FEEDBACK RE WADADLI PEN 2013

So, I thought I’d share some of the feedback to the Wadadli Youth Pen Prize Challenge 2013 season. In part because I hope it’ll continue to spark interest among other young writers still hiding their light under a bushel, potential patrons, media and the general public (and I hope that interest will translate into more support for the programme). In part, because I just want to take a moment to celebrate another successful year of pulling this off against the odds. Thanks to all patrons, partners, and well wishers; thanks especially to our young writers, FOR DARING (it’s not easy putting your work out there as all of us who’ve ever written a word and submitted it somewhere or even asked someone for feedback know all too well). So go read the stories, okay?

Okay, comments, here goes…

Comments VIA EMAIL (scrubbed of identification markers, I hope):

From the mom of one of our younger finalists:

“(My daughter) would like to thank the sponsors who donated her gifts and rest assured she will be reading them.  She has almost finished reading Trapped (in) Dunston’s Cave. She is all fired up and is already working on two pieces for next year.”

 

From one of the teachers:

“I really wanted to say thank you for affording my students and me the opportunity to share our stories and drawings. We will definitely by looking out for the next WADADLI PEN COMPETITION …Now that I’m exposed to what is expected (the stories that won were awesome!!!) I will definitely have to put in some extra work!! Awesome job!! You are a role model to aspiring writers. Shine on!!”

From one of the finalists:

“Just want to let you know that I think that the Wadadli Pen Prize is a great initiative and hope to see it continue!”

 

Left to right, overall winner Asha Challenger, third placed Zuri Holder, and second placed Daryl George.

 

ON FACEBOOK:

One teacher said:

“Congrats to Joanne C. Hillhouse and Barbara Arrindell (of the Best of Books) for keeping reading alive, and more importantly, for encouraging our young people to tell our own stories.”

 

Comment re St. John’s Catholic Primary’s win of US$500 worth of books from Hands across the Sea as the primary school with the most submissions:

“I am so proud to be a part of this school family. Blessings!!!”

“Congrats to my Primary School, I am so proud.”

 

To the overall winners:

“Education is power, keep up the good work; you guys are our future. I like what I see.”

Re winning story Asha Graham’s Revelations Tonight:

“I really enjoyed this… the scenery was amazing!”

Excerpts from reader comments AT CARIB ARENA:

“ Really like ‘Ceramic Blues’….we really need to come to terms with things and hypocrites in our midst. The story must be told!”

 

“Great to see this competition for our island’s young people. Congratulations to all winners! Keep up the great work, Joanne Hillhouse and others!”

Me, with the youngest of the 2013 Wadadli Pen finalists – art and lit. (Photo courtesy Antigua Chronicle)

 

“The Wadadli Pen Challenge is the ONLY serious story competition for the young people of A&B. It deserves far more support, from both the private and government sectors.”

 

“CONGRATULATIONS to all……keep working on the next chapter because ‘until the Lion tells (writes) his story it will always be told (written) by the hunter’. We’ve already heard a million hunter stories. It is a crying shame that this project, ‘The Wadadli Pen Challenge’ does not get the public support it deserves.”

Comments right here ON WADADLI PEN:

“Giant congratulations to ALL………….keep on taking it to the next chapter.”

“Keep Writing and a big Congrats to all the writers and winners this year.”

“Congratulations on a very timely story Mr. George, one need not be a rocket scientist “to get it”. I hope it gets read by more than just the “usual suspects”…………………….”

FINAL THOUGHT: Okay so for the first time, I think, I’ve left the comment section beneath the stories open. In the past, I felt very protective of the writers because of their ages and so closed the stories off to comments. But you know what, feedback is part of the writing life, so feel free to comment; but be constructive – abusive statements will be deleted.

Thanks for reading…and thanks to Antigua Chronicle for permitting the use of their photos.

Making a Difference?

This is a blog post originally written and submitted for Elaine Spires’ blog, where I was guest blogging. I’m not sure if she still intends to post it, but I thought I might take a break from reviewing Wadadli Pen submissions for the 2013 Challenge to share it here, with you. The two things are connected after all.

When I was a wanna-be writer, the environment didn’t provide the opportunity and encouragement I needed. As a result, I think it took me longer than I would have liked to claim my path, my self-definition as a writer. That’s why I wanted to do the Wadadli Youth Pen Prize, which I started back in 2004;  to provide that opportunity for young Antiguan and Barbudan writers.

