Greetings on a lovely Tuesday morning!  With all the rain behind us for the moment, I can calm down and think again about my fabulous weekend at WRWDC’s annual retreat, In the Company of Writers.

This is one of my favorite retreats. It’s small and relaxed, but still has the energy that comes from friends meeting for two full days to talk about writing and publishing, in every possible format.

What were my favorite parts of the retreat?

A serious moment – the Magic Crystal service award.

• The food. Seriously. It just kept coming – although the Saturday night desserts caused a near stampede. One poor waiter saw his tray of cheesecake slices vanished before he could get them to the serving table.
• The seminars – My favorites: Bella Andre’s Ten Tips to Indie Success, Elaine English on Copyright (yes, it really was interesting) and the Keynote speeches. I know I’m leaving something out, but everyone put on such a great presentation, and I couldn’t be everywhere at once!
• The bar. Yes. Seriously. We all were given a ticket for a free drink to start the weekend off. Need I say more?
• The Editor/Agent appointments – where we are ushered into a private room with our editors and have a chance to chat. I had a request!
• 

  Mermaid Kerri’s first author basket – I won it!

  Raffle baskets. This is a big deal with WRW – the drawings took nearly an hour on Sunday afternoon. I won two baskets!

• Camaraderie – Should I have listed this first? The dynamics of the retreat is that of meeting old friends, rekindling friendships, and making new friends. For me, it was my first retreat under my new pseudonym.  On one level, I expected someone to tell me, “Who are you kidding? That’s not your name!” Didn’t happen.

Last, the Elvis Romance Jeopardy game. Imagine 100 women, many dressed in varying degrees of Elvis-ness. You had to be there. You really did.

Wild and Crazy at Elvis Romance Jeopardy – at least we didn’t lose!

Seriously. You had to be there.