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 29 February 2020

Our Next Meeting 3rd March 2020

Hi Scribblers!!!

Not that you will need reminding, but our next meeting is creeping up quite rapidly.

It takes place this coming Tuesday, 3rd March, when the 750 word homework theme is "FAME." Doubtless you will provide a completely eclectic selection of stories surrounding this subject.

The meeting starts at 7.30pm when the door will be locked.

Hope to see you there!

Until then,

Keep Scribbling!!!

The Cambridge Prize for Flash Fiction- open for entries until 15th March

The Cambridge Prize for Flash Fiction launched on the 15th January.
This competition is looking for your very best 400 words.
Top Prize £1000, plus payment for all shortlisted writers! Deadline: 15th March

Follow the link below for all the details.

https://t.co/uPvAZrx5dO

As well as this Flash Fiction competition, The Cambridge Prize also offer a further chance to win, with entries of short stories.

Details of the Cambridge Prize for Short Stories will be released in April.

Good luck and Keep Scribbling!






Sunday 23 February 2020

Zadie Smith's Ten Tips for Writing


An interesting article worth sharing...
Celebrated author Zadie Smith shares her writing 'rules', which I found via the website 'Brain Pickings'- run by Maria Popova. https://www.brainpickings.org/about/ 

Maria has collated advice on writing from many famous sources- Zadie Smith being the latest addition. Look at Maria's website for the full list in her article 'Timeless Advice on Writing: The Collected Wisdom of Great Writers'.

See the link below for the ten tips from Zadie, including the great advice to 'Leave a decent space of time between writing something and editing it'.
Advice we would definitely take, were it not for the tight deadlines for scribblers' homework!

https://www.brainpickings.org/2012/09/19/zadie-smith-10-rules-of-writing/ 


Meeting Minutes from 18th February

Minutes of Scribblers meeting held on 18 February 2020
Present:
Liliane, Georgina, Martyn, Jane H, Kay, Arlette, Cathy, Justin, David, Carole, Jim
Apologies: 
Dave, Beryl, Glynis, Derek
Business: 
There were no business items to attend to, but the group sent their best wishes to Dave, who is currently unwell.
After a late start to the meeting (issues with security codes/access etc), we settled down to hear the entries for the Jack Wilkinson trophy competition, with six entries for a story about children. We always say how varied these competition stories are, and this evening was no exception. Kay and Cathy did the reading.
Jim kindly took on the task of collating the votes at the end, and the winners were as follows:
First place went to Carole with her story ‘The unforeseen perils of appendicitis’ , 742 words
Next was Georgina, taking second place with ‘Full circle’, 698 words
Finally, Liliane took third place with ‘Katy’, 749 words
The remaining stories tied for fourth place – rather unusual!
Jane – Nature, 750 words
Martyn – Friends, 655 words
Justin - ‘Reading the rain’, 746 words
After Jim had presented Carole with the trophy, and the usual photos had been taken, we settled down for chat, coffee and cake – and our thanks must go to Georgina for the delicious flapjack she baked for us.
The meeting finished unusually early, and there could have been opportunity for a short exercise had we wished to do one, but everyone agreed that they were happy to head home.
Next meeting: 3 March, when the homework theme is ‘Fame’ – maximum of 750 words

NEXT MEETING

Hello Scribblers

Our next meeting will be held on the 3rd March.
The homework topic for this meeting is 'Fame'.
Maximum of 750 words please- interpret the prompt however you feel.
Please be aware that the meeting starts at 7.30 pm and the door will be locked at this time for security reasons.
Wishing you all inspiration.
Keep Scribbling!

Wednesday 19 February 2020

Congratulations in Order

Well done to the new holder of the Jack Wilkinson Trophy.

Carole was presented with the fabulous trophy by the previous holder Jim.

The competition was for a short story, up to 750 words, about children.

Carole's entry was 'The Unforeseen Perils of Appendicitis'; a gripping tale of survival.

The runners up were Georgina with 'Full Circle' and Lilianne with 'Katy'.

Thank you to all those who entered and contributed to a very enjoyable evening.






Sunday 16 February 2020

A Literary Link

Those who dabble in the World of Twitter will know there are a vast array of contacts you can make. You can 'follow' other writers for support and a sense of community. You can find links to competitions, festivals and opportunities. One writer that I follow regularly posts such links, as well as amusing, inspiring and gut-wrenchingly accurate and helpful quotes from writers- such as this one: "Sometimes a flat-footed sentence is what serves, so you don't get all writerly: 'He opened the door.' There, it's open." -Amy Hempel My Twitter friend is Peter Jordan- he has recently published a collection of short stories called 'Calls to Distant Places'. A recent Tweet of his contained this helpful link, for those wanting to submit work to Literary magazines. How to Submit Your Writing to Literary Magazines https://t.co/9V6Zkvy8XP via @A_WritersStudio
(
https://twitter.com/PM_Jordan/status/1228345648354877443?s=09)

Get the official Twitter app at
https://twitter.com/download?s=13

Keep Scribbling, and keep sharing opportunities.

