New Writers' Group Inc - News

2011-05-15T18:00:00.000-07:00

Desperate writers: Easter Saturday, Mars Hill Cafe was opening later than usual and it rained. The park was too wet so we hunted for an open cafe: Churros! also in Church Street. Expected three, but ten writers needed their caffeine/writing fix. We laughed too much at Kamal and Patricia's romantic sex scenes but the other patrons may not have noticed. We also did a ZW mock selection and ate/drank chocolate/coffee...
Image is by Constantin Bucur

2011-01-17T19:13:00.001-08:00

This poor blog! Neglected for another year. Thinking of quietly retiring it. But meanwhile here's a pic of the new committee 2011!

These days we tend to put our pics on Picasa

2009-04-11T17:23:00.000-07:00

It was Easter Saturday, but some of our regulars made it to the gathering at Mars Hill Cafe.
As usual we read our work, swapped some news and info then got stuck into the business of becoming overnight Haiku poets (for reasons we will publicly reveal - later).

I think we did pretty well. Fortunately one of us had actually attended classes in Haiku in the past, so that helped. For now, we're exploring the classic 5/7/5 three liners.

Come and join us at our next gathering on Saturday 25 April 09 at Mars Hill Cafe, 331 Church St Parramatta, 3pm for a special gathering of writers on the theme "Writing in all Circumstances" OPEN MIC - all welcome. Free event. (Please note that the talk by Iraqi poet Fadeel Kayat has had to be re-scheduled).

2009-03-04T17:06:00.000-08:00

OUCH! It's been a whole year since we've posted anything on this blog! We are developing a gallery via Picasa, but until we've completed that, this blog is part of our archive and therefore we'll keep it. Here's a pic of Valentine's Day 2009, : Grace Funk is entertaining the crowd with her funky (scuse pun) love poem. Singer-Songwriter Luciano Mesiti, a popular performer at the Parrmatta Library, is in background. For updates on what New Writers' Group is getting into go to our new website.

2008-02-27T22:00:00.000-08:00

Chirayu Shah read his love poem in English on St Valentine's Day at Parramatta Library. Other readers were Helen Dalrymple, Jim Spain, Ion Corcos, Katrina Stewart and Jacqui Douglas. All the poets were subsequently invited to attend a function at Harris Park Internet Cafe and Gallery. Chirayu Shah will read in Hindi and English on the night

2007-12-15T23:02:00.000-08:00

Katrina Stewart was one of the 29 contributors who read their Anthology piece at our Readings on 8th December, 2007. The Lord Mayor Paul Barber of Parramatta City Council launched the Anthology. The event was held as part of the HomeWord Festival, which is supported by a Parramatta City Council grant. Readings were followed by a poetry forum, see pic below. For more pics go to http://picasaweb.google.com/sue.crawford/NWGIncAnthologyLaunchPoetryForumDecember2007

2007-12-15T22:59:00.000-08:00

Spoken Word artist Jess Cook, Professor Sebastian Liao (National Taiwan University) and Poet/publisher David Musgrave led a discussion on the future of poetry at our NWG Inc Anthology Launch 2007 on 8th December at the Parramatta Heritage Centre.

2007-11-08T23:24:00.001-08:00

Sonia Bennett was a welcome visitor in October, giving us some wonderful songs including the Wollami Pine.

2007-11-08T23:17:00.000-08:00

At our October 2007 AGM we formed a new committee, from left to right, back row first:
Lil Scully (Vice President); Carol Amos (President); Jacqui Douglas (Committee member); Katrina Stewart (Minutes Secretary); Sue Crawford (Vice President); Grace Funk (Secretary); Rowena Brown (Data Base Officer); Ellie Ellis (Committee Member). Not pictured here is Mary Cline (Commitee Member). I have to say it, where are the guys?

