Felixstowe Scribblers 2021

From the Library:
This is to let you know that we still have tickets to hear author Liz Trenow talk on Sat 18th Oct at 2.30pm. Please let me know if you would like any put aside for you. Liz will talk about her new book, The Poppy Factory. Liz McCafferty of Felixstowe Reading Group has very kindly reviewed the book for us and it should be published in the Felixstowe supplement of the East Anglian Daily Times on Wednesday 1st October. In case you didn't know, Felixstowe Library has a regular slot in the EADT on the first Wednesday of every month.

The Poppy Factory tells the story of Rose whose traumatised husband returns from the front at the end of the First World War.She discovers he is now a very different man to the one she married.Her story is echoed in that of her Great Grand-daughter, Jess, who returns from a final tour of Afghanistan plagued by nightmares of her ordeal.The book shows just how difficult it can be for people facing civilian life after the horrors of war.

Fancy some cheese with a challenge? Why not come along to a quiz and help us raise funds for the library? It will take place on Friday 17th October at 7.30pm at the Labour Club. Tickets are £7.50, payable on the night, to include a ploughman's supper. You need 6-8 people in your team and all we need in advance is a name, phone number and rough idea of how many will be in your team. If you can't find enough people come along anyway and we will team you up with others. So please let me know if you are interested.

Debra Rowe

Felixstowe Library
debra.rowe@suffolklibraries.co.uk

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SUFFOLK READING FESTIVAL BROADCASTS
WED 01 October 1900-1930
Felixstowe Radio 107.5fm or via the internet.
Program 36
Sword of the Kings by Tony Shearman
Oh whistle and I'll come to you my lad by M R James
You by Beryl Sabel

Performers: Debbie Coveney, Becci Clarke Sheila Martin David Miller ...
Tony Shearman. Alan Dix, Brian England

FRI 19 September 1230 -1300

Ipswich Community Radio (ICR) 105.7 FM. or via the internet
Program 28
Sword of the Kings by Tony Shearman
Government Inspector by Nikolai Gogol
A cage for your perfect Life by Susie Halsey

Performers: Su Steadman, Becci Clarke, Alan Dix, David Miller, Brian England
Sheila Martin, Ann Elizabeth Kearney, Angela Silburn, Tony Shearman
Alison Miller, Robin Saunders, Martin Jarvis, Susie Halsey

Hope you enjoy them.

Tony

In attendance: Beryl, Dick, Caz, Les, Liliane, Aidan, Suzy, Barry, Richard, Derek, Hattie, Tom, Tony and Dave.

Apologies were received from Jane, Martin, Cathy, Mairéad and Kate.

Welcome: It was nice to see a new face join the group. Hattie has ambitions to gain the highest honours in creative writing possibly in Oxford. It was also nice to welcome Aidan and Derek back to the group after being unable to attend for a while.

Get Well Soon: Although Les made it to Scribblers last night, he was not feeling too well and returned home during the meeting. For Mairéad, she was unable to come along to the meeting and so we hope they both recover and feel well enough to attend next time. (Phoned Les Wednesday morning to find out how he was. He is resting at present so gave him our best wishes for a speedy recovery.)

Good news from Ray: He says ‘Thought that you might be interested to know that I have another short story published. Had to provide a bio - so this is what I wrote.

“I was born in North London (North Finchley) and now live in Kent. Reading has always been a passion and it followed that writing should become a hobby. During the past three years I have been with the Felixstowe Scribblers where their format for writing has been quite testing and loving a challenge I do believe that my skills have grown. The story in this anthology is one that I wrote during that time."

‘My thanks to the whole group. All the best, Ray.’

Ray’s story, 'A Hard Day's Night' is in 'Spectacular Tales: The Science Fiction And Fantasy Collection' from The Indie Collaboration. Download from Smashwords or book form via Amazon.

Other news: Cairns based friend Chris has sent me two very interesting looking books, both, of course, his own creation. One is called ‘My New Country’ about ‘Loving, Laughing and Learning to Live in Australia.’ The other is called ‘Never Let The Truth’ are stories from his imagination.

Whilst in Yorkshire Dave and his wife went to Haworth in Bronte country and met local resident and author Edward Evans whose fast moving thriller ‘For the Right Reasons’. It is set in East Germany prior to the fall of the Berlin Wall. The book is supporting Help the Heroes Charity for which £1 will be donated from each sale.

