a salute to my writers group

post #275
         Today I want to honor and acknowlege the writers group I am part of.  We have been meeting for ages, usually monthly, and usually for at least 4 hours. The group has its origins in the Appalachian Writers Workshop in Hindman, Kentucky. This past Friday the weather was warm, and we were all able to be there -- which is not to be taken for granted. The light was right, so I couldn't help myself from taking a couple of photos of each person as we worked around our favorite table at a Panera's in Lexington. 
         Sometimes we do meet in less public spaces. That's when George Ella will have her guitar to share a song she's written. We each bring something we are working on -- poetry, essays, parts of a novel or a memoir, manuscripts for picture books, even sometimes book reviews or excerpts from our personal journals. Although I do more photography than writing most of the time, I work with words as well; they helped me come up for the title for my recent exhibit, What Caught My Eye. There's a high level of trust and of appreciation for what we each literally bring to the table.
          Well, I hope they will all continue to trust me!  I didn't ask their permission to put this on my blog nor did I pose any of the photos. It just felt like a good day to catch us all at our work on words, which of course is usually a solitary endeavor. I hope my effort here works to give a feeling of how much it can mean to writers and artists to learn from people we trust and rely on to help us move forward. In addition, it's plain wonderful to be with friends who believe in each other.  We miss Lou, who passed away, but her wisdom and words remain a part of our ongoing conversation.

George Ella

Leatha and Martha

Marie and Leatha

Jan