Mandy Eve-Barnett's Blog for Readers & Writers

My Book News & Advocate for the Writing Community ©

Are You Making the Most of Your Memberships..?

February 24, 2014
mandyevebarnett


Many of us have memberships to organizations but after the inital enthusiactic blush of newness there seems to be a decline in involvement.

Why is this?

We have paid good money for an annual membership, why not ultilize it for the whole year?

I volunteered at a local event both days of this past weekend. The Arts Expo is held annually and show cases local artisans. However, many of the members did not attend, whether as participants or visitors to support their fellow members. I find this extremely sad. Organizations strive to support and promote their members at every opportunity, so why does it fall on the same few members time and again?

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A membership can give so much if we get involved. Not only it is an opportunity to promote our own work but also network and form new friendships. During the weekend, I got to know several members of my writers group, the Writers Foundation of Stathcona County a great deal more. It was an enjoyable two days and I am glad to help at all the events laid on for our group, my publisher, Dream Write Publishing and the Arts and Culture Council of Strathcona County (ACCSC) who promote all forms of the arts, from weavers to potters to authors and a good deal more. Don’t forskae your memberships – use them to your advantage.

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The more we are involved, the more we get out of our membership. Consider your memberships and make the commitment to utilize them to their full potential, after all you paid for it!

We are lucky to have a proactive mayor, Rxanne Carr, who is commited in making culture accessable and promoted within our community. The more we do, the better the results.

Get involved.

Arts Expo 2014 WFSCArts Expo 2013Joe Arts 2014

The Pot Kiln, a quaint English Pub…

February 26, 2013
mandyevebarnett


Kiln – definition: a furnace or oven for burning, baking, or drying, especially for calcining lime or firing pottery.

Today’s word reminded me of a quaint pub I used to frequent while living in England. It was called the Pot Kiln and actually had a large kiln inside the main building. As this was some years ago I’m sure the owners have changed several times and the interior redecorated. As you can see from the photographs it is nestled within lush woodland with open fields to the front. Perfect as the resting place after a summer’s walk or in my case motorcycle ride.

http://www.potkiln.org/
English: The Pot Kiln, Frilsham Still just abo...

English: The Pot Kiln, Frilsham Still just about one of life’s ideal country pubs. A traditional bar with a stone floor and a decent pint and good grub. (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

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In our writing, places we have lived or visited can play a large part. Describing an English pub to someone, who has never been to one is not only a great ‘descriptive’ exercise but also enables us to see something, we may find common place, with new eyes. Details come alive when we use our personal experiences. For example I can describe a woodland with a carpet of bluebells as a lilac blue heaven of bobbing heads on pale stems. The dappled light caressing the blooms. However, the difficult part comes when trying to put into words the scent of the flowered woodland. It is a delicate fragrance, but the sheer numbers of blooms makes it quite heady.  This scent is mixed with the earthy undertones of the mossy earth and when you pick bluebells (no longer allowed!) the long thin stem has a slight slippery texture and an almost non-existent root. Remember that the richer the detail the more absorbed our reader will become. If we can ‘transport’ them to other lands or bring new perspectives to known ones, we have done our job.

Bluebell Woods

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