Weekend in the Wilds

I spent the weekend in the company of some very smart women in the 'wilds' of California. Yep, California does have wilds, but you gotta go a bit and then some to find 'em.
We were on a mini retreat- three glorius days of writing! Alpha Female #1 is a real taskmaster too. She fed us and laved us with attention before jumping to her tiny feet and declaring " Alright get to work!" Not really, but it sounds good huh? Actually she was extremely encouraging, and thus with that in mind we began to write.
I've been to her retreat before- and I always get the best writing done there. I wonder sometimes why. Could it be the wide open spaces? The broad clear vistas, the quiet? Or all of the above? I actually think that it may be because she expects us to be better than usual that we rise to the occasion. In any case, if I ever sell this book it will be because of her encouragement and belief in me.
This dosen't discount Alpha Female #2's role in this whole scenario- oh no! She is a MAJOR player in the world of Childrens lit-and I have been lucky enough to be mentored by her. After struggling and struggling and STRUGGLING, ( did I mention that I have struggled ?)with the book ,I heard Alpha Female #2 speak, and a light went off in my head. A bomb burst, bells rung.... I knew what I had to do. And I began to do it. And it is working! The book began to come together- it started making more sense, it seems like something that maybe a child would want to read! And AF#2 continues to be an example to me...every time I begin to write I hear her scratchy voice behind my ears saying "Raise the stakes, let it go, DO it!" Well, her voice isn't really scratchy- but I do hear it in my head.
So anyway- I am galloping headlong into the final strech of this whole project- and feeling good about it too. Am I lucky- or WHAT!