5 Reasons Why You Should Attend SCBWI WWA's Weekend on the Water

Retreat registration closes this week! Don’t miss out. Register by Wednesday, September 27^th.

Still on the fence? Here are five reasons why you should come to the SCBWI Western Washington Weekend on the Water Retreat, October 13-15:

PAL Liaison, Laurie Thompson: “For as long as I've known Joni (which is a LONG time now!), she's been a serious student of creativity in all its forms. I would pay good money just to listen to her talk about her vast acquired knowledge and personal thoughts on the topic, but to get to spend a whole weekend knee deep in the middle of it all with her AND some of the most creative folks from our awesome region? Priceless. I can't wait to see what might come out of that!”

Inside Story Coordinator, Dori Butler: “I can't tell you how excited I am about this retreat! I always enjoy hearing editors and agents, but there's value in authors and illustrators coming together without editors and agents, too. Conversations flow differently if there isn't an editor or agent sitting at your table. This is an opportunity to let go and explore our authentic, creative selves (and our stories) away from life's distractions and in the company of creative friends. It's a true retreat in every sense of the word.”

Past RA, Dana Sullivan: “For me, at retreats, the most creativity and energy comes from the participants themselves - be it from peer-led exercises, discussions or just the example set by everybody sitting their butts in chairs and working. It’s been too long since I had the time and quiet to delve deep and get some new stuff rolling. I’m really looking forward to Islandwood’s beautiful and quiet setting. And those pastries!! Oh yeah.”

Past Retreat director, Allyson Schrier: “The busy-ness of life has caused writing to take a back seat, and as a result my writing brain seems to be sleeping. I am so excited for the retreat because I think it'll help zap me back into a writing flow. A weekend of delving into creativity is exactly what I need to jumpstart my writing. I can't wait!!”

Co-Regional Advisor, Julie Artz: “I've been noodling an idea for a dark fantasy that's very different than anything I've ever written before. So I'm really looking forward to the retreat as a weekend devoted not just to kicking off the drafting of this new story, but as a way to stretch myself in new directions creatively supported by expert guidance from Joni and fellowship with my SCBWI pals.”


For questions, visit our website. View complete information, a tentative schedule of breakout sessions, and more details by clicking here.

Joni's Weekend on the Water update #2!

Your gnarliest life questions — answered.

(Or not)

Decades ago, I realized that, for better or worse, my critique partners knew me better than I do. They first pointed out the death/rebirth theme that recurs in my work. It was like being hit by lightning to see it myself and realize how it sprang from a traumatic event when I was a toddler.

Once I became conscious of it, however, it was easier to use it with intention — or choose not to — as best suited the story. Such insight also can be invaluable in refining an author or illustrator mission statement or branding.

On the other hand, maybe you don’t want to know what your work’s trying to tell you. We all know it’s trouble when you try to force a character to do things rather than letting them guide you, right? Similarly, have you ever found yourself working on a project and realized (maybe in revision), that you didn’t want to write that story because it seemed to say something you didn’t think you believed — or didn’t want to believe— about life? I have. I once abandoned a project I’d worked on for more than a year, once I finally realized where it was going, because I didn’t want to put that premise into the world, and I knew I couldn’t fight it. Plus I suspected on some level it was mirroring something in my life, and I couldn’t face the painful ramifications. Abandoning the book didn’t stop them, of course… but it allowed me to delay them until (in retrospect) I was more ready.

Similarly, I once had a critique partner whose work took a huge leap in quality on a particular project… until she realized it was headed into difficult emotional territory from her childhood. Despite our group’s urging, she refused to go there. I have little doubt that if she could’ve stared down those demons, that book could’ve been her first sale. (But I do understand her decision.)

If you don’t want to improve your work, and don’t want to tackle life issues that you probably need to, you may not want to attend one of the sessions we’ll hold at this fall’s Weekend on the Water retreat: Life Themes. The retreat this year will focus on Inspiration and Motivation for Creatives, and in one of our workshops, the brave among us will burrow into the questions and answers that drive our work. Such delving can clarify and enrich your work — and your life — as you become more conscious of the themes you keep gnawing like a dog with an oversized bone. This session might be an “aha” that helps you finish a stubborn WIP or amp up the branding that helps you sell you work.

If topics like this sound intriguing, mark your calendar for Oct. 13-15 and look for retreat registration in mid-August.

In the meantime, ask yourself a question that might unlock a few mysteries: Which favorite book (of someone else’s) do you most wish you’d created? More importantly, why? What does it share with your current WIP? (It may share an element of your life theme, too.)

Weekend on the Water Retreat Coming Up!

Save Oct. 13-15 for a creative explosion!

Mark your calendars for October 13-15, the dates of this year’s fall retreat. We’re mixing it up with a whole new approach (including a sweet new location!) We’re calling it “Inspiration and Motivation for Creatives Retreat: Weekend on the Water,” and it’ll also be full of connections — between your work and your life, and among you and your tribe. It’ll including programming for creatives of all stripes — illustrators as well as writers, from seasoned pros to beginners — and it'll launch you high into NaNoWriMo or the 2018 of your creative dreams.

One example of this year’s potent opportunities: Every attendee can create their own Insight Book in a session led by local artist and author Wendy Wahman. 

What’s an Insight Book?

It’s art and writing, collage and doodling, improvisation with yourself. Anyone can make one — you need not be an artist. You start with nothing in mind, then a line or a color triggers an aha! One line, written or drawn, leads to another.

Non-artists surprise themselves by making art. When you’re done, you a hold a book in your hands. Your book. Your insights. A new door to your creative heart.

What’s it look like?

What people who’ve done it have said:

“This was a great exercise for Residency – getting out of my head and putting my hands to work, working with the random arrangement of lines, listening to the shapes, finding the colors of the text. I took the text I'd written in my book from our workshop and put it into lines and verse for a poetry class a few days later, and it is a wonderful start to a piece called Forest for the Trees. It is always exciting to me when work can cross genres, and when a bigger piece is born from a seemingly small prompt. And, I hope this becomes a habit.”   –  Samantha Claire Updegrave, Whidbey Writer’s MFA Residency

“I was lucky enough to take part in Wendy Wahman’s workshop on Insight Books last month. Not only is she a talented author/illustrator and a great presenter, but she did something that, in the middle of an intensive writing residency, was pivotal. She encouraged us to play. The result was a beautiful book and a wonderful sense of inner peace.”  –  Mureall Hebert, Whidbey Writer’s MFA Residency

Want to learn more?

See more examples and praise on Wendy’s website. 

Watch this space for more details about retreat opportunities. Registration will open in mid-August. In the meantime, plan to attend and get psyched for a weekend like none you’ve ever enjoyed!