Present: Joe, Fay, Donald, Kate, Merlyn, Philipp, Sandy, Steve, Joanna, Danni, Rosalie, Philip Davies
Apologies: Paula, Sam, Michelle
Rosalie opened the meeting with a devotion from 1 Peter 1:3
“Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ! In his great mercy he has given us new birth into a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead and into an inheritance that can never perish, spoil or fade kept in heaven for you,
It was emphasized that we have HOPE. Is it our aim to bring hope to our readers and all those who will read our writing?
GUEST SPEAKER: Philip S Davies
Philip talked about his trilogy of fantasy adventure for young adults. He showed us some of the props he takes with him when he gives talks in schools about his books: a crown on a cushion, a bow and a quiver of arrows, a sword, a goblet. These often provoked quite a lot of interest among young people
Philip writes in the genre of fantasy fiction. Other subgenres are
1. Speculative fiction
2. Science fiction
3. Dystopian – a story set in the future where the world has gone wrong
4. Horror/zombies
5. Paranormal/supernatural
The difference from mainstream fiction is that a fantasy world setting is created, including the people, the plot and the place. It stretches the imagination because anything is impossible. It enables him to bring in spiritual issues in a safe way, for example the plague in Destiny’s Revenge. Young people engage very well with this genre and it can be lots of fun!
4 Elements distinguish this type of storytelling:
1. An imaginary world. Imagine Tolkien’s world map
2. Fantastic Beasts (good ones as well as the ugly ones)
3. Magic – spells, curses, blessings, prayers, potions, scrolls, prophecies, scripture, artefacts, rings, wands, crown special power
4. Non-human races – elves, vampires, hobbits, goblins, mermaids,
Their language and history
Common character types
Hero/Heroine, Villain, Sidekick, Wise old man/woman/mentor, Trickster/uncertain ally
Fool/Jester/Buffoon, Love interest, Heaven and Hell
Common Parallels
Struggle of heroes and heroines, good against evil, life and death, hope and despair, courage and defeat.
Chesterton: Dragons can be defeated
Philip then gave us a brief synopsis of his own biography and writing journey.
Rosalie gave a short PowerPoint presentation on Characterisation starting with a quiz.
Writer’s Challenge
Write a profile for a character including context
1. Steve presented his profile of Donal, an Irish assassin who took exceptional pride in his job.
2. Philip Davies presented his profile of a character for his new series “Cave of Immortality”
Rufus is a 16 year old boy, the fifth child of seven. He is challenged when his friend 17 year old Rosa is kidnapped by a warlock. He is a bit of an outsider but is exceptionally talented at throwing stones!
3. Rosalie presented a short description of Phineas Hogg, a middle aged civil servant who is a bit of a sociopath. Finding a secret list belonging to his recently deceased wife, he makes contact with several adopted children claiming to be their biological father. The emotional drama which this produced is seconded only by the bombshell when he tells them five years later that he has lied. The police say that no crime has been committed and they can take no action.
4. Joe Story presented his mafia-style clown with a beautiful description of the clown figure.
5. Donald submitted a few comments about characters in general.
News and Views
Fay told us about her recent contribution to a book edited by Wendy Jones “Creativity Matters”.
Fay’s chapter was about drama writing and performing plays and sketches. (What about Drama?) Available from Amazon.
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