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It's Party Time!

Pandemic was declared on March 11, 2020, and for most of us, that's the day the world got stood on end and all the predictable changed. We've had practically no social contact since then, only the occasional bit of virtual contact, and usually not enough of that.

So to celebrate the pandemic's first birthday, I'm hosting a virtual Academic Dinner Party! Join us on Sunday, March 7, at either 1800 GMT (for European party guests) or at 1800 US Central Time (6 PM Chicago time for Western Hemisphere guests). [If anyone wants to host for an Asia-friendly time zone, I'm happy to provide the materials.]

So how does a virtual dinner party work?
1. Bring your own three-course meal (wine pairings optional). I don't care if it's carrot sticks, a hot dog, and three Oreos, or a baked brie, duck a l'orange, and a towering burnt almond torte.
2. Each course, we'll randomize into new breakout rooms for introductions, some type of discussion, and a silly party game.
3. After dessert, during the 'drinks' course, anyone who wants to continue to mingle can rejoin us in the main room.
The whole event should take between 1.5-2 hrs.

The whole point is to socialize and network. The people you meet may not be in your field, but that doesn't mean they might not turn out to be useful contacts in the future. And even if none of them turn out to be useful contacts, at least you had fun for a couple hours and got to talk to new people!

To register for the dinner party, complete the quick form at https://forms.gle/1GB26Letuk4MKsRZA. Feel free to invite friends - the more, the merrier!

COMING SOON: The Summer of FUN!
This summer is absolutely going to ROCK! I've got an amazing lineup of FREE and super-cheap events to help you make the most of your summer work time. Highlights include:

The return of the Summer Academic Working Groups for accountability and feedback
New groups based on Wendy Belcher's Writing Your Journal Article in Twelve Weeks (compatible with concurrent SAWG participation)
Groups for learning stats and R with peer support
The ever-popular Word for Dissertations formatting tools workshop and the Me, You, and the Lit Review workshop (small fee for these events)
NEW Small-Group Dissertation Coaching for both early (prospectus) and late (write-up) stage PhD students (fee)
NEW Small-Group Book Developmental Workshop for faculty (fee)

You can read all about these and other summer offerings at http://www.leannecpowner.com/pages/summer2021.html . Registration for all the summer events - free, paid workshops/courses, and regular coaching for new clients - starts on 1 April, so be ready when the next newsletter comes out!

Writer's Boot Camp writing retreats continue! We're trying for every month this year. March's is on March 20, the usual 9 AM - 3 PM US Eastern Time (which is 1-7 GMT due to US time changes). Come for all or part. This month's special workshop will be word trimming techniques for self-editing. To register: https://forms.gle/XYaDfmY6mviCMJRB8 Participation is FREE; however, if you are able to make a small contribution to support keeping Boot Camp free for all, it's appreciated.