Happy Hooking webinar a fun success!
On Saturday the 11th January we conducted a Happy Hooking seminar on boat anchoring on behalf of the Great Lakes Cruising Club. We had 17 people strewn all over the United States tuning in to us in Ireland. Lucky for us that day the weather cooperated so our wireless internet connection held true. Sometimes, the gales here in the west of Ireland blow the antenna just enough off course to lose signal. Half way through, nevertheless, the connection to the "webinar room" just shut down.
PANIC!
No don't panic. Calmly open the email with the address of the site, copy and paste your password and hope that they haven't noticed the gap too much. Luckily, Murph took up the slack and showed people where to download files in the interim. We were gone about 30 seconds and it felt like 30 minutes. The marvels of technology. It went reasonably well and we finished just a bit behind schedule.
We've had such fun following up, too. We always encourage people to contact us with follow-up questions. We figure it's like being in the doctor's office. When you're there, you're processing the information (Oh my God I'm going to die). When you leave you process the questions (Did she say I'm going to die tomorrow or someday?). So when you've had the chance to think it through, you email us the questions. (What size anchor do I need to keep from dying?)
Then they tell us they've bought our book and love it! That is always the most amazing thing. As a writer, you always cringe when you put your work out there. You are baring your soul, so when someone tells you they like your work, it hits you like an energizing lightning bolt. (No I am not dying. I am more alive than I've ever been!)
That's when it gets interesting because suddenly we've got new friends with whom we are corresponding. We get to know their boat, their plans, and their fears. We help them think through their fears, bolster their plans, and invite them to visit us when they can. It's a remarkable thing actually. (It's called living, I think.)
I love this aspect of what we do. Here it is blowing a strong gale, massive hailstorms, whipping seas, and we are bundled warmly in our house while the stew cooks on the solid fuel range and I write stories to share with the world. Soon time to go sailing again, but for now, I am loving it. Thank you all, from the Happy Hookers!
PANIC!
No don't panic. Calmly open the email with the address of the site, copy and paste your password and hope that they haven't noticed the gap too much. Luckily, Murph took up the slack and showed people where to download files in the interim. We were gone about 30 seconds and it felt like 30 minutes. The marvels of technology. It went reasonably well and we finished just a bit behind schedule.
We've had such fun following up, too. We always encourage people to contact us with follow-up questions. We figure it's like being in the doctor's office. When you're there, you're processing the information (Oh my God I'm going to die). When you leave you process the questions (Did she say I'm going to die tomorrow or someday?). So when you've had the chance to think it through, you email us the questions. (What size anchor do I need to keep from dying?)
Then they tell us they've bought our book and love it! That is always the most amazing thing. As a writer, you always cringe when you put your work out there. You are baring your soul, so when someone tells you they like your work, it hits you like an energizing lightning bolt. (No I am not dying. I am more alive than I've ever been!)
That's when it gets interesting because suddenly we've got new friends with whom we are corresponding. We get to know their boat, their plans, and their fears. We help them think through their fears, bolster their plans, and invite them to visit us when they can. It's a remarkable thing actually. (It's called living, I think.)
I love this aspect of what we do. Here it is blowing a strong gale, massive hailstorms, whipping seas, and we are bundled warmly in our house while the stew cooks on the solid fuel range and I write stories to share with the world. Soon time to go sailing again, but for now, I am loving it. Thank you all, from the Happy Hookers!
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