Writers make mark at café meetings

DECATUR- Wander into the tea room of Decatur's Wildflour Artisan Bakery & Café on a Wednesday afternoon, and you're liable to meet some authors.

Some, such as Tim Wilkerson, can boast of completing multiple novels, great writing challenges envisioned and overcome through persistence and more than a little group assistance.

Others such as Patricia Lathrom are lifelong journalers currently working toward their first truly large-scale writing projects for publication.

But what they all share in common is a desire to help and motivate each other to the goal.

"It's just been fantastic, they've really helped me improve my writing style," said Wilkerson, a "semiretired" computer technician and Sullivan resident who joined the group last fall. "There are people here from all walks of life who meet just to socialize about writing and help each other reach our goals."

Wilkerson is the author of "The Yesterday Series," a trilogy of science fiction novels about members of a wedding party who are suddenly and mysteriously transported into Earth's distant future. He self-published the books through Amazon, which handles printing and retailing, although copies can also be found at the Decatur Public Library. He's also completed a memoir about his 26 years in the military, along with his most recent sci-fi novel, titled "Asteroid Crisis."

Much of the productivity he credits to the writing group, which meets at 3 p.m. every Wednesday at Wildflour.

"One of the things we always do is share our work with one another, and we also do some writing assignments together," he said. "We critique each other's work lovingly but bluntly, and it helps quite a bit."

The group began meeting informally shortly after Wildflour opened, in early 2011, according to owner Kelly Wingard.

As a fellow writer, she was involved in the earlier sessions and watched as they took off in popularity. The group is now composed of an extended network of writers that numbers nearly 40, although a much smaller number typically meet on a weekly basis. Wingard remains surprised by the group's growth and output.

"I'm completely shocked how it's sustained itself and become a weekly event," she said. "I never thought it would turn into the dependable presence it's become."

One of the things that makes the writers circle unique is the sheer variety of projects being worked on by its members.

Decatur native Doug Hazelrigg, for instance, has primarily written screenplays in recent years, but after working with the group, he's focusing on his first novel. His past production, though, includes a variety of unusual projects such as a prospective screenplay for a "Star Wars Episode 7" feature film written years before that project was announced.

"There's a bit of intergroup competition here, but everyone is simultaneously supportive and honest in their criticisms," he said. "And I think everyone would say it's all about getting that honest feedback."

Patricia Lathrom, meanwhile, is one of the members who has been with the group longest. She stumbled upon it while writing at Wildflour, where she says she overheard another group "saying writerly type things." The group soon became a permanent fixture for her as she continues to work on her first major memoir projects.

"I get up in the morning on a good day, and I write," said the former teacher and current administrative assistant at Gallery 510, who has been journaling every day since 1968. "If I can't write that day, it feels like an empty and unfulfilling day."

Those are clearly the words of someone who takes writing pretty seriously. The members of the writer's circle take the opportunity to hear each of the others' latest works just as seriously.

"When someone brings in something to read, you have a glimpse into that someone's soul," Lathrom said. "It is that kind of connection that gives meaning to life."