I worry sometimes that the programme is not hitting its mark in terms of reaching the young people who really need that nurturing and encouragement. I don’t want schools or teachers to see it as just another obligation in an already too full calendar.

I tell myself that our aspiration is higher than that, that we can make a real difference in a young writer’s life and, at the same time, help foster self-expression and an appreciation for the literary arts in the wider community. When the entries are trickling in, as they are did this year, and real life is taking its pound of flesh, as it is, in other areas of my life, I wonder if it’s worth it; if all of these ambitions are nothing more than ego. Because if I’m being honest, I like how it feels when the awards come around and the young writers are recognized. It feels good, like I’m doing some good. And it reminds me of that episode of Friends where Phoebe tries to prove to Joey that there is such a thing as a self-less good deed. But if doing the good for someone else makes you feel good, is it truly selfless?

Yesterday A few Saturdays ago, I left the Cushion Club, a reading club I volunteer with, albeit intermittently these days, feeling pretty good. I had decided to do a kids writing workshop with the Cushion Club, bringing my two main voluntary activities together, in part in hopes of turning that trickle of Wadadli Pen submissions into more of a steady flow. My carefully laid out plans quickly fell victim to a late start, technical difficulties, and the stress of trying to get kids to settle when for all your prep you’re not settled yourself. I had to wing it, all of it. And I just decided to get the kids writing as quickly as possible before they got distracted and bored. Some did get distracted and bored at points anyway, but by the end, everyone had written and read something, and some some very interesting and creative things as well. I left the session feeling positive which if you know how I was feeling going in is quite the emotional switch; and I remember saying to Brenda Lee, the fellow travelling writer who’d stopped by to interact with the kids for a bit, that while I don’t get paid for the work I do with the kids, it feels good, so they do give me something back.

So perhaps there is no truly selfless deed, but perhaps there is nothing wrong with a little give and take, if your intention is to do some good and if you can see the blossoming of possibility as a result of it. I saw the blossoming of possibility during that joint Cushion Club-Wadadli Pen kids writing workshop.

That said, I’d like to say thanks to all the generous patrons who’ve given to Wadadli Pen over the years, for whatever reason. We couldn’t celebrate these blossoming young writers (35 and younger) as we do if not for you. Yes, that means you too, Elaine, for contributing a copy of one of your novels to our prize package for a second straight year. You’ll be have been added to our growing list of prize donors because a little public “thank you” is the least I can give to the people who give to a programme I care deeply about.

As with all content on wadadlipen.wordpress.com, except otherwise noted, this is written by Joanne C. Hillhouse (author of The Boy from Willow Bend, Dancing Nude in the Moonlight, and Oh Gad!). All Rights Reserved. If you enjoyed it, check out my page on Amazon, WordPress, and/or Facebook, and help spread the word about Wadadli Pen and my books. You can also subscribe to the site to keep up with future updates. Thanks.

Open Letter to Schools in Antigua and Barbuda

We at Wadadli Pen are hoping that you had a good National Reading Day

We’d like to suggest that a writing exercise might be a good follow up to Reading Day. Perhaps the students having read and heard the stories of others can begin to imagine their own stories.

Food for thought.

Be reminded that the submission deadline is February 15th 2013.

Here are your art guidelines and your writing guidelines, and literary prompts if you need them. Be encouraged in the important work that you do and continue to encourage the students to do what they do best – dream, create, express themselves.

Best

Joanne C. Hillhouse

founder/coordinator Wadadli Youth Pen Prize

p.s. Remember the Secondary and Primary school with the most submisions also wins a prize.

Reading Room and Gallery II

 

The stacks were overflowing at the original Reading Room and Gallery; I decided to expand.

DISCLAIMER: By definition, you’ll be linking to third party sites from these Links-We-Love pages. Linked sites are not, however, reviewed or controlled by Wadadli Pen (the blog, the Wadadli Youth Pen Prize nor coordinator/blogger Joanne C. Hillhouse); and Wadadli Pen (the blog, the Wadadli Youth Pen Prize and coordinator/blogger Joanne C. Hillhouse) disclaims any responsibility or liability relating to any linked sites and does not assume any responsibility for their contents. In other words, enter at your own risk.

