Writing Wednesday: Writing Retreats and Wordcount

This week I've traded in my beloved coffee mug for a tall glass of endless margaritas.  Yup, I'm in Mexico.

Going on an "official" retreat is always something I've wanted to do. Writers always say how productive they get on these kinds of trips.

Well, until the kids are all out of the house, I can't even think about it. But I can dream.

And I can do a mini-retreat, even if it's not official.

As of Saturday, I've been in Mexico with my husband (sans kids). We flew down early for a company event/retreat that starts this coming weekend.

And I brought my WIP with me that needs to be finished for this summer. Fingers crossed.

The last time I was alone in a hotel room with my computer and book, the words wouldn't come. But I did end up reading through, finding plot holes and problems and writing out an outline of how to fix it. Which I've accomplished in the last month. Unfortunately, in the process, I lost 2,500 words despite writing lots of new ones. Yup. Had to cut that much. Hopefully the word count goes in the opposite direction over the next week.

My goal? At least 50,000 new words by the time I return to the U.S. Or half that and a solid outline of how to finish. 

Have you ever been on a writing retreat, official or not official?

What worked for you - what didn't? How do you get the most out of the experience?