VERY IMPORTANT TO KEEP OUR LIBRARIES OPEN! THINK ABOUT CROYDON AND OUR FRIENDS WHO LIVE THERE!

 

OUR 2024 FUN WALK: ALL SET FOR THE "GRAND REVEAL" ON FRIDAY 29 NOVEMBER

This year’s Fun Walk saw 90 local charities and community groups registered and an estimated 3,000 supporters take part in sponsored walks across Essex. The participating organisations are currently collecting their sponsorship money, and the Fun Walk team is set for a ‘grand reveal’ of the amount raised at their Celebration Evening on November 29^th.

The Fun Walk Trust helps charities, local schools and churches, grass roots sports teams and other community groups raise funds for their projects and initiatives, and a Bonus Pot sponsored by local businesses tops up the amount each organisation raises themselves.

 John Baron, Chair of the Fun Walk Trustees, said:

“This year’s event looks as if it will be even more successful than last year, and we are delighted so many charities and good causes will be able to use the Fun Walk to boost their fundraising efforts.”

“The photos we received of the various sponsored walks completed around Essex have been wonderful and we are happy to share some of the highlights. To see more photos and learn about the Fun Walk, please visit our website: www.thefunwalktrust.co.uk”

“We could not hold this event without the generous support of local businesses who sponsor the Bonus Pot. They include Greater Anglia, Sanctuary Housing Association, Brown & Carroll, Butyl Products Group, Tunnelcraft, IFE Global Logistics, Mr Barrie Stone and other individuals. Our thanks go to them all.”

SATURDAY'S GREAT ANNUAL BILLERICAY COMMUNITY ARCHIVE GATHERING - THANK YOU FOR VISITING

 Last week's all day gathering at Billericay Library was a huge success and members of our rather special Billericay Community Archive were happy to sign up more local residents (and some out of town visitors) to join the 'Friends' group we are currently recruiting. Do take a look at our website: www.billericaycommunityarchive.com to pick up some of the most interesting images we have to show you.  Maybe you have some yourself and it so, please do make contact? 

WELL - YOU HAVE YOUR PUMPKIN, NOW GET COOKING!

This time of year reminds me of spending Halloween in Kansas, long before England caught on to the idea of generally marking this weird old slice of tradition.   At least I was given the pumpkin before I started peeling (hacking away at it), and turning it into soup and pumpkin pies, oh, and little pots of jam. My recipes were included in a sweet little book published by The Telegraph that autumn!

SNATCHED - AWARD WINNING FILM PRODUCED BY OUR LOCAL WONDERFUL WOMEN OF THE SCREEN

It's so wonderful when members of our Society of Women Writers and Journalists' see their work in print, but equally fun when their ideas and stories appear on the silver screen.  Benita Cullingford, Anne Murray and her team of of movie makers that form J.A.B.S. Productions based in Hertfordshire, have created some clever small films which had earlier won awards in the UK and which have taken them to Hollywood in California to collect their prizes for some of the films that have won them first class honours.

More recently, Benita, their director has written a screenplay, which again, has met with resounding success. This is a 90-minute film based on a story from the excellent novelist, Patrick Forsyth and all good wishes to them all if the screenplay is adopted for the movie.    

MORE PHOENIXFM GUESTS COMING UP

 In this busy old world, it's always difficult to fit in face-to-face visits to our friends.  One great way I manage this is to invite some of them to pop into our superduper local radio station PHOENIXFM where I have the luxury -  via one of Essex' best presenters - Michelle Ward to interview them. What a wonderful way of our  listeners learning about our creative writing guests'  new books, film and music releases and with an increased listenership, the reach is expanding exponentially.  

Elizabeth Wallace

Liz Wallace in Denver, Colorado

With this in mind, may I wish Liz Wallace in Denver, Colorado, Stella Perrot in Australia and our newest and very famous novelist Sue Copsey (Olivia Hayfield) in New Zealand - a very happy day!   

BOOK CLUBS ARE THRIVING WORLDWIDE - WE NOW HAVE 700 BOOK CLUBS LINKED TO ESSEX LIBRARIES

Today, The Queen’s Reading Room celebrated both its international reach and the rise of book club participation, during a visit to Green Library in Sydney. There, The Queen presented a selection of book bundles to representatives from local Sydney book clubs. So many people and members of our Society of Women Writers and Journalists have now joined the Queen's enterprising project.

Our Billericay BookTalk group members have been meeting locally for almost twenty-five years.  PhoenixFM presenter, the lovely Michelle Ward is also an advocate of reading and enjoys  meeting some of our superb authors during her morning radio show Eat My Brunch - Book Club which is also a long-running programme from the Brentwood Centre.  Long may it continue.

Joined for this month's Book Club with Sylvia Kent and our guest, Lauren Chalk who is Business Team Leader for the Newsquest Media Group https://www.facebook.com/people/Lauren-Chalk-Newsquest/61560864067549/?paipv=0&eav=AfZ_

 

BRENTWOOD WRITERS' CIRCLE LINE-UP FOR OCTOBER MEETING

TALES FROM THE CIRCLE… 

Now and again, I receive a call from someone who knows nothing about the craft of writing, but who has come across our regular monthly articles in The City Times.  Obviously, I invite folk to read about us in our website  www.brentwoodwriterscircle and then pay a visit to one of our monthly Saturday afternoon sessions in Weald Road, Brentwood, Essex.  Of course, we always offer a warm welcome and enjoy meeting new people who have perhaps always wanted to see their work on the page or even start working on their first book, article or collection of poems. Encouragement is always at the ready and if a embryonic writer wants to read their work to others, this is possible when they sign up to become a member. 

As always mentioned, their first visit is free of charge and should they have the time and are able to come along, a £5 visitor’s fee is expected and invariably we welcome each new member to our Circle (which has been going for more than eighty-three years. We start at 2.30pm - 4.30pm and workshops outlining many aspects of the writing business are covered 

One tradition that was started many years ago, was our Annual Members’ Writers’ Day with talks from professional writers, publishers or indeed any speaker who has the ability to enhance the knowledge of what I think of as one of the most exciting pastimes (or professions) available to everyone. 

Saturday’s  Writers’ All- Day event was well attended starting earlyish with the well-known Romantic novelist Olivia Hayfield whose thirty years in the business covered so many aspects of our favourite trade. Her latest books include Notorious, Sister to Sister, Praise for Queen,King, ACE and there are many more via her website www.oliviahayfield.com 

A lovely lunch awaited and was enjoyed by all, followed by the introduction of another excellent author, publisher and historian Andrew Summers CEO of the Essex Hundred Publications in Southend.  

Andrew’s latest book was introduced and our audience enjoyed his talk and video outlining The Riddle of Boudica, which is now available to everyone interested in this amazing historic character. Andrew also has a line-up list of some interesting books on his website www.essex100.com. He is regarded as a walking encyclopaedia of historical people and places linked to ssex and this new book is certainly on my own reading list this week.

 www.brentwoodwriterscircle.com www.sylviakent.blogspot.com