Here you’ll find stories, interviews, reviews, poems; you name it…a totally subjective showcase of (mostly) Caribbean written (sometimes visual and audio visual) pieces that I (Joanne) have either personally appreciated or which have been recommended (and approved) for posting/linking. If you’re looking for the winning Wadadli Pen stories (and I hope you are!), check Wadadli Pen through the years. You can also see the Best of Wadadli Pen special issue at Anansesem which has the added feature of audio dramatizations of some of the stories.

POEMS

Won’t You Celebrate with me (print and audio) by Lucille Clifton; also These Hips (actually Homage to My Hips).

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You never thought by Nic Sebastian.

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I have a theory about Reflection by Renee Ashley (The Robert Watson Literary Prize Poem)

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As I write this I’m reading Full Woman, Fleshly Apple, Hot Moon Selected Poems of Pablo Neruda (in Spanish and English) and amidst the lush language, I found this gem that seems timely (it being pre-Valentine and all at this posting) – Sonnet XVII which reads in part

Te amo como la planta que no florece y lleva
dentro de si, escondida, la luz de aquellas flores,
y gracias a tu amor vive oscuro en mi cuerpo
el apretado aroma que ascendió de la tierra

Translation:

I love you as the plant that doesn’t bloom and carries
hidden within itself the light of those flowers,
and thanks to your love, darkly in my body
lives the dense fragrance that rises from the earth.

The full poem can be found here.

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I am nobody’s nigger - bup! bup!

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Liking the humour in Maelynn Seymour-Major’s Retired Woman War.

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Still haven’t read The Help, nonetheless Carol Boyce Taylor’s Borscht made me think of it. Those who have read it can tell me if I’m totally off the mark.

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As a fan of Gil Scott Heron’s The Revolution will not be Televised, I had to share this piece, Complainer, about the late poet-activist by Fred D’Aguiar.

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Tell me One Fine Day I will walk with my Head held High by Bisi ADeleye-Fayemi (also found here) doesn’t leave you feeling empowered.

SHORT STORIES

Twins by Tiphanie Yanique from Ma Comere.

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One of my favourite shorts from one of my favourite writers: Jamaica Kincaid’s Girl.

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Regular readers might remember me writing about Will Allison’s What You Have Left. Here’s an excerpt (kinda) from Zoetrope’s All Story.

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Quirky, interesting tale from the New Yorker; A Man Like Him by Yiyun Li.

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This origin story from the Shonga People in Zimbabwe, published in Anansesem, was quite engaging. Favourite line: “After this they knew that when they listened to the beat of their hearts, they would not feel trapped or lost.”

NON FICTION

i’m still on a learning curve with this publishing business. But I can report that much of what this writer says is true, from my experience; and that I read it with an eye toward checking off what I’d done and what I still needed to do. Turns out I’ve done most of it and hope to see it pay off. For anyone thinking of publishing – either independentally or with a publishing house – this is useful information re marketing: http://www.shewrites.com/profiles/blogs/five-marketing-tips-to-drive-excitement-and-buzz

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Anyone who knows me (well) knows how much I love and relate to the music of Lauryn Hill and even to her particular brand of ‘crazy’. It’s why I feel the need to share this: http://vigilantcitizen.com/latestnews/lauryn-hills-tumblr-letter-on-the-music-business/ which says among other things “I Love making art, I Love making music, these are as natural and necessary for me almost as breathing or talking.  To be denied the right to pursue it according to my ability, as well as be properly acknowledged and compensated for it, in an attempt to control, is manipulation directed at my most basic rights! ”

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A blog about Bocas and others in the series  by author Karen Lord.

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“…knowledge of one’s own history and culture has intrinsic value.” Read more in this Carolyn Cooper response to a critic who calls into question the relevance of a course in reggae poetry at the University of the West Indies. Personally, I’d like to see a course in calypso poetry too.

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“I thought that publishing a book meant I was a writer, but I was wrong. Convincing yourself each day to keep going, this means that you are a writer.” Read more of Last Lecture: Am I a Writer? by Cathy Day.

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This blog entry by Tameka Jarvis shares her review of Rita Marley’s No Woman No Cry, a book I’ve reviewed here in Blogger on Books and which remains one of my favourite autobiographies.