Tonight’s entries in the Bill Budner Trophy competition, read by Beryl and Dick, are:

Derek. My Dearest Sagarmatha: A lovely story in letter form to open our evening and one with a twist in its tail. ‘I know it is over between us, but I still have feelings for you. This is not begging reconciliation and a chance to see you once more for the man in the hospital white coat has advised me against it. I was attracted by your beauty in that centrefold, yet from further photographs I found you change from a welcoming lover to a dark stranger at a whim. I am disconcerted by your morals, happy to leave some heartbroken or worse. I thought you were unreachable, yet I came to see you, to touch and spend time with you. I will never forget our first meeting; you were looking down at me nor the memory of the rising sun of a November morning caressing your uppermost reaches. Now I have come to terms that I will not return to you. Goodbye and take care Mount Everest.’

Aidan. Finding Home: Flowing modern dialogue between two students returning home from Manchester Uni on the train to Ipswich. Jenny called Suffolk a God-forsaken place where her weirdo parents spent hours watching little birds in the mud. He declared he lived at Minsmere. Jenny practically grew up there, the place her parents spent all their time. They spoke of their homes, how he loved his home but his parents didn’t really want him back after Uni whilst she hated hers and didn’t know why her parents had asked her back. Then she understood their dilemma, ‘With me,’ she said, ‘I don’t have a home yet, but you do and are scared of losing it.’

Beryl. Too Clever For Your Own Good. Unusually a sci-fi work from Beryl. Freya slipped into the Flyboy, the meeting over though nothing had been resolved. The roof closed and the safety harness encased her. ‘Home,’ she commanded then viewed the console as they flew over where London used to be. ‘Minutes of meeting on population control, 16 September 2514.’ Since the great flood of 2084 which decimated the population, there had been a steady increase in numbers but now were declining rapidly. Her darling Jay offered her a welcoming bath, massage and Scotch followed by a fish meal. Freya said ‘We’ve been too clever. The human race.’ ‘Robotic engineering,’ he replied. ‘People wanted humanoids to be more than servants and all my friends have humanoid partners. The consequence means there are fewer babies worldwide.’ ‘Can’t we have a baby Freya?’ ‘Babies grow. Humanoids are made. It can’t happen.’ Jay observed ‘You humans have been too clever for your own good...’

Dick. The Final Gamble. A story of a bloodthirsty despot, President Gabriello whose lavish life style and gambling habits had nearly bankrupted his country. He ensured his military and air force were well equipped and fed whilst the nations population starved. A rebel army led by Ricardo fought and killed many of the President’s troops. His strong hold high in the mountains was discovered by air reconnaissance and the President’s army shelled the area until Garcia and his men were forced to withdraw, right into an ambush. Taken prisoner, Garcia was taken to the President who offered him a gamble, pick a white ball from a bag equally divided between white and black, would mean imprisonment but a black ball, the firing squad. To prove a point Gabriello drew a white ball then Garcia drew a black one and was marched away. The president had used a sleight of hand with a single white ball, all the rest in the bag were black.

Dave. Last Night on the Prom. A dark story. It happened last night, out there on the prom. The experience left me nauseated, battered, bruised and violated. I felt and looked dreadful. There was no sense to what happened to me. When the thick sea fog rolled in I heard the small boat beaching and foreign voices shouting at each other. Then came a lot of scurried movement and from behind thudding steps. ‘Armed Police! Get down!’ A heavy hand hit me forcefully between the shoulder blades and I fell to the ground. Protesting my innocence I felt his boot on my back. Handcuffed, thrown into a police vehicle I was eventually questioned at the police station where they realised I had nothing to do with the drugs gang on the beach and released me without so much as an apology. They were pigs, the lot of them...

Liliane. The Ring. I was having another session with the hypnotist who wants to write a book on ‘life between life’. This was the part where you chose your next life and when ready you get sent to a special place like a big cinema. They call it the ring with all its three dimensional screens. There are lights and buttons to press to make your choice. It gives you all the possibilities available. Of course I’d once chosen life as a Roman soldier and faced mad barbarians or the Wild Wets where I was shot by Indians. I’ve tried lives as a woman, and also a Viking. I was offered London, Hong King, San Francisco but then I’ll choose carefully next time... just hope I have satisfied my would be writer.

