I am NOT a morning person.  However, I am the type of person who hates to be late and can’t stand the thought of letting anyone down.  Thus, I will get up early if I have to.

In order to arrive at the AAWW workshop on time, I had to arise before dawn.  But here’s the thing …

I didn’t mind at all.

I flew out of bed, eager to get back.  I quickly got dressed and somewhat prettified and even sacrificed my morning cup of coffee to get there as soon as possible (they had some there).  Normally the idea of Jenny driving in the early morning sans caffeine would be enough of an alarm to have APD, DPS, and at least two fire stations on alert.  But I didn’t need it.  My eagerness to get to back to my new friends was the equivalent of two Red Bulls in my system.

Little did everyone know that I had less than four hours’ sleep Thursday – the night before the first day of the workshop.  To nutshell a long story … my oldest, dearest pal came through town on her way back to California from New Orleans.  She and her husband stopped at my house close to 10 p.m. to eat some pasta with homemade pesto, drink some wine, and catch me up on her adventures.  I hadn’t seen her in two years so there was much to discuss.  Around midnight I suggested we turn in and that’s when she sheepishly told me they weren’t staying.  They were behind schedule and (also NOT being morning people) felt it was better to press on to New Mexico rather than crash and get another late start.

So I made them drink coffee.  And then we talked another two hours.  And then we spent an hour saying goodbye.

I thought I’d be pretty out of it the next day – but I wasn’t.  (Well, that’s probably for the others to decide.  But I didn’t feel out of it.)  In fact, I hadn’t felt that focused in a long time.  This extreme motivation lasted the full three days.

As I mentioned in my previous post, I was sloshing over with creative energy by the end.  There was a whole Fourth of July fireworks show in my writer brain.

But my body was tired.  Monday, Tuesday, and yesterday were pretty lazy days for me physically.  Alison describes a similar crash in her blog, so apparently I wasn’t the only one.

Thankfully, the mind is still awhirl.  I’ve synthesized the comments I received into a single guide, and used it to tweak my draft and outline.  I worked on some important correspondence.  And I’m enjoying reading everyone’s blogs.

The joy isn’t fading.  I truly think this was a life-changing event for me.  I was altered along with my draft.  Both for the better.

Some random images/inside jokes from the workshop I can’t fully share.  You just had to be there:

Kumquats … kolaches … Shakespeare at a microphone … Pages turning (and pages turning)… Zombies eating cotton candy … “Get rid of the baby” … naked criminals … banana hats … shouts into the darkness … impish uncles … Ritz cracker combos … scary hardware … a white handkerchief … frolicking dolphins … a kiss on a baby’s nose … Ferris wheels … birds nesting on a museum … a grease-stained rag … a closet full of sweatshirts … immortal hearts … broken horses … talking through a mirror … floating ghosts … treading water off the coast … color-coded yearbook photos … a boy running from a courthouse … the power of two syllables … the power of “NO!” … cats in a tree … horses on the roof … mice doing martial arts … Cyn, all sweet and composed, staring at the ceiling and suddenly shouting, “GREG!!!!” … the view of downtown off a 9^th floor balcony … the wind in my face … the power of red wine and a well-timed one-liner … sitting on the stoop a la Sesame Street … comparing ring tones … flipping through new CDs … “Whole Foods has too much food” … crossing a dark parking lot … laughter melding … voices echoing … warm supportive smiles.

And here are some images I can share (even more thanks to Cyn and Greg).  Remember to double-click on the pics to make them bigger and purtier.



Arriving at Greg and Cynthia's lovely home are (from L to R)
 Varian Johnson, Chris Barton, and Helen Hemphill.



Authors gather in the Leitich Smith dining room.  Along the wall in the back, from L to R:  
Tim Crow, Debbie Gonzales, Anne Bustard, and Greg Smith.  In the foreground:  
Mark Mitchell and Mereith Davis.  Behind them you can see Jo Whittemore (on the right) 
and a little bit of Helen Hemphill (left).



Our fabulous pages, Carmen Oliver and Donna Bratton.



The sessions would spark many spirited discussions during the breaks.  
In the foreground you have Mark, Jane Peddicord (in blue), me, and Julie Lake (seated).  
And behind us Anne, April Lurie, and Greg solve all the problems of the world.



Author food.



Shana Burg talks to Varian Johnson.  They are also Delacorte authors.  
Behind Shana you can see the incomparable Philip Yates (blue striped shirt).



On Saturday night we gathered for a party at the beautiful Hemphill home.  
Here Betty X. Davis talks with Mark and Alison Dellenbaugh.



More author food.



I call this one "Nobody puts Anne Bustard in a corner!"
Chris, Anne, and Gene Brenek talk shop.  One of the many
wonderful things about Helen's Austin 9th-floor loft was the view,
which you see a tiny glimpse of here.



The beautiful and brilliant Erin Edwards and Jane Ann.



A better view of the view.  Gene and Anne sit and chat while
Debbie talks to Chris.



The talented and sexy Lindsay Lane and Debby Gonzales.



Back at the beautiful Smith home the next day.  Here's a great
shot of the assembled group.



Sunny day ... Chasing the clouds away ...
Hanging on the stoop are AAWW-thors Brian Anderson, Gene, and P.J. Hoover.