Death of a Book Club

​It has taken me a full month to be able to post this blog, sharing the story of the death of one of my book clubs.  More than a year ago our public library sponsored a community read of the book Seedfolks by Paul Fleischman.  I volunteered to be the discussion leader for groups at three local assisted living facilities.  At one facility the book did serve as the seed that started a book group.
 The activities director at the facility was enthusiastic and was a member of the book club participating in all of our discussions.  She encouraged residents to read and participate in our group.  We had ten members actively participate for months.
Last summer the activities director left unexpectedly.  Management of the facility decided to promote one of the caregivers into the job and save money by not hiring a full time activity director.  The new director was enthusiastic at first and helped plan a party for the one year anniversary of our book club.  The new activity director didn’t attend the party, which at the time; I thought odd but I didn’t want to be judgmental.  Several times I talked with the new activity director asking us to join the book club and pointing out that the previous director had been a member and it was very successful.  I never was given an answer.
In the fall we began losing book club members due to illness, moving away and death.  I met with the social director asking her for ideas on how to encourage residents to join.  She really didn’t have any ideas but promised to talk with residents she felt might be interested in reading and discussing a book.
In the winter the librarian I work with had a fantastic idea, to select books that were also a movie.  One week I would show the movie and the following week discuss the book.  I shared the idea with the social director and she was enthusiastic and promised to promote both the movie and book to all the residents.  On the day the movie was to be shown the social director wasn’t at work.  All the chairs were taken in the common TV room.  The residents were waiting for the movie and I had no idea how to operate the equipment.  I found the owner and even he struggled with the equipment and had to replace batteries in the remote controls.
Twice during the holiday period the social director scheduled musical entertainment on the date and time our book club was scheduled to meet.  In both instances I was informed of the change, I showed up at the facility to find the entertainment in progress.  I was able to re-schedule but every time a schedule is changed it is difficult.  The result was our book club dropped to just three residents.
Our librarian worked very hard to find six other movie/book combinations and the plan for 2016 was to do a series of movie/books to attract new book club members.  I met with the social director to schedule the events; she didn’t show up for work that day.  I began calling and learned she had a habit of not returning calls.  I stopped leaving messages and called until she answered.  On a Monday morning I called asking to schedule a movie and then a book club meeting.  She claimed she needed to check the schedule and would call me right back.
Guess what?  Right, I never received a call.  I wrote the owner an e-mail outlining the course of events and letting them know that without support and cooperation I wouldn’t continue as the discussion leader.  I shared my e-mail with one of the book club members so that they would know why our book club was ending.  I received phone calls from several of the book club members, they were furious.  They met with the owner who was not sympathetic.  The owner told them they would just need to find some other activity.  The owner never responded to my e-mail.
Book clubs are life enhancing, and enriching no matter what the age of the book club members.  We laughed, we had disagreements, insightful comments were made, and book club members shared their own life stories.  We became friends.  I will miss them.  My heart is heavy.  Book clubs should never die.              
A Writer’s Muse
 
Many artist claim they have a muse that provides guidance, inspiration, creativity and energy to work on their art.  Author Steven Pressfield recommends that writers a mythical character to serve as their muse.  Pressfield has developed a meditative prayer to his muse that he recites before embarking on his work for the day.  He claims this sets the right mood and opens the gates to creativity, imagination and inspiration.
I have had teachers, editors, a publisher, beta readers, proofreaders and friends all help me in my journey of writing and publishing my novels yet none were a muse.  As a result, based on my creative experience, I had serious doubts about the concept of a muse influencing my writing.  In the last month that has changed.
There is an Irish proverb:  ‘What is for you will not pass by you . . .’ My Muse has found me.  Brigid is unique because she asks probing questions that torch the flame of my creativity. Brigid has read both my novels and written thoughtful and insightful reviews on Amazon.  She is also a regular reader of my weekly blog. I am working on my third novel this year and have shared with her the plot and theme.  In the third novel my main character, Ian Murphy an Irish novelist, needs to exorcise his demons.  Writing is his path to salvation and wants to write his memoir for his own redemption.  A new friend, William Butler Boyle, entices Ian to collaborate with him to write a stage play rather than a memoir.
Brigid read my blog on Irish author Danny Morrison and his experience of adapting one of his novels into a stage play.  She asked if my inspiration for Ian Murphy to write a stage play came from Morrison’s story.  Brigid read between the lines to understand my motivation .  I admitted that I “stole” the concept from Morrison.  My twist was to have Murphy write an original stage play rather than adapt one of his novels.
In my most recent novel, Out of Darkness, Ian’s wife Mairin, encourages him to write a memoir to cleanse his soul.  Brigid asked if the stage play Ian would write would be like a memoir based on his own life. I had to admit that wasn’t my plan.  My concept was to have Ian write a stage play based on Irish mythology reflecting a time when Ireland was unified to remind the Irish people that they have been united and could be again.
Brigid’s question inspired me to change direction.  It makes much more sense for Ian to write a memoir based stage play because it follows the story line from Out of Darkness.  Brigid has the  gift of asking simple, probing questions that cause me to reflect on my writing.  Brigid took the initiative to posit her questions, as the Irish proverb taught me – Brigid is for me.
I’ve  asked Brigid if I could share my writing challenges.  Being a “listener” she agreed.  In my current draft manuscript I took 35 pages to establish the major crisis that propels Ian Murphy to take a new direction in life.  I worried that the pace was too slow and I might lose readers before engaging them in the story.  I asked Brigid for help.  Again, with one simple question she gave me guidance.  She asked if I had built mystery into the plot to carry readers along.  Guess what?  I started with an “unknown” not really a mystery but didn’t carry it through.  Brigid was right; instilling mystery into the first pages was perfect.
In Irish mythology Brigid is the goddess of poets, bards and storytellers.  As the Irish proverb says:  ‘What is for you will not pass by you . . .’ I understand and am blessed that Brigid is for me. 

I love to bake bread.  I don’t bake cookies, or pies, or sweet breads, or pastries.  I bake bread.  Baking bread is therapeutic and is a metaphor for writing a novel.
Every bread recipe has three basic ingredients:  flour, water (or milk) and yeast.  A novel has three basic ingredients:  plot, conflict and protagonist.  Bread can be more complex by adding seeds, nuts, herbs and many other enhancing ingredients.  A novel can have themes, characterization, story arc and other elements to make it special.
Yeast starts the chemical magic that turns flour, water and other ingredients to nourishing bread.  You can make bread without yeast, we call it a cracker. Imagination is the magic that creates a novel where before nothing existed.  I don’t think you can write a novel without imagination, if you do, is called plagiarism.
Baking bread takes time.  Several weeks ago during the coldest day of the year in Wisconsin (a high of -3F) I softened the day by baking bread.  Start to finish it took me about four hours.  Writing a novel takes time too.  There are some writers who publish a book a year, I’m always suspect of that, or the quality of the work is like cardboard compared to linen paper.  A book takes time.  I have written a first draft manuscript in nine months.  It took another nine months to polish in a form that could be published.
My current project is the third book in the Murphy series.  I want to take the time it deserves and plan on devoting a year to the first draft manuscript.  You can’t rush good wine or good books.
There you have it.  Bake bread and write novels.