Every August for the past decade, my writer’s critique group and friends have gathered for our annual writer’s retreat. This tradition started back in 2011, when we sought a weekend away from our daily responsibilities to create space for writing. There are no programs during this weekend, no speakers, no schedule. It is simply time and place set aside to write.
Our first writer’s weekend took place at the Westminster Retreat, a former estate turned meeting venue. Our accommodations ranged from a bedroom in the Manor House (if you didn’t mind the ghost who was rumored to haunt it on occasion) to a stable room out in the Carriage House Lodge. I loved staying in the former horse stalls converted to guest rooms in the cozy Carriage House. The “living room” of the Carriage House provided our central gathering place for when we wanted quiet conversation, and for our only scheduled event of the day – “wine o’clock” – our 5 p.m. pre-dinner social hour, which was decidedly not quiet.
We spent our days on that weekend working on our various writing projects. If you needed a break, the retreat center had a pool and mediation walk. Or you could venture out onto one of the many nearby hiking trails. Chef Bonnie cooked our delicious meals, served in the manor house dining room.
After several years at Westminster, the place sold and sadly closed. But our yearly tradition did not end there. We have since relocated to the San Damiano Retreat Center, where we have been meeting for much of the past decade. But in 2020, COVID interrupted social gatherings everywhere, and forced the cancellation of this treasured tradition. Undeterred, we adapted and moved the retreat online that year. We met remotely for a morning check-in, then reconvened via Zoom for our “wine o’clock” social, BYOB. Once we could meet in person again, we resumed our August gathering at San Damiano. A couple of years, we even added a February weekend into the mix.
In the early days, I had kids at home, and needed this cherished change of pace with uninterrupted time to write. Now I have more quiet time and space in the midst of my life. Nonetheless, I look forward to this retreat weekend every year. Getting together with other like-minded writers is so energizing, even if we spend the hours working on our separate projects. This collective creative energy seems to multiply when we gather and allow ourselves the gift of time and space simply to write.