(photo - Scott Park, Burnley)
9th March 2024 - Flash Fiction.
A well-attended meeting for which everyone wrote something. To write a complete, coherent story in exactly 100 words is not easy, but we rose to the challenge with tales of bathtime to Billy J. Kramer, poo to punctuation and many more. The linguistic virtuosity and dexterity on display in conjuring witty and moving stories from just 100 words was a joy to listen to. Well done to everyone!
14th October 2023 - Workshop with Sarah Schofield.
We were pleased to welcome the return of Sarah Schofield, who lead a workshop on writing for children. As with last year's workshop it was very informative and enjoyable, with everyone engaging enthusiastically. Naturally, what Sarah had to offer was of particular interest to those inclined towards writing children's fiction, but I think even those who have never attempted it - and are never likely to attempt it! - were able to take something away from the afternoon.
12th August 2023 - A story/poem inspired by a single word - INDIVIDUAL. It was good to see virtually a full house at this meeting: 15 of us enjoined to delight in the month's writing contributions, including one Antipodean guest and one new face. Of the 13 regular members it was gratifying to see that everyone had produced something. The task was to write a piece, prose or poetry, inspired by the word 'Individual' - and both prose and poetry were presented. 13 contributions and 13 very different pieces inspired by the single word, from the humorous to the serious; the poignant to the thought-provoking. Once again the afternoon was a showcase for the abundance of talent and creativity in the group. Well done and thanks to everyone present.
13th August 2022 - The View From A Window
August’s task seemed innocuous enough: the view from a window. It could be either prose or poetry. Simple as that. It proved, though, to be a little more challenging and a lot more interesting than we might have anticipated. The windows ranged from trains to cars to living rooms – and the views through them were equally varied: entertaining, provocative and compelling. What was especially interesting was that everyone chose to look out through their window, with only a couple of passing allusions to looking in. A window is a veil between our world and the world outside. Looking out is, at once embracing the outside world and a meditative process. We experience ourselves reflected in what we see. The view from the confines of a window and our interpretation of what we see enhances our knowledge of ourselves. In contrast, looking in is intrusive, invasive and, maybe voyeuristic. It says a lot about the writers in this group that we all chose to be looking out.
16th July 2022 - A trip to see the Research Vessel Furor Scribendi at Lower Park Marina, Barnoldswick.
We arranged for Burnley & District Writers' Circle to spend two hours on board the RV Furor Scribendi ('furiously writing'), during its stay in Barnoldswick. During a hot, summer afternoon, Rachael, our host, about the inspiration for the boat and how it came into being. We spent time on deck, outside, and inside in the various areas and were able to observe, reflect, write, read, chat, and share. We all enjoyed our time aboard. You can read more about RV Furor Scribendi at https://smallbellsring.co.uk/, or follow them on Instagram @smallbellsring.
9th April 2022 - Factual newspaper/magazine report/article about a local (not necessarily to this area) cultural/folk/traditional event/custom.
An excellent meeting, at which we were delighted to welcome another new member. Who knew that the humble article (this month's task) could be so diverse and interesting?! If we learned one thing, it was that articles come in all shapes and sizes, depending on the target audience. There were some excellent contributions and we clearly have some closet journalists among us. The featured topics included the Day of the Dead, Easter Saturday Boundary Dance, Pendle Witches, Empire Theatre, London Marathon, Barrel Rolling, Kidnap Race, and a piece about working during the hours that most people don't see. Well done to everyone.
9th October 2021 - Factual piece by a quirky character
This meeting was interesting, entertaining and challenging. Our task was to write a short report or simple set of instructions in the manner of a quirky or idiosyncratic character. When writing fiction, getting inside the head of a character and attempting to think as they would think is one of the more difficult aspects of the craft - and having had several half-ideas, my attempts to complete this task ended in abject failure. Those that did achieve it, however, provided us with an entertaining afternoon and more than a little mirth. Congratulations to all those members from the guy in the Dunce's hat, sat in the naughty corner!
