Southwest Region Writing Meet-ups

Shows you how much I get out--I didn't realize Coffee Groundz had closed! And it had lots of outlets.

What is bubble tea?

Bubble tea is a drink (not always tea) with tapioca pearls at the bottom. Sounds weird, tastes goooood.

They have a pretty wide selection there, too...you don't have to get the tapioca if you don't want, but I would recommend it.

Oh, and I'm now the Area Liaison (AL) for SW (Sugar Land, etc.) Houston...so feel free to PM me or post anything you need to this thread. I'm here to help make your Nano (first or tenth) a better experience!

Thanks for taking on the AL job. I love tapioca--can't wait to try the bubble tea.

Thx... I do remember people in past years mentioned working at Panera Bread, as well. I never attended those, so I'm not sure which one or when they tended to meet. I don't know much about the place. Does anyone know if they have wifi?

Any other suggestions on meetup places in this area?

Hello SW NaNos!

This is my first year with NaNo and I am truly excited to meet everyone and begin my writing project. I live in Missouri City (off HWY 6, near Sugar Land) and will try to meet you at Teahouse whenever possible. BTW, I also had no idea Coffee Groundz was closed. 

Due to time constraints, I will also do some writing at Panera Bread in Mo City since it is closer to my house. Here's a link to the location:

http://maps.google.com/maps?f=q&hl=en&geocode=&q=Panera+bread,+missouri+...

Thanks!

You must live pretty close to me--I'm at Hwy 6 and Dulles. I would be willing to meet at the Panera Bread.

What's the setup like? Do they have free wifi? Hours? Etc.

Hey there Nuttyknitter!

You're down the street from me and meeting up at Panera Bread is fine w/me. :-)

The setup is pretty cool. There are tables and chairs, free wi-fi and great food, coffee and teas . . . and the staff is awesome; at least from my personal experience.

Here's another voice in favor of the Mo City Panera Bread. It's close, has outlets and free wi-fi, and the staff has always been friendly. Best of all they make a mean Chai-tea Latte

Sounds like a winner, then...let's not set any dates just yet...still to early before November. I know that these things often come together quickly...but I think weekends are probably some of the better times for such meet-ups.

Hi Solaris! (I'm the one that convinced her to do this, y'all! I'm a NaNo pusher). Last year I think I made it to one meet-up and there was only one other person there. This year I hope to be much more social with my nano doings. Teahouse sounds good, as does Panera. I could probably meet at the Teahouse just about any day between four and five-thirtyish.

Anybody else down Sienna way?

Swooning is definitely a "NaNo pusher"! You should see her in action at work! :-)

The following is something to keep in mind when meeting at Panera Bread in Missouri City . . . it's open from 6:00 AM to 8:00 PM Monday - Friday and 7:00 AM - 8:00 PM Saturday and Sunday.

yay for new people!!! I'm not sure what the hours for Teahouse are offhand.....hmmmm

Hi guys,
I live in Sienna. This is my 3rd Nano. I would love to meet up with ya'll for a write-in. Sometimes the library will give you a meeting room for a few hours. I did that two years ago - they even let us set up coffee and snacks. Just an idea.
Panera Bread is good. I think they close early though, don't they? I remember trying to write there last year in the evenings and only getting an hour or two in before they closed. I'm available day or night. Anyone else interested in meeting during the day?
Happy Writing!
K

Hoorah for another Sienna NaNoer!!!

Panera Bread closes at 8:00 PM . . . at least that's the closing time for the one near us. The Teahouse @ Coffeehouse (formerly It's A Grind) in Sugar Land, http://maps.yahoo.com/map?q1=4727%20Sweetwater%20Blvd%20Sugar%20Land%20T..., is open from 6:00 AM to 11:00 PM Monday - Friday and has free wi-fi. A fellow NaNoer shared this info earlier.

You know there's a coffehouse (can't think of the name) in the front of Sienna next door to CVS. I like the place (free wi-fi, friendly staff and good drinks); however, it is small and can get very noisy.

Have a great weekend!

I'm available for daytime write-ins. If the weather is nice, I would even go for sitting outside the Kroger at their patio tables. Don't know if they have wi-fi, but then I don't really use it at write-ins anyway.

Vicki

Well, howdy neighbor! :)
I used to write at It's a Grind. I didn't know they changed. I've only been to the Sienna coffee shop (by CVS) one time - they were open a couple of days after Ike and I dashed in for a coffee. Does it get busy in the evenings? The Fruhstucks is a good place, but they're only open in the morning. I've actually gotten quite good at ignoring distractions, so I can probably write anywhere!
Kristi

Glad there's plenty of interest...I'm sure there will be plenty of opportunities for write-ins. Personally, my work week schedule can make it hard to meet up during the week, but the weekends are definitely wide-open!

Hey everyone! I've been out-of-pocket this week for business. Now I'm back and ready to get things going in our area.

First, I just want to encourage as many of you as possible to attend the Kickoff meeting! I plan to be there (so bring any suggestions for write-ins, etc.) and it is a great way to meet-up with your fellow writing fiends. Details are here:

Saturday, October 25, 2:00 PM
at the Havens Community Center
1827 W. Alabama, Houston, TX 77098.