2007-05-07T19:29:00.000-07:00

Here's most of the gang of writers who gathered at dawn for Fida Haq's shoot of his videowork, The Road Home. The videowork will feature writers' images and spoken works layered with street and water scapes all shot in Sydneys West. This was the quick breakfast picnic after the filming sessions before the coffee shop opened. Starting with Jacqui Douglas centre front and working clockwise: Helen Dalrymple (back), Carol Amos, Jim Spain and James Collier and son (standing), Romano Yehudi Solo (sitting), Dan Hopkins, Lil Scully and Nathan Judd (all standing), Grace Culshaw and Mary Cline (both sitting).

The videowork will be exhibited at the HomeWord Festival at the Festival/ZineWest Launch on Sunday 10th June, at Riverside Theatres Church St Parramatta, 2:15-4:15 pm prior to our forum with the great Australian writer, David Malouf (4:45-5:45 - same venue). For latest information see The Road Home webpage

2007-03-14T00:10:00.000-07:00

3rd March, Parramatta Gathering at Mars Hill Cafe. This was D-Day for ZineWest so a few last minute entries arrived! Great reading and discussion session from all. Photo by Anna Gruenz.

2007-03-14T00:08:00.000-07:00

2007-02-27T03:37:00.000-08:00

Guest speaker was multi-media artist Fida Haq who told us about his latest ventures and a possible collaboration with New Writers Group on the theme The Road Home.

Heather and Megan at the Sivi gathering, 17th Feb. Megan read a story of war from the view of a young combatant.

Well we look pretty boringly quiet, but we're hearing each other read on the subject The Road Home - some diverse results.

Photos: Anna Gruenz

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2007-02-02T23:19:00.000-08:00

Next Parramatta Fortnightly Meeting, 17th February, is at Sivis, not Mars Hill Cafe. We have a few clashes on the calendar this year when we need to find an Alternative Venue! We'll post advice re these dates along the way.

At our last gathering - 3rd Feb - we met upstairs at Mars Hill Cafe and shared some sadness, humour, prose, poetry and song. Editor Sue Crawford asked gatherers to think on the topic
"The Road Home" and bring/send to the next meeting their musings and pronouncements. This is in preparation for discussions with multi-media artist Fida Haq on a collaborative project for HomeWord Festival:Writing Western Sydney 2007. Fida is coming to Sivis on the 17th Feb at 3pm. See you there! (Sivis is at 238 Church Street).

2007-01-23T20:16:00.000-08:00

As you can see we're a smiling bunch. Behind us are some of Laurie Garcia's photos on exhibition at Mars Hill Cafe. We swapped holiday writing efforts and met a few new people.
Join us for our (mostly) fortnightly gathereings at Mars Hill Cafe on Saturdays 3-5pm - see main site NWG Inc for details.

2007-01-16T19:45:00.000-08:00

HomeWord Festival Coordinator

HomeWord: Writing Western Sydney Festival is an annual event held by New Writers' Group Inc. with the assistance of Parramatta City Council. This is a paid, part-time position which includes weekend work during the festival. Applicants should have a professional approach to working under the direction of a dynamic community group. The main cluster of events will be held May/June including a forum, multimedia writers' gig, poetry slam and workshops. Contact Elizabeth Scully 0418 445 452 See also HomeWord Calendar

2006-11-12T14:28:00.000-08:00

NWG Inc's AGM on 11th November, 2006, was held upstairs at Mars Hill Cafe 331 Church St Parramatta. Gerard Gilchrist chaired the election of the new committee. We all adjourned (to the same venue!) for a quick committee meeting followed by our Zine Readings where we were joined by other members and gatherers. Seventeen contributors presented their own work and Emily Chapman's poem was read by Dianne Ellis.