For the second half of the meeting, we took a random selection of words from a book (isn't 'random selection' an oxymoron?) with the aim of writing a piece, in 5 minutes, to include all those words. The words with which we were presented were not the most inspiring, it has to be said, being 'entrance', 'a' and 'when', but this is what happens when one subjects oneself to randomness. Nevertheless some interesting pieces were produced, especially, as it became apparent, the meaning of 'entrance' changes according to whether you place the accent on the first or second syllable. Here's a miscellany of what some of us wrote:
Jackie
The mirror looked back at her. She adjusted her headpiece. She looked back at the mirror. She straightened her shoulder-strap. She looked at the wall clock. She had five minutes left. The theatre was only a provincial one. It wouldn’t matter if her performance wasn’t perfect. After the accident she hadn’t even known if, or when, she would ever dance again.
She walked down the corridor to make her entrance.
Andrew
There was no doubt about it, Clarissa knew how to make an entrance. The night was clear and there was a full moon. The town hall clock struck midnight. We all waited. It was only when people started to become restless and impatient that the front doors were flung open to reveal her standing, imperious. She was such a diva - even in death.
Debbie
The entrance was obscured. Jess pulled mightily at the thick brambles and roots. Rays of light unlike she’d ever seen greeted her, blinding and iridescent; so bright that Jess couldn’t immediately see what stretched beyond. She tentatively took a step forward and felt a force unlike any other she’d encountered and just when she thought she’d back away it sucked her in like a vacuum.
‘What the hell was this? It didn’t take her long to find out.
Peter
Her entrance was a spectacular example of what happens when the guest has drunk too much.
Anita
The soldier walked through the narrow entrance clutching his sword. He found himself in a small courtyard surrounded by high walls. He looked carefully around, noting all the possible hiding places. He advanced slowly towards one, when a figure, swathed in a black cloak, leapt out at him brandishing a cudgel. A brief skirmish ensued in which the cudgel became severely nicked and the soldier ended up with a bruised arm.
Lisa
A quartet of catering-sized tins of Heinz baked beans stood guard over the entrance, and exit, to the room. Within its bounds a lonely clock ticked loudly from its high perch, keeping watch over the students below. Pens scribbled furiously over paper, an occasional crinkle or rustle giving away the subtle movements of their respective positions. If you listened carefully, you could hear the silent creativity. When the time was up, Andrew gently asked, “Okay, are we all done?”.
Mervyn
Any man she could entrance
When she gave him that special glance
His heart would pound...I'm glad to say
this last line now can end with 'a'
8th May 2021 - Letter to a literary character from you (or vice versa)
Another excellent meeting of our brilliant Burnley writers. What's more, we all managed to get online at the required time! After 12 months or more of Skyped meetings, we're finally getting the hang of it.
But back to the meeting... The task was to write a letter to, or from, a literary character. This sounded pretty simple, bit it proved to be one of our more challenging tasks. It required us not to be merely familiar with a character, but to actually know that character - and have more than a passing knowledge of the plot lines of the book in which they appear. As if this wasn't enough, this all had to be conveyed to the listener (that's the rest of the group!) through the letter. But this is Burnley Writers' Circle and we rose to the challenge magnificently - well, some a little more magnificently than others!
There were some very well thought out contributions and, as is usually the case, we each learned a lot about writing and about ourselves as writers as well as enjoying the results of our efforts.
10th April 2021 'Memory Lane' and 'Sound of Silence' poems
Another enjoyable and lively meeting in which we were pleased to welcome our Honorary President, Philip Burton. As a poet, the subject matter was 'right up his street'. As usual, diverse offerings with valuable discussions following. An excellent meeting with some thought-provoking poetry.
