The view from Lauren's porch. Sigh.
Just look at that view!
Re-entry was rough as always--I felt a little like Goldie Hawn's character in Overboard when she's dragged into Kurt Russell's shack and presented to 4 boys, 2 huge dogs and a gigantic mess of laundry, dirty dishes, and squalor. It wasn't quite that bad, no dogs and only 3 boys, but as my Best Friend Evah told me on the phone last night, "When I was there Friday, you could totally tell there hadn't been a mother around in a while."I got a little spoiled, what with salad with every meal and no crumbs to sweep away from beneath everyone's chairs. No coercing folks to finish their food, clean up their toys, put away their clothes. I went barefoot every day and never once stuck to the floor. I drank wine or Fat Tire Ale every evening and enjoyed Adult Conversation about books, writing, politics and food. I didn't drive, do laundry, nag, or supply snacks. I boycotted peanut butter and woke up every morning when I darn well pleased. I did do some dishes and swept the floor once.
It wasn't all play, however. Mountain hikes and hot tubs aside, we edited manuscripts for hours and hours. Heady subjects like character motivation, plot reversal, sentence structure and theme were discussed. My writing partners are a talented group, writing all sorts of wonderful novels. Let's take a peek:
Nina, Marni, Mariana (making a face) look over a camera while drinking wine.
Nina: Lemon Blossoms is a coming of age/love story set in Italy at the turn of the century--complete with volcanic eruptions (not metaphorical ones) and great descriptions of food and Sicilian culture.
Mariana: Death of a Poet is a mystery about Wilfred Owen set in modern Cambridge, all that's lacking is a car chase.
Marni: Death Unscripted is the first installment of the Trudy Genova cozies, this one takes place on the set of a soap opera filmed in NYC--great humor and a must-read for any soap fan.
Lauren: What Alice Wants, a study of mental illness and perspective over four generations of women.
So many creative and wonderful ideas, so many chapters full of delightful characters in interesting settings. And if that didn't have us winded, we had the business of our website and our book to discuss, plans for marketing, blogging, and publishing to hash out. My mind's buzzing with ideas of what to write next in my own book and I'm excited at the possibilities. I'm refreshed after being away, but as you all know, there's no place like home. And that, bloggy friends, is where my heart is.
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