Wayward Wormhole: Carousing in the Castle

From Janet:

The New Mexico Wormhole has snapped shut and scattered the travellers back to Australia, Italy, Canada, and multiple states around the USA. I am STUFFED full of amazing writing tips, STUNNED by the beauty and wildlife surrounding the Painted Pony Resort, and warm and fuzzy with love for all my fantastic new friends.

Arley Sorg was tough; a straight shooter who didn’t mince words in a way that gave each of us a boost. We were all better than we thought and still had a lot to learn. Plus, a horned owl joined us from a nearby tree during his classes.

Minister Faust was calm; a gentle guide through the publishing desert. His “explain it to me like I’m a four-year-old” led to clear loglines that supported our newly created emotional impact statements. Plus, the man can cook like a pro!

C.C. Finlay was wise; he took no guff and made sure we understood his points. Thoughtful, insightful, and kind, Charlie was a favorite. How he carved special talk-time for each of us during a busy, busy schedule is both a mystery and a gift we all treasured.

Don Maass was fun; he turned his six-inch binder of notes and writing tips into amusing, personal reflections. Brilliant, generous, and friendly, Don always made room for our comments during class and earned our respect as he returned our quips with rapid shots from the hip.

Cat Rambo was quiet; they were the center of our New Mexican tornado. When you were with Cat, your heart rate lowered, and you felt cared for as a colleague and a friend. Cat was our tarantula whisperer, which either repelled or attracted people almost every day. Why the spiders only appeared on the walls around their building remains a mystery.

Over ten days, we learned more about VOICE, SCENE SHAPING, EMOTIONS AND INTERIORITY, MICROTENSION, ADDING ENERGY TO THE NOVEL MIDDLE, RELEVANT ENDINGS START AT THE BEGINNING, 8 LACKS THAT TORPEDO GOOD MANUSCRIPTS, and BUILDING AND KEEPING A WRITING CAREER FRESH. From day one to day ten, we all started going to bed earlier and earlier.

We saw scorpions glowing under black-lights, bunnies, deer, horned owl, javelinas, tarantulas, coyotes, roadrunners, ravens, quail, and a spadefoot toad.

We sat around an outdoor fireplace as Cat, Don, and Charlie read their work.

We sat in the hot tub(s) and stared at the star-filled sky, waiting for an inevitable shooting star.
We stood in the courtyard and absorbed the silence.

This year brought me several family health issues and I added caregiver to my growing list of responsibilities. As a Canadian with many friends in the US, the election brought stress, fear, and disbelief. I’m still an almost-published (that’s how I frame it—I’m waiting for that one desk on that right day—it’s as inevitable as a shooting star as long as I keep going. Right?)

This year, the Wayward Wormhole at the Painted Pony Resort offered me a reset. Its quiet touched my core and smoothed out the tangled worries I’d been keeping inside. Being with my people reminded me that I’m not alone and renewed my energy. Gaining skills, literally at the speed of sound, renewed my enthusiasm for the stories I’ve written and the ones yet to come.

People ask why Cat and I why we stick with the in-person workshop format when others are going virtual. There are several reasons, all confirmed during our time in New Mexico. Writers need new experiences. They need a safe and peaceful environment to write, learn, and reflect on how people move through life. Writers need other writers. They need tools. Writers need to spend non-writing time with accomplished writers to confirm their belief in their insane choice of career; they need to know their struggles are normal, even if their personal journey isn’t.

For me? Sitting outside under the Milky Way with a dozen-plus friends as Charlie Finlay reads from his latest (and unpublished) novel in front of a wood fire is an in-person memory I’ll never forget.

PS. Plans for The Wayward Wormhole 2025 – Barbados are in the works. We’ve contacted four outstanding instructors who’ve expressed interest, and we will announce a new format and focus by the end of February. We hope you’ll join us!

Our latest dispatch from Janet:

I’ve never written in a cemetery, but I’m drawn to the idea, especially after reading Neil Gaiman’s “The Graveyard Book.” So why haven’t I done it?

I admit I’m a bit intimidated to write amongst the dead. Even walking through a graveyard in the daytime calls up the imagined lives of the buried and their surviving families (even if those families passed on centuries ago).

Are there stories there? Sure. Are there distractions? Absolutely. Still, I imagine sitting in the shade with my notebook, absorbing the peace broken only by the chirrup of small birds and the far-off drone of a lawnmower. At least, I thought that scene was peaceful, until some scientist revealed that the lovely fresh-cut grass smell resulted from millions of grass blades screaming in agony as a thresher whacked them down to size.

This cemetery seems peaceful, though.

I’m going to write there.

Maybe one of the residents will tell me their story.

PS. Don’t be surprised by the bones you see poking from the cliff next to this graveyard. That’s where cannonballs hit the castle during the Revolt of Catalonia from 1640 to 1652. Attackers destroyed a small section of the castle along with the original cemetery. Unfortunately, any excavation work could undermine the castle’s foundation, so recovery and reburial is not easy.

ONLY ONE MORE DAY FOR THE OPEN EARLY BIRD SUBMISSION!