A SLIM VOLUME OF POETRY FOR CHARITY

Published by The Altair Press comes this long-awaited slim volume of poetry by Ian Welland.

Round and Around (Selected Poems 1978 - 2023) brings together 50 poems  including Ian's very first poem Autumn and his most recent, C'mon you 'Orns. 

Ian said,

"I've wanted to produce a slim volume of my poetry, to raise funds for charity, for many years and finally got round to sorting the wheat from the chaff. Over the years, most of the poems have ended up in spiral bound collections and condemned to box files never to see the light of day. But, through the encouragement of fellow Watford Writers, it was time to unleash them to the world! My wife, Louise, had taken some excellent photos of Worthing seafront Ferris wheel in 2021 and kindly allowed me to use them for the front and back covers. Job done. (Don't believe the Ferris wheel is there now!)."

All proceeds will be donated to The Peace Hospice Care, Watford. 

Exciting news from Watford Writers' Lesley Kerr. Lesley has been included in an article in The Guardian online, about unpublished older(!) female authors!  

Lesley said, "It was so exciting being interviewed by a journalist - although short notice and they said in the piece that I am working on my debut novel. So I have to get on with it!"

To read the article:

https://www.theguardian.com/books/2023/feb/25/unpublished-older-female-writers-authors'

Many congratulations Lesley.

The wait is over! 

It’s congratulations to Watford Writers' very own Gideon Masters (a pen name), whose eagerly awaited parts two and three of the Lucifer’s Child trilogy, have now been published. 

----

Part two, titled Ovum, sees Jackie and Eve believe the second shard is hidden somewhere in the deeps of the Sargasso Sea, and that its location is in some way connected with the migration pattern of eels. Eve has embarked on a secret voyage of discovery, with the man who once tried to gang rape her, as her only human companion. Still struggling with the dualism of her transgendered body and psyche; she must find ways to extend her fledgling physical and psychic powers, far beyond their existing limits. The crushing depths of the Sargasso will not be the only barrier she needs to overcome. Dark forces and an intruding universe will also dog her steps and bar her path. Thrown like dice into the cauldron of a precarious eternity; Helen and Eve continue to grapple with the imposed reversal of sexuality in their relationship; that Eve’s transition has forced upon them. Previous boundaries of love and intimacy no longer fit the parameters, of what may now be an endless future. Through exploration and experimentation, they must learn to know and relate to each other in a new and evolving dynamic or see their love wither in the stasis of interminable longevity.

In Part three, titled Gestation, outraged at the rape of Helen the angels are in revolt. Cariel has forged an alliance with captain Baker and the crew of the Fairweather, to tie up Semayaza in a distraction attack on the cloud city, creating precious time for Baliel to rally enough forces among the fallen, to lay siege to the Lord of angels in his stronghold. Without their Goddess, however, this is a strategy of desperation and likely failure. 

In the meantime Eve is struggling soul deep, against the mudslide of obliviate transcendence, and can barely condense sufficient coherent thought, to maintain her sense of self; even in the vastness at the edge of infinity. She finds strength, comfort, and an unlikely ally, in the creature Ouroboros. Together they enter the earthly realm, but its confines are crushing her need, desperate to explode into the infinite call of oblivion. With the stricken Cariel at her side, she finds temporary relief for the expansion of her essence in the unformed void of quantum space, but its uncertain improbability is a two-edged sword that could threaten existence itself. 

With divine, demonic, angelic, and human aid, and the improbable appearance of a submissive and loyal artificial intelligence, Eve conceives a plan; to mould the probability of the quantum void, into the perception of her transcendent will, and thus create a vast sub nano space, solidified within the spiritual matrix of sentient life.

Her plan relies on the ignorance of all those who would help her, willingly or not. To some extent this includes herself. She will need to visit, draw on, and manipulate, many wonderful and surreal worlds, and many entities, if her plan is to have any chance of highly improbable success.

