Love bugs! I wanted to share news of a random turn of events. Mama’s taking an indefinite break from hosting writing retreats—online and in person. This Tuesday’s Virtual Retreat and my Feb. 3rd Carmel Retreat at the gorgeous La Playa Hotel will be my last ones for the foreseeable future.
So, what gives? Why the stoppage? I have a lot of fun things going on right now, and Mama wants to put more energy into them. (The idea of pausing the work that’s brought me more joy, love, creative fulfillment, or abundance than I ever imagined feels super scary, but in a good, liberating way.) I’m thrilled about my current projects and can’t wait to share them with you. Things like:
- I am always readying my existing retreat clients for agents and publishers. I LOVE the deeper dive I’ve been doing on editing retreater’s books, queries, and proposals, and my people are poppin’, with several TV and movie deals pending. As their work becomes more urgent, I cherish being more available and want to continue being there for my “Carmelies” even more so. #FriendsforLife
- We are creating YBBBP (Your Big Beautiful Book Plan) 2.0 for our May 17th, 2025 release, and it’s BIG. Danielle LaPorte & I and Team D and Team BookMama are having the BEST time updating our 2011 classic. While countless books have been born with version 1 of YBBBP and many aspects of selling a book remain constant (you still need a great Hook, a killer Overview About the Author, and Comps sections, etc.), there’s much new material to update, like navigating the worlds of AI, self-publishing, podcasting, social media, and Substack for starters. Danielle and I have loads to share, including an expansive Online Portal component we will update regularly and an upgrade to my 6-module Book Proposal Magic program that walks you through each section of YBBBP. Stay tuned. We’ve been discussing this for years, and I’m beyond excited we’re finally doing it.
- Write-Ins in the Beautiful Writers Group: One of my favorite things about my retreats is the connection, camaraderie, and sense of female creative companionship. I now get all these twice weekly on our Zoom Write-In calls in the BWG (with a 3rd hosted by a long-time member). These meet-ups have become one of my most beloved ways to spend my time and fulfill much of what I’ve always loved and needed about bonding with my gals during a retreat. As we grow together in the BWG, I’ve been excited about adding more value to the membership, including this week’s new newsletter Member Spotlight section, and I now have a list of interviews lined up with experts on things like online writing tools like Scrivener and writing for Medium, etc. I didn’t see any of this coming even six months ago, but I’m SO happy about it. #FriendsDontLetFriendsWriteAlone
- One-on-One Consulting Sessions: Writers have increasingly hired me for one-off consulting, and, yes, please. It’s quick, fun, keeps me on my toes, and widens the book mama community. Often, writers don’t want or need a retreat or intensive coaching. They’re wildly creative, have a few key questions, and desire an immediate gut check and a second set of eyes. I help them gain the confidence to know if they’re on the right track or can rock it better with a pivot. They send me their samples, burning questions, social media links, website URLs, and the like, and we put our heads together fast.
- New Beautiful Writers Podcast episodes, Beautiful Writers book & audiobook promo, article writing, and future books. So many desires, so little time. Everything I’ve ever offered started with my dream to write. And that dream still lives. It’s time to pay more attention to my writing and the platform I’ve built for doing it. Beautiful Writers 2 and other books are calling my name. You know the drill.
- And then there’s my ADORABLE husband. He loves to play, my guy. Every day has been open-ended for him since he retired from corporate America a few years ago. We joke that he works harder now than he ever did running airports for American Airlines or being the “king of all trash,” as I called him, with his job heading Waste Management for Southern California and Hawaii. Once a worker, always a worker. He’s still up at dawn most days, out in the pasture cleaning up after our horses (did you know that each one poops between 7-10 BIG piles per day?), or doing God knows what on his tractor and building cool stuff. I’m out there with him most days because that’s how I’m wired. We can’t just sit down all day.
I apologize if a writing retreat with me has been on your bucket list, and this feels out of the blue. Again, I’ll soon set up a waitlist if things change. In the interim, you can send an email to team@bookmama.com with the subject line: RETREAT WAITLIST. I reserve the right to change my mind (my mama used to say that’s how you keep it clean). Life is long (hopefully), Carmel is my forever happy place, and we shall see.
In the meantime, you know where to find me—including on Instagram, Facebook, and X. Thoughts on this new development? I’d love to hear them, including well wishes:).
Love you. Write On!
Linda xo
