Mandy Eve-Barnett's Blog for Readers & Writers

My Book News & Advocate for the Writing Community ©

Wordsmith’s Collective Thursday – Escape to Write and Presentations

August 12, 2021
mandyevebarnett


My friend, Linda, and I have been on so many road trips for writing retreats, attending books fairs and writing events in the last eleven or so years, that we have the preparation, planning, and execution of them down to a fine art.

This particular road trip, we are virtually attending When Words Collide as presenters, but it will be a fully literary trip, as we work on current projects, visit local libraries and bookstores, too. There will be day trips for exploring, watching wildlife and finding inspiration as always on the back roads.

We organize our trip, for the most part, in the same way each time. It is a tried and tested practice for us.

Vehicle essentials:

  1. Road trip journal
  2. Map book
  3. Bird identification book.
  4. Blankets, emergency kit, shovel, trolley.
  5. Chargers, camera, sunglasses.
  6. A bag for trash.
  7. Plenty of water bottles.
  8. Snacks.

In addition there are Sammie essentials:

  1. Water and food bowls
  2. Leash
  3. Blanket
  4. Treats
  5. Food

Accommodation requirements:

  1. A peaceful and beautiful location.
  2. Options for where we can write – so a desk (or two) and two comfortable chairs, and a nice view.
  3. Comfortable beds, ample lighting, space to spread out our things and a good shower.
  4. A microwave, fridge and storage for food. Luckily, we both like the same foods.
  5. And tea! (So there must be a kettle).
Headphones with mic
Lap tables for the beds

Trip essentials:

  1. Lap table.
  2. Laptops.
  3. Notebooks and pens.
  4. Current writing projects
  5. Reading material.
  6. Chargers, extension cord and power-bar (there are never enough power points).
  7. Back-up drives.
  8. New for this trip headphones with mic’s for the presentations.
index

How do you plan for a writing retreat and A road trip?

Wordsmith’s Collective Thursday – Road Trip Companion and Essentials

June 10, 2021
mandyevebarnett


I am lucky to have fellow writer/author and best friend, Linda, who loves road trips as much as I do. This friendship has led to numerous road trips over the last twelve years or so, giving us the opportunity to explore my new homeland and Linda’s home. We have several essential items that we pack or insist upon in our accommodation, a companionable routine for the driving and exploring, as well as the writing, editing and reading portions of our trips.

We do not ride the highways but back roads, trails and secondary highways giving us time to stop and watch wildlife, take in the scenery and explore hamlets and ghost towns. We have been inspired on multiple occasions to create but also to decompress and relax. We have encountered numerous animals, witnessed fabulous scenery and found little known corners of Alberta, Saskatoon and British Columbia.

For the driving portion of our trips, we leave early knowing we will be taking the long way to our destination. This has culminated in more hours added to a trip than maybe we should admit to! (Case in point our last ‘day road trip’ took fifteen hours.)

Our in-car essentials are:

My road trip book to write down the road numbers, towns and counties we travel through and Linda’s map book to mark out the roads we travel. A bird identification book, blankets, emergency kit, shovel, trolley, chargers, camera, sunglasses. Also a bag for trash and water bottles.

Our accommodation requirements are:

A desk (or two) and two comfortable chairs, a nice view, and a kettle! (I need my tea). Comfortable beds, ample lighting, space to spread out our things and a good shower.

Our trip essentials are:

Lap tables, laptops, notebooks, pens, current writing projects, reading material, chargers, extension cord and power-bar (there are never enough power points), cell phones, camera, back-up drives.

Comfortable clothes (layering is essential), warm socks, jackets, walking shoes/boots, slippers. These change dependent on the time of year of course. Eye glasses and ear plugs, a bottle of wine & snacks, easy meals and tea bags (Okay I’m English teabags are a must!)

Neither of us needs noise so silence reigns unless we are discussing our day or writing projects.

Over the years our routine has evolved into a well oiled machine. We are comfortable in silence and respect each others creativity and time to just create and enjoy the wonders we encounter.

Having time to let our writing Muse gather and cultivate new ideas, allows us to start, progress, or even finish writing projects.

What road trip essentials do you need?

When was your last road trip/ Where did you go? What did you do?

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