Friday, March 19, 2010

MINUTES FOR MARCH 17, 2010


MEMBERS PRESENT:
Judith Whitcomb, Jackie Huppenthal, Kathy Flotz, Beverly Stanislawski, Sharon Buckman, Paul Mulligan, Sharon Palmeri

ANNOUNCEMENTS:
Several announcements are posted on Write on Hoosiers Facebook page where there are links to upcoming contests and conferences.

NEWS:
l. Paul Mulligan stated he is still working at U. S. Steel and is presently mentoring a co-worker. After just finishing with his jury duty commitment he has been asked to organize a cousin's reunion.

2. Beverly Stanislawski is continuing to submit her poems in various contests.

3. Kathy Flotz and her husband, George, have been invited to more speaking engagements concerning her book "Pebble In My Shoe." They will be speaking at the Jane Adam's school on April 12th and in Pecatin, Ill. (near Rockford) on April 19th. They had a successfull engagement at Lake Summerset, they ran out of books.

4. Jackie Huppenthal talked about coming across the Hallmark site while online - she found information there concerning submitting poems for greeting cards. This was a subject we discussed at the previous meeting.

5. Sharon Buckman has been busy trying to re-type her book Canopy of Leaves while babysitting for hergrandson.

6. Judy Whitcomb didn't really have too much to say except that she has been busy writing stories for Sharon's classes and further honing her skills in Adobe Illustrator.

7. Sharon Palmeri stated she has been busy with two classes: "Creative Writing" as well as "Writing Nonfiction." She also recently attended a Indiana Writers' Consortium committee meeting with Katherine Flotz and Judy Whitcomb for the drafting a childrens program and contest.


READINGS:
JUDY WHITCOMB read her delightful story of a leprechaun called Finbar Finegan Dillon O'Donnell McDonough Sheehan Clare. The story entitled "At Rainbow's End - Oops," told of a very unhappy leprechaun who had lost the gold which had been entrusted to him. Without giving away the ending, it ended on a much happier note.

JACKIE HUPPENTHAL wrote a poem most women can relate to. It was entitled "The Life of a Housewife," and detailed the everyday life of a housewife and mother,

BEVERLY STANISLAWSKI read her revised story "Lake Holiday." It was a beautiful version of the view from her
window, from morning to night, of Lake Holiday and the people enjoying it.

KATHY FLOTZ read an article she had written a few years prior called "Turning Points." It told of the various turning points in her life, "some joyous and others heart-breaking," and ended with the possibility we all might face, that our lives might not always be controlled by ourselves.

PAUL MULLIGAN began with his newest book "The Oscar Thomas Story, " a story he felt definitely needed to be told concerning one of his co-workers. He stated the story contains a lot of drama, enough to be entered on the Jerry Springer show.

SHARON BUCKMAN continued with her story "Canopy of Leaves," this time reverting back to the beginning, changing some of the time line as previously suggested by a few of the members.

The meeting was adjourned at 8:35 P.M.

Respectfully submitted:

Sharon Buckman

Thursday, March 4, 2010

MINUTES FOR MARCH 3, 2010



MEMBERS PRESENT:
Chuck Brown, Tom Spencer, Beverly Stanislawski, Kathy Flotz, George Miga, Cathy Dziubla, Jackie Huppenthal, Judy Whitcomb, Sharon Palmeri, Sharon Buckman

NEWS:
l. Cathy Dziubla stated she has been working on her book, it has required a lot of re-writing. She also plans to visit family in Kentucky and later in Maryland for Easter.

2. George Miga has been working on three books: The "Spin Doctor," "The Gray Guerrillas," and The Medal of Dishonor. He is still looking for an agent for his book, "Medal of Dishonor." As yet he has heard nothing concerning the short stories he entered in a contest.

3. Chuck Brown told us he is a "student of history." He is presently planning on writing some type of history articles or possibly even a children's book concerning history.

4. Tom Spencer stated he has been busy writing poetry and short stories.

5. Beverly Stanislawski has also been busy writing poetry and submitting them in various contests.

6. Jackie Huppenthal has been working on an article to submit to the Prairie Writers Guild’s annual anthology: The Edge of the Prairie.

7. Judy Whitcomb has been working hard on several children’s books which requires working with her Adobe Illustrator to craft her illustrations.

8. Kathy Flotz and her husband just returned from a trip to St. Louis concerning her book, "Pebble in My Shoe."

9. Sharon Palmeri stated she has been trying to catch up on her work teaching her adult writing classes at the Merrillville High School.

l0. Sharon Buckman stated she is trying to put together some of the chapters in her book, "Canopy of Leaves."

READINGS:
CATHY DZIUBLA read the poem "Random Thoughts," written by her l5 yr. old grandson, Jake Dziubla. It was a remarkable poem, for any age, concerning "the filling of capacious minds with innovations and liberty." It was well done, and suggestions were to use the poem to create a calendar or inspirational booklet.

