Margaret Wagner was kind enough to take notes at the last Writers' Cafe since I couldn't be there. Here's what she wrote:

We had a small but mighty Writers' Cafe on 12/14/11 before the holidays – seven people attended. Here are some of the highlights:

TWO-MINUTE READINGS

We continued reading something we’ve written for two minutes, in an effort to get to know each other better and start the conversation about having people writing in similar genres pair up and work with each other.

We also talked about doing a survey, so we’re clear about everyone’s intentions for being in the group. It should also provide an opportunity for suggestions and determine how to best serve our collaboration.  Look for a short online survey in the new year.

BLIND FEEDBACK

No, Mouse Muse is not producing Three Blind Mice!  Rather, the group thought it would be helpful to provide a monthly way to get blind feedback on pieces we’re writing.  So, for anyone who would like to participate, here’s the process:

• Written piece length: 1,500 words maximum as a Word document (please use .doc only).
• Use the attached cover sheet to identify your piece.  No identification beyond the piece title and page numbers should be on the body of the piece.
• Email piece and cover sheet to ina@mousemuse.com no later than Tuesday, 1/3/12, midnight.
• Although it may be possible to have comments back to you by our next meeting on Wednesday, 1/11/12, we’ll see what everyone can do.
• If you submit a piece, we’ll assume you will also volunteer to be a reviewer.
• If you’d like to be a reviewer, but don’t have a piece to submit, please email Ina no later than Tuesday, 1/3/12, midnight at ina@mousemuse.com

We’re excited to offer this, so let’s see how it goes for the first month, and we’ll make refinements from there.

BRAGGING RIGHTS

• Linda Clearwater illustrated four flipbooks for Zonder Kids.
• Jane Sherman will have the first chapter of her memoir excerpted by the Weston Magazine Group.
• Catherine Onyemelukwe, whose birthday was that day, finished the first chapter of her memoir.
• Sophie Barnes won a first prize gold coin and will be printed in the World Poetry Collective.
• Ina Chadwick had “Daddy’s Gunslinging Daughter, JFK, Marilyn Monroe and Me” published by the Weston Magazine Group (check out page 182 of their Fall issue: http://twurl.nl/25lnjk)
• Margaret Wagner organized a writing/dance workshop for 12/30/11.

FUTURE 2012 MEETINGS

Location: Future Writers’ Cafes will be held at Ina Chadwick’s home, 2 Redcoat Lane in Westport, CT (near Exit 41 on the Merritt/Route 15).  For directions, please email Ina at: Ina@mousemuse.com.  (NOTE: We are no longer meeting at the Westport Arts Center.)

Parking: Please park as neatly as possible in the driveway, and use the second door on the side of the house (the first side door is the entrance to the dentist’s office; the second door is the one at the beginning of the walkway).Time: 12:30pm to 2pm

Options to bring:

• A piece or portion of a piece to read – we’ll cut you off at the two-minute mark.
• $1.00 for bragging dollars, if you have any news to share!

Save these dates for future Writers’ Cafes in 2012:

• January 11
• February 15
• March 14
• April 11
• May 16

We had a really great group at the Writers' Cafe on Wednesday. Rather than having a particular topic this time, we decided to ask people to bring a 2 minute reading of something they;'d written. The idea was partly to get to know each other better, and partly to see what genres we were writing in, and whether there were people writing in similar genres who'd like to pair up and work with each other as editor, mentors, and general encouragers. (OK, that's not a word, but you know what I mean.)
The results were interesting.
First, we decided that 2 minutes wasn't quite long enough. And that isn't because we're all narcissists who love to hear ourselves read aloud. (That's just me.) On the other hand, if we'd had a larger group of people reading (we were about 12 people with 9 people brave enough to read) there might not have been time for everyone. We read without explaining what we were reading, when we'd written it, what it was about, and which genre it was in (memoir, fiction, journalism, essay, etc).
We had two writers who were writing memoirs that involved travel, two essays, one journalism piece, two short fiction pieces, and two memoirs.
As it turned out, when it came to bragging time, many people were writing in more than one genre.
Margaret Rumford had a story accepted for the Winter issue of Mused.
Jane Sherman is editing her memoir
Sally Allen is now Westport editor of Hamlet Hub www.hamlethub.com
What she didn't mention (probably because she didn't want to pay the dollar...) is that she also has a great book blog on Open Salon: http://open.salon.com/blog/sally_allen
Robert Steven Williams has had another article published at the Good Men Project. Read it here: http://goodmenproject.com/ethics-values/money-and-the-moral-compass/
Tricia Tierney sent out two query letters to agents this month regarding her memoir here's her blog: http://triciatierneyblog.com/
Ina is working on a piece about how she found out that her mother had been married before for a New York publication
Margaret Wagner wrote a guest blog on branding for a foodie blog.
Catherine Onyemelukwe is halfway through writing a book proposal and a memoir.
And I finished my NaNoWriMo horrible draft of a first novel, and came second in the EChook 'Tis the Season story contest. Find out how to submit your work here: http://echook.com/submissions/.

Finally, we took a vote on where to continue our meetings, and the overwhelming choice was Ina's house, where her welcome make me, for one, feel like I'm in some famous salon. And the coffee's good too.
So the next meeting will be on DECEMBER 14 - that's only two weeks away. Ina's address is 2 Redcoat Road, Westport. The time is 12.30-2.
In the meantime, keep writing!