2006-07-24T03:39:00.000-07:00

The HomeWord Festival 06 - Writing Western Sydney Calendar has now spread over 3 September Saturdays: 2nd, 9th and 16th. On the 2nd at Riverside Theatres, Parramatta, Poets Union will present 6 leading Australian poets followed by a forum on Politics in Art ( Tim Brunero, Jennifer Maiden, Fida Haq) and a poetry slam (Miles Merrill) in the courtyard (Riverside). The 9th of September is our workshop day: Film (Dianne Ellis) and Kids Cartooning (Roger Fletcher) at Parramatta Library; Presentation for writers/artists (Toastmasters), Song-writing (Stewart Peters), Creative writing (Jane Goodall) at Parramatta Town Hall. September 9 is our performance day at Mars Hill Cafe, 3-7pm hosted by Stewart Peters with members of Western Fringe Songwriters Network and New Writers Group Inc. For more details go to our HomeWord Festival 06 Calendar Page.

2006-07-16T02:59:00.000-07:00

Fadeel Khayat attended our NWG Inc group at Mars Hill Parramatta on July 8. Fadeel is one of four contemporary Iraqi poets whose work was read in Arabic and English at a Sydney Writers Festival event in May this year. At our Saturday gathering Fadeel read a selection of his poems originally written in Arabic and rewritten in English by Fadeel himself. At the same meeting we had song, comedy, children's tales, bush poetry and adult prose plus a lively and spontaneous debate on culture in Blacktown! The gathering was led by NWG Inc president, Lil Scully.

2006-04-02T15:52:00.000-07:00

Rhymes, Rhythms,Writing and Refreshments at Linnwood, Guildford was presented by MC's Stewart Peters and Irene Melaisis from NWG Inc for the Friends of Linnwood House on a fine Sunday evening 2nd April 2006. Singer/songwriters and poets/prose artists performed from the verandah to an attentive audience seated under the lemon-scented gums in Linnwood's beautiful grounds. Feature acts were Rock Solid Faith and singer/song-writer SNEZ accompanied by Stewart Peters. Holroyd City Councillor Dr John Brodie also read two of his popular stories. The Friends of Linnwood House put on an excellent low cost sausage sizzle and drinks. This performance was a free event. Organisers (sound, lighting, refreshments) and performers volunteered their services. Congratulations to all. The pic above is a group of NWG Inc members - some performers, some supporters.

2006-03-18T21:50:00.000-08:00

HomeWord Festival Committee met at Sivi's restaurant, Parramatta Sunday 19th March 06 to work on an exciting calendar of events for our August/September Festival. From left: Lil Scully NWG Inc President, Isabell Petrinic Festival Co-Ordinator, Geoff Miller Parramatta City Council, Sue Crawford Webmaster NWG Inc and Carol Amos Secretary/treasurer for NWG Inc and the HomeWord Festival. Thanks to Sivi's for food and space!

2006-03-17T01:12:00.000-08:00

Althea (barista)and Lisa (our friendly hostess) at Mars Hill Cafe - the cultural and community hub of Parramatta. Lisa, Kevin and their dedicated staff are much appreciated by NWG Inc. We gather at Mars Hill Cafe every fortnight and whenever we can find an excuse. Try out their great coffee and entertainment - see Mars Hill Cafe Website

2006-01-30T19:31:00.000-08:00

Waiting for One Word - Spoken Word outside Mars Hill Cafe, Friday night 27th Jan, we mentioned NWG Inc needed a mug shot of One Word host Nathan Judd. Laurie Garcia volunteered on the spot and took this pic. We can't quite do it justice on a blog, but thanks Laurie!

2006-01-30T02:59:00.000-08:00

Our first gathering for 2006 was on 21st Jan upstairs at Civi's, Church St Parramatta. Many thanks to Civi's for giving us the upstairs area for free at short notice. Stewart Peters and Dan Hopkins played their guitars and sang unplugged. We heard poems and stories that members had been writing over the holidays and compared our literary instincts to those of Malcom Knox with a selection of novel extracts (all about birds) discussed in a SMH article "Fiction as Reality Check".

See you on Saturday, 4th February 3-5 back at out usual haunt, upstairs Mars Hill Cafe, 331 Church St Parramatta. Special guest artist Fida Haq will give us a presentation of his word-based art and discuss ideas for a collaborative project.

