In the October episode of our u3a radio podcast, our team talk to a u3a geologist about his adventures travelling the world, the winners of the u3a creative writing competition and much more. Not yet a member of u3a? Join us now - https://u3a.org.uk/join
- [Nick] Hello, and welcome to episode 11 of the u3a radio podcast, which this month has writing and singing at its core. I'm Nick Bailey and in this edition, we hear from the winners of the u3a creative writing competition.
- [Lynn] My current novel, or not current, the one that I'm trying to get published is actually about a stack of letters that's found, and they're from a first world war young man to his love back in England.
- [Nick] And we talk to the director of the u3a choir about the difficulties of recording during lockdown.
- [Peter] If you've ever tried singing to a microphone and you haven't got an audience, it is one of the hardest things you can do.
- [Nick] We'll hear their latest offering called "After the Storm" at the end of the podcast. But first, we talk to a rock star, or more prosaically, someone who loves to study rocks. Certainly that's the case with Martin Eales, a member of Sutton u3a, who's given talks to u3as nationwide. He spent his life traveling the world as a geologist in the search for oil and gas, and Ela Watts wanted to know which place fascinated him most.
- [Martin] One of, I think the most interesting was the Oman. And I went there. That was about my vapors posting. I went there when the Oman was still at the time of Sinbad the sailor up in the mountains, that oil money hadn't started to flow, and you could really see what it had been like that 2000 years ago you could go up in the mountains and you can see the little hamlets, how they had done things for thousands of years.
- [Ela] So which part of the geological timeline really grabs your interest the most?
- [Martin] When I first went to university, we just had an idea of continents probably drifted around the globe a bit, but we really didn't understand why, and many people rejected that. And then we came up with this idea of plate tectonics, and my early research was actually in looking at how continents did move around and why they moved around. The first time we really recognized this, we went back to about 500 million years or so ago, and so this was a start of what we call complex life at the start of an era we call the Paleozoic, which is just Greek for ancient life. And so that's when you first had your first trilobites for example. it was an area which we could look at in detail, And as I said, it was when you had the burst of evolution. It was lovely and warm then. Life loves warmth. High oxygen and high CO2. Life has to have all of that, so it was a very good time that we could get a kickstart.
- [Ela] Are these the sort of topics that you cover in your talks?
- [Martin] I do a number of talks. Nationally, yes, I've talked a bit about the plate tectonics and continental drift. I'll be having some national talks, talking about the Paleozoic, and so the rocks of Britain during the time of 500 million years, 300 million years.
- [Ela] Is this the unification of the British Isles?
- [Martin] That was one of the first talks I did nationally, and that I find is awfully popular talk in that, how did England decide to get unified with Scotland, or perhaps Scotland decided to stay with England. 500 million years ago, we were about 4,000 kilometers apart. Scotland was at the equator and England was around the south pole, and so it was frightfully lovely and warm up in Scotland, terribly cold in England. England obviously decided they had had enough of that, and so they hurtled northwards and collided with Scotland. And it's interesting, that happened actually about 400 million years ago. And I find it awfully useful to sometimes say, "when was the unification of Scotland with England?" You remember at school, it was James the first, James the sixth of Scotland, James the first of England, 400 years ago. Forget about that, all you need to do is add a million years and you get the real unification of Britain, 400 million years ago.
- [Ela] What's the most interesting meal you've had during the course of your career?
- [Martin] When I was in central Asia, for example, and I was staying in a yurt, all sitting around the yurt, and I was the youngest of the crowd, and probably about the first Europeans, or definitely Western Europeans who had been to that part of the world. So the tradition was who is the youngest, and the youngest, he has to have the goat's head, and so, before anybody else could start their meal, I was given the goats had to start.
- [Ela] What did you think of it?
- [Martin] It was a little bit bony.
- [Nick] Martin Eales with one of his gourmet adventures. I think I would have lied about my age. Martin has more online talks in November and December, and for details, visit the events page at u3a.org.uk. The results of this year's youth U3a creative writing competition in partnership with Bloomsbury have recently been announced. The task was to write an original story of no more than 1500 words on the theme of "unexpected". And over 380 members responded. Panels of regional judges received all the stories anonymously, and as you can imagine, choosing the top three from so many entries must have been very difficult. I have two of the winners with me now, Lynn Carroll from Crediton U3a who came first, and Karen McCreedy from Bognor Regis who came third. Unfortunately, Jane Morgan from Peterborough who came second, doesn't have access to zoom, but I'll be reading part of her story later. So I'll go in reverse order and speak to Karen first. Karen, welcome. Have you entered creative writing competitions before?