----

Gideon says,

“When I was younger, I was an avid reader, and loved to write. From my earliest years I remember being allowed to stay up late to watch the moon landings and loved to watch and ponder the stars at night. So, it was not surprising that I developed an interest in the sciences. I went from marvel comics to Sci Fi and fantasy fiction, Lord of the Rings, and TH White, to historical fiction and biographies, eventually widening my interest to include religious and philosophical concepts. All these interests have gone on to inform my writing. Whilst I like to write in diverse genres, it was inevitable that my speculation on the human condition over the years would soon spill onto the page. The Lucifer’s Child Trilogy is the result of several years of previously contained creativity that so overflowed from my pen, that I found myself swept away by the eagerness of my characters, who often seemed to take control of their own destinies. 

I hope that readers will find these books both enjoyable and thought provoking. I look forward with great anticipation, to receiving feedback or suggestions, as to whether I should consider expanding Lucifer’s Child into a series, or strike out in a new direction, or indeed, both.”

About the author 

Gideon Masters lives in Croxley near Watford, but was born in Shepherd’s Bush, London. Raised in a one-bedroom flat in a London still recovering from post war poverty, roaming around in small gangs, played and scrapped on old bomb sites, building sites and derelict properties. Gideon is an active member of Watford Writers group.

The trilogy, Lucifer’s Child, Ovum and Gestationis published by TSL Books https://tslbooks.uk/?s=gideon+masters

An excellent workshop on "Dialogue" was delivered to the group by Mike on 5 December. 

Packed with advice and guidance, the assembled writers enjoyed activities that explored the HOW and WHAT, with an additional activity that dealt with interpretation of well-known authors work and how dialogue has been treated and portrayed.

Mike has kindly provided his workshop notes, which can be accessed by clicking here.

Mike recommended the following books to support the writing of dialogue:

• The Book You Need To Read To Write You Want To Write by Sarah Burton and Jem Poster

• Creating Coinvincing Characters by Nicholas Corder

• Show Don't Tell by Sandra Gerth

A great evening was had by all; and many thanks indeed to Mike.

Watford Writers were on the road again and delighted to have performed again at Watford Fringe. 

This year we introduced our baby - the spin off group KidsLit; as well as members from the main Watford Writers group. 

TO LISTEN TO US AT THE WATFORD FRINGE, PLEASE CLICK HERE

Many thanks to:

David Elliott

Judy Klimt

Helen Nicell

Jan Rees

Liz Shaw

Pat Simpson

Trevor Spinage

Sumi Watters

Louise Welland

Ian Welland

And thank you to all those who came out to support us. A wonderful occasion.

It's a well deserved congratulations to Andrea Neidle who scooped first place in our annual Writer's Block competition. The theme was "Crime Fiction" and Andrea won with her entry My Killer Blog. (Right: Andrea receives the Writers Block Trophy from Helen Nicell)

Judging all the entries, crime fiction writer A J Park (Karl Vadaszffy) said of Andrea's entry:

‘This story played with the form of a usual short story and used an original technique of telling the story through the use of a blog. A clever format I thought. It put me in mind of ‘The Appeal’ by Janice Hallett, a crime thriller told by E-mails. I loved the twist, completely caught me off guard, with an audible laugh from me at the end. ‘

At our meeting of 28 February 2022, Karl very kindly provided constructive feedback on all 15 entries and concluded by ranking the following top 3:

• 1st Place: Andrea Neidle - My Killer Blog
• 2nd Place: Rob Summers - Within
• Joint 3rd Place: Geoff Brown - Passengers from Hell; and, Liz Shaw - The Living Daylights.

Congratulations to Rob, Geoff and Liz who took second and third place respectively. Also, well done to all those who entered. 

Our sincere thanks to A J Park (Karl Vadaszffy) for his time. Very much appreciated.

Please Click Here to read a selection of the entries.

Watford Writers' very own John Ward is featured in a new collection of short stories and poems entitled: Eye Spy.

The book is the 5th anthology resulting from the Bournemouth Writing Prize annual competition. John, who has recently moved to Bournemouth, has contributed 'The Red Shoes' which was a firm favourite at Watford Writers. 

Congratulations to John and indeed all the writers who have contributed.

PLEASE CLICK HERE FOR DETAILS ON PURCHASING A COPY or on the image right.