Hi Alphas,
Snip!
I’ve cut the virtual ribbon and Alpha Season XI is now open!
A big and warm welcome to you all on this Alphaday 1.
About half of us still remember that day in September 2004 when we first met. Others only just missed one or a few of the first years, so we’ve got a history. This sometimes puzzles newcomers, but most of them get used to our ways and soon slip into them quite comfortably.
We have evolved. We continue to discover new ideas and trends which we discuss with the group.
A certain turnover in membership is a healthy influence. That’s why we’re pleased to welcome Janet, Paul and Rachael. We look forward to your input and hope you’ll enjoy our company.
We have an exciting and busy season ahead of us. I might as well warn you that I’ve prepared a number of information sheets with which to bombard you on this first Alphaday.
It’s all in a good cause, and I hope you’ll take the time to peruse my various attachments. Any comments are, of course, very welcome.
Here’s the list of attachments to come:
- List of members and their email addresses. (Vital information!)
- Geographical distribution of members. (Fun.)
- Introducing members and their functions in the group. (Getting closer to the way we work and this season’s innovations.)
- Season XI calendar
- Challenges. (This is our main activity; must be studied in detail by all of you.)
- Extra activities for Season XI. (The full programme. This will hopefully fill you with enthusiasm.)
I’m inclined to verbosity, I know, but I think you’ll find all the information useful. Please file it somewhere for future reference. That will save me having to repeat myself.
The main thing is the writing. I do believe this season offers a horn of plenty in the way of opportunities. Challenges, showcasing, Alpha book: tell me which part of your writing interest can’t fir into one of those slots and I’ll create a new slot immediately!
Here’s to a happy Season XI!
Christine
Extra activities for Season XI.
The Log isn’t exactly an ‘extra’ activity, as it’s been a vital part of Alpha ever since its inception some nine years ago.
The challenges are often experimental, and it is not always possible to get to know the ‘real’ writer behind even many years of challenge entries.
Most of us, however, have another writing life outside the Alpha cocoon. Often this is our main writing activity which we hope to find a place for out there in the big, wide world.
Cliché: “A writer’s life is a lonely one.”
That’s where the Log comes in. We can share our forays into the world of writing with Alpha members. It’s both stimulating and motivating to find that others cheer us on when the going is good, and sympathise with our disappointments and frustrations.
Showcasing our work to get feedback was greatly appreciated by all last season. Suzanne has volunteered to take over from Clare for Season XI, and she’ll be in touch about contributions.
You can contribute any piece of writing you’d like to share with the group. We’d love to see a mixed bag including poetry, non-fiction, reviews, opinion pieces, rants, experimental work, extracts from novels etc.
Olaf’s famous Christmas quiz is an Alpha staple. It might prove to be the best treat you’ve ever had to while away the idle hours over the break – or you might end up wishing you’d never clapped eyes on it. It certainly won’t leave you indifferent.
Celebrating Ten Years of Alpha Inspiration (or whichever title we eventually settle for) is this season’s big task.
I hope you’ll come forward with something special for a book worthy of publication, and even more so: worthy of Alpha.
I’ve already given you a rough outline of how we could do it and some of you have chosen a theme from the ten years’ worth of challenge briefs.
For the benefit of the newbies here’s the plan again:
1) An introduction outlining the nature of Alpha and the reason for the publication of the book.
2) Ten chapters, each related to an Alpha season. These will consist of the following elements:
- a) A paragraph outlining of the main events of the season. We’ll gear this towards a non-Alpha readership; in other words we’ll mention activities and achievements rather than enumerate members who came and went. Members who made a difference to the group’s history will of course be mentioned.
- b) The creative writing input, i.e. the main element of the book: A piece of writing by one of our members, illustrating one of that season’s challenges. Each member only contributes one story; you have one hundred challenge themes to choose from (see Chris’s list) and this gives you the opportunity to contribute in your favourite genre; prose or poetry, fiction or non-fiction. The word limit is loose; say, between 1,000 and 3,000 words; less for poetry. (Some seasons will have more than one piece of writing because we have more than ten contributors.)
- c) I would like these main pieces of writing to be preceded by one of the top entries for that particular challenge. This is purely for historical and illustrative reasons; showing a typical challenge entry. The longer piece is completely separate; a different take on the theme, detached from the strict constraints of the brief and showing your (our) creative writing at its best.
3) Credits. Contributors can give a brief bio and mention their other writings.
4) Epilogue.
You need to pick the season and the theme of your choice (second choice would be useful).
First come, first served! If somebody else has already picked a theme from the season you wanted, you’ll be asked to come up with something different! We need to cover every one of the ten seasons.
This is a big venture. If you haven’t got Chris’s list of 100 challenge themes ask him (or me) to forward it to you. This also applies to any new members who’d like to join in.
I’d like to see first drafts in before the Christmas break. I’ll then organise a rota for critiquing, mutual editing and fine-tuning.