Inspired - Shirley S. Tye

I’ve never had the opportunity to attend any of the InScribe conferences because of travel costs from northern Ontario.  But I read the wonderful comments by members and was sorry I missed them.   

When I lived in central Ontario, the Kawartha Lakes area (north and west of Peterborough taking in communities such as Lindsay, Little Britain, Fenelon Falls, Bobcaygeon, and other small towns and villages) I was a member of the Writers’ Circle of Durham Region (east of Toronto; Pickering, Ajax, Whitby, Oshawa, Townships of Scugog and Brock, to name some of the communities in that region).  It was an hour’s drive from my home to the monthly networking meetings in Oshawa but well worth the trip.  I was never disappointed. Breakfast was delicious, the speakers fascinating, the news exciting, and the networking wonderful.  After each meeting, I drove home excited and inspired to keep writing and dreaming.  WCDR’s first meeting in 1995 attracted sixty-five people and today its membership total is over three hundred.  

The writers’ festivals organized by WCDR were excellent.  Well-known writers, broadcasters, journalists, and actors were invited as guest speakers.  I had the pleasure of meeting and taking photographs of Pierre Berton, Ted Barris of CBC, Dave Broadfoot (who appeared on Air Farce many times), Ben Wicks, Lynn-Philip Hodgson author of Inside Camp X, and actor/writer Neil Crone.  Hearing their stories inspired and encouraged me.

The workshops lead by many of the WCDR members were interesting and helpful to me.  Some of the workshops which I attended were freelance writing, travel writing, fiction, and poetry.  Workshops by other groups and writers from outside the Durham region were promoted by WCDR; book publishing by a publishing house, Brian Henry’s writing for children workshop, editing workshops, and freelance writing workshops.

I’m thankful to have been a member of that group and to have met many successful writers.  There was much that I learned and have kept notes which I refer to when necessary.  It’s wonderful to hear about writers’ creative work journeys; their ideas, struggles, and successes.  Oh, how I was inspired!