Minutes from WWG Meeting held at La Rosa, 11am on Thursday 9th May 2024
Present:
Adele (acting Chair, and minutes), Harry, Ian, Jenny, Jonathan, Kaz, Suzanne.
Apologies:
Gill, John, Laura, Lesley, Michele, Pip.
News and updates:
Adele mentioned two storytelling/reminiscence events, which Whitby Library and Dogwood Theatre Productions have arranged at Lythe Village Hall and Robin Hood’s Bay History Museum on Monday and Tuesday 20th/21st May, from 10 am to 12 noon on both dates, should anyone be interested.
Further reminder for the up and coming Fish and Ships Festival over the weekend of 18/19th May Fish & Ships Festival 2024. Whitby Library is sharing the Museum’s tent for creative crafts for children along with the Art Gallery, Whitby’s museums and the theatre group Dogwood who will be performing mini plays throughout the weekend as well. Everyone is invited to create a poem or (very) short story around the theme of Fish and Ships which can be displayed in the library during and after the event. Please send contributions to adele.duffield@northyorks.gov.uk if you have one to share, before Friday 17th May.
Kaz mentioned a Mini Fest at Glaisdale’s Robinson Institute on 22nd June 11.30am-5pm and 7-11pm.
Suzanne mentioned Duets playing at the Spa Pavilion 31st May/1st June – four short plays. She is performing in one and Kaz has written one. Tickets available from the Spa Booking Office.
Introductions were made all round to welcome Suzanne to the group.
Readings
…read an extract from New Year 2023 to end of March, from her Covid Diary, with monthly reporting or if anything major occurred. This extract included differences between China and the UK with cases and the handling of Covid from the outset, working arrangements if testing positive and went on to vent about the human race, war, greed, power and the need for change, an extract of which has been sent separately as a short blog.
…read two poems. The first: Inhumanity, was a sonnet/not sonnet, in that it has 14 lines but does not confirm to tradition forms. War and destruction, religion and hypocrisy and the foolishness of mankind featured in an emotive piece. The second: Loss of Equilibrium, was a more personal poem about a fall which he endured at James Cook Hospital, and the fragility of mankind as we age.
…read a short story: Towers about a young woman’s experience at a lonely country house in the dead of night, where she crept up on a half human/half beast of some sort butchering a person while still alive. It was a chilling piece from which the young woman managed to escape only to find the next day that it may have been a dream… or was it?
This gave rise to a discussion about vampire bats and their venom which when injected into their prey acts as an anti-coagulant to keep the blood flowing without the subject feeling any pain. This venom happens to be called Draculin.
…read again from his uncle Charles Nida’s book: Chota Sahib, a memoir of when he was a box-wallah in India between 1913-1916. In this episode Charles is still on the boat out to India. He continues his entanglement with the theatre loveys and in particular the seducer Gertie who seems to have assumed that Charle’s poker debt includes sexual gratification – certainly more than he bargained for. He escapes her clutches with the providential help of an old school friend nicknamed Tiger, who now happens to be one of the deck-hands. Tiger offers to help Charles with his debts from tips he receives in order to pay off the others who now seem to be rather threatening. Despite this advice, and that of Hitchcock and Bumford, two gents he meets on the voyage, Charles seems bent on making mistakes and must learn the hard way. Actions of an overenthusiastic young man, who, it seems, still has a lot to learn.
The group continue to enjoy the book and admired its cover, illustrated by Ian’s daughter Leela.
…read an extract from his Merchant Navy memoir Sea Wife. It is 1960 and Beryl, his wife, accompanies him on this trip. This is a first draft and Harry asked for comments on whether there was too much or too little information. It covered how the group drink cans of Tennents while crossing the shipping lanes, courtesy of Jeff to celebrate a happy event in his life that he won’t discuss. They chat and enjoy a vindaloo, and Beryl still enjoys new experiences that surround her on the voyage. The extract has rich imagery and a sense of place, and the group enjoyed it, requesting nothing else than a little more information at one point to clarify a technical issue on board ship, to do with lights, radar and electronic confirmation. Harry thanked everyone for their comments.
Adele reminded everyone that the next meeting will be a Play Scene reading by guests, the theatre group Dogwood Productions, and attendees could take part in the reading, or listen and critique if preferred. This would be an interesting departure from the usual readings of members’ work.
The meeting closed at 1.00 pm.
Whitby Writers Group 