Have you always kept a journal? Do you scribble passing thoughts on bits of paper?
Do you copy memorable lines from books you read? Does your bottom drawer hide a poem or story you once wrote?
Do you want to tell the grandchildren how it used to be?
If you answer yes to one or all of these questions and find you have a little more time than you used to have then The Yass Valley Writers would love to meet you.
YVW meets every first Tuesday of the month in the Senior Citizens rooms in Rossi Street. It is an informal group of like-minded men and women from all walks of life who love the written word. In non-Covid times an occasional workshop with a professional writer is arranged to inspire and refocus members’ writing.
People gather to share their work and thoughts and to learn, by a process of osmosis, more about the art of writing in a friendly non-critical atmosphere. Everyone has something to say and everyone’s writing, whether starting out or completing a life’s work, contains something worthwhile, some potential to be discovered and nurtured.
If a writer asks for suggestions or invites criticism it is provided but the group operates on the principle that sharing work is the best way to learn. Feedback commending some aspect of a work is the best way to encourage a writer to develop his or her skills.
Some members are of long-standing. Others have joined just for the period they needed writing support, whether mere months or long years. The longevity of YVW is proof of its congenial atmosphere given that most writing groups fail after two or three years, usually because of personality clashes, something foreign to the YVW.
Most members are local but some come from as far afield as Boorowa, Canberra and Queanbeyan because they enjoy the atmosphere and the work of the Yass Valley Writers. Over the years several members have published books and the group itself has published four anthologies.
If you are newly retired and looking to do something soul-satisfying in good company, perhaps the Yass Valley Writers could be just what you’re looking for. If you would like to know more, contact the Coordinator, Jane Baker, on 6223 2574. Please leave a message if no one is home and she will return your call immediately when she returns.
Photo: Colin Campbell of The Yass valley Writers signing his recently published book, Poems, at its launch in Hall in November 2021.