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But I also mentioned that there was a second writer's group later that same evening. This one was held at the library branch in Kanata, about a half hour away from home.
When I arrived at the meeting room, there was only one person there, again. It was the organizer, Alicia. While we waited for others to arrive (I arrived about five minutes before the start time), we said hello and talked about ourselves and what drew us to writing. But as the 6:30 start time came and went, Alicia and I realized that we were going to be the only two at this meeting.
I told her about my experience at the first Writing Circle (the tables and chairs were set up in a rectangle, by the way: I don't know why that bothered me but it did) and how I felt put on the spot to write some prose about trees in five minutes. I said that I hoped this group wouldn't be doing similar exercises.
Alicia assured me that this writing group didn't do that. She said that usually there are four to six people who show up and they talk about their writing process and about any hurdles they experience. But mostly, it's a place where writers can work on their projects and perhaps bounce ideas off of one another.
Alicia is working on a screenplay as well as a novel, though she suspected that her screenplay was a distraction to keep her from finishing her novel. I said that at least she was writing and that I hoped she gained joy from her creations.
I told her about Dark Water and The Watcher, and I said that I was hoping this group would be interested in sharing snippets of our work and receiving constructive criticism. Alicia let me read a passage from The Watcher, which I though was written in an artsy-fartsy way—a departure from my usual blunt writing. She said that she usually didn't like overly descriptive writing but felt mine wasn't over the top, and that she could imagine the scene I painted.
So, yay.
We chatted for about an hour and then we decided to get down to work, turning to our computers (I brought a laptop). I decided to read and clean up some of the early chapters that I had written, a couple of months ago, for The Watcher, while Alicia worked on her screenplay.
When the second hour was up (the event runs 6:30–8:30), we called it a night. Alicia asked me if I planned on returning, saying that she suspected no one turned up because the schedule for this group had changed from once a month to once every two weeks (though the calendar on the Ottawa Public Library Web site says the next one is in three weeks). I said that I would come to the next one because I wanted to assess the group when there were other people to assess.
We said goodnight and went our separate ways.
As soon as I reached my car, I felt mentally drained. Though I'm a social creature, I'm also morbidly shy and an introvert. In a group of strangers, I'll sit quietly, speaking only when addressed directly. In a one-on-one setting with a stranger, I'll talk a lot but doing so drains me.
I drove home and turned on some mindless television to decompress.
So, my experience with two writing groups wasn't an entire bust but neither lived up to my expectations, and I really didn't know what to expect with either. As I said, I need to see these groups with several more people to make a judgment about whether I want to be a part of them.
The next Beaverbrook Writing Group is Thursday, November 6, and the next Writing Circle at the Ruth E. Dickenson branch is Thursday, November 27. If you're a writer, a poet, or someone who aspires to become one, check them out.
There's also the Capital Region Writer's Group, which also meets at the Ruth E. Dickenson library. This group provides a space for writers to work on projects amongst other writers. The next gathering is also on Thursday, November 6, from 6:00 to 8:30, so I'll have to decide which group I should attend.
Happy Monday!
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