Barry. The Full Moon. The full moon is out. It’s 11pm and the family are asleep. I walk slowly into the garden and gaze up at the moon. I feel it calling to my inner soul. My dressing gown drops to the ground and I bare my whole self to the moon and bathe in its glow. I whirl round and round in a frenzied dance, my hands reaching for the moon. ‘Very nice, dear,’ a voice breaks the spell. I am naked on a freezing December night and my father-in-law was staring at all of me. I grabbed my dressing gown and ducked back into the house as he sang Gracie Field’s ‘Sally’. I sat in the chair pretending to be asleep as my husband went out to his Dad and helped him back in the house. Then he helped me up to bed. I couldn’t sleep, wondering why the full moon had such a profound effect on me. The need to bare all and dance is so strong and I resolve to tell him about my frolics in the morning. Roll on the next full moon.

Caz. In the Beginning. We’d been going out for three months. I would often watch as Robin tinkered with my Escort’s handbrake or did maintenance under the bonnet. I was besotted with him and he could only do right in my eyes. One day he said he was going on leave for and I felt quite upset. He invited me to his end of course do before we kissed and he shuffled off to see his children and separated wife. In those days there were no mobile phones so contact was difficult. One night he phoned to say he’d be passing through the county in his lorry the following morning and would I like to tag along for a ride. Oh boy would I? Instead I said I’d have to consult my diary even though there was nothing in it! When he collected me I made him a full English breakfast then we drove to the destination, unloaded the lorry and then on his way home he crunched a low wall. We had to wait for repairs but I didn’t mind as I was sitting with ‘my favourite waste of time!’

Tony. The Missing Link. How can anyone report on a masterpiece of unique talent from our Tony? Full of humour it begins following research carried out behind the bicycle sheds of the University of Kirton it was ascertained the reasons why the human male indulges in the hobby of the suit and shirt ruining yodel on Fridays and Saturdays. It results in the mass falling down ritual usually performed after imbibing the sacred liquids that compose Milk of Amnesia. He reports the discovery of the temple called ‘The Half Moon’ where an almost ape like creature, half-humanoid in form, is the likely link between animal and mankind. Alcoholic man was distinguished by a petrified liver, a large abdomen and had the ability to fall down heavily without prior notice...

Richard. Soul Mates. A touching story about Graham and Judith. They met in a student cafeteria eighteen years earlier. Graham was so shy as he sat at her table, avoiding eye contact. They became inseparable. Years later it was their traditional family-only wedding. Judith looked absolutely gorgeous in her full-length satin dress, a delicate shade of pink. Beautiful flowers. Their children lovely. They recalled the weddings they had attended and wondered if they should marry then something came up and the momentum was lost. Their devotion to each other and their love for their 13 year old twins and a younger son never faulted. Thoughts went through their minds as the priest declared them man and wife and completed the service. The register signed, they were off. Judith was feeling the pressure, desperately tired and glad it was over. Their son James ran to open the double doors as Graham pushed the wheelchair to take his wife back to the Hospice. It had been a lovely wedding. A lovely day.

Suzy. White Roses. There’s a story in my head this morning William, there are church bells and it’s a wedding. They’ve just been married and are coming out of the church. They love each other, everyone can see that. William had taken a cup of tea to her before setting off to fetch eggs and milk from the farm. She remembered their wedding, the church bells rang for us too, the smell of violets and the slippery white satin on her skin. She was lost in thought listening to the silence, feeling so sleepy but then William came home with the eggs. He’d bought a paper and wanted to help with the crossword but she wanted a little sleep. When William returned to the bedroom with the scrambled eggs she was so peaceful. He lifted one of her hands with the transparent skin. He felt no pulse. Suddenly he was alone, there were arrangements to be made and a wreath of white roses to be ordered.

A terrific selection of stories that added to the tension of selection of the winner. At this stage it was decided that only the top four would be announced. And these were, in reverse order,

4^th Beryl, Too Clever For Your Own Good.

Joint 2^nd, Barry, The Full Moon and Suzy, White Roses.

The winner for the fourth time, Tony with The Missing Link.

So many Congratulations to Tony for a memorable work and received the trophy from Chairman Dave.

New Course: An email from Angela Lewis who tells us that she is running a GHOSTWRITING beginner's course from 13th October from 7pm to 9pm Monday nights. If you are interested then please contact Angela direct at A S Publishing, email 1angelalewis@gmail.com

Our next meeting will be held on Tuesday 7^th October at 7.30pm in The Room at the Top, when the homework assignment will be up to 1,000 words on ‘BOOTS’.

Look forward to seeing you so, until then...

Keep Scribbling!