Tag Archives: Writing Excuses

Announcements, Crossposted

WXR 2019: Write With Us on a Cruise Ship!

The 2019 Writing Excuses Retreat is setting sail from the port of Houston this September, and you’re invited! I’ll be there with other Writing Excuses hosts, and some amazing guest instructors.

The event begins on Friday, September 13, 2019 at 2:00 PM, and runs through Sunday, September 22, 2019 at 11:00 AM (Central Daylight Time). The button above has all the details.

This is one of my very favorite events ever, which is probably why I keep doing it. Hanging out for a week with people who like to create worlds and tell stories in them is fun. Doing that on a cruise ship in the Caribbean is unforgettable.

On January 31st the posted prices will go up, so now is a good time to make your late summer plans.

Crossposted, Journal

WXR18 – Amazing, Yet Again

Sandra and I have returned from the 2018 Writing Excuses Retreat. This was the sixth year the event has been held, and it was the fourth year it’s been held aboard a ship.

It was wonderful.

Sure, I got to see the ship’s medical bay¹, and I’m nine pounds heavier than I was two weeks ago, but it was totally worth it. I ruined comedy for all the students by showing them how the sausage is made, I saw a sunrise take shape across the Gulf of Mexico, and as an unexpected and delightful bonus I got back just in time to celebrate NASA’s 60th birthday on stage for an episode of Houston, We Have a Podcast.²

We’ll open registration for next year’s event sometime in the next three weeks, but you can pencil in some dates on your calendar now.

WXR19 runs from September 13th to the 25th of 2019, starting in Houston, and progressing to Galveston, then setting sail. I think it’s around $1,900 for nine days of writing, instruction, networking, and flash-mobbing one of the bars on Royal Caribbean’s Liberty of the Seas. 

I’m already looking forward to it, but I’m also quite happy to be home. I’ve got comics to draw, and (at least) nine pounds to lose.

¹ Laryngitis. Very annoying, but at least I was done teaching by that point.
² Our episode will air in mid-October. I’ll link to it, because holy crap I was in the auditorium in NASA’s Johnson Space Center in Houston and they gave me a live mic.

Announcements, Crossposted

I Will Be On A Ship

This September I’ll be at WXR 2018, the Writing Excuses Workshop and Retreat, which will sail from Galveston Texas on a really big ship. The event begins on September 22nd, and wraps up on September 30th. There’s a day of prep sessions in Galveston, on the 22nd, and then head out into the ocean.

If writing retreats are your thing, and if you’re interested in learning from industry professionals, you should consider joining us. 

It costs about what a Caribbean cruise costs, and it’s coming right up so scheduling time away from home might be tricky, but if you’ve got the discretionary resources to make it happen, it’s absolutely worth it¹.  All the relaxation of a 7-day cruise, with all the motivational super-charging of hanging out with writers.  

The links take you directly to the registration page, which has a handy FAQ down at the bottom.

¹ Here’s a page linking to testimonials from attendees at previous WXR events. I wouldn’t say “it’s absolutely worth it” without some backup.

 

Announcements, Crossposted

WXR16: On the Way Home

sept22-oasiswakeSandra and I are on our way home from Sint Maarten, dieseling across the eastern Caribbean with 180 fellow Writing Excuses Retreat delegates.

The event has been delightful. We still have a full day at sea tomorrow, so it’s not over, but Oasis of the Seas is not stopping again until Ft Lauderdale. That wake behind us is going to be a constant feature for the next 36 hours.

This largest-ship-in-the-world class of vessel is amazing, but I think I like my gargantunormous floating resorts a bit smaller. And the plan, as of this writing, is for next year’s Writing Excuses Retreat (#WXR17) to be held on a smaller ship on a different patch of ocean. We’re still finalizing the details (and getting the best prices we can) but I’m authorized to tell you that we’re going to Europe, and that the cruise will be timed to let delegates debark in time for a quick flight to Helsinki, for the World Science Fiction Convention.

I’ll post full details here and at writingexcuses.com in advance of registration opening. The plan (again, as of this writing) is to open registration on January 1st of 2017.

You probably want a full convention report before considering attending. I’ll make sure to post links to reports from attendees. Their voices carry more weight than mine, so it’s better for you (and easiest for me!) if I simply amplify.