MEMBERS PRESENT:
Sharon Buckman, George Miga, Luneil Morrow, Donna Douglas, Katherine Flotz, Ron Trigg, Jane Burns, Sharon Dorelli, Michelle Vargas, Laurie Chase, Kelly Chase, Sharon Palmeri, Tom Spencer
GUESTS PRESENT:
Dave Wilgus
Dave Wilgus
OLD BUSINESS:
A vote of
approval was asked for concerning the November 7, 2012 minutes. Jane Burns gave the first approval and Kathy
Flotz gave the second approval. NEW BUSINESS:
SHARON
PALMERI After a short discussion with members about the success of the 24th anniversary WOH Christmas
banquet she stated that the photos from the 2012 Christmas party had been sent
to each individual member that had attended and that soon more will be posted
on the blog soon. She also mentioned that she has been updating the “Members’
Book Section” on the blog.
LITERARY NEWS:
TOM SPENCER stated that Gail Galvan is putting
together a new poetry group. The poetry group
will meet at the Valparaiso library on the first Thursday of the month at 7:30 P.M.
Tom also reminded the group of
another poetry function “Coffee House
Saturdays,” that meets at the Lowell
Library on the second Saturday of each month at 6:00 p.m. in the Program Room.
GEORGE MIGA stated that he has received several
inquiries concerning his newest novel about Anne Frank. He stated that his writing has stalled while
he is trying to sort through several crucial details at the beginning of the
book. Several of the members suggested he try writing from either the end of
the novel or the middle and work backwards since he has a grasp of the
storyline.
SHARON PALMERI suggested that the members might enjoy
reading two different books she brought to the meeting. The first novel, The Age of Miracles, was written
by Karen Thompson Walker. The second was
a children’s picture book written by one
of her students entitled Weenz The Cat, Nothing Will Stop Me,
written by Perla Arreola.
KATHERINE FLOTZ mentioned a package she had received
from journalist Kevin Bradley. The
package contained 25 issues of the Shopper’s Journal he writes for which
concerned two separate articles of Katherine’s life as a 6yr. old in a
concentration camp in Gakowa, Germany. The
thoughtful gift helped to promote her book, Pebble In My Shoe.
READINGS:
SHARON BUCKMAN read four pages of her newest novel,
a sequel to CANOPY OF LEAVES. The story continued with Anne’s life
following her capture and escape from a Kentucky backwoodsman; Anne was finally
able to return to her hometown in Indiana only to find she could no longer stay
there.
GEORGE MIGA continued with his novel MEDAL
OF DISHONOR. In this part of the
story McCall manages to finally escape the heavy artillery barrage he faced in
New Jerusalem only to face the reality of the death of Sergeant Stern, a former
math teacher who helped save McCall’s life.
DONNA DOUGLASS read four pages of her short memoir
entitled, “EINE NATCHT IN MUNCHEN.” The memoir concerned a trip Donna and her
daughter made to Munich, Germany, first visiting the concentration camp in
Dachau and ended with Donna being locked out of her hotel, looking for a safe
place to stay until her daughter returned from a dance.
KATHERINE FLOTZ read a part of the article written
by Kevin Bradley concerning her life in the concentration camp in Germany and
promoting her book, PEBBLE IN MY SHOE. The
article ended with how the little things they were able to hang onto helped to
resolve their Christmas spirit.
TOM SPENCER brought his two stanza Triolet poem,
“A HAUNTING CALL.” The poem related to nighttime in a large
city, ending with lines such as: “Fleet
wind sweeps torn trash through city streets, Buildings small and buildings
tall, seem to call.”
RON TRIGG read a query letter written to a
publisher concerning his memoir, THE ALLURING TEMPTRESS: STORIES FROM AFRICA. The query letter related to his 25yrs.
experience of government service, including diplomatic assignments to Nigeria,
South Africa, Turkmenistan, Thailand, and military service in Vietnam.
JANE BURNS read four pages of the beginning of
her short story entitled, “UNION LAKE.” The beginning of her story starts with the
third date of a young woman who is being taken to a rather depressed area in
Detroit and ends with a slight confrontation with the waitress over her
seating.
LUNEIL MORROW read her one page poem entitled, “LIFE YOU CAN LOVE.” The poem summarized the things she loved the
most in her life and ending with the sweet phrase, “I love that it doesn’t take much to make me happy.”
SHARON DORELLI read a short memoir entitled, “A CHILDHOOD SECRET.” The memoir told of the traumatic experience
of a young kindergartner being placed upon the teacher’s desk and paddled in
front of the class for running down the hallway and the more embarrassing
aftermath.
MICHELLE VARGAS read her one page short story
entitled, “LOST AND FOUND.” The story tries to tell of the possible reasons
for the babies smile while it’s eyes are closed and concludes with the answer, “Daddy’s got you.”
LAURIE CHASE continued with her novel, BADRADIN. In this part of her novel, Dr. Togalaz is
taken to Porter’s office to review the incident which had threatened her
life. She was reprimanded for having
taken a weapon with her the day she was accosted. In her defense she tried to explain what it
was like to be a half human and half Allizorn and why she could not show
weakness.
KELLY CHASE read the first two pages of her
short story entitled, “STORMY NIGHT.” The story began with Jamie finding the body of
a young woman and continued with how it related to a woman appearing on her
back porch, appearing to be in need of help and nourishment.
The meeting
was adjourned at 9:00 p.m.
Respectfully
submitted:
SHARON BUCKMAN
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