I am writing this from a beautiful rental home near Bird-in-Hand, PA, where I have had the privilege of being snowbound with five other writers. We gathered for a writing retreat in Lancaster County, a few hours from author Dani Pettrey’s home. We toured the countryside and an Amish house and farm, and also visited Hershey’s Chocolate World before winter storm Jonas hit.
Authors (photo on right): Karen Witemeyer, Katie Ganshert, Dani Pettrey, Katie Cushman, Becky Wade.
We planned on a long weekend, but for a few of us, the weekend became even longer when flights were cancelled after the area received 30+ inches of snow.
Katie Cushman and Dani Pettrey outside our rental house.
Snug in a charming house, we spent time together writing, talking, comparing notes on marketing, social media, writing process, and more, and helped each other brainstorm plots. It was fun and very interesting to hear the ideas that writers of different genres came up with. For example, when brainstorming what a character might find hidden in a book, here are just a few of the ideas generated. Care to hazard a guess which came from an author of romance, women’s fiction, or romantic suspense?
- An alarming note of “Help me!”
- Something of sentimental value that gives clues to a past relationship and leads to reconciliation.
- A letter of unrequited love.
- A birth certificate that reveals an illegitimate sibling.
- A confession of a murder—unsigned. She has to find out who it’s from before it happens again…
Now I have more ideas than I could possibly use in one book! Hmm…a good problem to have.
Another fun experience for me (a Minnesotan accustomed to snow) was going outside during the storm with Katie 
Cushman (a Californian who had never seen so much snow) and relishing her childlike wonder and delight as she climbed snowdrifts and made her first snow angels. After a demonstration from Dani Pettrey, Katie mastered the technique.
For a few wintery days, we enjoyed delicious meals and soul-nourishing fellowship with like-minded women. It was a pleasure to witness the non-competitive camaraderie and the helpful sisterly-spirit between fellow authors. In my book, they are all (snow) angels.
Were you affected by this storm? When was the last time you made a snow angel?
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Aha, you live only three hours from me. The confession had to be from Dani Pettrey. The reconciliation came from Katie Ganshert. Now I start guessing. LOL You girls look so much alike that you could be sisters, well at least cousins. Glad you girls had fun.
We missed you on Sunday, Julie, but it’s great to see you’re having such a great time! We weren’t affected by the storm, but I know my sister in Philadelphia also enjoyed a relaxing snowed-in weekend. It’s fun to hear the wide variety of creative brainstorming taking place!
Hi Julie, it sounds like a such a fun time! I love writers’ retreats and Lancaster is such a lovely area. I live only 2 hours away in PA, and we often enjoy visiting there. We had a ton of snow here too, around 24 inches. It was very pretty.
You’re a (snow) angel in my book, Julie!
I’m from Duluth, MN and was in St Petersburg, FL visiting my sister. Planes to Chicago were cancelled for two days and I finally got home last night. I’m glad I was still at my sister’s and never went to the airport on Sat. On the vway home I met a woman who had been in the New York airport since Friday trying to get back to Duluth.
I’m a former Yooper and enjoyed making Snow Angels as a child. IF I tried it now I don’t think I could get back up without a lot of help! Our Virginia backyard was a beautiful pristine white of snow–something you really only saw out in a clearing in the woods when I was a child, because we were always playing or people were snowmobiling across the snow. What fun to watch your CA friend learn about snow angels!!!
No.aside from the cold temperatures we only got a few inches where I live in Ohio.
Hope you made it home yesterday, Julie. That was one of the best weekend retreats I’ve ever been a part of. Loved being with you and the rest of the gang. Looking forward to doing it again next year!
I was so grateful to be able to be inside and warm during Jonas. I thanked God many times that we were not on the turnpike and prayed for those who were stuck for many hours. I love the videos of how they made the most of their time waiting. Who thinks of making an altar and having a service along a turnpike in the midst of a snowstorm? If you put that in a book it would be declared fiction.
Glad you all had a great weekend.