- [Karen] Yes, I have, and I've been fortunate enough to be relatively successful in getting short stories into anthologies and that sort of thing for about the last 10 years or so. Yeah, it's still, with that number of entries it's always a thrill to come in the top three.
- [Nick] Was writing parts of your career?
- [Karen] No, not, not my career, but it's something that I've always been interested in. At school I was scribbling stories for my mates and I did a bit of fan fiction and stuff as I was getting older, but it's only the last sort of 10, 15 years that I've managed to make enough time in my day, since I moved to Bognor, that I've been able to, to write stories, and also I've had three novels published as well, in the last three years.
- [Nick] And this is not self-published, these are, these were through a proper publishing house, is that right?
- [Karen] I was fortunate to get a three book deal with a publisher called "mirror world" who pay me quite good royalties, and my book is called "Unreachable skies", and then it's, the whole trilogy has, has that, book two is "Exile", and book three is "Ascent". It is science fiction.
- [Nick] Well, I mean, that's every author's dream, isn't it, to get published.
- [Karen] Yes, it did take me 18 months to get the book deal, but it was worth it in the end.
- [Nick] Is this something you're going to continue? Would you like to be a full-time author and that, and just live off those earnings?
- [Karen] That would be nice, but I, not sure that I can quite see that happening. But I write really for, for the enjoyment of writing and I am currently working on a fourth novel, which is completely separate to the proposed three, so I'm gonna continue doing it.
- [Nick] And does writing come naturally, or do you have to take a long time over it?
- [Karen] I do take a while to do it. My first draft is never, ever good enough. And I do go back and revise and edit and revise and edit, and run it past people who I know will give me constructive feedback and then I'll revise some more. So it does take me a while to actually put these things together, but obviously once I'd got the book deal, then I had to kind of get my act together and make sure that books two and three actually got completed on time.
- [Nick] Now, Karen, you mentioned that your trilogy is sort of science fiction, and I think that the story that you submitted to the u3a creative writing competition has a sort of science fiction element to it, doesn't it? Because all the entrants were told to write on the theme of "unexpected", we don't want obviously to read the end of the story because that would spoil it, because I'm going to direct people to the website later, so they can read the story, all stories in their entirety. But if I can get you, Karen, to read just the first part of your story, so to give us an idea of what it's about.
- [Karen] Trial and error. When Benjamin Taylor strode through my office wall, I thought I've been working too hard. It's not every day that PhD students walk through bricks and mortar, and anyway, Ben was the last person I'd have expected to pull such a stunt. He detested practical jokes, kept his head down, questioned, learned, stayed late at the laboratory and pressed his supervisors for answers we didn't always have. Skinny, scruffy and extremely bright. It was Ben's drive to succeed that made him exceptional. I truly believed the lad was earmarked for greatness, until the morning he emerged from the plasterwork as dynamic and apparently solid as a lab rat on amphetamines. "Professor Brook", he blurted, pacing about in front of my desk while I mopped up the coffee I'd spilled over the notes of my research paper. "Help me".
- [Nick] So that's how Karen's story starts. And these stories are really absolutely exceptional, but I won't be a spoiler and give the game away. You'll have to read them yourself. before I speak to Lynn, I want to mention Jane Morgan, who came second from Peterborough u3a, and her story, "a cup of tea and a kind word", and here's the first paragraph, The elderly taxi driver let from his seat as the cab arrived at Waterloo station. He opened the rear door and saluted as Alexander struggled from his seat to the ground, feeling in his pocket for money. "No charge gov. Never ask a hero for money, too bloody grateful for what you did. Somme, was it?" The young man steadied himself and grunted his thanks before hobbling slowly into the main entrance. He picked his way to the free buffet and ordered a cup of wheat tea and a rock cake. A couple were just leaving, and Alexander took their place at a table by the window. An elderly woman appeared and asked if she could take the other spare seat. He nodded, however engrossed in his own troubles, the rules of politeness drummed into him by his father and prep school were automatic. He just hoped the old dear wouldn't want to talk. Predictably, she did. So that's Jane's story, but I'm now going to speak to Lynn Carroll, who was first place in this competition. Lynn, welcome, and we're going to hear part of your story, "The road to Lille" shortly. Talking to Karen earlier, and she's had this book deal. I think a trilogy of books with an actual proper publisher. Is that something that you've managed to do, or certainly want to do?
