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Feature - The Vicious Circle

The circle expands as literary life is pumped into Whistler

By Stella L. Harvey

You’ve seen the ad in the Pique for months. Week in week out it stares at you with simple words like get together and writers sharing their work . You resist with your own set of words, can’t, not good enough, too soon. You carry on alone, filling in pages, knocking in new words, developing, reworking and filing stories in double-pass-word-protected folders waiting for the time when you’ll be ready to expose yourself. The Whistler Writers Group was formed two years ago because some 45 members took a chance, fought with the timid words in their heads, picked up the phone anyway and attended a meeting to see what these writer types were doing. Even the group’s nickname, the Vicious Circle ( vicious being synonymous with words like ferocious, fierce), used facetiously and affectionately adopted, is a way for members to acknowledge and even laugh at their individual insecurities as writers.

Although not completely gone, those frightening words feeding our uncertainty as artists have been replaced with other words defined in the Merriam-Webster’s Collegiate Dictionary. Group, a number of individuals assembled together or having a unifying relationship, inclusive, broad in orientation and scope covering or intended to cover all. Established and emerging writers, individuals interested in writing who have yet to tap out a word, and writing groupies alike come together to share their work, receive and give feedback, read at monthly public reading events, and provide information about writing competitions and publishing opportunities.

And the work is as varied as the artists. Works of short fiction, long fiction, creative non-fiction, are given equal time to screenplays, plays, children’s stories and poems. Even age can’t exclude you from this group. The youngest member is an aging 19-year-old, and the oldest, a youthful 50 something. Nothing but you excludes (defined as having power to limit participation) you from the Circle.

Okay, now you know there’s no reason to be afraid to make the call, but you’re still apprehensive. I know what you’re thinking; it’d sure be nice to know a little more about the people in this group before you made any commitments. People are the heart of a group, and if you can’t get along with them why bother joining. Good point. So here’s an introduction to a few of the group’s members.

Pam Barnsley started as a newspaper reporter and went on to write for magazines and television (the old Beachcombers show). She co-wrote Hiking Trails of the Sunshine Coast , published by Harbour Publishing, now in its 20th printing. She also confesses to a stint as a lying weasel: writing advertising copy. One of Pam's most recent short stories appeared in Ellery Queen Mystery Magazine and she has just finished a mystery novel set in Whistler. Pam says she writes to entertain while at the same time challenging readers to see issues from a new perspective.

"I write murder mysteries where people are forced to make difficult choices, and characters are as complex and realistic as those all around us."

For Pam, the Vicious Circle has provided her with the professional and emotional support of other writers who "give constructive critiques of my work and an understanding of the life of an ink-stained wretch."

Leah Noble, a poet and a new short-fiction writer, agrees.

"I learned how to look at my work separate from me, honed my editing skills and discovered that the first draft is raw potential."

Making a contribution to her community, and setting down the words and images that come to mind so they aren’t lost, are some of the reasons Leah writes.

Like Leah, Geoff Pross, a creative non-fiction writer, currently writing a book of his experiences with marriage ceremonies in seven different African countries writes because, "some experiences are too moving to let fade away."

Carolyn Hachey, a storyteller, recounts stories of our past so that they are not forgotten. Carolyn likes to know the group is out there, available electronically or through bi-weekly meetings and the occasional potluck dinner, providing support, helping each other out, sharing stories.

Novelist, Steven Galloway (Ascension and Finnie Walsh) says he’d go crazy if he didn’t write. "Not writing isn’t an option. It’s the only thing I know how to do, and the days must be filled."

Steven is Vancouver based and finds having a community of writers around him enormously useful. "Just to know that there are people experiencing the same troubles and triumphs as you can be endlessly comforting and inspiring."

You’re intimidated again. Right? These guys are talented, you’re saying to yourself, probably born with it or maybe inspired by some fateful experience. That’s not you. You can barely get the right words out on a good day. Right? I’m sorry to have to tell you this, but that happens to all writers; new, emerging or experienced. Nancy Lee, author of Dead Girls, reiterated the point in the Weekend Fiction Writing series put on by Simon Fraser University earlier this year. "Writing involves 10 per cent talent, 90 per cent skill which is developed through practice, 10 per cent inspiration and 90 per cent practice" which comes from, you guessed it, doing it over and over again even when it hurts, even when the words won’t come.

That means you sit at your desk day-in day-out for four or five hours and concentrate on nothing else but your writing. This is the case for Mitch Rhodes, a published novelist currently working on a number of other books and stories. Mitch starts his day with breakfast and meditation then sits down to write from 8:30 in the morning until noon, and then again from one o’clock until around four. He treats his writing as a job, something he has to do, a place he has to go to everyday.