2006-01-11T15:52:00.000-08:00

The girls are still talking after the last 2005 gathering. (The guys were downstairs drinking coffee!) From Left: Katrina Stewart, Joanne Grieve (whose painting can be seen in background) Liz Crawford (our Pittsburgh reviewer) Helen Dalrymple, Ellie Ellis, Lil Scully (President, NWG Inc) Leigh Scully.

2005-12-09T03:04:00.000-08:00

NWG Inc member Irene Melaisis, competing in the third heat of the Sydney Slam Series at Mars Hill Cafe on November 25. Nathan Judd (compere of One Word) was MC with Miles Merrill, slam organiser. Over 70 attended and fifteen entered the comp. Photo by Doug Clulow.

Our last gig for the year is December 17 at Mars Hill Cafe 3-5pm. We are having a picnic in Prince Alfred Park (Victoria Rd & Church St) at 1.30pm beforehand. All invited. BYO food, drink and a pre-loved book to swap.

2005-11-21T22:46:00.000-08:00

Poet Grace Culshaw reads at our fortnightly gathering at Mars Hill Cafe, 331 Church St Parramatta.

2005-11-10T04:10:00.000-08:00

Some of this group had just attended our first publishing support group meeting at Mars Hill Cafe, but now it was time to strut their stuff at the mike for the "Gathering" - 3-5pm Saturday Fortnightly upstairs at MHC. See NWG Inc's home site for details.

2005-10-26T05:51:00.000-07:00

The inaugural AGM of New Writers' Group Incorporated, 22nd October, 2005 at Mars Hill Cafe. From left to right, Helen Dalrymple, Nathan Judd, Jacqui Douglas, Lil Scully, Gerry Gilchrist (obscured) Dion Hamill, Isabell Petrinic, Raffael Galardi, Ellie Ellis, Grace Culshaw, Katrina Stewart. (Sue Crawford took the photo and the individual shots below were taken by Katrina Stewart.)

Lil Scully has been re-elected unopposed as President of NWG Inc. She works full-time as a secretary and is also a part-time student of English Literature. She says that she loves being a part of the New Writers' Group community. Lil has a passion for fostering writing in Western Sydney and chaired the 2005 HomeWord Festival committee. She has written an honours thesis entitled 'Nice, different, unusual: A political reading of Kath and Kim'.

Nathan Judd (centre/front) has been re-elected as our Senior Vice President. In addition to working with the NWG Inc committee, Nathan hosts One Word - a Spoken Word gig held on the last Friday night of every month at Mars Hill Cafe, 331 Church Street, Parramatta. A poet and short story writer, Nathan appeared with Carol Amos in Pirates of Penzance (Holroyd Musical and Dramatic Society Inc). One of his poems appears in our 2005 Anthology.

Isabell Petrinic is a journalist with Fairfax Community Newspapers and teaches at the University of Western Sydney. She was the director for our HomeWord Festival held in Parramatta between 28th May and 4th June, 2005. NWG Inc has welcomed her onto the 2005/6 committee as media officer, a new and important position which fits well with her continuing role as director of the HomeWord Festival.

Sue Crawford is Junior Vice President of NWG Inc. She is the anthology editor and webmaster of www.nwg-inc.com our content management PostNuke site.
Which means that any mistakes in this blog are her fault!

Carol Amos has been elected as our new Secretary. Carol is a singer/songwriter, actor and director with a flair for organisation. She was a unanimous choice to replace Jacqui Douglas, a foundation member of NWG Inc who built this vital position into a huge and diverse role which will now be shared between Carol and Katrina Stewart (Asst Secretary). Carol's latest gig was Pirates of Penzance for the Holroyd Musical and Dramatic Society Inc. She has two tracks on our CD.

Katrina Stewart is our Asst Secretary which means she prepares the minutes and many other documents for NWG Inc. She helps run the fortnightly gatherings at Mars Hill Cafe and promotes NWG Inc at every opportunity. She is pictured here receiving our 2006 HomeWord Festival grant from Parramatta City Council Mayor, David Borger.

