Art Beat
Local writer Michelle Greysen didn’t know if Lethbridge had any other writers, so she decided to set up a writer’s group.
“I’m shocked. I didn’t think I’d find so many people. I didn’t do any advertising, I just put up the Facebook group and wrote it on the blackboard at the Penny Coffee House and I had eight people at the first meeting (in February),” said Greysen, who is a freelance writer for numerous magazines and self published a book of poetry in addition to publishing and editing community newspapers including the Calgary Straight. She is currently finishing her first novel.
“ But every meeting there’s more people and it’s not usually people bringing people. It’s people who are complete strangers. It’s unusual because writing is so personal. But it shows how brassy writers can be. When you go to a group where you don‘t know anybody,” she said adding the August meeting, which was held at Henderson Lake Park, attracted 30 writers. It also featured the first people to volunteer to read their works to the group, which is something she’d like to see continue.
The group includes all ages from teens to seniors from all backgrounds plus encompasses all genres and styles including poetry, fiction, non-fiction, playwrights, scriptwriters and even songwriters.
The original intention of the group was to meet on the second Tuesday of every month to discuss writing strategies, techniques and trends and to share works with each other.
However, the different members have branched off into their own little groups according to their interests and styles to workshop each other’s works.
“So we’re going to have each group host one of our meetings so it isn’t just me speaking, so we’ll have themes like fiction,” she said.
So local writer Michelle Greysen was overjoyed to be chosen out of numerous applicants to participate in the Sage Hill Writing Experience at a former Franciscan monastery in the Qu’Appelle Valley this summer.