You don't need to bring anything except your smiling faces and the tiny shreds of the possibilities of a plot that will soon consume your lives. I know our Municipal Liaison has various activities planned. It should be great!

Second, I know that the big day (Nov 1st) is just over a week from now. I want to see what level of interest there is to have a Got Plot? Brainstorming Session. The basic idea is to go in with the tattered threads of a possible story and come out with a sentence or so summary of the chapters you are planning. We could make this fairly informal (probably meet at one of the potential write-in places) and just talk to each other, give encouragement, and share ideas. I find, sometimes, that I figure out solutions to problems just by vocalizing them to others. You have to think about it differently to explain it to someone and that can trigger something. Plus, we have some clever intelligent fellow writers that can help. For me, weekend times are always best, but I can adapt to your schedules for this one (evening please for weekday!).

On scheduling, I'd like to arrange for at least one regular write-in scheduled per week. You don't have to go to all or any, of course, but I know it has helped me in the past (plus they're fun!). I would advocate for a Sat (anytime) or Sun (afternoon). Certainly times outside of that are fine!

Let me know what you think!!!!

Sunday afternoons are good.Monday evenings and Tuesday mornings are already full, but any other times are open.

I am also available for daytime write-ins during the week if we have any other SAHMs or people who work evening or night shifts.

Hey all, it's me again, lumos, your Area Liaison! We had a great turnout for the Kickoff meeting today. For those of you who made it, good to see you again/meet you. For those who couldn't make it, sorry to miss you. But you haven't missed it all!

We still have a month of writing to come. With that said, I have a few announcements:

1) Tomorrow, Sun Oct 26th, some of us are planning to meet up to help plot out our stories (especially for those of you in the dark about what you want to write). Even if you have an idea but want to give it a bit more definition before we start racing next Saturday towards that looming 50k. I propose (as it seems closest relative to the most people) to have it at the Teahouse at 3pm.

I've mentioned this before. It's in the Krogers parking lot at Lexington and Sweetwater. If you're driving South on 59, exit Sweetwater and take a left under the hwy. From there, enter the shopping center parking lot to the right before you come to Lexington. It used to be called It's a Grind.

They have free wifi, bubble tea (coffee too, of course), and plenty of plug-ins. You don't necessarily need your laptops, etc. tomorrow. Bring whatever you need to help you plan.

2) Regular write-ins during November will be on Sunday at 3p at the Teahouse. That seemed to be the best time for everyone. Now, that won't be the only time we have these. I know Ayntagonist has said she would meet up with anyone most days at 4p. Post in this thread times and other locations you would like to meet up. Panera Bread has been suggested some.

3) If you have any questions/problems PM me. The Houston ML, other ALs, and I are here to help you all be successful this November. So, if anything is bothering you, feel free to talk to me about it.

4) If you're new or feel you need a gentle (or not so gentle) prod during the month / advice let the SW people know you want a buddy. On the flip side, if you're experienced in the ways of nano and want to extend that knowledge to others, let people know you want to be a buddy. This will be very informal. Just be there to help out the newbie, offer suggestions, etc.

Hope you all are as excited as I am for this season to start! And I hope to see you all at write-ins, etc.

Hey everyone, I'm Smooshie and I live Sugar Land, and I'm super excited about NaNoWriMo! I'm excited that SL has a good group of writers, and I look forward to seeing/meeting y'all throughout November. I love writing at Panera Bread, both the Mo City and Hwy 6/59 locations. I'll probably be writing regularly at either spot monday and friday mornings. Feel free to join me!

I've been an on-looker for several years. So, I plan to attend the write-ins for "inspiration" aka friendly peer pressure to get writing. I'll be there on Sunday, but would like to meet at least once a week at the Panera Bread in Missouri City. I'll be there on Mondays at 7:00 p.m., but I'm available other days.

Hello....

I'm glad I checked out this forum. This is my fourth (?) year to participate in Nanowrimo, and I'm sorry to say I've always eschewed the write ins. This year i plan to make it to them.

I'm looking forward not just to the inspiration I'm hoping the group setting will provide, but also I'm exicited to meet other Sugar Land writers.

As a long time fan of putting peanuts in my Dr. Pepper, the best road trip treat in existence, I'm particularly intrigued abou the tapioca I will be trying at the Teahouse.

Look forward to meeting you,

Dick

Glad to see so many interested new people. This could be the craziest Nano for me. Just found out work is sending me to San Antonio next week for an indefinite period. I should be able to come back on weekends...so write-ins are a go! And, I'll surely be writing late at night. Woohoo!

Hi everyone!!
I'm really excited about starting this weekend. This will be my first NaNoWriMo and the kick-off event was a lot of fun. I look forward to meeting more of you at the write-ins. I'll definitely be at the Tea House on Sundays at 3pm.

Good luck with writing during your business travels, Lumos - I know you can do it!!

Thanks Melissa! And welcome again! Hope to see you at the write-ins.

Hello, everyone, I'm Sumaya (the fourteen-year old). I'll probably come to a few write-ins, although not to the first one, I have a project, but I'll probably come to the others. I'm having trouble not starting on my novel right now - how many people are planning to stay up until midnight on Friday to start?