Getting Away...to Write
We spent the last five days in the beautiful San Juan Mountains at a place called Priest Gulch Campground, RV Park, Cabins and Lodge.
( http://priestgulch.com/ )
This is Mike's and my second year writing in River House 2 (see cabins). Marne joined us this year.
What motivation the mountains, trees, river and wild birds were for me. No matter where we were in the cabin, we could hear the river. Marne and I spent most of the time on a wonderful wrap around porch overlooking the Dolores River. Each of us with only one headphone on. Tuned into our favorite music on Pandora with one ear and the river with the other. Thank goodness for Pandora, because Marne and I have very different taste in music and music is important to each of us when writing.
No cell phone service or phones in the cabins, but we did have WiFi. None of the teenagers could reach us except through Facebook. :)
Having Marne and Mike clicking away on their computers next to me helped my motivation as well. I accomplished much, both on my story bible and my manuscript. Twenty new pages of work I’m excited about. I’m loving my story and my characters. Mike and Marne seem to be happy with their accomplishments as well.
I don’t have pictures, because although I always bring along my camera (and phone), I never think to use either one of them. No doubt Marne will post a couple of the pics she took.
What motivates you? Do you get the chance to get away to write? Where do you go?
We spent the last five days in the beautiful San Juan Mountains at a place called Priest Gulch Campground, RV Park, Cabins and Lodge.
( http://priestgulch.com/ )
This is Mike's and my second year writing in River House 2 (see cabins). Marne joined us this year.
What motivation the mountains, trees, river and wild birds were for me. No matter where we were in the cabin, we could hear the river. Marne and I spent most of the time on a wonderful wrap around porch overlooking the Dolores River. Each of us with only one headphone on. Tuned into our favorite music on Pandora with one ear and the river with the other. Thank goodness for Pandora, because Marne and I have very different taste in music and music is important to each of us when writing.
No cell phone service or phones in the cabins, but we did have WiFi. None of the teenagers could reach us except through Facebook. :)
Having Marne and Mike clicking away on their computers next to me helped my motivation as well. I accomplished much, both on my story bible and my manuscript. Twenty new pages of work I’m excited about. I’m loving my story and my characters. Mike and Marne seem to be happy with their accomplishments as well.
I don’t have pictures, because although I always bring along my camera (and phone), I never think to use either one of them. No doubt Marne will post a couple of the pics she took.
What motivates you? Do you get the chance to get away to write? Where do you go?
Your writing getaway sounds idyllic! Color me jealous. My usual spot away from the house and all its distractions is Starbucks or my horse's stall. But I've always wanted to rent a house on a beach in the winter.
ReplyDeleteI can write almost anywhere -- a weekly deadline will do that -- but writing is so much more difficult with all the distractions of home. My favorite place to write is a library: Surrounded by all the books for further inspiration, and with no housework or other chores to do.
ReplyDeleteI write mainly at home - I live alone, so I don't have distractions there, and that's where my PC (desktop) is. I have been known, though, to write on busses and trains or in cafes, though I have to do that longhand. Your getaway sounds beautiful, but I'd probably be out walking, rather than writing.
ReplyDeleteWhen writing my mystery that will be out next month I got away several times. I spent part of the summer in La Veta where the story is based. I had a small cabin that had a large vacant lot next door. I wrote at a table with a window looking out on the lot. A pair of foxes (I googled for the correct name and got: leash, skulk, earth, lead, or troop - take your pick.) Watched them rollick, chase and hunt. A doe and her fawn also spent some time there. Had a real bambi moment when the fawn curiously got nose to nose with the mother fox. The doe showed some trepidation but let it happen. After a few seconds the fawn did one of those "I'm free and young and happy as hell" runs around the lot as mom and fox looked on in what I percieved to be amusement. Or maybe it was amazement. At least those were my emotions.
ReplyDeleteI have mini-retreats at home when my husband is off playing in a bridge tournament, and I sometimes write in a coffee shop or at the Northern Colorado Writers studio. My favorite get-away, however, is in the fall when 12+ NCW members gather at a guest ranch near Loveland, CO. We schedule big blocks of silent writing time and just work. It helps get me going again after a summer of goofing off.
ReplyDeleteSounds like an awesome trip.
ReplyDeleteI've yet to have such a trip planned around writing, but it's on my list of things to do, so I'm taking notes... :)
What a fabulous experience! Getting away from it all can provide such a different perspective on your writing. Last month, I blogged about how my hiking trip in the Smokies let me get deeper into one of my character's heads. I had specific things I wanted to investigate since she's from a similar region in my WIP. It was fantastic.
ReplyDeleteHope the retreat gave you some quality writing time and new ideas!
I could so write in a horse's stall...or watching bambi and a fox come nose-to-nose. What a great story. Or on a guest ranch near Loveland.
ReplyDeleteThere is a group of us who meet in the mountains every 3 or 4 months or so, (at a B&B) and do nothing but write for several days. I've had to miss the last two of those retreats, so this weekend was a wonderful experience. And yes, I accomplished many good pages.
Mike can write anywhere. In fact he prefers to write in public, such as coffee houses or crowded restaurants. The only way I can do that is with headphones and Pandora.