Brampton Writer's Guild
Brampton Public Library, Four Corners Branch Brampton, ON, Canada

I am reminded that the best writers don’t simply write a book. They invite you to crawl between the pages, wrap them around you, and live in their world.I am reminded that the best writers don’t simply write a book. They invite you to crawl between the pages, wrap them around you, and live in their world.

Michael Joll’s new book now available on Amazon, pulls no punches on the horror of the Great War. Love flourishes amidst it all.

Member Ken Puddicombe’s new release UNFATHOMABLE And Other Poems is now available on Amazon.ca at an introductory price of $9.80 (Cdn*). Prime members get free shipping. Some of these poems will be familiar to members in the monthly meetings. *Priced in USD so Cdn price depends on the current Exchange Rate.

The last thing one discovers in composing a work is what to put first. Blaise Pascal, French philosopher. The importance of the first sentence.The last thing one discovers in composing a work is what to put first. Blaise Pascal, French philosopher. The importance of the first sentence.

How many truly independent bookstores are there in Brampton (population 650,000)? I don’t count the chain of Chapters/Indigo/WHSmith/Coles as independent. Knowledge Bookstore, concentrating mainly in Afro-centred literature, at 177 Queen Street West has been a fixture for years, decades even. I think that’s about it. A second hand bookstore or two pops up and quietly vanishes every few years. The public libraries were in lockdown for several months earlier this year. They ar...e still really open to the public for pickup of preordered books and DVDs. Why is there a dearth of bookstores in such a big city? We’re not illiterate. Is it that the vast number of first languages spoken in Brampton, rather than increasing diversity, works the opposite way when it comes to reading and book buying? Does this fractured language market render book sales next to impossible to predict, and therefore unprofitable? Are new books too expensive to read? Are potential readers afraid they will plonk down $30+ on a new title, only to find they’re not enjoying it? When we want to buy a real book, as opposed to an ebook, we are mostly left with a choice between the big box bookseller and Amazon. There must be a third route. Ideas, anyone?

December 8th is the second Tuesday in the month, the date when we would normally hold our monthly meeting. Let’s try and organize a Zoom meeting for the 8th. Cheer and perhaps a short reading or two might help lift the gloom as we approach the shortest day. We can also drink without driving home afterwards (for those who chose to. Entirely optional). Linda will put out a circular in the next couple of days to gauge enthusiasm for a Zoom meeting, so please respond to it. No re...sponse will be taken as no interest. I assume Zoom has rules about how many may participate and for how long; the details remain to be seen. A virtual meeting. How novel these days!

A time to reflect.

It’s Friday, the 13th in the COVID year 2020. No Teddy Bears Picnic for any of us. What more could possibly go wrong? Stay in bed until tomorrow. Just in case.

The final words of my novel, A Time To Love and a Time To Die, posted for Remembrance Day, November 11th, 2020. THE FALLEN Our souls ascendant as the lark that soars... Above the meadows where in huddled rows Close-ranked beneath the turf in death we stretch From Ypres to the Somme and Passchendaele. We are the wraiths uncounted of the dead Unnamed, our broken bodies in French soil Interred, our comrades’ lives the currency Of generals who bartered with our blood Each step, each cratered inch of Flanders’ mire. Horizonless, our lives before us stretched When we were whole, not measured by the day, The hour or less before the whistle blasts Drove us from trenches deep to charge across The death-swept killing ground of no man’s land. No scything bullets can our courage shred Where once we fell and drew our final breath Bled white upon the uncut wire. We sleep, While grass upon our graves brings life renewed. Remember us, the unknown soldiers all Who marched in khaki regiments to death. We can no longer in our hearts revive The pain inflicted by our wounds, nor grieve With those who mourn their menfolk lost, the lambs Who were for King and Country sacrificed. Michael Joll.

It’s Tuesday. Only four more full days left to enter our Halloween short story contest. We have entries. Don’t miss out.It’s Tuesday. Only four more full days left to enter our Halloween short story contest. We have entries. Don’t miss out.

