Arriving at Blue Ridge Christian Writers’ Conference

This week, I set aside my gardening gloves for a fabulous adventure. Our little Canadian authors’ group (a.k.a. known as Fab Four 😊) decided months ago to attend, once again, the Blue Ridge Christian Writers’ Conference.

Against all odds, we accomplished the seemingly impossible and loaded all our suitcases, boxes of books, and laptops into the rental car and set out for the long-anticipated road trip.

GSP told us we would need about 12 hours to reach our destination. Well, it lied. When we arrived at the lobby some 17 hours later, we were truly thankful to find a sweet, welcoming staff member ready to give us our room keys, even though it was midnight. We were ready for bed.

The following day, after sufficient amounts of coffee, we embarked on a bit of exploration of Black Mountain. Unsure what to expect, we were rewarded with a day in a charming town. We found a fabulous Krista Anne’s clothing boutique and checked out their sales rack. Next came the impromptu tasting of locally made jam and biscuits right on the main street, then enjoyed a delicious lunch at Trail Head restaurant.

The absolute highlight of the day? Our amazing friend Susanne Blumer owns an honest-to-goodness real toy emporium and a fantastic bookstore on the lower level of the same building. Sassafras charmed us from the moment we stepped over the threshold. What could be more thrilling for a group of authors than visiting a place filled with a scent of fresh paper and ink, a coffee bar, and a book signing? Our wonderful friend, Amanda Cox, was signing copies of her books.
As soon as we returned to the conference center, we noticed that most of our author friends had started to trickle in, and the ‘family reunion’ was about to begin. I will share more in my next blog post.