Friday, April 10, 2009

Back from the Retreat

I'm back from the G-Nom Writers Retreat.
A great time.
Man, did I enjoy myself.
Got a lot of writing done too, which is always nice.

Here I am, sending Maggie to a whorehouse.

This is why I never get asked anywhere.

I'm a 91,000 words (out of 116,000) through Draft Two.
It'll get longer before it gets shorter again.

Here's Jenny Meyers doing just terrrible things to her characters.





Tara Parker and Jen Hendren.
Plotting.






And more plotting.
This time with Beth Shope.
Beth Shope plots with knives and prison escapes.
Beware.






We snuck off to watch men in tights ride horses and fight with swords and lances and shields and morningstars and maces.
Much Woot Woot.


Nature cooperated by being superbly stormy and romantic.

The angst was so thick you could cut it up and insert it into Chapter Eight.


The Birds.
The Birds.
AAAAARRRRRGGGGGHHHH.



Donna Rubino discusses minor changes.

If those don't work . . .








Eh.













Me, drinking coffee.

Shall I kill somebody off right in the opening action? Or is this like kicking a puppy?

Sip.
Sip.

I do kill people in Chapter Twelve.
Surely that's enough.

Sip.
Sip.


Friends.
Fresh fruit. Coffee.
My computer.
Revolutionary France.

It doesn't get any better than this.

12 comments:

  1. Awww! Looks like fun - despite the windiness :-) So jealous of y'all! xx

    ReplyDelete
  2. Knives? Prison breaks? Calumny! Sheer calumny!

    ReplyDelete
  3. Donna Rubino11:19 PM

    LOL! Madame Novelist, you are a dangerous woman to know... but such fun.

    ReplyDelete
  4. Missed the contest, but dropped by to say - voted for you, can't believe you didn't win! (Even though I didn't read The Other Book) I think the best strategy is to write another amazing story, so that when DABWAHA comes along again next year, you can get kind of a Susan Lucci sympathy vote in addition to all the regular ones. What do you think?

    ReplyDelete
  5. Hi M --

    I am completely in love with so many of these books in the contest. I would have been happy for any of them to win.

    I'm kinda surprised I made it as far as I did.

    ReplyDelete
  6. Jo,

    It really was the best weekend. (Well, I could've done without the birds!)

    ReplyDelete
  7. G-Nom. Ha! You're funny. Is it always the same place that your group goes to every year? How did you first plan your retreat? What's on the agenda? How to ensure that people actually work and don't simply waste time gossiping? Any suggestions for good retreat spots? Thanks.

    ReplyDelete
  8. @ Keira. This was on the coast, north of Myrtle Beach. What made it work was being 'off season'. I think that's the way to do it. You go someplace off season.

    For the rest, you gotta talk to Beth Shope. She's the organizational genius.

    I don't know why it worked out this way, but everybody at this one was just mad for working. Had to drag 'em away from the computers to eat.

    ReplyDelete
  9. Hello Jo:

    Oh, I'm so jealous.

    What a delight to see all these familiar names with faces attached. Thanks for the peek.

    My husband and I had our honeymoon in Myrtle Beach, it was wonderful.

    Cindy D

    ReplyDelete
  10. Hi Cindy --

    I love the beach off-season. Just so beautiful.

    JoB

    ReplyDelete
  11. Wow. A retreat like that could almost make me want to *write* a book.

    ....

    Nah. Too much work. I'd rather read them!

    ReplyDelete
  12. @ Nicola --

    Writing books is great fun. I know I grouse and complain continually, but it is a blast.

    I have to recommend it.

    ReplyDelete