Illustrated Results of the 2022 At-Home Writing Retreat

Good morning!

Story roundup will return next week when I actually have some stories to share.

I had vacation time to use by the end of the year, so I took an at-home writing retreat to start and complete a project that's evaded me all year.

With a light outline on my screen, my objective was to write a 20,000 to 25,000 page, 12-chapter book and then edit it on my next day off.

I had plenty of water, coffee (including the Dunkin' from Rebekah on Saturday), salt, incense (don't judge the scents, all gifts from Timothy), Blood Moon candle (a gift from Duanne), and a few timeouts to give Faith extra attention this week, especially when she wasn't feeling well (she's in for a surprise next week when the routine returneth) since Faith has small cell lymphoma.

Photos are below. As you'll see, there's nothing romantic about a writing retreat.

I'll share the specifics of the project on Monday as this week's work is actually the third part. No, I'm not being weirdly mysterious to create buzz, just sticking to the topic and leaving the "info dump" behind.

The retreat ends tomorrow evening. I have 1.5 days left (I need to spend half a day catching up on life things).

Here are my results:

Just under 17,000 words written and edited.

Eight chapters written with final edits very nearly done.

Four more to write.

So not quote the goal I set out to accomplish.

But since most of the editing is done, I feel comfortable from this point (Friday morning) that I can finish the project on my next day off (I work the following weekend, so I'll have a day off during the week).

Only regret: I did not build as much rest (for me) into this week as I had hoped.

But this retreat also wasn't the intense, singularly focused retreat I tend to take.

I also:

I spent some time with family.

I participated in a previously scheduled storytelling event on Wednesday night.

I co-led the regularly schedule WriteOn Joliet critique group on Thursday night.

I popped onto the 5 a.m. writer's club donut party this morning.

And I went grocery shopping with Rebekah this morning before she signed onto work.

Believer it or not, I still have a pile of work sitting next to me from last week that I never addressed or put away (It's under the books I used for worldbuilding reference).

But I am back to work on Sunday. And now I won't have to hunt to find it.

Just so you know, the blank screen doesn't mean I was slacking. That's the screen for my work computer.

The photo below holds the proof.