Stay-Home Writing Retreat

 
 
 

During August 2024, I invited writers from all over the world to join me for a productive, nurturing 5-day writing retreat at home with twice-daily inspiration and a supportive community of other writers.

This 5-day self-paced writing retreat was designed for any kind of writer, including those who aspire to carve out just an hour or two of daily writing time and those who are looking for a full-on immersive experience.

If you missed this event, you may wish to read some of the excellent tips and tricks shared by writers below. And if you’re keen to try it for yourself, you can conduct your own solo writing retreat for free, any time by registering below.

Here’s WriteSPACE Event Manager Amy Lewis’ personal account of the retreat:

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Motivated by the uplifting support of fellow writers, this stay-at-home retreat provided the ideal opportunity to focus on those long-neglected writing goals. Helen’s videos each day posed challenges and taught us frameworks for productivity, such as SAFE goals (Simple, Attainable, Forgiving, and Easy!) and the SPACE rubric for pleasurable writing (Socially balanced, Physically engaging, Aesthetically nourishing, Creatively challenging, Emotionally uplifting). Helen encouraged us to set a new SAFE goal each morning and enhance one part of our writing SPACE before reflecting at the end of the day. These frameworks help us to be present in our mind and body when we sit down to write.

I was grateful to read everyone’s reflections, many of which were filled with useful tips and resources. I’ve compiled a selection of lively links for you to browse through below:

Shake it out during a writing break!

Be carried away by the music!

  • Hans Zimmer's ‘Green Card’ movie soundtrack (not too distracting and keeps a good tempo) and the Bridgerton soundtrack (upbeat and motivating) are two good options.

  • For classical music, consider Cosi fan tutte or the Magic Flute (classics!) or Jordi Savall’s baroque chorale music (nice morning music). If you like sound of the mandolin in the afternoon,  try Chris Thile’s acoustic songs.

  • Helen recommends bringing nature into your writing space by listening to birdsong recordings. Here is a beautiful recording featuring New Zealand native birds (At the beginning you can hear the voice of the Tui bird - my personal favourite - which mimics other birdsong, creating a surprisingly melodic cacophony of caws, trills, guttural splutters)
    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mhvCsYFZ0vQ

    A key takeaway for me was the idea that a chapter or writing breakthrough could be associated with a piece of music. When you hear it again, you can remember that powerful writing moment!

Time your writing sessions!

I’ll end this quick summary with one writer’s reflection about beautiful writing:

My aim has always been to craft a beautiful thesis - in fact, when my supervisors asked for a plan it was in bullet point format and started with 'write 100, 000 beautiful words', then 'obsess over commas (a little too much)' - I said I wanted it to be a page-turner, a good read, but they said that can wait until the thesis is turned into a book. My argument is: why wait? Why forego the pleasure of crafting words that are, as Helen describes, 'aesthetically nourishing' to both me and my readers? I’m so glad I signed up for this week!

I look forward to seeing you at the next WriteSPACE Special Event!

Not a member? Join the WriteSPACE with a free 30 day trial, and access our full Library of videos and other writing resources as part of your membership plan.

 
August 2024Helen Swordproductivity, Writing retreats