Breakout Sessions

Breakout sessions for the different retreats will be chosen based on the interest provided on each application form. We will host two or three during the week and they will often be held during Free Time for no longer than an hour each. It’s a way for us to introduce other creative outlets and build upon the daily writing sessions. Below we’ve outlined some of the potential breakout sessions. If you have any additional ideas, we would love if you Contact Us to express your opinions!

Writing for Social Channels

It’s important to identify what tools and platforms are available to you as a writer or fellow creative. Though Instagram is intended for images, that doesn’t mean it can’t be used as a platform for creative writing. Likewise, Medium may be an amazing hub for the independent writer, but it can also serve as a beautiful gallery space for budding photographers.

We will help you identify social media outlets you use the most and how you can optimize your use to reach a broader audience. There is no limit to what social media can do. It’s your choice how visible you would like to be.

Fiction Writing

So much of our daily lives is lacking imagination due to scheduling constraints, personal and familial responsibilities, the absence of inspiration, and general fatigue or burnout. In these mini-breakout sessions, we will use specialized prompts to explore genres within fiction, character and plot development, and other facets of creative fiction. The purpose of this session will be giving your imagination space to breathe, roam freely, and follow its lead to worlds beyond our own.

Poetry/Spoken Word

We’d like to explore poetry as what it means to you, meaning there is no limit to how you express yourself and your thoughts. Most of this will be free verse (who like rules being placed on their creativity?!) but haiku, and spoken word will be other forms we delve into together.

Life as a Freelance Writer

There is an unexpected world beyond the influencer blogosphere. With so many avenues for writing and high demand in content creation, it’s easier than ever to break into freelance writing. Jobs can range anywhere from Grant proposals, website SEO, affiliate marketing, and copywriting or editing. In these breakout sessions, we will identify different paths and the potential to explore what they have to offer.

Photography Basics

We want to encourage everyone to bring a camera other than what their phone has to offer for the sake of our intention of a digital detox. Whether you’re interested in beginning film photography or exploring the world of DSLR, we want to lead photography sessions in the field to help you better understand photography basics. We will likely abandon the automatic settings in favor of shooting manual to help you better grasp the balance between ISO, Shutter Speed, and Aperture. For those who would like to venture into post-processing in Adobe Lightroom, we can guide you through using RAW images and the workflow of photo editing.

Tools for Establishing Routines

Beyond the retreat, we want to give each of our participants the tools to develop more effective routines when they return to their normal schedules. We will be using some of these tools during the week, but our ultimate goal is to set you up for success in your own time management. What we present may not be a one-tool-fits-all, but we will try to cater what we know to your personal situation.

We will be discussing tools and resources such as available meditation apps, productivity timers, the benefits of bullet and gratitude journaling, Grammarly, Audible or other Podcasting apps.