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Love this blog entry by Brenda Lee Browne… as I prepare for the launch of my new book, I can relate to the hesitance to dip your toe in the water. This is a scary, scary path we choose when we pour our heart, soul, energy, years of life into this thing that we then have to let go and await the world’s judgment.

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This is actually a blog entry by Silver Sparrow author Tayari Jones. Silver Sparrow is on my to read list, NaNo which challenges you to write a certain amount of words in a month, is decidedly not on my to do list, her blog sums up why. Mostly, I like what she suggests about writing being a process not a destination. While challenges like the one mentioned can help a writer develop the discipline needed to finish a book, to take up pen and declare I want to write a book rather than I want to be a writer misses the mark; the latter requires investment in the discipline of actually developing craft and perspective. Read, live, grow, write (and edit, and redraft, and redraft, and redraft…), then (maybe) publish.

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Perspective on the publishing industry … if Shakespeare was publishing today, would he be rejected too?

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The Bronte sisters aren’t Caribbean, unless you count the literary link between Charlotte Bronte’s Jane Eyre and Jean Rhys Wide Sargasso Sea or the fact that many of us children of the Caribbean grew up reading both books; either way, I thought this article on the Brontes might intrigue you as it did me.

INTERVIEWS

I’m sharing this interview with Cara Blue Adams, fiction and non fiction of the Southern Review literary journal in the U.S., for two reasons – and, no, one is not her delightfully quirky name. One, I think her insights on the process submissions go through provide some insight and perspective for writers. Two, I found interesting the discussion about fewer women being published (and perhaps) writing…because with Wadadli Pen it’s actually the opposite. A grad student actually asked me about this once i.e. the level of participation among girls versus boys in Wadadli Pen, and it broke down that in 2004 only 12% of the participants were boys, 18 percent in 2005, 29 percent in 2006, 0 percent in 2010, 16 percent in 2011, 23 percent in 2012. The arts in Antigua, I think, are not seen as manly things, and many of the literary folk I come across (not just in Antigua but in the wider Caribbean) tend to be female, but, interestingly, many of the region’s literary legends are male. Interesting.

Their Eyes were watching God is not only one of my favourite books, Zora Neale Hurston, its author, is one of my literary heroes. For more on her, I recommend Valerie Boyd’s Wrapped in Rainbows. This is not an interview but a discussion with Alice Walker, Sonia Sanchez, and Ruby Dee on Hurston’s writing and legacy. It’s lengthy but worth checking out.

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Jamaica Kincaid, uncensored…but then isn’t she always. And then there’s this one, I’m struck by how pretty she looks in this interview and by these words “I understood the book much better when I was writing it” (I understand this feeling so much as I try to answer questions now like ‘what inspired you to write this book i.e. Oh Gad!’ when that impulse is now a vague memory).

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Surprise, surprise American Scholar Henry Louis Gates is a bibliophile. But do you know which Antiguan author is on his list of essential reading? And which Caribbean writer he’d readily take to the beach again? Check it out.

VISUAL ART

Author of the Caribbean Adventure Series Carol Ottley-Mitchell’s visual tale featuring the resourceful monkey Chee Chee. Perfect for classroom storytime.

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Interview with and analysis of the artistry of up and coming talent Danielle Boodoo Fortune at the ARC.

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Jamaica Kincaid reading at Columbia “the beauty, economy and precision of Kincaid’s prose transports even the most curmudgeonly and aloof reader into the abject state of gushy fandom.” – Saidiya Hartman, professor of English and comparative literature at Columbia university

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Something about this… Doggie in the Picture by Danielle Boodoo Fortune.

…AND HERE’S SOME OF MY STUFF

Excerpt from Oh Gad! (my new book released in 2012)

Friday Night Fish Fry (fiction) @ Sea Breeze – http://www.liberiaseabreeze.com/joanne_c_hillhouse.html

After Glow (fiction) @ Tongues of the Ocean – http://tonguesoftheocean.org/2009/11/after-glow

How to Make Cassava Bread and Other Musings on Culture (non fiction) @ Antigua Stories – http://antiguastories.wordpress.com/food-2/food

At Calabash (non fiction) @ Caribbean Literary Salon – http://wadadlipen.wordpress.com/2010/09/20/at-calabash

Defining Moments (non fiction) @ Geoffrey Philp’s blog – http://geoffreyphilp.blogspot.com/2010/12/defining-momentsjoanne-c-hillhouse.html

