Friday, October 17th
Day One: Your Starting Point
Registration Table Open
With WR Team
It all starts here. Check in at the Registration Desk at Writing Room's headquarters. You'll be greeted at the door by a member of our team and receive your map and schedule for the weekend.
Doors Open: Find Your Seat
With WR Team
Meet other writers and make connections with participants from around the world. If joining virtually, connect with other participants in our meet-and-greet.
Everything You Need To Know
With WR Team
Don't miss this orientation
Everything You Need To Know
With Jack Ashman
The retreat has officially begun! Learn the guidelines and ethos of participating in this event.
Become Your Favorite Author
With Claire Giovino
What does it take to become your own favorite author? If you haven't yet found the book you've been seeking, it might be time to write it.
Preparing For Success
With Amie McNee
Authors spend a lot of time preparing for failure, but what about the implications of success? Get ready to turn your ideas into reality.
Dinner Series: Deep Journaling
With Lynda Monk
A non-negotiable for calming the chaotic mind, get new inspiration and insight on the best daily habit for writers.
Empathy: An Author's Power
With Dr. Judith Orloff
A writer's greatest gift is their ability to notice the details of life, yet this sensitivity often torments the artist's experience (book signing to follow).
The Rules of Seduction
With Marlon James
Learn how to write engaging prose that comes to life, pulls readers in, and keeps them turning the page with sentences that dazzle.
Pitch Night | Book Signing
With Marlon James
Meet Marlon James in this exclusive book signing to wrap up Day One, then stick around for pitch night and vote for your favorite workshop.
Saturday, October 26th
Day Two: The Threshold
9:00 am - 10:00am
(60 min)
Silent Writing | Study Hall
With Jacob Nordby
Join Writing Room co-founder Jacob Nordby for an hour of Silent Writing among new friends.
10:00am - 11:00 am
(60 MIN)
Find Your Narrative Voice
With Reema Zaman
Choose the tense and perspective that unlocks your narrative voice and reveals the depth of the story only you can tell.
11:00am - 12:30pm
(90 min)
Conscious Collaboration
With Gay & Katie Hendricks, PhDs
Explore the relationship you have with your readers, fellow writers, and your creative universe.
Lunch Series: Monetizing & Marketing
With Karen Salmansohn
How do you sell what you write? Overcome the aversion many authors (and creatives) have to the idea of "selling" their work.
Writing To Awaken
With Mark Matousek
Learn the power of memoir, specifically its ability to transform false narratives and outdated stories.
Catching An Editor's Eye
With Jake Morrissey
What’s an editor really looking for in a manuscript or a book proposal? Jake Morrissey, editor at Penguin Random House, will show you.
An Author-Editor Relationship
With Marlon James & Jake Morrissey
Join an intimate conversation on what the collaboration between author and editor really looks like.
Dinner Series: Finishing the Book
With Grant Faulkner
Join the former director of NaNoWriMo as he discusses what it takes to finally finish your book and get it out into the world.
Contemplative Storytelling
With Cole Arthur Riley
In order to survive as a sensitive creative, it's easy to numb ourselves to the unpredictability of life. Learn a powerful method to counteract despair.
The Story Of Your Life
With Cheryl Strayed
Cheryl reveals her process of turning pain into a best-selling book and feature film. A deep-dive into the odyssey of getting a book completed.
The Story Of Your Life
With Cheryl Strayed
Cheryl reveals her process of turning pain into a best-selling book and feature film. A deep-dive into the odyssey of getting a book completed.
Open Mic | Book Signing
With Cheryl Strayed
Meet Cheryl Strayed in this exclusive book signing to wrap up Day Two, then stick around for the Open Mic and share your favorite piece of work.
Sunday, October 27th
Day Three: The Initiation
9:00 am - 10:00am
(60 min)
Submit Sunday & Morning Yoga
With Jen & Jacob
Join Jen Pastiloff for morning yoga on the Pool Terrace (in-person only), or join Jacob Nordby for Submission Sunday.
10:00am - 11:00am
(60 MIN)
Mystery Guest Workshop
With Secret Guest
A workshop like no other. You'll leave feeling inspired to show up bravely and encouraged to take up space in a bigger way.
11:00am - 12:30pm
(90 min)
The Cost Of
Entry
With Jen Pastiloff
The cost of becoming an author you admire means putting in both the work and the resources. Are you ready?
Lunch Series: Ask An Agent
With BJ Robbins
Join literary agent BJ Robbins as she shares what she looks for in query letters, and her advice for writers in the querying trenches.
Preparing For Freedom
With HeatherAsh Amara
You've spent the past two days excavating your past and unconscious to break through your creative blocks — now it's time to let go.
Initiation Ceremony
With HeatherAsh Amara & Jacob Nordby
A real initiation creates a transformation of your being that cannot be undone.
Dinner Series: Time To Cultivate
With Kemi Nekvapil
Unearth the stories that stop you from cultivating your voice and honoring the harvest of your words.
Activate Your Creative Formula
With Jacob Nordby
You are always using a formula in your life, however the process is unreliable when it remains in the unconscious.
Setting Sail: Now What?
With Anne Lamott
Our final event of the evening concludes with Anne's decades of writing wisdom. Gather around a love for this one, shared desire — to write.
Setting Sail: Now What?
With Anne Lamott
Our final event of the evening concludes with Anne's decades of writing wisdom. Gather around a love for this one, shared desire - to write.
Closing
Ceremony
With Jack Ashman
Honor all that you've experienced and all the ways you've changed. Celebrate heading back to our lives differently than before.
Book Signing & Goodbyes
With Anne Lamott
Meet Anne Lamott in this exclusive book signing to wrap up the retreat. Say your final goodbyes and swap contact information with new friends.