by Tammy Karasek @TickledPinkTam
This year I’ve had several opportunities to join with other writers and go off, away from home, for a writer’s retreat. From the ocean to the mountains, we had a dedicated time to write. All who gathered had different needs for their writer’s getaway, but all desired the focused time for their work.
Each week I also have a pseudo writing retreat as a crew of us meet to put words into our current WIP (Work in Process) for several hours. We have several die-hard crew members, and others join as they can. Again, it’s time focused on a specific project.
The benefits to both of these styles of writer retreats are varied. Schedules and finances may not permit a time away for a few days or a week. It’s helpful to find a location that accommodates the group and split the cost. When that’s not possible, a day retreat can also be beneficial and worth the effort to do.
9 benefits for a writing retreat, no matter which style:
1. Focused Time on a Project
Writers I went with had a specific project or projects they wanted to take the time to narrow in on and do the necessary items to complete it. Maybe not all were at a point of completion, so they set a goal of number of words they wanted to reach before they packed to go home. Often, once back home, a text would ping with the news they’d stayed on task and hit The End.
2. Distraction Free
I know I often get pulled out of my writing zone when I’m at home. Husband is home and makes noise my FOMO (fear of missing out) brain can’t ignore. I remember a call or email I needed to take care of before I started that now decided to nag at me. Or the dog (or cat) decides now would be a perfect time for snuggles—on your lap, or worse, your keyboard. A retreat gives those distractions a break and allows you to stay undeterred from the noises around you. They’re not your noises at this retreat, you don’t need to tend to them.
3. Change of Environment
This is a perk I happen to enjoy while I’m at a retreat. Whether your crew decides on a beach/lake, mountain, or someone’s house as a retreat location, it’s nice to change the view, the location to write in a different chair or table and know you’re not there alone.
4. Refreshment
Whether you decide to stay up late and write if you’re on a roll or rise with the birds and get a great start on that word count, you get to decide. Want to sleep in and get a great night of sleep, you’re in charge of that. You aren’t on anybody else’s schedule. Unless of course, your writing group decided to have a time schedule and do other activities throughout the day. Then again, your attendance may not be mandatory, so do what will help you get your writing goal accomplished.
5. Paid to be There—Make It Productive
I suggest you do all your social media, work projects or any other time-pulls away from your writing before you load your laptop and suitcase into your car. You’ve paid money, no matter the amount, to be there. Make sure it’s a productive time for you. Grab that coveted ROI (return on investment). Do set those minimum and wish-list-sized goals before you leave home. Look at your goal list each night and see what you need to do to feel satisfaction of your money’s worth for the trip.
6. Accountability
If you know you’d like to have accountability while you are away, decide with your friends to have a check-in along the way. Set goals and either write them down, or share on your first night there. Then check on each other’s progress each evening at supper. Be praying for each other as you all work to achieve the writing goals you’ve set for yourselves. Make a game of it, have special chocolate bars for those that meet their goal for the day. My chocolate loving fans have now perked up and are open to the idea of a retreat.
7. Brainstorm Partners
Hello, captain obvious! Where can you find a more perfect place to brainstorm on a spot you’re stuck in on your current project? Or have a new project you’d like feedback on as you begin to plan and plot out the story or project? After supper, have a brainstorm session with whomever may need some extra help.
8. Encouragement
We often read that writers have moments of self-doubt on their writing. We wonder if we’ll ever finish a book or if we’ve got what it takes to succeed in this writer industry. The friends you are there with may have felt the same, reach out and share your doubts and let them offer wisdom and advice of how they’ve overcome those same thoughts. They know what they speak of with this—the ol’ cliché fits: been there, done that.
9. Camaraderie
Good fellowship is had at a retreat that’s for sure. And while folks say that writers can be an odd lot, well, we might resemble that comment. We find humor in the life of a writer that others find—odd. We love to sit together in a restaurant and have a Suspense writer blurt out, “I need a new way to kill off somebody and dispose of the body.” Those of us at the table will jump right in with suggestions without a second thought. Until one of us glances around and notice other tables have eyebrows raised as if thinking, should I box up my food and get out of here?
Other writers get you. Talking about the writer’s life with another writer is good for you. Those of who write know that we spend many hours alone at a keyboard. It’s part of the job. Yet, having a retreat to get away and work with writer friends is as beneficial to your heart as it is to your soul. These are your people. They know the ups and downs of the industry and want to see you succeed, too, and are aware of the hard work that comes with that.
Those are a few of the benefits I can offer you today if you think you might like to gather a few writer friends and get away to write. If you’ve attended one yourself, are there some ideas you’d love to share with the rest of us? Please do so in the comments below, we’d love to try something new on our next retreat.
Featured Image: Photo by Toa Heftiba on Unsplash
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