|
The
Soul of the Word: A Retreat of One's Own
Virginia
Woolf said that in order to write, a woman must have 500 pounds per
year and a room of one's own. While Jan can't manage payouts
of 500 pounds, she will gladly help you create a space to focus on
writing. Jan offers customized writing retreats (for men,
too!) that offer the structure, support, and focus that help you
approach the page.
Influenced by the practice of lectio
divina, the
ancient art of contemplative reading, Jan thinks of our lives as sacred
texts. Writing is one of the ways that we read the text of
our life, and tell it; it is a way that flesh becomes word.
Jan's personalized writing retreats unfold in a
place of your choosing, whether at home or in a space more removed from
your daily life. Each retreat incorporates these elements:
- An
initial conversation by phone to
share about yourself, discuss what you'd like to work on during your
retreat, and explore what you will need during this retreat time.
- Twelve
writing prompts chosen by Jan that connect with the theme of your
retreat. Some of these prompts may be writing practices/exercises that
Jan will suggest; others will be excerpts from a wide array of
sources--including poetry, essays, and fiction--to which Jan will add a
question or two to help get you rolling.
- A
conversation during your retreat to talk about how the process is
unfolding.
- A
conversation after you have completed the retreat. Prior to
this,
you're welcome to send Jan anything you've written during the retreat
that you'd like to discuss in this conversation.
The
conversations will focus primarily on how you are experiencing writing
as a practice and on exploring what you encountered during your
retreat: where the process took you, how it helped you listen to your
life, resistance/blocks you encountered, surprises along the way.
While issues of technique may be explored, this is not the primary
focus.
Each conversation will last up to an hour. If you'd like
to have additional conversations beyond these three, Jan is open to
working that out.
The cost of the retreat is $450. Please contact Jan at
least four weeks prior to the desired start date of your retreat.
Return to retreats main page. |
|