13th June 2020 - Monologues
With in-person meetings still postponed due to the coronavirus pandemic, this was our third Skype meeting. We seem to be getting to grips with the technology now and had fewer technical issues - progress! A good meeting: we thrashed out the differences between a monologue, soliloquy, letter and story - some interesting monologues covering topics such as the end of the world, rumours, birds and thoughts to a friend. We followed it up with a writing exercise in which we had to describe a place we're fond of by using all our senses except sight: places described included Italy, Victoria Falls, Barrowford, home garden, train station with a steam train, and a slightly off-topic but still fascinating near-death experience.
7th December 2019 - Christmas meal
A lovely Christmas get together at The Woodman. Thanks to everyone that came and made it such a festive and convivial occasion. Special thanks to S and D for their contributions to proceedings, which, I know, were appreciated by everyone.
During the course of lunch J and M gave us an impromptu and rousing rendition of 'The Bold Gendarmes', from Offenbach's 'Genevieve de Brabant' after which S weighed in with a barnstorming performance of 'Big Spender', which didn't fail to attract the attention of the whole pub - and of which Shirley Bassey herself would have been proud! Burnley Writers' are a group of many talents, that extend beyond the literary.
9th November 2019 - Flash Fiction (75 words)
It takes a lot of wit, imagination and skill (which B&DW has in abundance) to compose a complete story - beginning, middle and end - in just 75 words. As always, there was a wide range of contributions. Well done to everyone!
Later in the afternoon, the group was tasked with composing definitions for archaic, esoteric and obscure words and phrases, to be compared with the actual meanings, which was challenging, but provided a good deal levity and laughter!
8th April, 2017 - STREAM OF CONSCIOUSNESS
K gave the group advice on stream of consciousness writing. The results gave us all a fascinating insight into people's thoughts and lives.
10th September, 2016 - WORKSHOP WITH COPLAND SMITH
Poet and writer, Copland Smith gave us an insight into what makes an effective piece of writing.
13th June, 2015 - WORKSHOP with Joe Standerline on CREATING CHARACTERS.
As well as definitions of main characters, we did various exercises, including one using old postcards where we used the information on the back to try and determine the character of the person who'd sent it.
9th March 2024 - Flash Fiction.
A well-attended meeting for which everyone wrote something. To write a complete, coherent story in exactly 100 words is not easy, but we rose to the challenge with tales of bathtime to Billy J. Kramer, poo to punctuation and many more. The linguistic virtuosity and dexterity on display in conjuring witty and moving stories from just 100 words was a joy to listen to. Well done to everyone!
14th October 2023 - Workshop with Sarah Schofield.
We were pleased to welcome the return of Sarah Schofield, who lead a workshop on writing for children. As with last year's workshop it was very informative and enjoyable, with everyone engaging enthusiastically. Naturally, what Sarah had to offer was of particular interest to those inclined towards writing children's fiction, but I think even those who have never attempted it - and are never likely to attempt it! - were able to take something away from the afternoon.
12th August 2023 - A story/poem inspired by a single word - INDIVIDUAL. It was good to see virtually a full house at this meeting: 15 of us enjoined to delight in the month's writing contributions, including one Antipodean guest and one new face. Of the 13 regular members it was gratifying to see that everyone had produced something. The task was to write a piece, prose or poetry, inspired by the word 'Individual' - and both prose and poetry were presented. 13 contributions and 13 very different pieces inspired by the single word, from the humorous to the serious; the poignant to the thought-provoking. Once again the afternoon was a showcase for the abundance of talent and creativity in the group. Well done and thanks to everyone present.
13th August 2022 - The View From A Window
August’s task seemed innocuous enough: the view from a window. It could be either prose or poetry. Simple as that. It proved, though, to be a little more challenging and a lot more interesting than we might have anticipated. The windows ranged from trains to cars to living rooms – and the views through them were equally varied: entertaining, provocative and compelling. What was especially interesting was that everyone chose to look out through their window, with only a couple of passing allusions to looking in. A window is a veil between our world and the world outside. Looking out is, at once embracing the outside world and a meditative process. We experience ourselves reflected in what we see. The view from the confines of a window and our interpretation of what we see enhances our knowledge of ourselves. In contrast, looking in is intrusive, invasive and, maybe voyeuristic. It says a lot about the writers in this group that we all chose to be looking out.
