Book Festival website www.felixstowebookfestival.co.uk/competitions/ and also at Felixstowe library.
Please see the website or visit the library for terms and conditions of entry and for further information or email Felixstowe@yahoo.com


Supplied by Stephen Wyatt

Our Next Meeting

As you know our next meeting is on Tuesday 17th February in The Room at the Top, start time 7.30pm.

This will be another special in house competition for The Jack Wilkinson Memorial Trophy which is open to attending members only. There is a lovely trophy for the winner who will be selected by Jack's Mum, Caz. Hopefully we will be blessed with a good attendance for the meeting.

Ironically current holder Richard will return the trophy and exchange it for the Bill Budner Trophy that he has just won.

Details of the competition are shown below and also available at the top of the weblog.

Until Tuesday,

Keep Scribbling,

Dave
 

Jack first attended a Scribblers meeting as an eight year old when he came along with his mother Caz who was unable to find a baby sitter for the evening. Far from being a nuisance as some had expected, Jack became a writer in his own right. Talented, fun loving and very, very courteous, there was never a time when he was anything less than an accepted member of our adult group.

Jack always ensured that he did his scribblers homework even if it meant coming in, laying on the floor and writing one of his fascinating and mature poems as the meeting progressed.

The group has been the poorer since Jack passed back in 2006 from cancer. A member for four years, he will never be forgotten by those who had the honour and pleasure of knowing him.

Here are the basic rules for this competition :

It is only open to attending members.

The entry should be up to 1,000 words written for children or, alternatively, a story that has a child included as an integral character.

Members will read out their own work and then vote for their favourite work of the evening.

When votes have been counted then the writer with the top marks will be awarded the trophy.

 In the event of a tie then Caz will have the casting vote.

The trophy will not need to be engraved; instead the winner will receive a certificate for their achievement.

The Jack Wilkinson Memorial Trophy will be held twice yearly.

Winners must undertake to return the trophy at the next staging of the competition.

Tuesday 10 February 2015

Humber Boy B by Ruth Dugdall

Read the review here


SUFFOLK READING FESTIVAL BROADCASTS THIS WEEK

Weds 11th Feb 1900-1930 

Felixstowe Radio 107.5fm or via the internet. 

Due to problems at the Victoria Studios, It will be a repeat of a very  
popular edition. 

Fri 13th Feb 1230-1300 
Ipswich Community Radio (ICR) 105.7 FM, or via the internet 
Program 49 
Sword of the Kings by Tony Shearman 
The Road Hill House Murder by David Morrison (theme by Sarah Jane Scouten) 
A love of all pets by Les Smith. 

Performers: Angela Silburn, Ryan Guilder, Alison Miller, David Miller,  
Peter Guilder, 
Tony Shearman, Robin Saunders, Alan Dix, Brian England. 

Hope you enjoy them. 

Cheers 
Tony 

Friday 6 February 2015

Minutes of Scribblers meeting held on Tuesday 3 February

Present: Dave,  Cathy, Tony, Suzie, Tom, Barry, Liliane, Gerry

Apologies: Jane, Carolyn, Derek, Katy, Caz, Richard, Beryl

Although numbers were low, those of us there enjoyed an excellent meeting. Richard’s chosen homework topic of ‘Troubles’ brought forth some very varied work. It’s always amazing to see what we all do with the same subject!

Before we settled down to hear each other’s work, Dave spoke briefly about the Felixstowe Book Festival. The organiser, Meg Reid, has been in contact with him, and is enthusiastic about our suggestion that Scribblers has a space in the cafĂ© section of The Orwell Hotel. We now need to work out a programme of readings/activities to cover both days of the festival. To this end we need to know how many of us are interested in taking part.  The current idea is that there will be hourly slots, with a specified reading taking place each hour, then discussion about the piece/writing in general etc with the ‘audience’.

I know that those of us who attended last year’s festival thoroughly enjoyed it, and can recommend getting involved.

