Driving to Orlando from St. Pete on I-4 can be a dreaded journey, but not on Saturday, June 7th, 2014. I was off to the  SCBWI  Florida Mid-Year Workshops with two other Skyway Writer Critique Group members, Susan and Melissa. We met at Wire Grass in Wesley Chapel at 6:15 a.m. arriving with coffee cups safely in hand and climbed into Susan's car. She was the brave soul to carry us onward to a day of workshops and critiques.

If you're able to go next year, it's always around the first week in June, check it out. We had agents, editors, and well-known authors of YA, MG, PB, fiction and nonfiction.. Steve Mooser, the Co-founder/president of SCBWI  taught the Self-Publishing track with author Jaimie Engle.

Another  Skyway Writer Critique Group member,  Sandy Markle, author of 200-plus NF books, taught as a part of the Common Core Track. She presented along with author Melissa Stewart and HarperCollins Editor, Tamar Mays.

I learned quite a bit about PBs from a dream team in action.  Marcia Wernick was the reason I chose to attend PB over YA or MG and then I learned she only takes PB authors who also write novels. Luckily, I do!  She and agent Alexandra Penfold, another amazing agent and author, along with prolific Leslie Helakoski ( author/illustrator) and the wonderful Frank Remkiewicz ( author/illustrator) taught the PB track. They did not disappoint!

Rob Sanders, author of COWBOY CHRISTMAS talked about how amazing author Deborah Wiles was teaching the MG track along with Candlewick Assistant Editor, Carter Hasegawa.

And I heard all sorts of praise during the day for Marjetta Geerling (author) who taught the YA track along with the Delacorte Press Executive Editor, Wendy Loggia.

I'm sure I would have loved any one of the tracks. This trek to Orlando was a breeze talking with Susan and Melissa about writing. Seeing writers friends whom I hadn't seen in a while, like Fred Koehler, author of HOW TO CHEER UP DAD, and Shannon Hitchcock THE BALLAD OF JESSIE PEARL and one of my favorite people, author and teacher, Joyce Sweeney.

Getting to the workshop was a breeze. Deciding which track to attend -- when you write more than one genre-- now that was a challenge.