Having come home, slept, eaten*, and feeling much revived, I spoke to a few friends and family who have been keeping up with this blog. Apparently (and upon re-reading, I get it) the entries about sleep deprivation and writing do NOT accurately reflect the time I had at VP.
So here we go:
Yep, I was sleep deprived and busy as all hell. There, that's out of the way.
I loved it. I love having so much to do that sleep is a luxury. I love being so busy that a week goes by in a flash, and at the same time, lasts a month. But here, for those of you who know me well, is the kicker:
I loved spending a week with a big group of people.
I know. It's bizarre, but I found myself seeking out people when I was all alone, rather than - as I would have thought - cradling my precious solo time to my chest and singing to it. Or something along those lines. I'm sure it wouldn't be the same with just any group but damn, these people were amazing. More to the point, I felt completely . . . comfortable. Shy, sometimes, and hyper aware of my tendency to get obnoxious when socially nervous - which may have resulted in an overcompensation to super nice Gwen - But generally, comfortable and relaxed. More so than I am most of the time, because there was not a single damn thing I could say that resulted in the obligatory "Snrk - Dork!" giggle.
Look, I know people who love me don't mean it. But imagine for a second if you didn't even think it. Got it? That was my entire week. I have a peer group. Some of whom can write me under the table, and it's amazing. One girl there - well, I'm lucky to have met her, if only so that I can say: 'I knew her before she was famous'. It doesn't hurt that she's just incredibly cool, also. And that's just one person - can you imagine 24 people with that level of talent?
Anyhow, getting off topic. The workshop! The workshop was PHENOMENAL. I have never had so much information; golden, perfect, brilliant information, thrown at me. I couldn't write it all down fast enough. My novel was critiqued and I was happy with the results - I could never quite get attached to my book or the characters, and now, I think I know why. That's down to the students just as much as the instructors, by the way.
Each one of the instructors contributed something brilliant and fantastic, not only to me as a writer, but often to me as a person. I'm not going to go into it in any more detail, because these things are still processing in the back of my mind, and I selfishly don't want to share them. Each lecture was worth every moment, and rather than droning and interminable, they were interactive, fun and engaging.
These should be the building blocks for all education. This is how to get your students involved.
I won't go into too much more detail because I'm sure you get the idea. It was everything I said in my previous posts, but it was also amazing, inspiring, educational, and in a way I haven't quite sorted out yet, I think it might have been life-changing.
How's that for a week at Martha's Vineyard?
G
* I failed to feed myself, most of the time; but dinners were made for us and they were oh so delicious and nutritious. In summary: Left to my own devices, I will eat cheese, crackers and candy corn. Shocking, I'm sure.
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