16th July 2022 - A trip to see the Research Vessel Furor Scribendi at Lower Park Marina, Barnoldswick.
We arranged for Burnley & District Writers' Circle to spend two hours on board the RV Furor Scribendi ('furiously writing'), during its stay in Barnoldswick. During a hot, summer afternoon, Rachael, our host, about the inspiration for the boat and how it came into being. We spent time on deck, outside, and inside in the various areas and were able to observe, reflect, write, read, chat, and share. We all enjoyed our time aboard. You can read more about RV Furor Scribendi at https://smallbellsring.co.uk/, or follow them on Instagram @smallbellsring.
9th April 2022 - Factual newspaper/magazine report/article about a local (not necessarily to this area) cultural/folk/traditional event/custom.
An excellent meeting, at which we were delighted to welcome another new member. Who knew that the humble article (this month's task) could be so diverse and interesting?! If we learned one thing, it was that articles come in all shapes and sizes, depending on the target audience. There were some excellent contributions and we clearly have some closet journalists among us. The featured topics included the Day of the Dead, Easter Saturday Boundary Dance, Pendle Witches, Empire Theatre, London Marathon, Barrel Rolling, Kidnap Race, and a piece about working during the hours that most people don't see. Well done to everyone.
9th October 2021 - Factual piece by a quirky character
This meeting was interesting, entertaining and challenging. Our task was to write a short report or simple set of instructions in the manner of a quirky or idiosyncratic character. When writing fiction, getting inside the head of a character and attempting to think as they would think is one of the more difficult aspects of the craft - and having had several half-ideas, my attempts to complete this task ended in abject failure. Those that did achieve it, however, provided us with an entertaining afternoon and more than a little mirth. Congratulations to all those members from the guy in the Dunce's hat, sat in the naughty corner!
For the second half of the meeting, we took a random selection of words from a book (isn't 'random selection' an oxymoron?) with the aim of writing a piece, in 5 minutes, to include all those words. The words with which we were presented were not the most inspiring, it has to be said, being 'entrance', 'a' and 'when', but this is what happens when one subjects oneself to randomness. Nevertheless some interesting pieces were produced, especially, as it became apparent, the meaning of 'entrance' changes according to whether you place the accent on the first or second syllable. Here's a miscellany of what some of us wrote:
Jackie
The mirror looked back at her. She adjusted her headpiece. She looked back at the mirror. She straightened her shoulder-strap. She looked at the wall clock. She had five minutes left. The theatre was only a provincial one. It wouldn’t matter if her performance wasn’t perfect. After the accident she hadn’t even known if, or when, she would ever dance again.
She walked down the corridor to make her entrance.
Andrew
There was no doubt about it, Clarissa knew how to make an entrance. The night was clear and there was a full moon. The town hall clock struck midnight. We all waited. It was only when people started to become restless and impatient that the front doors were flung open to reveal her standing, imperious. She was such a diva - even in death.
Debbie
The entrance was obscured. Jess pulled mightily at the thick brambles and roots. Rays of light unlike she’d ever seen greeted her, blinding and iridescent; so bright that Jess couldn’t immediately see what stretched beyond. She tentatively took a step forward and felt a force unlike any other she’d encountered and just when she thought she’d back away it sucked her in like a vacuum.
‘What the hell was this? It didn’t take her long to find out.
Peter
Her entrance was a spectacular example of what happens when the guest has drunk too much.
Anita
The soldier walked through the narrow entrance clutching his sword. He found himself in a small courtyard surrounded by high walls. He looked carefully around, noting all the possible hiding places. He advanced slowly towards one, when a figure, swathed in a black cloak, leapt out at him brandishing a cudgel. A brief skirmish ensued in which the cudgel became severely nicked and the soldier ended up with a bruised arm.
