Author: lesliegail

If you’ve been around here for any amount of time, you will know Disney World is one of my happy places. And my favorite way to experience it is solo. It’s not that I don’t love being at Disney with the people I love (and when I am with people I do enjoy sharing it with them) but when I am by myself I feel like I experience it more deeply. I might stand staring at the water for 10 minutes. And it’s not the water I’m seeing. I don’t think I’m seeing anything really, I am just being. Just breathing. Existing. In my happy place. 🙂

I did get to see my friend Annette on this most recent trip. And I immensely enjoyed the time we spent together, especially getting to do the Halloween party with her. Her first time, my second. I had a couple of days alone before she arrived, so I had the best of both worlds!

We had connecting hotel rooms and many times we were both on our own side of the open door, doing our own thing, but just existing together. Everyone needs a friend like that. Someone who knows when you need your space and when you need company. When you need a morning to sleep in because you walked 14 billions steps the day before, and who doesn’t mind heading back to the hotel alone if you still need to ride the PeopleMover a few more times. 😉 I swear it’s one of the most underrated rides at Disney.

What about you? Are you a Disney fan? A solo traveler (to anywhere, not just DW)? Someone who needs alone time? Or are you someone who thrives with more people around?

My yearly writing retreat was last month. It’s with a group of writers I’ve known since 2015-16. This year I hosted it at my house. I didn’t get a single pic of us as a group, so instead I am sharing some of my fave pics from over the years!

That first one is my fave because I’d just said something that cracked them up right before I took the selfie! 😀

Not everyone could make it this year in person, but the two who couldn’t were able to join us online and it felt almost the same as if they were here in the same room! Lots of writing/revisions were done over the 4.5 days.

We also include a day to relax where we usually go get a tarot reading, visit a bookstore, and go out to eat. That’s what you see in the first three pics. Then in the last two, that’s my Candy CharBOOturie I made for us. Then my goals. I had to scribble some of that out because they are definite book spoilers. Like “clarify XXXXXX’s death”. But I kept within the theme and made my scribbles into a badly drawn ghost.

While I enjoy hosting it at my house since I get to write from my own office (where I do my best work) I did miss the pool we had at last year’s retreat! However, not the scorpion who chased us out of the hot tub!

What about you? What would be your perfect retreat? If you aren’t a writer, what about a crafting or reading retreat? Or some other type? I think a reading retreat would be divine! Just a few days to do nothing but read, eat, and chill with close friends?! Count me in and make sure my invite doesn’t get lost in the mail! 😉

Oh my gosh y’all! I wrote my Acknowledgment section today for my book. Do you know how amazing that feels??? I’m so close to being able to hold my book in my hands.

Even though this has been the loooongest journey, it’s not like I’ve been digging ditches or some other taxing labor where all I get is a big hole and a bad back. I’ve been writing a book…which means I’ve been playing in the big sandbox that is my imagination. Most kids have an imaginary friend for a short while. Mine are always with me. So even though it has been a ton of work, I’ve had fun doing it!*

But, right…back to the Acknowledgments. Tears were shed when I thought about how many people have encouraged me and believed in me over the decades. I couldn’t possibly name everyone, and I know I probably forgot someone, but the joy I felt thinking of how many people will be like…whoa, what? LESLIE! Seriously? You finally did it?! Girl, I knew you could do it! Well done!

Including past Leslie. She wrote me a thank you card that I’ll share some day. Because she knew it would happen some day.

Y’all! Someday is coming up real soon! Get ready!

*Between the tears and the therapy sessions and the venting with friends and leaning on writing coaches and sobbing on Zoom because I didn’t think I would ever get here. But other than that…it’s been sunshine and glitter! 😉

_{Also “It’s been a ton of work, but I’ve had fun doing it” is probably going on my gravestone. 😉}

That was the massive breath I let out once I typed the magic words the other day. The End. Then I leapt out of my chair, dashed to the mirror, shot finger guns at myself and said, “We freaking did it, you brilliant girl.”

Next, I pumped up the music to my personal anthem, Try Everything from Zootopia, and danced. I was home alone so no retinas were damaged by the brightness of my smile nor the awkwardness of my old white lady dances moves. Both cats might need therapy soon though, but that probably has more to do with me constantly trying to give them hugs than me gyrating in front of the hallway mirror.

And yes, I’m the only person in the whole world who has ever finished* a book. We all know that, right? Okay, there might be a few others. But y’all. Y’aaaaaaaaall!!! This has been a long time coming. I feel like a phoenix rising from the ashes (or that creepy hand that shoots up from the grave at the end of a horror movie) because you can’t keep this girl down. About five years ago I was at this same place with a different book and then… Poof! Nothing. Well, there was a lot of something, but…we won’t get into that.

But yeah, that first book is being held in the loving arms of my C drive clutching a blanket monogrammed with the initials FP&SL on which is pinned a note from its mother that she will be back to get it from the orphanage some day. Shh…Don’t tell FP&SL that I went off and had a whole other book baby.

Said book baby is currently with my editor and will be available this fall! For now, click below and subscribe to my Newsletter for fun stuff like the cover reveal, the title reveal, excerpts, teasers, and other fun details like how the cats are doing in therapy.

Do it. Now.

Or not. I mean you’re an adult and can do what you want, right…

*is a book ever really finished?