Hi Alphas,
Welcome to Alphaday 2 Season XV. I think we’ve made a good start and are keen to join in the effort of striving towards our common goal: writing and how to make the most of our enjoyment of this noble art in all its varied hues.
We’re still setting the wheels in motion and we’ll need another two Alphadays before all sails are hoisted and we’re firing on all cylinders (am I mixing my metaphors? What fun!)
Today’s agenda may not be a full Alphaday one, but there’s plenty to keep you interested, to inspire you and to stimulate your writing urge. As follows:
- This bulletin from me
- The collated entries for the ‘Heat’ challenge from Suzanne
- The brief for Challenge 2 from Stephen
- The Alpha Log edited by Sally
This should trickle into your inbox some time in the course of the day and while you’re twiddling your thumbs waiting for the next treat, you’re very welcome to let us have your Alpha thoughts of the day and comment on what’s happened so far.
Alpha news:
We have a special fondness for Writing Magazine because that’s where Olaf in 2004 posted his call for writers to join a new venture he wanted to try out. I was one of those who responded and together with many other writers we’ve kept Alpha going for all those years. Many Alpha writers have featured in the WM pages over the years and on top of that Olaf used to write an annual report about our progress. Somehow that missed the writers’ groups column last year but I hope you’ll be thrilled to hear that this year we’re back.
I’ve just received the November issue of WM and on p.45 I found Morgen’s Alpha article which I read with great pleasure and it really made me proud of belonging to the Alpha Group of Writers. Thank you, Morgen. The world now knows what a great group we are.
Members:
Abigail has found a physical writing group since moving to SE France and her involvement with the local community means she’s decided to leave Alpha: “I have really enjoyed the past year and thank you for the effort you put in to make it so successful” she writes, and I’ve sent her my best wishes for future success.
Elizabeth was waiting to join Alpha and we’ll give her a hearty welcome and hope she’ll soon find our company pleasant and enjoy taking part in our activities. Elizabeth lives in the Wirral (NW of the UK) and she’s published one novel with another one ready after a career as a health writer. We look forward to her input.
General news:
Brexit, climate disasters, Brexit, sex scandals … played in a loop. Any one of these topics is as unfixable as the rest and there’s little in the way of good news … probably because of the usual conviction of the press that horrors sell more papers than romance. Does this also apply to literature? What sells best: blood and gore or boy meets girl? As a question it’s a well-worn cliché, but that doesn’t mean there isn’t some truth in it and I had a little look.
There were two cookery books in the top ten list for this week that I checked out. Then there was Trump and the NHS horrors; Dan Brown and Galbraith (= J K Rowling); an even spread for the remaining four. So I declare the question inconclusively answered – except that I’m inclined to have my own idea which includes the need for comfort eating and the easy cooking thereof.
Not that such concerns should influence our chosen writing themes.
Christine