The Jack Wilkinson Memorial Trophy

Hi Scribblers,

It doesn't seem long ago that we had gathered for our last meeting and then, of course, the meal.

Once again time is slipping by so here is the reminder... Our next meeting is on Tuesday 18th February when we will hold our competition in memory of young Jack Wilkinson. It is for stories ABOUT children and there's a lovely trophy at stake as usual so, best pens forward and get your entries ready.

There have to be rules for any competition (and these are not to be broken!!!).

Typed entries on A4 paper please, using one side only.
Please staple or clip together multiple sheets of paper.
There is a maximum word limit of 750 words.
Please show your total words (excluding the title) at the top of your entry.
Where possible use Ariel font size 12.
There must be no marks or indication of the author on the entries.

For security purposes the library door will be locked at 7.30.

Hope to see you on Tuesday so,

Keep Scribbling and Good Luck!

Dave

Dave
Where possible please use Ariel font size 12.
Maximum word limit - 750.
Please show the number of words in your entry alongside the title of your story.
No marks or indication of the author must appear on the entry

Monday 10 February 2020

Writing Competitions 2020




Dystopian Stories.com - run by Almond Press - have a comprehensive list of creative writing competitions and events for writers. Follow the link below to find out more.

The competitions include entries for short stories, poetry, flash fiction, essays and more...

The first two competitions featured are free to enter, and have closing dates of 12th and 13th February, so if you are interested- don't delay.

The website also has a guest blog with some tips on coping with 'writers block' as well as other resources, and an example of a dystopian story- should this genre interest you.

https://www.dystopianstories.com/writing-competitions-contests/

Wednesday 5 February 2020

Crystal Ball Changes Hands


Last year's Mairead Ready Crystal Ball Competition resulted in a four-way tie for first place.
Each of the winners will hold the trophy for three months.
The first handover was made at last night's meeting, being passed from Carole to Georgina, who will cherish it and attempt to see some future spooky tales within.



Meeting Report



Minutes of Scribblers meeting held on 04 February 2020
Present:
Dave, Liliane, Georgina, Martyn, Stephen, Jane H, Kay, Tony, Arlette, Cathy, Justin, David, Carole, Beryl, Jim, Derek, Liz, Glynis
Apologies: 
Tom, Jane B
Business: 
Mairead Reidy trophy. Last year there was a four way tie for first place in the competition we hold in Mairead’s memory. Carole had the trophy for three months, and brought it in so it could be presented to Georgina for her three month turn. A photograph was taken, which will appear on the weblog in due course.
Caz passed on a message from the sister of one of our much missed members, Les, to say how much she had enjoyed our last anthology. Nice to know that Les’s memory lives on through the group’s work.
Liz is finalising details of the meal that some of us are going to on 11 February at the White Horse.
Weblog – apart from a few technical hitches, Georgina is happy managing this. She asked that we send her anything that we may like included on it.
Readings of homework: the theme was ‘the dinner date’, and all seventeen stories we enjoyed had an unusual/different take on the theme – what imaginations we all have!
Carole – 742 – The dreamcatcher
Jane H – 560 – Dead right
Derek – 710 – Good Old Liam
David – 712 – The monastery
Georgina – 750 – Date night
Liz – 730 – Dinner date on the balcony
Kay – 460 – Shared sorrow
Dave – 742 – Our dinner date beckons
Arlette – 735 – Synchronicity
Jim – 670 – When Janice met Darren
Liliane – 623 – So now goodbye
Tony – 749 – the end of last time’s story titled ‘The copper fortress’
Glynis – 754 – The dinner date
Martyn – 380 – Skipper
Beryl – 748 – The plot
Justin – 745 – One careless owner
Next meeting: 18 February. This is the Jack Wilkinson competition, and the entries are to be stories about children. Usual competition rules apply – 750 words maximum, entries to be printed on one side of paper, ideally in Arial 12, stapled together, no identifiers.

Monday 3 February 2020

Our Next Meeting




Hi Scribblers,

Our Tuesday meetings seem to come along very quickly, the next one is tomorrow: Tuesday 4th February. The homework assignment is "The Dinner Date". A maximum of 750 words is requested and please remember to announce your word count at the start of your story. Thank you.

Talking of dinner dates reminds me that our meal is at the White Horse, Church Road, Felixstowe on Tuesday 11th February. Please refer to the link below and email your meal selections to Liz at erwalesisat@gmail.com Liz needs your order by the 4th February so she can confirm our requirements with the White Horse.

https://www.thewhitehorse-felixstowe.co.uk/food/

(We are hoping to confirm the delicious and nutritious vegan selection by the 4th!)

We usually meet from 7pm for a sit down at 7:30pm. We buy our own drinks at the bar and settle our own bills when we leave. Usually we ask you to bring cash along but last time the staff were happy to accept payment by card from individuals.

Hope to see you at Tuesday's meeting. Don't forget that we lock the door at 7.30pm when our meeting is due to begin. Until then...

Keep Scribbling!!!

Dave