CHUCK BROWN read an article he had previously written for the Merrillville Historical Society. The article was written with the intention of giving the people of Merrillville pride in their area, especially concerning 73rd Ave. , originally called "The Great Sauk Trail." It told of it's importance for trade, dating back to the Sauk Indians and at one point being called "the trail of death," in 1832.

TOM SPENCER wrote a beautiful poem entitled "Widows Walk." The poem reflected the sorrow of a retired seaman and his wish to return to the sea.

BEVERLY STANISLAWSKI read her sonnet, "Creative Juices." The sonnet described the frustration and soul searching involved in finding original lines for our various works.

SHARON BUCKMAN wrote a, hopefully, humorous article concerning her autistic grandson. The article entitled, "Be Careful What You Wish For," told of how the vocabulary they had wished for their grandson began to come true, causing great embarrassment for themselves and the people around them.

GEORGE MIGA gave us a preview of the book he had started many years before, entitled, "The Gray Guerrilla's." Everyone was so intrigued with the story and the way it was presented, he was asked to please hurry and finish it.

MEMBERS PRESENT:
Chuck Brown, Tom Spencer, Beverly Stanislawski, Kathy Flotz, George Miga, Cathy Dziubla, Jackie Huppenthal, Judy Whitcomb, Sharon Palmeri, Sharon Buckman

NEWS:
l. Cathy Dziubla stated she has been working on her book, it has required a lot of re-writing. She also plans to visit family in Kentucky and later in Maryland for Easter.

2. George Miga has been working on three books: The "Spin Doctor," "The Gray Guerrillas," and The Medal of Dishonor. He is still looking for an agent for his book, "Medal of Dishonor." As yet he has heard nothing concerning the short stories he entered in a contest.

3. Chuck Brown told us he is a "student of history." He is presently planning on writing some type of history articles or possibly even a children's book concerning history.

4. Tom Spencer stated he has been busy writing poetry and short stories.

5. Beverly Stanislawski has also been busy writing poetry and submitting them in various contests.

6. Jackie Huppenthal has been working on an article to submit to the Prairie Writers Guild’s annual anthology: The Edge of the Prairie.

7. Judy Whitcomb has been working hard on several children’s books which requires working with her Adobe Illustrator to craft her illustrations.

8. Kathy Flotz and her husband just returned from a trip to St. Louis concerning her book, "Pebble in My Shoe."

9. Sharon Palmeri stated she has been burning the midnight oil. She has been trying to catch up on her work teaching her adult writing classes at the Merrillville High School and trying to find time to write some newspaper articles for Winfield American.

l0. Sharon Buckman stated she is trying to put together some of the chapters in her book, "Canopy of Leaves."

READINGS:
CATHY DZIUBLA read the poem "Random Thoughts," written by her l5 yr. old grandson, Jake Dziubla. It was a remarkable poem, for any age, concerning "the filling of capacious minds with innovations and liberty." It was well done, and suggestions were to use the poem to create a calendar or inspirational booklet.

CHUCK BROWN read an article he had previously written for the Merrillville Historical Society. The article was written with the intention of giving the people of Merrillville pride in their area, especially concerning 73rd Ave. , originally called "The Great Sauk Trail." It told of it's importance for trade, dating back to the Sauk Indians and at one point being called "the trail of death," in 1832.

TOM SPENCER wrote a beautiful poem entitled "Widows Walk." The poem reflected the sorrow of a retired seaman and his wish to return to the sea.

BEVERLY STANISLAWSKI read her sonnet, "Creative Juices." The sonnet described the frustration and soul searching involved in finding original lines for our various works.

SHARON BUCKMAN wrote a, hopefully, humorous article concerning her autistic grandson. The article entitled, "Be Careful What You Wish For," told of how the vocabulary they had wished for their grandson began to come true, causing great embarrassment for themselves and the people around them.

GEORGE MIGA gave us a preview of the book he had started many years before, entitled, "The Gray Guerrilla's." Everyone was so intrigued with the story and the way it was presented, he was asked to please hurry and finish it.

KATHY FLOTZ told of her trip to St. Louis and how it had brought back so many memories of "home," meaning Germany. She told of the documentary that was being produced by Ann Morrison, a student in an English class who had become interested in the fate of the ethnic Germans in eastern Europe. She and her husband, George, spent a wonderful evening visiting with others who had similar experiences.

JUDY WHITCOMB wrote a poem which she turned into a book entitled "Puddle." The poem told of the trouble a small boy had trying to ignore a small puddle. After being pre-warned by his family he "sloshed" into it anyway. After the reading she displayed the mock up of the book that she hopes to publish.

SHARON PALMERI read an article she had written for the Winfield American newspaper about Burns Pet Cemetery. The article consisted of interviews of three people: a young woman who lost her dog and has donated both her time and money to help preserve graves of other pets, an older woman who missed her diseased cat and visits her weekly, and the owner the cemetery who told how the idea for the cemetery was started.

JACKIE HUPPENTHAL read a very mysterious poem entitled "Joe." The delightful poem keeps you wondering until the very end - with a surprise ending.
The meeting was adjourned at 8:25 P.M.

Respectfully submitted
Sharon Buckman