Ellie Ellis is a recent member of NWG Inc. Her insightful comments at our regular fortnightly gatherings at Mars Hill Cafe had the inevitable result: we nominated her for a position on the committee and we're delighted she accepted. Ellie has two tracks on NWG Inc's CD.

Jacqui Douglas, our retiring secretary, has been the bridge between the foundation NWG Inc committee and the newly elected 2005/2006 team. We have relied upon Jacqui for grant submissions, minutes, correspondence, artwork and design and a host of connections in the local cultural scene. Whilst Jacqui has signed off a formal role on the committee we hope to draw on her wealth of experience more or less indefinitely!

2005-08-13T04:56:00.000-07:00

President of the Fellowship of Australian Writers, NSW, Ken Challenor, receives a copy of NWG Inc's 2005 Anthology and CD at a Mars Hill fortnightly gathering (13th August, 2005). Lil Scully (NWG Inc President) standing; Carol Amos (Members' Secretary) seated.

2005-08-13T04:52:00.000-07:00

2005 HomeWord Festival Appraisal Meeting - Geoff Miller, Community Events Co-ordinator for Parramatta City Council led discussion on this year's festival and plans for 2006: "HomeWord - Writing Western Sydney"

2005-08-13T04:46:00.000-07:00

The cover of our first CD produced by Stewart Peters for Soundshed Music Productions. Orders: Stewart Peters stewart@soundshedmusic.com

2005-07-31T05:40:00.000-07:00

The assembled singers/songwriters/poets and story-tellers published on NWG Inc's first CD by Stewart Peters for Soundshed Music Productions.

Our Launch was held upstairs on 23rd July 2005 at our favourite place - Mars Hill Cafe, Church St Parramatta where we gather fortnightly to share our creations.

You can hear a selection of tracks on Downloads on our website www.nwg-inc.com

2005-07-31T05:37:00.000-07:00

Warren Munce performing his original songs "Elephant's Graveyard" and "Fade Away" from the CD, with support from our MC and CD producer, Stewart Peters on the right

2005-07-31T05:34:00.000-07:00

Arthur Marshall aka Romano Yehudi Solo gave a talk on Romany life in Australia at the CD Launch

2005-07-31T05:31:00.000-07:00

Katrina Stewart presenting Sleepy's perspective on Snow White at the CD Launch, Mars Hill Cafe 23rd July 2005

2005-07-31T05:28:00.000-07:00

Barbara and John Fern reading Barbara's contemporary fairy tale "Goldilocks the Street Kid" at the CD Launch

2005-07-31T05:26:00.000-07:00

Poet, Brian Bell at NWG Inc's CD Launch at Mars Hill Cafe Parramatta. Brian has three tracks on the CD: "The Twelve Sleeps of Christmas" , "Trees" and "In a Pickle" which was the closing piece of the evening.

2005-07-31T05:23:00.000-07:00

Cas Van Loon reading his pieces "Understanding Who's the Leader" and "Have a Lovely Day" from our new CD at the Mars Hill Launch

2005-07-31T05:20:00.000-07:00

Carol S sang her original song "Fisherman's Wife" (set to music by Stewart Peters on right) and Stewarts' song "I Will Wait" both on our first CD

2005-07-31T05:17:00.000-07:00

Jacqui Douglas reading one of her pieces recorded on our first CD -"Wimbidja" and "Gothic"

2005-07-31T05:11:00.000-07:00

Joanne Grieve recorded two of her stories on our new CD: "Swedes in Suspenders" and "My Lazy Life". Here she is at the CD Launch, 23rd July 2005 reading another two pieces: "The Watched Kettle Never Boils" and "How Dare You".

2005-07-31T04:58:00.000-07:00

Jim Spain, bush poet at the launch of NWG Inc's first CD held at Mars Hill Cafe, Parramatta on Saturday, 23rd July, 2005 reading "My Australia", "Gathering Gold" and "Ol' Bark 'Ut"