Also, we have about twenty copies of our recent anthology left, so we plan to take them there to sell – probably at around £2/£2.50 per copy.

Titles of work heard, with synopses where provided

Gerry: A Scrap of Paper

Killing time in a run-down public library, a man browses through a book that nobody seems to have opened in decades.  He is about to return it to the shelves when a scrap of paper falls out, bearing a cryptic message and the address of a website.  Intrigued, that evening tries to call up the website - and rapidly wishes he hadn't.


Dave: Strife

They said it would be for life but the wedding certificate changed all that. She spent money on luxuries whilst I saved for the house. Then the baby arrived and she became more demanding despite me having two jobs. Then I caught her with her lover and eureka! My escape...
3rd February 2015.


Tom: Same strife, different city  (This was part of a longer story )

John wakes up to find he has been hit by a sniper. He has received a head wound  is a state of shock and is delirious. He is picked up by a couple of comrades and put into the rear of an armored vehicle. As it moves off some local yobs use a sectarian expression which reminds him of his youth. he smiles wryly.  

Barry: Numbers – no synopsis available


Liliane: The trouble with Mother

Willy's wife, Carla left him. He now fears that his domineering mother will want to move in with him. Temporarily he can stall her, having taken in his wife's brother, who had nowhere else to go. It doesn't last and he accepts the inevitable. He will likely have Mother with him for the rest of her days on earth...


Suzie: 38 Troubles

Using the word 'trouble' and its variations as many times as possible in the story of Mr. and Mrs. Trouble's weekend holiday with Auntie Norah in Wapping leaving their nine little Troubles at home.  It caused me no end of trouble to count the 'troubles', but I think there were 38.


Tony: An apology

Stuck with writers block. Turned to various music to gain inspiration. During which much tea, black coffee and alcohol was consumed. Unfortunately keys kept disappearing which is something we all hat. I was also unable to spell net due to lower case X not working.
Eventually a story came.
It.................


Cathy: Troubles

Gerald, ex-butcher, has endured his wife’s superiority and condescension all their married life. Now retired, he becomes a ‘silver surfer’. Embraces online family history research. Discovers his wife is illegitimate! Tells her he’s found her out. She realises his retirement will be spent tormenting her as she had tormented him.


Next meeting: Tuesday 17 February. This is the Jack Wilkinson Trophy night, when we write a story of up to 1000 words either about or for children.  Stories will be judged by Caz.
 



Tuesday 3 February 2015

A 'troubled' meeting

A low attendance caused by illness and weather conditions failed to detract from the quality of the stories produced. A single word subject always produces a varied result and tonight was no different.

Safe to say our next meeting will be on Tuesday 17th February for the 'Jack Wilkinson Memorial Trophy'. Competition details appear at the top of this weblog.

Until then...

Keep Scribbling!!!


Monday 2 February 2015

SUFFOLK READING FESTIVAL BROADCASTS - THIS WEEK

Wed 4th Feb 2015 1900-1930.
Felixstowe Radio 107.5fm or via the internet.
Program 54
Sword of the Kings by Tony Shearman ...
Road Hill House Murder by David Morrison (theme by Sarah Jane Scouten)
The Parasite by Jane Bailey

Performers: Angela Ashby, Ryan Guilder, Brian EnglandAngela SilburnSheila Martin, Tony Shearman, Martin JarvisAlison Miller, Robin Saunders, Su Steadman,
Alan Dix.

Fri 6th Feb 2015 1230-1300.
Ipswich Community Radio (ICR) 105.7 FM, or via the internet.
Program 48
Sword of the Kings by Tony Shearman
Road Hill House Murder by David Morrison (theme by Sarah Jane Scouten)
The Wrong Type by Jane Bailey
Performers: Angela Silburn, Allison Miller, Ryan Guilder, David Miller, Robin Saunders, Tony Shearman, Peter Guilder, Sheila Martin.

Hope you enjoy them.
All the best
Tony