Some
things happened during the course of the meeting but the only really important
thing was that Rob had a cold…
We
met at Rob’s house on 14th March.
Before
the critique we discussed our news:
I
have now finished two picture book manuscripts as a result of attending an
on-line story-writing course.
Tony
has had a book proposal rejected but has been asked to write the introduction
to a Malcolm Saville book.
Rob
took delivery of a set of his second novel ‘Out of Such Darkness’ and found a
blank page had been included within the text. This technical error meant he had
to order a new set. What to do with the imperfect copies though? Ever the ideas
man, Rob set up an on-line competition where people could ask to receive a book
for free. Rob is also editing his latest novel, ‘The Petrified Fountain.’
It
was a chapter from this novel that we critiqued.
The
chapter sees Cross still in Portugal with his cousin Luis. The pair listened to
traditional Portuguese ‘Fado’ singers at a local restaurant. This chapter was
slower-paced than previous ones but there was much to admire. Jane enjoyed the
description of Cross’ visit to a bookshop. I felt that Cross’ character was
being well-drawn; he appears to take every opportunity to compare himself with
others and in this chapter it is height comparisons.
Tony
and Linda had concerns over Cross as the narrator and found his voice quite
intrusive. Rob explained that he wished to continue with it in the first person
and he felt that this best served the plot.
There
were some excellent descriptions of the ‘Fado’ singers who it seemed stopped at
nothing to perform, including being hooked up to an oxygen mask. We questioned
the likelihood of this but Rob assured us that this section was written from
his research trip to Portugal. I loved
Cross’ summing up of the musical experience: a fantastic oxymoron. ‘It’s very
emotional …powerful… and I understood every word even though I didn’t, if you
see what I mean.’
We
also enjoyed Luis’ use of a noun as a verb with ‘Let’s have a sherry to
nightcap.’
Our
next meeting is on Monday 11th April at my house. Linda is
submitting. (Written by Annie posted by Snivelling Rob.)
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