I have tried various writing groups in Brighton but one of the best so far has to be the one in Hove Library that meets once a month. It is efficiently organised jointly by Nicholas Hallett and Roger Bluff who is also the group’s secretary. They have both taken the trouble to find out what will help members in their creative endeavours and are constantly finding ways of enabling them to achieve personal objectives with talks and workshops. Members also share expertise and there are special interest sub groups. However one can also attend simply as someone who enjoys being with fellow writers.
This morning there was a useful session run by one of the members, Daphne Wall, concentrating on endings. Daphne identified six different ways of ending novels/short stories/poems and provided us with some good examples ranging from Peter Rabbit to Great Expectations. She set aside time for us to discuss endings that we liked in films, plays, poems, stories in pairs and share them with the bigger group and we went on to discuss the virtues of each one.
There was an exercise where an ending was suggested and we could work out the story that led to it. Another one was to think about something we had already written and to try a different ending.
This group is well run and friendly with about 12 or so attending from a membership of 30. This means no one gets too dominant and the group is less precious and competitive than others of which I have been a member.
Sometimes there are speakers, but as the only financial contribution is on a voluntary basis and £1 towards printing costs, these appear on a voluntary basis.
There is usually a homework exercise which is optional but there is always time made for those who have done it to share it with the group.
Further details from the Library website
Or enquiries to the secretary
E-mail: roger.j.bluff@btinternet.com
Don’t miss my very creative ‘Home’ page and other posts in the creative writing category. Ann
Ann Perrin 