11 Jun A Golden Time For Your Writing by Andrew Wright
Need more time with your writing? Want to access the amazing support and creative kindness of fellow Eggers? Need an opportunity to be inspired, refreshed and excited about your writing all over again? Consider our GE Retreats.
We run two a year – in March and October – and they are kept small and intimate to ensure everyone gets both writing time and the opportunity to benefit from the support of the writers on the Retreat. The Retreats run at the Lighthouse Hotel in Frome. Each Retreat group develops its own specific agenda (after all, it’s your Retreat, facilitated by us) but they usually include some or all of the following:
- Plenty of writing time (starting at 10am on the Friday and finishing at 3pm on the Sunday)
- A starter session (over the first breakfast) where everyone agrees on their personal writing targets for the retreat
- A visiting published writer who shares their writing process and journey
- Egg crit groups, where fellow Retreaters offer each other feedback on around 2.5K of their work, shared before the Retreat
- Mutual support and community spirit
- Ad hoc sessions on everything from a writer’s own writing and editing journey, to tips on using software like Scrivener
Both previous Golden Egg Retreats (run by Eggers for Eggers) have sold out within a week of been announced so please book early to avoid disappointment.
Don’t just take our word for it, here are a few the well-penned words of previous Retreaters:
The Retreat is a great place to get away from routine, an opportunity to talk to other Eggs about writing and the GEA journey. You can share your ‘writer emotions’ and realise they’re normal. Meet writer friends you might keep for life and support each other on the journey.
Kay Vallely, mentored by Imogen Cooper
What a wonderful weekend! I went to the Retreat thinking I would be writing most of the time, and while there was plenty of time to do this, it ended up being so much more. When you’re with a group of people who care as much about your chances of success as their own then you know you’re onto a good thing. Add to this the opportunity of having your work critiqued and learning more than you ever thought possible about the re-editing process, being constantly plied with delicious food, playing hilarious games and socializing in the pub then you start to feel part of a very special family.
Ann-Marie Stone, working with Bella Pearson
The Retreat is a unique opportunity to develop writing collaborations with people. The friendship and fun parts go without saying. But what is offered is a chance to continue conversations that you may have been having with people in the virtual world, or to start conversations which can then be carried on once you go home. So the Retreat is really an opportunity to have a RealTime touchpoint on your writing journey. It is invaluable for that reason.
Rus Madon mentored by Imogen Cooper
It’s a wonderful opportunity to escape from the real world and relax and focus on your writing and also to chat through any and every idea you might have! There’s also a suitable level of daftness and giggling which always helps! 🙂
James Nicol, mentored by Bella Pearson and agented by Kate Shaw of the Viney Literary Agency
To see what we got up to last time, have a look at the #GEARetreat hashtag on Twitter. On our Retreat in July, the wonderful Clare Furniss generously gave her time to talk to us about her novel The Year of the Rat (Simon and Schuster) and read from her latest book (published this autumn).
Dates of next Retreat: Friday 16th, 17th and 18th October.
Prices include breakfast and lunch. Evening meals are at local pubs with reasonable priced menus, accommodation is at the Lighthouse or local hotels.