Halloween fast approaches. Time for a Halloween themed contest. Fiction or non-fiction, your winning story or reminiscence could be featured right here on the Brampton Writers Guild Facebook page. 500 words maximum. Send your WORD document to: [email protected], to arrive by email before 11:59 p.m. on October 30th, 2020. Double spaced in Times New Roman font 12 or 14 is good (we’re not that picky for this contest). Fame (limited) and fortune (limited to a $10 Tim Hortons gift card) will come your way if you win. Your name and contact details will help in getting your prize to you. Bonne chance à tous. (Entries, by the way, should be in English so that every nuance of your brill writing can be appreciated by all).

Here is Ray Holmes’ winning entry in the Halloween short story contest, (drum roll, please). HALLOWEEN BACK THEN ...Continue reading

We are still accepting stories, fiction and non-fiction (but not personal, religious or political essays, or poetry) for potential inclusion in a Brampton Writers’ Guild anthology to be published by MiddleRoadPublishers in 2021. Word count not to exceed 2,500. Entries by email to [email protected] must be in a Word document, double spaced, Times New Roman font, size 12, and received by December 31, 2020.

Hot off the press: Raymond Holmes’ entry in the Halloween short story contest, Halloween Back Then has been judged the winner.Hot off the press: Raymond Holmes’ entry in the Halloween short story contest, Halloween Back Then has been judged the winner.

A single room, a table for one. Frank Sinatra sings of loneliness and hope in Dear Heart, his 1965 album collaboration with Henry Mancini. 55 years later he could have been singing about Thanksgiving 2020. For those of you who will be eating Thanksgiving dinner alone or with a partner this year, this virus won’t last forever. And, as Vera Lynn sang in 1939, We’ll meet again, don’t know where, don’t know when, but I know we’ll meet again some sunny day. We will. That’s a solemn commitment. Stay safe, everyone. See you soon.

Your stories are in. The contest has closed. Entries emailed to judges. Good luck to all.Your stories are in. The contest has closed. Entries emailed to judges. Good luck to all.

Just released by Tamarind Tree and available worldwide, Phyllis the Donkey Girl and Other True Stories by Trevor C. Trower, and The Jewish Gandhi of Cochin, by Bala Menon and Essie Sassoon.Just released by Tamarind Tree and available worldwide, Phyllis the Donkey Girl and Other True Stories by Trevor C. Trower, and The Jewish Gandhi of Cochin, by Bala Menon and Essie Sassoon.

Tonight’s the night. The contest ends at 11:59 pm. Don’t be late.Tonight’s the night. The contest ends at 11:59 pm. Don’t be late.

Summer’s over. The writing contest is almost over too. Last date for submissions is September 30th. Don’t miss the boat.Summer’s over. The writing contest is almost over too. Last date for submissions is September 30th. Don’t miss the boat.

Still no word on when we can meet together again as a group. But one thing is virtually assured: we will be wearing masks and keeping two metres apart. Until then, write like there’s no tomorrow. If you would like friendly feedback on your latest inspiration, send it to us at [email protected]. We will disseminate it and send comments back to you.... Chin up. Nothing lasts forever.

Check out Word On The Street Virtual Festival web site for details of this year’s virtual event, Saturday and Sunday, September 26 and 27.Check out Word On The Street Virtual Festival web site for details of this year’s virtual event, Saturday and Sunday, September 26 and 27.

The short fiction and non-fiction contest closes to entries on September 30th. Make sure you don’t miss it. Email us for details if you have forgotten the rules.The short fiction and non-fiction contest closes to entries on September 30th. Make sure you don’t miss it. Email us for details if you have forgotten the rules.

We arrive at the second Tuesday in the month and it’s the same old record. Nothing new to report. Maybe October will be positive. Let’s hope so.We arrive at the second Tuesday in the month and it’s the same old record. Nothing new to report. Maybe October will be positive. Let’s hope so.

Just notified that Brampton Library has opened three branches as of Tuesday, September 8th: Four Corners, Sandalwood and Chinguacousy. Limited services only.Just notified that Brampton Library has opened three branches as of Tuesday, September 8th: Four Corners, Sandalwood and Chinguacousy. Limited services only.