Seminar

Written for https://fivedotoh.com/2023/10/20/fowc-with-fandango-seminar/

Every year when friends in her writing group went to the writing seminar, she was a little bit curious. When a free ticket was offered, she was one of the first people to ask if she could be considered.

The amazing day stunned her like a heavenly halo.

Agents spoke about genres and the thousands of manuscripts they received each day. Their advice was invaluable. She listened to a famous poet, who read his prose to an enthralled classroom (it was held in Leicester University). It was more like a stage performance – his words transported her to another planet entirely.

At lunch she spent time with the only people who could understand her: being a writer was a lonely occupation. Hours spent on the computer without talking to anyone was a daily occurrence.

Here she found the courage to speak to like minded strangers.

The last session was about music. How different styles can inspire you in various ways. Notebook in hand, she sat in the middle of the auditorium, taking it all in. One tune was familiar; from a black and white film she watched many years ago. She imagined a plane flying overhead. It’s engines roaring over a silent community, ready to drop its bombs on to a dam. When the flood waters opened there was definitely a sense of dread.

‘It is from the film Dam busters. Music, just like words, have an effect on the reader.’

Rapt, she wrote observations in her notebook.

The next piece was more upbeat. It was strange, but it reminded her of being on holiday. If she closed her eyes, she could be making sandcastles on the beach. Her dad reading the paper, sitting on a deckchair – a perfect snippet in time.

‘Music is an effective way of getting yourself motivated. Everyone is diverse and we will all have a different memory linked with any tune.’

Sheila thought about her own environment. When she wrote anything, the television was always on. She wasn’t really listening to it. Could it actually have an effect on what she was writing?

More notes written, she could sit here all day, but the hour passed by too quickly.

At the end of the day, she was exhausted. Even through all of her aches and pains she was still content in talking to her friends in the car. She would definitely buy a ticket next year.