That's a Wrap: Adventures in Colorado {July/August 2014}

So, uh...

Long time no see, am I right? In my defense I have a perfectly good reason for my month-long disappearance from the blogosphere. For the past month I was a student at the Denver Publishing Institute at the University of Denver! It was intense--"boot camp for book people" as one of my friends and classmates called it. For four weeks I was immersed in a crash course on all things publishing-related, everything from editing and marketing to production and design.

After our first day at the Institute we took a class field trip to the Tattered Cover Bookstore, one of the coolest independent bookstores I've been to! We were there for an author chat and book signing, but I got there an hour early just so I could have time to browse. And since I can never go into a bookstore (especially an indie) without buying something, I didn't leave empty-handed.

In addition to cramming my brain full of information about publishing, I also got out and did some exploring. By far one of the coolest things I got to see was the Dale Chihuly exhibit at the Denver Botanic Gardens. If you didn't already know, Chihuly's a glass sculptor from Seattle who makes some pretty amazing creations, like these:

 

 

 

This particular exhibit reminded me of the candy room from Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory. All the sculptures looked like bright, shiny candies!

 

Even the gardens that didn't have Chihuly sculptures were pretty spectacular.

Although I didn't go sightseeing in the mountains (which I now really wish I'd done), I was able to snap some pics on the way to Boulder for a field trip. Even though I could see the mountains from my dorm room, they were at a distance, so it was amazing to see them up close.

 

After four long, jam-packed weeks of learning how to edit manuscripts, coming up with marketing plans, and listening to lectures from publishing people all across the country, our class finally made it to graduation day, and the best part is...we got a book cake! Which is really just the coolest kind of cake there is. :)

So, I did! I can officially say I hold a certificate in publishing! YAY!

Now if I could just find a job...