VP Rotary hears novel ideas about going to the U.S. Congress

Image

As the club closed out the month of October, the Ville Platte Rotary Club heard from one of its own about putting ideas to paper and writing the next great American novel.
Rotarian Margie Mealer, the director of the Evangeline Parish Library, spoke about a national program going through the month of November called NaNoWriMo, which stands for National Novel Writing Month.
“The idea is this is a good time to start writing a book,” said Mealer. “The idea is to write 1,500 words a day. That comes out to a page-and-a-half or maybe a little more. It probably would only take you about 10 or 15 minutes.”
“But, by the end of the month, you have about 45,000 words written, and that’s usually two or three chapters into a good book,” she continued. “By dedicating that time everyday, you develop a habit. The hope is you continue it after the month of November is over.”
Mealer then gave some ideas on how to develop the habits. “If you are a morning person, you can start your day off with it,” she said. “While your coffee is brewing, you can sit down and jot down a few words. If you are not a morning person, you can do it in the evening before you go to sleep. You could write about the day’s events or something like that.”
She continued, “You could do it in a very formal manner at a desk. You could do it in an easy chair. You could do it on the front porch by hand or by pen. You could do it on the computer. You could start with an idea from the beginning and write a progression, or you could just jot down notes and see what comes out in the end. The idea is to just get started.”
Mealer then explained the novel writing can continue beyond November. “At the end of the 30 days, you can decide what you want to do with it,” she said. “Do you want to keep it and work on it year round until you decide it’s completed, or do you want to put it away until next year and pick it up next year to see where it goes?”
She concluded with the most important part to writing any novel. “If you write an awesome novel and you decide to get it published, one of the most important things about a book is the dedication,” she expressed. “And, if it happens to say ‘This is dedicated to the librarian who inspired me,’ I will know you mean me.”
A week later during the first meeting in November, the Rotary Club heard from Jerrie LeDoux who is the congressional aide to United States Congressman Mike Johnson. Congressman Mike Johnson represents the 15 parishes from the Arkansas border to St. Landry Parish that make up the 4th Congressional District.
According to LeDoux, since first being elected to Congress, Congressman Johnson balances life on Capitol Hill with family life here at home. “He leaves on Monday and flies to D.C. and returns on Friday,” she said. “When he gets home, he has daddy duties. He’s either dropping off or picking up children.”
While in D.C., Congressman Johnson has so far passed eight original bills through the legislative process. “His latest legislation is designed to untangle some of the burdensome regulations,” said LeDoux. “His first piece of legislation signed was to reduce the duplication of some of the environmental permit processes for people on the Red River. He’s hit the ground running.”
Through his work in Congress over his first two years in office, Congressman Johnson has gained the respect of fellow Republican lawmakers.
LeDoux said, “About a month ago, he was approached to join the Republican Study Committee. The Republican Study Committee is the largest caucus in D.C., and the focus of that committee is to set the tone and direction for legislation.”
“Next week,” she continued, “they will have an election. We are hoping Congressman Johnson will be the next chairman. That will be very impactful for the State of Louisiana. He will be able to put our values to the forefront of what’s going on in D.C.”
LeDoux also said the congressman is now working on ways to help with the issue of U.S. Highway 167 along with other issues in Evangeline Parish. “Congressman Johnson’s office is here to serve you,” she concluded.