Currently working on: Expanding a story
Mood: Widening

Last weekend, I went to the Oregon Coast with some writer friends for a beach retreat. (I accidentally typed “treat” and it WAS a treat.) Writing retreats are enormous fun, of course, but I also want the time to be productive. So here are some of my suggestions for a productive writing retreat:

Go to the beach at a yucky time of year.

At the Oregon Coast, you can be guaranteed gusting rain November through July (and prohibitive prices August through September). So usually the horizontal “moisturizing and exfoliating” is enough to keep us inside at our computers.

Here’s a picture of me, measuring how many words I have yet to add. See, this is why you go to the beach in bad weather. Sunshine DEMANDS a walk on the beach.

Bring the right friends.

It’s best to surround yourself with writers who share similar productivity goals. Friends who constantly tempt you to walk on the beach as the sun sets are counterproductive.

Sadly, it turns out I am that friend. So don’t bring me. Except you have to bring me because I always bring the mint brownies.

Find an inspiring spot.

Not only is the right physical spot important — like this lovely little beach house surrounded by chirping frogs — but the right spot in your mindset and your work in progress.

I try to prepare for a writing retreat by making sure I have the right sort of project and that I clear my “real life” of distractions that might creep into the weekend. Actually, this last weekend, I did a bad job of choosing the project. I’m working on revising, and I found that I did not do as well as when I bring a hot draft to a retreat. I’ll know that for next time.

Never mind the inspiration, just focus!

Part of my problem with choosing a revision project instead of a hot draft, is that when I’m revising, I tend to stare off into space while I think. When I’m at home, in my little office, there’s not much to look at and I quickly go back to work. But at the beach… I just stared at the waves for hours! I needed to bring my focus closer.

A good writing retreat has a clear focus, whether it’s writing, brainstorming or just refilling the well. Be sure you know what purpose your retreat will serve.

Track progress on the retreat days.

Like tracking the sun across the sky… It’s easier for me to stay accountable if I track my progress in three chunks during a retreat day: morning session, afternoon session, evening session. If I only review my progress once at the end of the day, I might find I didn’t do enough, but now it’s too late. If I track in chunks, then a slacker morning session (sun on the beach!) can be rectified in the afternoon, or a slow afternoon (afternoon nap on the sunny beach!) can be made up in the evening (no sun).

Indulge.

As much as I want a writing retreat to be productive, well, it is a retreat. I try to capture some of that glory — and some of that sun — and take it back with me to rainy Portland.

Do you have a favorite getaway that never fails to rejuvenate you? Do you bring back souvenirs? I love to find good rocks.

Currently working on: Hot draft of new story
Mood: Borne & buffeted

Sometime in January, I like to pull my Tarot cards for a start-of-the-year spread, to see where I’m at. This year, so far, I’ve been too busy to take a quiet night to get into the right space to think about things. But with the month almost over (and how did THAT happen?!) I figured I better get at least ONE card done so I’d have something to contemplate on my dog walks.

I pulled the Page of Swords. I use the Mythic Tarot deck by Juliet Sharman-Burke and Liz Greene, illustrated by Tricia Newell. This deck features Greek mythology which I loved as a kid, so I relate to the stories.

The Page of the Swords is represented by Zephyrus, the Greek god of the West Wind. His card is ambivalent — as the Swords tend to be cards that poke at your complacency — since he and his brother the North Wind started out as malicious little shits, prone to starting storms just to knock things over. Eventually Zephyrus married Isis of the rainbow, which mellowed him out. But still, having him start my year gives me lots to think about.

The positive aspects of Zephyrus as the Page of Swords are curiosity, enthusiasm and the emergency of new ideas. The downsides are irritability and petty quarrels that blow up into battles. As I move forward with some new story ideas, I guess I better practice my patience. That’s usually on my list of New Years Resolutions, so I suppose that’s okay. Sigh.

I like this picture of Zephyrus because he is puffing up all these great clouds leading into a blue sky… but the way he is holding the sword makes me think he is about to burst his own bubble. He had better be careful which bubbles he bursts, since some of them are holding him aloft. I better make sure I’m puffing up the right dreams. Not there’s anything wrong with walking sometimes. Ask my dog.

If you play with tarot cards, did you get any thoughtful readings for the new year? Or if you want me to pull a card for you, just let me know in comments and I’ll see which Greek myth might be right for you.

We only get a couple of snows a year — if that — in Portland proper, so every inch is a treasure. At 1 a.m. we were out playing. Good thing too, because it was gone by morning. All that was left were some leaves suspended in the slush.

Authors write books. Reviewers sometimes review those books. They are sorta like strangers who come together for a night of passion and now are unwed parents, sharing this one thing — the story — in common. Hopefully it’s a thing they both love, and they work together to introduce it to the world.** But sometimes the relationship isn’t so smooth. And then the best you can hope for is no unnecessary screaming.***

So in the interest of promoting less screaming, here are my thoughts:

1. You don’t have the right to be a dick. That’s true for authors and reviewers. Nobody can stop you from being a dick, of course, but it’s not a right. It’s wrong. How about just don’t be a dick?

I realize the problem here might be in the interpretation. One man’s dick is another man’s… Uh, well, that analogy is sort of falling apart, but you know what I mean. I have to think, though, most people can identify a dick when they see one (we’re romance readers after all) so just don’t be that guy.

2. Everybody DOES have the right to free speech. That is an actual inalienable right spelled out across the real world (not just teh interwebz) in various bills, constitutions, declarations, international covenants, etc. I get annoyed when some people say some other people have the right to speak freely and yet other people don’t. You can stand on either side of the author/reviewer equation and find a few saying the other side shouldn’t speak. Sorry, it’s my right, and yours too.

The corollary, of course, is that speech has consequences. Again, that’s true of both sides, authors and reviewers. A good rule to go with the right is “Think before you speak/send.” If you have the strength of your convictions and you’re willing to live with the consequences of your speech, then yay you.

3…. No, there is no number 3. Don’t be a dick. Speak freely. That’s it, I think.

* In case you missed it (which I’m slightly ashamed to admit I had) fabulous author Jess Haines has a convenient roundup of links along with her take on the kerfuffling.

** Some people object to anthropomorphizing stories as babies, but this is my analogy. Go get your own.

*** I’m sorry that in this analogy the reviewer is the dead-beat dad, but I think we all know that the burden usually falls on the mother, and of course the story is the primary responsibility of the author.