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The Writers' Group introduction thread.

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I love writing - fiction (although I keep STARTING novels etc and never getting firther than that) and non-fiction - more academic/theological type stuff.

 

I also love reading a wide range of things - magazines, websites, books, leaflets, cereal packets, wine bottles etc.

 

I refuse to read the Da Vinci Code as some sort of personal protest.

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Hi. I used to love writing fiction, recently though I have been a student so finding the time has been difficult. I graduated last week so this forum will be of great interest to me. I hope to start writing again.

 

I mainly read thrillers, crime, horror and classical books.

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I too have always had a love of books and like the best of us, the books I am drawn to often reflect some aspect of my own personality or experiences, which probably explains why my choices are so varied! I'm no Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde but I do have a wee bit of a split personality when it comes to my favourite reads.

 

I love anything quirky with humour and an underlying more serious tone, fantasy has often been a key theme throughout my reading years, from multiple choice adventure books in my days at primary school right through to the likes of (dare I mention) Lord of the Rings which I discovered only some years ago.

 

I'm not ashamed to admit which classics I have not read, or what genres I still remain ignorant of. To me reading books is not a competition to see who is the most well read or who swallowed the biggest dictionary that morning, it is about enjoying both the book and the moment in which it was read.

 

Although spilling mistakes may happen and my grammar that is wrote may not be the most fluid, I do find my stories often have a humorous tone and sometimes if I'm lucky I'm not the only one who thinks it. Though as a final plea....do be gentle on me!

 

Thanks for the interest!

 

Caz.

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Hello, my name is Brian Brady, I am 67 years old, and am not ready to roll over and die! I have written my own (boring) life story, but I have volunteered to produce a book for the writing group, any stories submitted to the Writers Group. I have produced 5 books so far, in eight and a half by eleven inch size, with a leather binding. Dave Milner, the 'City Snapper' has graciously agreed to the use of his wonderful photographs of Sheffield in the book, at the rate of one full colour pic per page.

I don't know yet what the procedure will be, but for what it's worth, might I suggest that any stories submitted be critiqued by the appropriate member, and then, if the writer agrees, the story sent to me for inclusion in the book.I have no plans to commercially publish the book, but it will be sent to one of the moderators, so that anyone can see it. Just a few ideas to get the ball rolling. Brian Brady, a.k.a. oldtimer

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I was very fortunate in having a mother who taught me to read by the time I was four years old. She would get into trouble with tram conductors because I wouild read the no smoking signs and other things, making them think I was of school age and should have paid the halfpenny fare.

I have always loved books. For a long time my favourites were adventures by Alistair Maclean, Hammond Innes, Ian Fleming, Neville Shute and others. Later I gravitated toward the classics. Having lived in Winchester for a time, and having visited Jane Austen's grave I became devoted to her work, and still am. Ihave read everything she wrote many times as well as works by Dickens, Hardy, The Brontes, and Fielding. I could not live within a few miles of Mark Twain's last home without enjoying his unique stories of American 19th century life and manners.

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Ive been reading forever, I cant imagine my life without books!I love reading, and have just finished Sophia Mcdougal's Romanitas, which I guess gives a good indication of the kind of books I like to read.Basically I'm drawn to horror/supernatural/sci-fi, though I believe its the quality of the writing that matters much more so than the genre.

As far as writing goes, Ive always enjoyed writing fiction, though college essays aside, I don't think Ive ever completed a story.I'm hoping the group will provide the necessary foot/backside interaction to inspire me to finish something!

Just a warning, most of the stuff I write is overblown, pretentious twaddle - you have been warned!!!

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My Sister , 13 mths older and much brighter than me, could read at the age of 3 and used to read to me when she was about 5. We woud go down to the library at the corner of Arbouthorne Rd and chose books for my Mom and Dad. She used to set me looking for authers name on the lower shelves while she chose from the higher shelves. Thus was started my love of books.

We travelled a long way to school past the central library and would call after spitting on our hands to ensure we would pass the hand inspection by the dragon lady in charge. The library was a treasure trove of delight.

Anne of Green Gables, the Chalet school girls, Biggles, Worral, we used to read all the way home bumping in to lamp posts on the way.

So as I am now 69 I have held a library ticket for 61 yrs.

I read the Bond books as they came out and the Darling Buds of May by H E Bates, and could probably still quote the write up on the sauce bottle on the table, I read avidly soaking up everything in my path. Still do

hazel

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There isnt much that I can say about myself.

 

I havent read a book for many a year now. I used to read lots when I was a kid, but computer games soon changed all that. I would like to get back in to the habit of reading and to feed my mind with a bit of writing. Should be all good fun and interesting. We shall see

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Hello everyone.

 

I was a very late starter to reading books ,i never had the time or patience to read one and it was only due to illness and my wife getting fed up with me

moaning about being bored that she went out and bought me the Kray Twins biography and i was hooked.Writing was something totally different i used to write short stories for /with my young sons and then let them fill missing bits ,alas computers came along .