Off the Map (non fiction) @ Signifying Guyana -

http://signifyinguyana.typepad.com/signifyin_guyana/2010/12/guest-post-writing-off-the-map-by-joanne-c-hillhouse.html  and again at Blurb is a Verb

What Calypso Taught Me About Writing (non fiction) @ Caribbean Literary Salon – http://caribbeanliterarysalon.ning.com/profiles/blogs/what-calypso-taught-me-about

At Sea (fiction) @ Munyori – http://www.munyori.com/joannehillhouse.html

Pushing Water Up Hill (non fiction) @ Caribbean Literary Salon – http://caribbeanliterarysalon.ning.com/profiles/blogs/pushing-water-up-hill-one

Wadadli Pen – Nurturing Another Generation of Antiguan and Barbudan Writers (non fiction) @ Summer Edward’s blog – http://summeredward.blogspot.com/2010/08/guest-post-by-joanne-c-hillhouse.html

Cold Paradise (fiction) @ Women Writers – http://www.womenwriters.net/aug08/fiction_poetry/Hillhouse_ColdParadise.htm

Somebody! (fiction) @ St. Somewhere – http://visitstsomewhere.blogspot.com

Reflections on Jamaca (non fiction) @ Caribbean Literary Salon – http://wadadlipen.wordpress.com/2010/09/19/reflections-on-jamaica

Portent (fiction) @ Women Writers – http://www.womenwriters.net/aug08/fiction_poetry/Hillhouse_Portent.htm

Philly Ramblings 8 (poetry) @ Ma Comère – http://dloc.com/AA00000079/00004/36j

Ghosts Laments (poetry) @ Small Axe – http://smallaxe.net/wordpress3/prose/2011/06/30/poem-by-joanne-hillhouse

Benediction before the Essence (poetry) @ Women Writers – http://www.womenwriters.net/aug08/fiction_poetry/hillhouse_poetry.html

Prospero’s Education, The Arrival, Da’s Calypso (3 poems) @ Calabash – http://www.nyu.edu/calabash/vol4no2

Interview @ Caribbean Literary Salon – http://caribbeanliterarysalon.ning.com/profiles/blogs/interview-with-joanne-c

 

As with all content on wadadlipen.wordpress.com, except otherwise noted, this is written by Joanne C. Hillhouse (author of The Boy from Willow Bend, Dancing Nude in the Moonlight, and Oh Gad!). All Rights Reserved. If you enjoyed it, check out my page on Amazon and/or Facebook, and help spread the word about Wadadli Pen and my books. You can also subscribe to the site to keep up with future updates. Thanks.

Redrafting

One of the more joyful moments for me during this year’s Wadadli Pen contest – the judging of which is now complete – was receiving the redrafts of most of the short listed pieces. I say most because one writer did not take up the opportunity to review, revise, and resubmit the piece; but, glass is half full, eight of the nine finalists did. The improvements to the re-submitted pieces were noticeable; the stories becoming more fully themselves.

This process was guided by myself and the judges – especially (writing coach) Brenda Lee Browne, who supplied comments specific to each story to help guide the writers shortlisted by first round judge Dotsie Isaac Gellizeau through the review. It was an important exercise, I felt, in helping the young writers (the target group of this programme) understand that writing doesn’t happen in a single breath. It’s not all inspiration, though certainly inspiration is a part of it. Fact is though, writing isn’t paint by the numbers, and for even seasoned writers the process of chiseling a work down to what it can be can take years. And, ideally, what you submit to a contest like this (or to a publication, agent or publisher for consideration) shouldn’t be your first draft. And even after you’ve submitted what could be your 15th or 50th draft, once the work is optioned,  you will still be assigned an editor to help make the work publication ready.  Alternatively, if you’re self-publishing, you’ll likely pay an editor to fulfill this function. Either way, review and revision is part of the writing process. It can be laborious, intense, tedious…but it can be in the end exhilarating.

We hope it was that for this year’s finalists.

We have now collectively determined the overall winners (for both the visual and literary art components of the 2011 challenge), the names will be revealed and the prizes awarded in June at the Best of Books anniversary fair, and there’s still a lot to be done between now and then. But more than anything, I’m thrilled that the writers had the opportunity to see their work evolve. Writing, after all, is a process.

For an interesting discussion on redrafting, check out the Writers Circle.