In addition to hard work and practice you have to have confidence in yourself and what you have to say. Natalie Goldberg in a Long Quiet Highway wrote, "I became aware that writing was based on words, that they came out of my mind and that I had to trust what I thought, felt and saw. I could not be afraid that I was insignificant, or stupid – or I could be afraid, but I had to speak anyway."

She goes on to say, "Like running, the more you do it, the better you get at it. Some days you don’t want to run and you resist every step of the three miles, but you do it anyway. You practice whether you want to or not. You don’t wait for inspiration and a deep desire to run."

Geoff Pross understands what he needs to do to write, but at times finds it difficult to follow through. "I’m a somewhat reluctant writer and have to kick myself into the habit. A typical day involves waking up, promising myself a full and productive writing day, finding worthy avenues of procrastination and then falling asleep at the end of the day full of guilt and promises for tomorrow."

It’s no different for Pina Belperio, who enjoys writing historical articles, comedies, screenplays and the odd short fiction. She says, "I tend to want to just jump in and write that big novel, but writing can be quite a slow endeavour and it takes a long time to see the fruit of your labours. You need a great deal of focus, determination and discipline, which can be difficult for me to commit to at times."

Steven Galloway sums up another element to a writer’s success: "You can never let rejection bother you." Rejection never ends. In fact, according to Steven, the more successful you become the more rejection you face.

"Since I’ve become a published author," he says, "I’ve had my work rejected by literally hundreds of publishing houses around the world. Bad reviews, foreign publishers, prize juries, it never ends, and you have to become okay with that."

Getting your thoughts on paper, shoring up your confidence and putting thoughts of potential rejection out of your mind is only the beginning for a writer. Now rewriting begins. More work, more opportunities for self-doubt and procrastination. "In writing your first draft, the words come unconsciously, almost intuitively," writes author, Jon Volkmer in his book, Fiction Workshop Companion.

In rewriting, you take your original words, characters, even tense and begin fine-tuning, polishing and "looking at the choices you have made in your writing, and consider alternatives."

Volkmer distinguishes between a first draft, which he calls, "writing from the heart," and rewriting, which he refers to as, "writing with the mind." In either case, the message is clear, it involves making a commitment, getting in front of your keyboard and letting the words and the story develop.

By now you’ve got a picture of what writers do and why they do it. The hard work is a given, the motivations vary, but the passion to share perspective and communicate is consistent despite the struggle to make ends meet as a writer, despite the lack of recognition and despite, or perhaps because of, the countless rejection letters and the head-shaking-finger-pointing-tisk-tisk of friends and family who wonder when you’ll grow out of all this and get a real job.

Lisa Richardson, a regular contributor to the Pique who also writes a weekly column for Whistler This Week, says, "It’s unfortunate that being a writer isn’t something sensible adults tend to encourage in a person. When you announce your intentions of becoming a writer the response is usually the same, ‘the romance will wear off, that’s nice dear, but you should get a real job.’"

Playwright and short story writer, Paul Malm agrees. "Most people including family members lack adequate understanding. To most, writing lacks vocational legitimacy unless you are making significant funds from it."

And the drawbacks don’t stop there. Pam Barnsley says, "lack of a regular paycheque, absence of consistent approval for what you create, a lonely existence huddled in front of a screen, too much sedentary time in a chair and too much temptation to drift off to the kitchen for another snack" are only some of the problems she faces as a writer. She deals with it by getting out of her writing space after work and energizing and frightening herself on mountain bike trails and snowboard runs.

Despite the pitfalls, the writers agree the perks to the writing life – those intensely creative moments that allow you to expand your perspective and find unique ways to communicate and understand things around you, and, when you get it right there is nothing more satisfying – make it worthwhile. None would give up the path they’ve taken. In fact, Paul Malm says, "I’d be a writer even if I never made another dime from it."

Cool. These people are doing what they love in a place they want to be, and they’ve been lucky enough to find others of a like mind. It doesn’t get any better than this, as the cliché goes.

You’re still thinking but, (meaning, on the contrary, yet, nevertheless). What has all this mutual admiration and support done for the group as individual writers? And further, what’s it done for building the profile of writers in the Sea to Sky corridor? You’re talking about another word, accomplishments (defined as the act of completion, achievement). Since its inception, the Circle has become far more than a support group, and has expanded its visibility in the community in a number of ways:

• Organized monthly reading events in Whistler, including one event in Pemberton, a fire-side reading at Riverside Campground this summer and two literary evenings, entitled Literary Leanings, that brought in writers from Vancouver, Whistler and Squamish during the Celebration 2010 gala put on by the Arts Council in February in support of the 2010 bid.

