I’m in Washington state, in a wonderful lake house, surrounded by my fellow writers in a retreat. I can’t even begin to describe how fun it is to wake up to the sound of book plotting.

It’s my first writer’s retreat even though I’ve been published for four years. I don’t think I knew quite what to expect before I came, but I am so glad I did. We talk about plotting, characters, book deals, editors, agents and all the stuff I can’t talk about with the rest of the people in my life.

These wonderful ladies are my peers, the people who know exactly the angst, troubles and disappointments I suffer as a writer. Then there’s our hostess who is gracious, funny as hell, and knows the writing business inside and out.

The amazing thing is being able to set aside all the daily things, the schedule, keeping track of all the little things in my life. I’ve focused on writing, discussing writing, and getting so much done. I killed myself finishing my first Emma Lang book before I came, then when I got here, it was like I went into the writing zone. I finished rewrites on Devils on Horseback: Lee and sent it off to my beta reader, and begun the galley proofs of The Stranger’s Secrets.

The best thing is, I’ve recently signed a one book deal with Berkley Heat (yay!) for a contemporary erotic romance to be released in July 2010.  Unfortunately the book is due October 16 (eep) so I have six weeks to write it. I’ve already gotten 6K written! I’m excited to be able to pound out the pages, read them aloud to my fellow peeps, and then write more.

Not only that, but the lake house is lovely. I mean, look at the view! I’ll be back in NC on Sunday and my batteries completely recharged. I miss DH terribly, but talk to him twice a day. Even better, when I return we can show each other just how much we missed each other. 😉