Anyone up for a Meet 'n' Greet?

[Claudie]

No, sorry, but I'm having fun reading your Pokemon discussion. wouldn't mind looking over someone's shoulder and learning about it though!

Only if you root for me

Actually, when packing/unpacking my boxes, I even found my PKMN cards official rulebooks. I'll lend it to you if you root for me.

[Cookie]

Actually, when packing/unpacking my boxes, I even found my PKMN cards official rulebooks. I'll lend it to you if you root for me.

Well played, Claudie, well played.

[Cookie]

Are we gonna start planning this soon? Sorry, I can get impatient when I'm excited about things.

[Margo]

Are we gonna start planning this soon? Sorry, I can get impatient when I'm excited about things.

LOL. Yeah, we only have seven months!

Actually, I did check out the Luxor site for hints on how much it would cost to eat everyday, so people could plan budgets. Unless people want to do one or two extravagant meals, people should be able to get by easily on $60 day (alcohol not included!). Could probably get away with as little as $40/day.

I also checked on the outlet mall I remembered and the bus that leaves from the MGM for a round trip to the mall. I couldn't recall the name of the mall, but then I acted on a hunch from playing Fallout New Vegas and searched for Primm and there it was! Anyone interested in the trip? It's $25 round-trip on the bus, 45 minutes to, 3 hours at the mall, 45 minutes back. BCBG Maxazria, TOD's, Coach, Ann Taylor, Betsey Johnson, DKNY, Kate Spade, Last Call Neiman Marcus, etc etc etc.

Of course there are clubs clubs clubs for people who want to go dancing. Seems like each hotel has 3-4 clubs, not including the members-only clubs.

Free stuff includes seeing the lion exhibit at the MGM and the volcano eruption at the Mirage and the fountain show at the Bellagio.

The Mirage has the dolphin garden with tickets for $17 per adult (and usually a white tiger in a glass enclosure in the entry, which I find a little disturbing, but I don't really agree with keeping most kinds of animals in capitivity so that's just me).

Cirque du Soleil tickets at the Bellagio run $100-$150 (youch!). Admission to the hotel's art gallery is $15.

And, of course, we haven't decided if we're doing anythin writing related.

And that's just scratching the surface. People also might just want to sit around chatting at the Luxor in the hot tubs or rent a pool cabana for about $250. Or over coffee and wine in the rooms. Whatever. We could break into small groups that do different things during the day and all get together for dinner each night? Then we old folks could go off to bed while the younguns go party, or maybe we party the kids under the table.

It's Vegas. Anything could happen.

[sierramcconnell]

[has never been to a bar or a club]

[could never go to Vegas without being scarred for life]

[trixie]

I'm with Cookie. I like to plan things. I've been trying to patiently wait it out until Sommer sends a group email though.

Personally, if we all get together, I really would like to make it about the writing. At least for a day or two. I can lay out by the pool with drinks and get along with just about anyone. But to get a bunch of writers together in a room to talk craft and revisions? That's super exciting to me and something I'd like to do.

However, I do like to shop...

[dios4vida]

Personally, if we all get together, I really would like to make it about the writing. At least for a day or two. I can lay out by the pool with drinks and get along with just about anyone. But to get a bunch of writers together in a room to talk craft and revisions? That's super exciting to me and something I'd like to do.

However, I do like to shop...

I'm with trixie. I would love to do some shopping and hanging out at pools, etc. but I definitely want to focus more on writing. One of the scariest things about writer's conferences is putting your work in the hands of people you've never had contact with. You don't know if you have similar taste or personalities or if they believe that "critiquing" means "be mean about the writing" instead of Nathan's sandwich rule. This meet 'n' greet solves that issue right away - we've all chatted online enough that I think it's safe to say we'll all get along. We know and practice Nathan's rule. And besides, with all of us getting together, I don't think you could keep us from talking about our WIPs if you tried.

So yeah. I would really like to see some critique sessions, roundtable discussions, and other writerly pursuits mixed in with shopping and lounging and eating and being all touristy.

[Beethovenfan]

Since Las Vegas is the area where I grew up, all the touristy trappings don't really grab me. I'm really only interested in coming for the writing. Being in a place with a bunch of others in a similar canoe as me is VERY appealing! Learning from each other could be a tremendous experience.

[Margo]

As for a conference atmosphere, we should keep in mind there there will probably only be 10-15 of us, which isn't a lot. It's not as good critiquing outside one's genre, because each genre has conventions that might not be obvious to people who don't write in that genre (or even some of those who do!).

