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A Writer’s Retreat

by J.K. Coi 27 October 2009 6 Comments

I was very lucky this weekend to be able to take part in a retreat with five other authors that I know from my RWA Chapter. We got together and rented a really nice little suite at a ski chalet. Of course, we did it in October so as not to be tempted to go skiing since there’s no actual snow yet

It was great to get together with friends and enjoy the company of some people I only see every few months or so, and a very productive and inspiring writing weekend.

We arrived on Friday evening and after catching up and getting comfortable (in my red kitty cat pajamas!) with a nice glass of wine, it was time for a brainstorming/plotting session! We even had chart paper and big square sticky notes. (Here’s to raiding the supply closet at the day job) I have to admit, this was my most productive moment. I didn’t get any words written that first night because I was having serious plot issues and had to figure out how to work my next major turning point — I’m heading into the black moment!

It was a late night, but I was still up really early, eager to get started on a full day of writing. I don’t usually get a chance to write all day on the weekends. Saturdays and Sundays are family days at home, so if I get any writing done, it’s minimal, usually less than what I would write in an evening during the week. The chance to write ALL DAY without interruption was invaluable.

As a group, we did a series of timed writings. One for the morning, another two in the afternoon, and again after dinner. Usually around 1 hour long each. After which, we accounted for our total wordage and took a breather. It was a great day Saturday too, so we went for a bit of a walk outside to get some air. Sunday morning it was tidying up time with one last writing session and then back in the car to head home.

Like I said, I don’t get a chance to do this often, so I really wanted to make the most of it. The great part of being able to participate in something like this is the amazing energy and motivation that comes with being in a room full of such great writers. It’s also good to have a change of scenery when you really need to focus on something. I know that if I had been at home there would have been a hundred things to take me away from the computer–laundry, cooking, shopping, kiddo, kiddo, kiddo… (I love him, but he’s not focus friendly)

Final weekend wordcount: 5,000 words and one 1500 word plot plan

Have you ever been able to take part in something like this? Is it an opportunity you’d be interested in?

J.K. Coi
Immortals to Die For
www.jkcoi.com

6 Comments »

Stacey Joy Netzel said:

J.K., your weekend sounds GREAT! I get together with two writer friends of mine every couple months and do an overnight plotting weekend. We had to cancel our last one because of the stupid flu, but hopefully we’ll get together soon. We don’t do writing sessions like you guys did, mostly the brainstorming, but we do get lots done and usually enjoy a nice dinner and a movie, too. I highly recommend it to anyone that can do it.

# 27 October 2009 at 6:04 am

Lavada Dee said:

I haven’t done anything like this so can’t add anything. It sounds like not only fun and productive but motivating too.

# 27 October 2009 at 9:16 am

Laurie Ryan said:

I haven’t done anything like this, but have been seriously thinking about it. I really appreciate you showing the structure of the weekend as I could not figure out how to design writing times. Thanks for the great blog!

# 29 October 2009 at 9:13 am

JK Coi (author) said:

It was a really good weekend, and I couldn’t believe how much motivation and energy I got out of it. I’m still on a roll this week and sticking to my nightly wordcount goals has been easier now that I was able to work out some of the kinks in my plot.

Stacey, good for you that you’re able to do something similar on a regular basis. Being busy women with jobs and family to take care of, not to mention that each of us live in separate cities within about a 1-2 hour drive away, we decided that we could probably only realistically do this every 6 months or so–I’m already looking forward to the next one!

# 29 October 2009 at 9:19 am

JK Coi (author) said:

Lavada, I suggest trying it out if you can. The good thing about it was that we were all on the same page about what we expected of the weekend. We weren’t exactly slave drivers, but we were serious about getting some writing done, so weren’t fooling around and gossiping (too much)

# 29 October 2009 at 9:20 am

JK Coi (author) said:

Laurie, the timed writings worked really well for the wordcount because we’d set the timer for, say, one hour and you could take a break afterward. Plus, after that hour we compared words, and it was always a competition to see who had written the most–but healthy competition!

# 29 October 2009 at 9:22 am