Ancient City Sci-Fi, Fantasy, & Horror Writing WORKSHOP

New members encouraged to join! As the group grows, we can share and critique writings.

"Let us go then,
you and i,

When the evening is spread out against the sky,

like a patient etherized upon a table.

Let us go through certain half-deserted streets,

The muttering retreats,
of restless nights in one-night cheap hotels,

And sawdust restaurants with oyster shells."
-- T.S. Eliot, "The Love Song of J. Alfred Proofrock."

"Run from what's comfortable,

Forget safety,

Live where you fear to live,

Destroy your reputation,
Be notorious."
-- Rumi

How is it mere words on paper (or computer screen or Kindle or whatever), have such power to move me? How is it that The Gilgamesh, though written thousands of years ago in a distant land, has the power to bring a tear to my eye today? How is it that even the dead have power to make me laugh and cry and think in new ways?

The pen is truly mightier than the sword, for it cuts through time as well as space. What we write now, in a momentary flash of brilliance, shall echo throughout eternity.

The Universe is 13.8 billion years old, and yet, HERE WE ARE! All of human civilization is but the merest blip in time, an inconceivably brief flash, and yet, HERE WE ARE. NOW is our time to shine. We have waited eons for our chance to ascend to the stage, so let us not waste a moment, but endeavor to give away all that we have and all that we are, for only in this way do we truly live.

Let us put upon paper words that are worthy of Eternity. This is not an endeavor for the faint of heart. We may falter along the way, but we always rise. We always rise. We always rise.

NEW MEMBERS ENCOURAGED TO JOIN!

What are some of your favorite bits of writing advice and wisdom? Here are a few of mine:

"If you wait for inspiration to write, you're not a writer; you're a waiter." – Dan Poynter

"You must stay drunk on writing so reality cannot destroy you." – Ray Bradbury

"The counterfeit innovator is wildly confident. The real one is scared to death." – Steven Pressfield, The War of Art

"Many people hear voices when no one is there. Some of them are called mad and are shut up in rooms where they stare at the walls all day. Others are called writers and they do pretty much the same thing." – Margaret Chittenden

A couple quotes from Fahrenheit 451, by Ray Bradbury:



"It was a pleasure to burn"

"Stuff your eyes with wonder," he said, "live as if you'd drop dead in ten seconds. See the world. It's more fantastic than any dream made or paid for in factories.
"

"
There must be something in books, something we can't imagine, to make a woman stay in a burning house; there must be something there. You don't stay for nothing.

"

Why do I quote Ray Bradbury? Maybe because I grew up devouring his books. Maybe because his prose is imbued with poetic power and magic. Or maybe because he gave such wonderful writing advice, such as:

"Writing is supposed to be difficult, agonizing, a dreadful exercise, a terrible occupation."

"You fail only if you stop writing."

"Read poetry every day of your life. Poetry is good because it flexes muscles you don't use often enough. Poetry expands the senses and keeps them in prime condition. It keeps you aware of your nose, your eye, your ear, your tongue, your hand. And, above all, poetry is compacted metaphor or simile. Such metaphors, like Japanese paper flowers, may expand outward into gigantic shapes." -- from Zen in the Art of Writing

NEW MEMBERS WELCOMED AND ENCOURAGED TO JOIN!

Please respect our venue by purchasing a drink and /or food item. Panera has great sandwiches, soups, salads, and pastries. I suggest arriving a bit early so that we can all be seated and ready to begin at 7. I will arrive early to secure a good location.

Once there was a fish who said, "I don't believe in this crazy notion of Water!" He scoffed when other fish tried to talk to him about Water. He called them naive and stupid. Then one day a fisherman caught this fish in his net. As the fish flopped around on the deck of the fisherman's boat, he suddenly became a believer!



He who has ears should listen.



We writers are the fish who have escaped the fisherman. We return to the ocean speaking the truth, often in the form of stories and parables. The other fish scoff and speak all manner of ill about us, but we are not deterred.



Writing is hard work. The path to success is unsure and fraught with peril. The best of us grow weary at times. This is as it should be, for if becoming a great writer were easy, everybody would be doing it.