So...i dunno...maybe people need to start getting specific about what kind of writing events they want to have. Round tables on what topics? Critiques? How many people of what genre will be there? Will the crits be on the fly or passed around a day or two before the crit session? How long will the sample be? Plus, take into consideration that some people won't be participating in every type of writing event (for instance, I highly doubt I'll participate in the critiques).

So now might indeed be the time to start throwing ideas out.

[dios4vida]

Hmm...good points, Margo. I hadn't thought about that.

Maybe a good place to start would be for everyone to give a bit of information: what genre they're in, whether they'd be interested in having it critiqued and what stage their WIP is in (or will be by next spring), and what other kind of writerly/non-writerly things they'd like to do. If several people start listing the same things, then we'll know that's something we should try to work into the schedules.

Personally, I write epic fantasy. I would love to be involved in some critiques. I should have a finished first draft, maybe even a second draft, by next March. That's my goal, anyways.

What I was envisioning was having writerly get-togethers in the mornings, and maybe even early afternoons. I was kinda thinking of doing a day or two of critiquing WIPs and/or queries (submission would be completely optional, of course!). I'd love to have a time when we'd talk books, about what we liked about our favorites and what we could learn from them, maybe each of us bringing it and reading a passage or two to illustrate for those who are unfamiliar with the author, then having say 15 minutes to discuss each book/passage/etc. We could have a time for swapping writing tricks or techniques. If we had a resident expert on something maybe they'd be willing to lead a discussion on that, too.

Then afternoons and evenings would be free for activities. I think going to that mall you mentioned would be a lot of fun. Caesar's Palace also has an amazing mall, though it isn't an outlet. Since most of us planning to go are women that seems like a natural choice. Someone mentioned everyone getting together for dinner, which I think would be fantastic.

I think a good blend of writerly stuff and non-writerly stuff would be good. Those who want to do more hanging out would be free to do that, but those who want to connect and work with other writers could do that, too. Everything is optional.

What to y'all think? Any other options/opinions to add? Please?

[dios4vida]

I just realized that I essentially suggested we list and discuss the same things Margo suggested like they were my own ideas.

[Cookie]

I would be up for some of the touristy stuff, but mostly I'd probably just hang out at the pool. I would like to see Cirque Du Soliel, but that would depend entirely on how much money I have. I Iike the idea of book discussions and writing tips/tricks.

My WIP is epic fantasy and it's on its 3rd draft right now. I hope to have it on its 4th by spring. I might also have the 1st draft of my sci-fi one by then too, so I'm a little flexible on genres.

[Margo]

I just realized that I essentially suggested we list and discuss the same things Margo suggested like they were my own ideas.

Don't be embarrassed. I just figure great minds think alike.

[dios4vida]

I just realized that I essentially suggested we list and discuss the same things Margo suggested like they were my own ideas.

Don't be embarrassed. I just figure great minds think alike.

Being a huge fan of Urban Psychopomp and W&T, I feel honored to have my mind compared to yours. Thanks, Margo.

[Margo]

Okay...a little impromptu brainstorming...

I like the idea of checking out Caesar's shopping mall, but I'm wondering about how expensive it is. The great thing about the outlet mall is the discount. I think I mentioned earlier, last time I was there I got BCBG shoes for 75% off. (Maybe I'll bring them this time. Where else but the Strip am I going to have a reason to wear (tastefully) feathered kitten heels?)

I also like the idea of doing writing stuff in the morning and maybe for awhile after lunch. Maybe we could have volunteers share their favorite writing exercise for about 30 minutes? Maybe two people/exercises per morning? We might need to figure in the cost of a small conference room. Anyone like the writing exercise idea? Anyone want to volunteer to lead one? I'm willing.

I like the idea of people bringing in favorite books for a roundtable on what we liked about them. That might also lean toward a genre-specific interest. (I do epic and urban fantasy, for these purposes.)

Even though I won't be participating in the crits, I recommend trying to circulate the samples at least a day before the session, for more thoughtful comments. I also suggest crit rules being passed out beforehand.

On an unrelated note, anyone else like to work out in the morning? I get a little creeped out working out in a hotel exercise room by myself. I'd love to find another person or two who's up for 30-45 min workout before breakfast. If we assume we're starting writing sessions at 9am, we'd want to be at breakfast by 8am, which means I'd need to hit the shower by 7-7:15, which means hitting the work out room about 6:30am. Anyone?

What other writing-related stuff do we want to do? So far the possibilities are:

exercises
favorite book discussions
Crit sessions

Those three right there might take up the whole morning session.