Lisa
A quartet of catering-sized tins of Heinz baked beans stood guard over the entrance, and exit, to the room. Within its bounds a lonely clock ticked loudly from its high perch, keeping watch over the students below. Pens scribbled furiously over paper, an occasional crinkle or rustle giving away the subtle movements of their respective positions. If you listened carefully, you could hear the silent creativity. When the time was up, Andrew gently asked, “Okay, are we all done?”.
Mervyn
Any man she could entrance
When she gave him that special glance
His heart would pound...I'm glad to say
this last line now can end with 'a'
8th May 2021 - Letter to a literary character from you (or vice versa)
Another excellent meeting of our brilliant Burnley writers. What's more, we all managed to get online at the required time! After 12 months or more of Skyped meetings, we're finally getting the hang of it.
But back to the meeting... The task was to write a letter to, or from, a literary character. This sounded pretty simple, bit it proved to be one of our more challenging tasks. It required us not to be merely familiar with a character, but to actually know that character - and have more than a passing knowledge of the plot lines of the book in which they appear. As if this wasn't enough, this all had to be conveyed to the listener (that's the rest of the group!) through the letter. But this is Burnley Writers' Circle and we rose to the challenge magnificently - well, some a little more magnificently than others!
There were some very well thought out contributions and, as is usually the case, we each learned a lot about writing and about ourselves as writers as well as enjoying the results of our efforts.
10th April 2021 'Memory Lane' and 'Sound of Silence' poems
Another enjoyable and lively meeting in which we were pleased to welcome our Honorary President, Philip Burton. As a poet, the subject matter was 'right up his street'. As usual, diverse offerings with valuable discussions following. An excellent meeting with some thought-provoking poetry.
13th June 2020 - Monologues
With in-person meetings still postponed due to the coronavirus pandemic, this was our third Skype meeting. We seem to be getting to grips with the technology now and had fewer technical issues - progress! A good meeting: we thrashed out the differences between a monologue, soliloquy, letter and story - some interesting monologues covering topics such as the end of the world, rumours, birds and thoughts to a friend. We followed it up with a writing exercise in which we had to describe a place we're fond of by using all our senses except sight: places described included Italy, Victoria Falls, Barrowford, home garden, train station with a steam train, and a slightly off-topic but still fascinating near-death experience.
7th December 2019 - Christmas meal
A lovely Christmas get together at The Woodman. Thanks to everyone that came and made it such a festive and convivial occasion. Special thanks to S and D for their contributions to proceedings, which, I know, were appreciated by everyone.
During the course of lunch J and M gave us an impromptu and rousing rendition of 'The Bold Gendarmes', from Offenbach's 'Genevieve de Brabant' after which S weighed in with a barnstorming performance of 'Big Spender', which didn't fail to attract the attention of the whole pub - and of which Shirley Bassey herself would have been proud! Burnley Writers' are a group of many talents, that extend beyond the literary.
9th November 2019 - Flash Fiction (75 words)
It takes a lot of wit, imagination and skill (which B&DW has in abundance) to compose a complete story - beginning, middle and end - in just 75 words. As always, there was a wide range of contributions. Well done to everyone!
Later in the afternoon, the group was tasked with composing definitions for archaic, esoteric and obscure words and phrases, to be compared with the actual meanings, which was challenging, but provided a good deal levity and laughter!
8th April, 2017 - STREAM OF CONSCIOUSNESS
K gave the group advice on stream of consciousness writing. The results gave us all a fascinating insight into people's thoughts and lives.
10th September, 2016 - WORKSHOP WITH COPLAND SMITH
Poet and writer, Copland Smith gave us an insight into what makes an effective piece of writing.
13th June, 2015 - WORKSHOP with Joe Standerline on CREATING CHARACTERS.
As well as definitions of main characters, we did various exercises, including one using old postcards where we used the information on the back to try and determine the character of the person who'd sent it.