A Homegrown Writing Retreat

A Homegrown Writing Retreat Ah, the writers retreat! A four-star hotel with room service, or maybe just an idyllic cabin in the woods, with meals delivered on tippy-toe so as not to disturb the Muse. What you couldnt get done in such an environment – provided you can afford the fees and travel costs, and make it past the waiting list. If you cant, dont despair. For the last six years my writers group has held three or four retreats a year: spring, summer, fall and sometimes also winter. Its simple, inexpensive, and very, very effective. Most of us who attend the retreats write daily, and professionally. The retreats allow us to kick-start a new project or make major progress on an existing one. Heres what you need for your own retreat: ==At least three writers committed to showing up all three days. Four, five or six reduces the work per person. More than that would probably be unwieldy. ==A space big enough for everyone to write in, with facilities for meals. Ours is the living room in the home of two of our writers. You might also be able to use a church hall or some other community space that has a kitchen. ==A meal plan. Ours is done a week ahead so everyone knows what meals theyll be responsible for. Meals are scheduled: breakfast 8 a.m., lunch 1 p.m., supper 6 p.m. Theyre also simple, and as much as possible, made ahead. The person responsible for the next meal cleans up from the last one, which means you know where you put the cheese grater or the big spoon. We try to keep breakfast and lunch self-serve, and gather for conversation and readings at dinner. ==A project, and whatever research materials, notes or so on you require, plus your writing tools of choice. We list food sensitivities and dislikes on the meal plan. We also ban television, movies, radio, phone calls and music except with headphones. Visitors are discouraged, and any conversation has to be away from the writing area. Alcohol comes out only in moderation with dinner, where we read aloud from the days work and cheer each other on. Three of us are hard-core and attend every day of every retreat. Three or four others regularly show up for a day or two (with a meal and cleanup). The work is minimal – at worst, one meal and one cleanup per day. Its not unusual to have a day on which youre not responsible for any kitchen work. As for cost, I live fifteen miles from the retreat location and usually do two meals and provide some snacks (fruit, nuts or biscotti, plus dark chocolate). My total costs for the weekend are $60-$80 in gas and food. If my friends guest room is available, its less than that. Results? They can be amazing. I regularly get two weeks worth of writing done in three days. Ive polished a manuscript for publication, written 80 percent of a non-fiction book and ploughed through more pages than I can remember. My colleagues have had similar results. While its my daily writing practice that keeps me productive and sharp, the retreats help me remember that there are others out there sharing this creative life. I come out of a retreat refreshed and re- committed. The camaraderie eases the usual loneliness of the writers work, the feedback warms the heart. And the production doesnt hurt, either.

Getting That Memoir to Pay

Getting That Memoir to Pay Youve published your memoir and now its not bringing in the kind of money you expected? Its disappointing, but its not unusual. Turning your memoir into a money-maker is one of the greatest challenges in writing and publishing. But dont be too quick to round-file your book and abandon the life-long dream of writing your story. There are other fairly simple ways of bringing in extra cash from your labor-of-love. 1.   The biggest step in earning more money from your memoir is 2.   Try submitting snippets of your memoir to various publications. My best example is the Chicken Soup for the Soul series, which is basically a collection of mini-memoirs. They pay $200 per story plus 10 copies of the book in which youre to be published. 3.   Sell portions of your memoir to magazines. Womans World Magazine publishes a weekly magazine that offers opportunities for earning money for true stories written in the first person. They pay $25, $100 and $250 for non-fiction stories. Or, pluck a section from your memoir, change the names, embellish it and then submit it as fiction, which pays $800 for romances and $500 for mini-mysteries. 4. Newspapers are always looking for quality human interest stories for their hard copy and on-line publications. For seven years I was paid to write a nostalgic cooking column for a newspaper where I drew fully from my early-life experiences. Pay depends on the individual publication. 5.   Consider speaking engagements. Ive spoken at senior centers, churches, womens groups and military organizations. Network or go on-line to find groups with interests that align with your memoir. The larger the organization the more theyre able to pay. 6.   Enter contests. Contests accept fiction and nonfiction pieces; heres another place where you can take a slice of your memoir, fictionalize it and enter it in a contest, or write a piece of it as creative nonfiction. Entry fees vary, as do winning prizes. 7.   Teach a class. I contacted the Continuing Education Department of our local college and was hired to teach adult cooking, cooking for kids, memoir writing and publishing classes. 8.   Craft shows and farmers markets offer a relaxed, country feel that can set the mood for memoir sales. Bring along your gift-of-gab. Ive sold more books at craft shows than through any other venue. Earning additional funds from your memoir is entirely doable. The key is to think outside the box. Stay focused, flexible, and above all, creative.