And finally thanks to the judges – Renee Philip in art, and Dotsie and Brenda Lee in writing – without whose help this entire exercise could not have happened.

Writers groups/Writers workshops

Writers’ groups and/or writers workshops are a valuable way of building skills. I’ve participated in more than a few and can say that I gained something every time. I got the chance to see and hear people respond to what I was creating and through that process found a way to make my writing stronger (even when the reaction was initally not as enthusiastic as I’d hoped and sometimes downright soul crushing).  I found myself slowly creeping out of my shell and developing a comfort level with sharing my work that I might not have other wise. The opportunity to be a part of workshops at University of Miami, Middlebury College and elsewhere were great boosts, but so too my involvement in informal groups like ‘writers block’ -w ith then co workers and like minded literary sisters here in Antigua. I’ve had the opportunity as a maturing writer to facilitate a few writing workshops as well (including 2010′s Express Yourself!) and those too are learning experiencs not just for the ones I’m supposedly schooling but for me as well. And while not now formally part of any group, except perhaps the online writers workshop at CLS, it’s an experience even a loner like me can appreciate and recommend. I’ve found it’s often best where the guidelines are clear and the environment, though critical, nurturing. But when starting or finding a group or workshop of your own, you’ll find a culture that’s the best fit for you.  Pictured  is Brenda Lee Browne, who’s led her share of writers workshops here in Antigua.

New contest opportunity – “Stories Handed Down”

Stories Handed Down is the theme of the Friends of Antigua Public Library’s annual story contest.

In a nutshell, it’s a short story and visual arts competition open to Antiguan students enrolled in forms 1 thru 5. To participate you must have a valid library card and will need to upload the stories before October 22nd.

In many ways, it’s an oral history project as much as it’s a short story/visual arts project as it requires participants to interview an elder. Samples of last year’s winning entries can be found among the other writings on the FOAPL’s Collecting Memories site.

For more on the competition itself visit them online

See samples of standout art entries from 2009 below:

Awaken to the Night by Kennella Charles

[2005 Young Explorer Wadadli Youth Pen Prize Honourable Mention]

The calypsos of the birds outside were muffled by the curtains of the Edward twins’ bedroom, as Rupert Edward pushed aside his bedcovers and ascended towards his brother’s bed mischievously. He was up to no good as usual, attempting to scare his brother out of bed, and by blurting out a single name, succeeded in his boisterous plan.

“Wha happen, Robert, wha mek you so jumpy?” he asked, snickering devilishly.

“You have plenty nerves!” Roger said out of breath, trying to conceal his tears. “You well know that me ‘fraid a de bogyman!”

“Me! Is not me mek him come here a night time,” Rupert reveled.

“Mama Estha!” Robert cried out, tears flowing. In no time their grandmother entered their bedroom door to be greeted by a tearful Robert.

“Wha eh be this time, Rupert, wha trouble-making you up to?” she said as she held Robert, trying to calm him.

Esther Edward was the only living person who could distinguish between her identical grandsons. Mama Estha, as her grandsons called her, was a round woman and a strong believer in God. She had been helping their ever-so-busy father, Ron Edward to raise them ever since their mother, Victoria, died, shortly after giving birth to her mirror twins. Mama Estha loved and treated her only grandchildren as though she had birthed them. Their father was always too busy to raise them himself and usually traveled abroad on business trips. Esther could tell them apart anywhere; back, front, even before they spoke. She truly knew her boys well, even when one had been sad or the other naughty.

“Me ain’t do the fraidy cat nothing, Mama Estha.”

“He lie!” yelled Robert.

“All right, enought a that from de two a you! Rupert, go in me room and read de whole a chapta six in Ephesians.”\

“Mama Estha.”

“Me don talk!” she ordered, still comforting Robert as the other brother stormed to his grandmother’s room.

Radiance of a few rays from the sun seeped trough the bedroom windows and danced on the walls. The abundance of sunlight had been occluded by the abundance of lofty trees, which shielded the barely seen house in the vast countryside.

“He call out de bogyman name when me still a sleep and me wake up,” Robert said, still sobbing. “Last night me hear eh by de window.”

“Hush with you nonsense now; ain’t no such thing as de bogyman. I don’t know wha mek you always mek you brother get the best of you.”

“But Mama Estha me hear eh mek noise outside by de window.”