 

I write about anything that comes to mind and at the moment i am having a go at writing a sitcom which is along the lines of Last of the summer wine ,why mainly because of the shows innocence and is probably one of TVs sitcom classics's.I look forward to the grand opening i am sure it will be fun .

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Hi, I can't remember a time when I didn't have a book to read. The first ones I recall were the famous five and secret seven books, I could lose myself in the pages and I was there, a part of the adventure. Later I moved on to comedy, Peter Tinniswood, Spike Milligan etc. Now almost all of the fiction I read are horror, my favorites being James Herbert and Laurell K Hamilton.

I have never had any interest in the "classics", I find them written in a language that isn't relevant to the age in which we live, the storys are good as I enjoy the tv adaptations of Dickens, I just cannot read the book. As for writing, the only thing I have written is a shopping list but I liked making up silly stories for my daughter at bedtime and so yes I want to give it a go and with everybodys advice and critisism maybe I could produce something worth reading.

Dave..

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It's long overdue - and to be honest, there's very little time left now following the recent announcement that Sue Lawley is leaving the programme! Although I am still debating what my 8 records will be, when she does eventually find the time to ring me, I do know what book I want to read on my desert island!

 

Back in 1963, it was a difficult book to read, especially for a lad of 14. I'd had a rudimentary secondary school education, and was about to leave school with no academic qualifications. I wasn't a member of the village library - that building was not somewhere my parents ever thought to encourage me to visit or join. No, it was a book I found in the school library. It wasn't even fiction. Maybe that's why I found it hard to read. But I persevered. I finished reading the book, and just after my 15th. birthday, I also finished my schooling, and started work in a dead end job.

 

When the first general election of 1964 was declared, my old Sunday school teacher encouraged me to go to the old school hall and listen to the hustings, where I heard this man speak. His name was Trevor Park. He was the Labour candidate for South-East Derbyshire, my home area. He talked about his vision of a society where we continued learning long after our formal schooling. He spoke of a society which cherished reading and the acquisition of knowledge. He talked of a generation of post-war children who were being consigned to marginal employment due to a lack of educational qualifications. Trevor, I realised, was speaking about me.

 

I was both enthused and confused. I was one of the village thickies. I'd failed my 11+. I hadn't gone to grammar school. My Dad had told me he wasn't letting me go down the pit as he'd done when he'd left school, and so I'd got a clerical job, and my parents were proud of me. But, there was this nagging doubt. After all, I'd read this book. I'd read this book and I'd understood it. It was all about pollution, and how small particles of poison get washed into the sea, and how fish eat these minute particles, and store them in their bodies. Then how men catch the fish, eat them, and become ill. It had big words in it, but I had understood it. Was I that thick after all? There was only one way to find out. I enrolled for night school GCEs.

 

I cycled the 7 miles straight from work to college a couple of nights a week, where I was introduced to a world of Dickens, Bronte, Shakespeare and even poetry for a year. I started visiting theatres in Nottingham and Derby and saw plays. I even joined the village library. I got my first GCE after a year of studying, and at 16, I joined the Labour Party.

 

Five years later, I'd accumulated enough 'O' & 'A' levels from night school classes to go to college full time. Later still I undertook a mature training course and qualified as a social worker.

 

Trevor died a few years ago. I came across his obituary in The Guardian. He was my inspiration. He had galvanised me to achieve better things for myself. But a book had first helped me to understand the world a little better, and to help me realise that I was capable of learning and advancing myself. So when Ms Lawley finally makes that telephone call, I'm going to be ship-wrecked with "Silent Spring" by Rachel Carson.

 

I eventually became a social work manager, though no longer working due to ill health problems. I'm now 58, and in the last 3 years I've twice been elected to the city council. No guesses for which political party, but I like to think that Trevor would have been proud of redrobbo.

 

Got to go now folks as the phone is ringing. You never know......it could be Sue!

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I've always loved books and libraries. Some of my very earliest memories involve my mum taking me to the children's section, upstairs at Park library. I think I still have the little cardboard tickets somewhere back at home.

 

I'm a compulsive book hoarder, reader and occasional writer. The subject matter is varied, though I do freely admit to hoovering up the low-brow stuff such as Patricia Cornwell, Kathy Reichs et al. I adore crime fiction; my book shelves are heaving with Agatha Christie's works, along with Sir Arthur Conan Doyle, Dorothy L. Sayers, Ngaio Marsh, Colin Dexter, Ian Rankin and Reginald Hill.

 

At the moment, I'm re-reading 'Wuthering Heights' and (yet again) 'Greenwitch' by Susan Cooper. Next on the list will be 'The Smile of a Ghost' by Phil Rickman, which I've been intending to read for ages.

 

As for the writing... it goes in fits and starts. Lately, I've been reading more about how to write, rather than getting down to the writing itself. I tend to write for children, though I have been known to dabble in other genres. Not many folk have seen what I write. I'm not too sure how I'll take to the prospect of fellow forumers scrutinizing it either. Maybe I'll be an interested observer for a while...

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