- [Lynn] I'm envious, I have, I have finished a novel, and I'm on my second novel. The first one, I'm plowing at the moment through submitting to publishers and literary agents. I've had three rejections so far, so I'll keep plugging on. I understand that it's part of the process, so I'm, I'm still keen, but I'm working on my second novel as I go. And like Karen was saying, I get great enjoyment from the feedback that I get from people. And also, I learn from it a great deal.
- [Nick] Well, Karen said her preferred style of writing is, or subject matter is science fiction. Do you have a particular subject that you like to write about?
- [Lynn] I'm definitely more towards the women's fiction, not Chicklets. It's definitely a story, but aimed really I'm being a bit sexist about this, but it is the term is the genre is women's fiction, but it's very much a story, but often there's a historical bend to it. My current novel or not current, the one that I'm trying to get published is actually about a stack of letters that's found, and then from a first world war young man to his love back in England, so there are parallels with the current time because the woman who finds them is actually a widow of an army officer who was killed in Afghanistan. So there is the contrast between what the young man's going through in the trenches, and his change of attitude, from his excitement at actually going abroad, being sent to war, going to fight for this country, right through to the investigation that the modern time woman does to try and find out who this young man was and who he was writing to.
- [Nick] Did you have an arts connection with your career?
- [Lynn] People tell me I should be writing, why am I not writing thrillers, or crying, because I was actually in criminal justice. I was in the police force and then I was in criminal justice and training, so all through my career, I've written reports and criminal justice training materials and speeches, but it's so wonderful. I'd love to be able to get back, like I was at school, as Karen said, I was always scribbling at school, loved it. It was my subject was English, and particularly writing. It's been wonderful to be able to get back to, to fiction, to create, be creative, instead of being very factual and very serious subjects like homicide and domestic violence. I could write a novel very easily about those, but I'm loving being back to being creative, and I love history, so although I would not call what I write historical novels, they definitely have a historic, historical bend to them, and a lot of research.
- [Nick] That's certainly what comes across in the story that you've written for this competition, "The road to Lille", there's history, there's war. Again, I'm not gonna give anything away, but can I get you to read the first paragraph of your story?
- [Lynn] Of course. Well, this is second world war, that's not giving anything away. It's called "The road to Lille". They hadn't anticipated midnight. The forecast had predicted low cloud cover. They swooped onto the cornfield like two jellyfish drifting to the seabed. Olivia dashed to the hedge which boarded the field, scooping and wrapping her parachute as fast as at any time during her training. she stuck the silicone bundle into the base of the hedge and squatted down, checking her pocket for the map while attempting to slow her breathing. Sweat was creeping down her back and her mouth felt dry. She watched as Hopkins landed and disappeared, leaving the field still and silent. Their orders have been to separate and have no further contact. So far, so good.
- [Nick] The story, because I've read it, all of it had me on the edge of my seat. I mean, I must say it was fantastic, So I'd love to read any of your books once they are published, or even before they're published. would you consider expanding on this and making this a full novel?
- [Lynn] I could. I'm not sure I'd use exactly that, but it's certainly given me some ideas as to, I really like the character, and it's strange, when I've written, and with my first novel, I was almost disappointed when I finished, and Karen's said first was a series of three, which is wonderful. I wish in a way I had started the story as a three because I miss the characters. I, you get to know the characters so well, I mean, my, my story is 65,000 odd words, my novel, and those characters become real. I miss them, so I might, I might consider making this into a full time story, a full novel.
- [Nick] Karen, listening to Lynn there, and I asked the question about whether she would maybe want to extend what she entered for the competition to a full full-blown novel. Would you be tempted to do the same with your story?