• Published one six-part series and one four-part series of the group’s short stories in the Pique to raise awareness of the group’s fiction work and to ensure individual writers had an opportunity to see their work in print.

• Published an anthology of short stories and poems to be released Sept. 19th, 2003 at the Whistler Writers Workshop and Mini Festival.

• Participated in the Whistler Library’s summer reading festival by reading selections of children’s literature.

• Organized a two-day conference in August 2002 in Whistler with Andreas Schroeder. Nine participants from Whistler, Pemberton and Vancouver attended the full conference. Another 20 participants attended the two lectures that were held during the conference.

• Published several book reviews in the Pique in support of both the Whistler Writers Group and the Whistler Library.

And the Circle hasn’t stopped doing stuff, organizing, growing. This year, as part of the group’s second anniversary celebration a session was held to plan the group’s future direction. Among other things, the group agreed to organize a writer’s festival each year in Whistler, starting in September 2003, to make valuable writing expertise and training available locally. Specifically, the Circle will be hosting a gathering (defined as an assembly or meeting). The gathering, a weekend workshop and mini festival (defined as a celebration) lead by Laisha Rosnau , an experienced Vancouver-based writer – voted as one of the top 10 emerging Canadian writers in the country – is available to all new, emerging and experienced writers. It starts Friday, Sept. 19, runs all day Saturday the 20 th and finishes sometime after lunch on Sunday the 21 st . Lectures, individual consultation with Laisha, group feedback, and writing exercises are planned for the some 15 participants expected to attend the full weekend workshop.

In addition, a two-evening reading series will be held on Friday, Sept. 19 th and on Saturday, Sept. 20 th , both starting at 6 p.m. with a potluck dinner (anyone attending must bring some food to share). The readings on both nights begin at 8 p.m. and are open to the public for a $10 entrance fee on Friday night and a $5 entrance fee on Saturday night. You can attend either or both readings without coming to the potluck dinner. So no worries if you’re not into potlucks.

The Friday night session will also include a panel discussion on the writing life. The panel will be moderated by Laisha and will comprise:

Steven Galloway who teaches creative writing at the University of British Columbia. His most recent novel, Ascension, has been published in eight countries and will be serialized on CBC radio this fall. His novel, Finnie Walsh, was nominated for the Books in Canada/Amazon.com first novel prize. He lives in Vancouver.

Timothy Taylor is a Vancouver writer. His first novel, Stanley Park, was a Canadian national bestseller and was short-listed for The Giller Prize, The Rogers Writers Trust Fiction Prize, The B.C. Book Awards and the City of Vancouver Book Award. Film rights have been sold and a dramatic feature film is now in development for which Taylor is writing the screenplay. He is also at work on a second novel.

Steven and Tim will read from their work following the panel discussion.

Saturday night’s lineup includes a reading by Laisha Rosnau who was born in Pointe Claire, Quebec, and grew up in Vernon. She has worked as a child-care worker, a landscaper, a waitress, a fruit picker, and interpretive guide, a journalist and an editor. She received a Master of Fine Arts in Creative Writing from the University of British Columbia where she was the Executive Editor of Prism International. Her poetry and short fiction have been published in literary journals and anthologies in Canada, the United States and Australia. The Sudden Weight of Snow is her first novel. In addition, workshop participants, including writers from Whistler, Pemberton, Squamish, Vancouver, Mission and Victoria, will read from their work.

The festival has been supported by the Whistler Real Estate Company, the Whistler Question and the Resort Municipality of Whistler.

You’ve now heard about the group, met some of its members and had a glimpse of the life they lead. Now it’s your turn to act (defined as to perform or take action). If you’re a new, emerging or experienced writer, or just a person who likes to read and has always wondered about the writers behind the words you’ve enjoyed, come to the panel discussion and reading on Sept. 19 th or attend the reading on Sept. 20 th . It’s entertainment. But more importantly it’s a way to find a place to belong.

Lisa Richardson concludes: "Those writers making it and filling the magazines, libraries and bookstores appear to be a guild on their own. If you’re trying to get your musings out, it can sometimes feel like you’re standing on the outside."

The Circle

, vicious or otherwise, (defined, by Merriam-Webster’s Collegiate Dictionary as a group of persons sharing a common interest or revolving about a common centre) is large enough to include you as a fellow writer, participant, observer, interested member of the public or friend. The next step is yours.

If you’re interested in attending the readings or the panel discussion during the weekend of Sept. 19 th , please call Stella at 604-932-4518 or send an e-mail to Stella25@telus.net for further information.



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