by Ellen Zachos
Writing is a solitary profession. Gardening often is too. That’s one of the reasons I love GWA and the friends and colleagues I’ve met as a member. Not only does GWA provide a network of accomplished professionals, but it’s also a social group, full of friendly, interesting people who are willing to go the extra mile to help out a fellow member.

This past fall, as I worked on my most recent book, I had reason to appreciate this aspect of the vast network that is GWA. Because the subject of my book is intensely seasonal (The Wildcrafted Cocktail) there were several instances in which I needed to test a recipe with a plant that was no longer available where I lived.
When I needed to distill rose water from fresh, organic rose petals in November, I figured I was out of luck. Then I thought, hey, I know some garden communicators who live in warmer parts of the country…maybe their roses are still blooming. Within a half hour of posting my request on Facebook, Ann McCormick answered and said she thought she could gather enough for me before an impending storm touched ground in Fort Worth. I gave her my FedEx number and the next day I had a ziplock bag full of lovely pink ‘Old Blush’ rose petals, fragrant, fresh, and ready to be distilled. Ann refused compensation for her time and effort; all she asked was that I write this blog post! Continue reading “Networking Saves the Day: How One Author Located Hard-to-Find Ingredients”