- [Karen] No, I, if I get the idea for a short story, it tends to stay a short story. Whatever I write, I do need to know before I put anything down on paper, I need to know how it's going to end. I can't just find a character and kind of wing it and see where they go, the way that some people quite cleverly do. So once I've got the beginning and the end in my head, and then I sort of fill in the middle, then that tends to be it.
- [Nick] I Asked you about whether your career had had anything to do with writing, but did it have anything to do with science fiction?
- No. Well, I did 23 years in the civil service, so you can work that one out.
- [Nick] Well, that says it all really, doesn't it? Well, Karen and Lynn, thank you very much, indeed. And in absentia, Jane Morgan, congratulations, all of you. The top three winners out of 382 entries. I mean, that is some achievement, and I wish you the best of luck, Karen, with your continued publishing of the books that seem to be very successful. And of course, Lynn, I hope you do get eventually your first novel published. Thank you, both. And Jane, who will be listening to this, thank you all very much.
- [Lynn And Karen] Thank you.
- [Nick] And to read the top three stories in their entirety, and indeed all the runners up, just go to our website at u3a.org.uk. We move on now from writing to singing. During our various lockdowns, lots of ingenious ways of listening, learning, and performing have emerged. One popular idea has been virtual choirs, and this has led to a special u3a song with a choir of members from all around the country. It's the brainwave of amateur composer and singer, Richard Keoghoe of Plymouth u3a. Called "After the storm", a reference to life after lockdown, it's a video of music and art, but as he explained to Joanne Watson, he knows that singers need to hold their nerve when recording their voice at home alone.
- [Richard] If you've ever tried singing to a microphone and you haven't got an audience, it is one of the hardest things you can do. Not only that, if you're in a choir, you've got people either side of you, and you've got some sort of guide and you think, "Well, I'm doing a bit wrong there, I'll correct that a little bit", and you've got rehearsal and rehearsal rehearsal before you have your performance. When you're working on your own, you haven't got that support network. It's just you and the microphone, and some earphones. I find it very difficult indeed. I did say when I spoke to them all, is it doesn't matter if you're off a little bit. You think your voice is terrible. It's okay, because I'm gonna do it as well, and I'm gonna have the same feelings as you are when it comes to recording your voice. And it's okay, because if you go wrong, I can correct it, I can push it up, I can push it down, I can move it to the left, move it to the right, and just bring it together so it sounds just right. And I had an quite enthusiastic response, 40 or so people who sent in their recordings, some of which actually sent more than one recording of themselves, so you can imagine, if you can put the same person on each track, singing over, you've got a choir. And it's a long process, but at the end, the end result is very, very pleasing.
- [Jo] One thing that's interesting is that the, your choristers come from all around the country, don't they, they're not just with you in Plymouth, you've got them hundreds of miles away.
- [Richard] I had two assistant leaders, Sandy from Bromley and Jane from the Wirral. One looked after the Sopranos, one looked after the Altos when we were rehearsing, but we had people from Scotland, all the way down Britain, loads of u3a's I've never even heard of all over the country.
- [Jo] Now, one interesting thing is it's not just a song, but it's actually a video with photographs and some great photos that have been contributed as well, so was that part of the original idea?
- [Richard] Yeah, absolutely. And we had some tremendous contributions. The end product I had in mind would be the music and, a chance for people to display their art and photographic work to the theme of "After the storm".
- [Jo] It's called "After the storm", so what I want to know Richard is, does it have a happy ending?
- [Richard] We hope so. We would like it to have a happy and joyful and sunny ending. The intention was to come to a big crescendo at the end, and it seemed to work really well with the singers because they really rose to the occasion.
- [Nick] The u3a choir with "After the storm" composed by Richard Keoghoe, and featuring pictures submitted by u3a members. And it's u3a members who keep this podcast going, either by being directly involved or by suggesting stories. Maybe you've published a novel or you've done an amazing feat for charity, or perhaps now that life has gradually coming back to normal, you can eventually realize a long-held ambition. email us at communications@u3a.org, and we could be sharing your story nationwide. And that's it for this episode, my thanks to Joanne Watson and Ela Watts for the interviews, and to Ela for producing the podcast. Until next time, this is Nick Bailey saying goodbye.