“You listen to me, see. Maybe a de branches pan de tree by you window when de wind a blow or de fruit bats a fly a night,” she suggested and smiled at him.

“Bats!” he shivered with open eyes. “ That a wha Rupert say de bogyman tun into a night.”

“Nothing tall go so. De fruit bats harmless; de only thing them bite a fruit, not arwe,” she said, assuring him.

He agreed with a nod, but, in his mind, his brother’s exaggerated tales were still lurking.

Since school was closed for the summer, the twins spent the course of their days on their own activities. Rupert being bolder, both far more mischievous and more adventuresome, usually went about his day as a nuisance, while Robert, the more responsible one for an eight year old, helped his grandmother do most of the tasks in and around the house.

As the summer sounds droned on that day, Robert assisted his grandmother in tending to her garden along with a few other chores. Rupert’s schedule consisted of torturing a neighbor’s cat, dismembering a bird’s nest and other terrible duties.

Later in the night, when the boys finished praying and retired to bed, their grandmother slightly opened the window’s shutters to allow some of the night’s cool atmosphere into the room. The nocturnal creatures blossomed to the quartered moon that shined through the windows, investing every thing in the rooms with a calm unnatural luminosity. A pair of short, broad wings extended to take flight, as a grayish-brown figure fluttered along with squeaks of navigation towards an array of fruit trees.

Unaware of a stalking owl, the solitary bat almost became prey to the clutching claws of the night bird. Instead it got injured and found sanctuary by a nearby window ledge at the twins’ bedroom. There was a soft thud on the floor, with an alarming squeak, which startled and woke both boys. Rupert jumped out of bed, then turned on the light without hesitation, and found, to their surprise, a wounded bat, active on their bedroom floor.

Fear came after both boys like a shadow, as they bellowed for their grandmother. To her amazement, when she hastily entered their room both boys were crying and nestled on one bed, pointing to where the uproar began. She then glanced in the direction of the wide-eyed bat.

“All a this racket over a little bat?” she asked, soothingly, as she approached her grandsons with opened arms. “It ain’t no jumby or de bogyman, and it more scared a you than you is a it.”

“No, it a come from eating…somebody, that a way…de blood from!” Rupert stammered.

“No, baby, it look like it hurt.”

“Is not the bogyman?” Robert asked with some relief.

“No, is not no fable a de bogyman. Maybe a this same bat da a you window de otha night.”

Rupert reflected on how ridiculously he had reacted and apologized for teasing his brother about always being scared easily. They both learned a valuable lesson that night and shared an inseparable bond from then on.

THE END

COPYRIGHT INFORMATION & TERMS OF USE
Copyright of the winning Wadadli Pen stories and/or art work featured on this site belongs to the creators of the individual works and are used here purely for promotional and educational purposes. Other blog content, except otherwise noted, is created and/or maintained by Joanne C. Hillhouse. Site content should not be copied, distributed, transmitted, used for commercial purposes, altered, transformed, or built upon without the consent of the copyright holders.

Circular re Express Yourself!

Starting this September, Joanne C. Hillhouse, author of The Boy from Willow Bend , is inviting you to Express Yourself!

You should check it out if you’re a secondary or tertiary student hoping to boost your writing and comprehension skills for all-round success; a young professional or entrepreneur in need of a literary boost; an older person who’s always wanted to write but never quite knew how to get started; a budding scribe with dreams of literary success; a seasoned writer with a project-in-progress in need of critical input; or someone who just wants to write, just because. Joanne is a practicing writer and journalist, coordinator of the Wadadli Youth Pen Prize and judge of numerous literary competitions, with years of experience, a passion for the literary arts, and a commitment to the development of craft. As such, her programme could be a small investment towards realizing your literary goals.

Spaces are limited. For registration information email her at theboyfromwillowbend@yahoo.com before August 30^th 2010.

Depending on the response, this workshop series will be ongoing; so if you’re interested, still email even if you’ve missed the deadline.

ABILF Youth Writing Workshop

When was this? 2008, I think. The instructor pictured is Brenda Lee Browne, former coordinator of the Independence Literary Arts competition, and facilitator of many youth writing workshops both independently and with the Culture Department making her a beloved mentor to many young writers in Antigua and Barbuda. Here she is with one young scribe at a writing workshop sponsored by the Antigua and Barbuda International Literary Festival.