Squaw Valley post no. 4

This morning was my turn to get my piece critiqued. After having decided as a result of yesterday's one-on-one that the whole beginning of the book needed changing, I was ready for more revolution, but I also found myself hoping I'd get some appreciation too. And I got both. The people in my group give very good comments, at least in the discussion; I looked at their written comments later and didn't find them nearly as useful.

From the discussion I got all kinds of things I need to do to really make the book -- the new book I'm working on, not the one I got an agent for a few weeks ago -- a novel and not just an off-the-cuff project I'm banging away at. Simple stuff, like working on basic conceptions of the main character and her "goals," which is workshop-speak for whatever issue or problem the main character is dealing with.

Afterward I wanted to go to the pizza restaurant here -- there's a huge resort adjacent to the lodge where the workshop is being held, and in fact some of the workshop groups are meeting in bars and restaurants that are part of the ski resort -- and no one wanted to go with me. So I went by myself, which wouldn't have been so bad, but after I got there, the place filled up with groups of writers from other workshop groups. I sat there waiting for my pizza and looking at the marked-up copies of my manuscript from workshop members, so it was pretty obvious that I was part of the writers workshop but couldn't get anybody to have lunch with me. I was afraid that kind of experience would typify my experience here, but actually the social part of things hasn't been bad at all.