If you’re an aspiring writer with a personal story to tell, and you’re ready to get out of your isolation and into a pleasant haven in the woods, join us for our first-ever in-depth exploration of the art and craft of writing memoir, Workshop in the Woods with Joyce Maynard, best-selling author and longtime teacher of personal narrative.
It will take place (Marin County regulations permitting) August 7-9 in Inverness, one of the most magical places in Northern California, at a historic, nine-bedroom former inn above Tomales Bay, surrounded by gorgeous forest and less than an hour north of San Francisco.
It will be rustic. Think camping but with bedrooms, indoor plumbing, space to write and good cheese. Attendance is limited to 10 lucky writers who seek to develop their skills in long or short-form storytelling.
Covid-19 precautions will be in place with limited contact between attendees, and gatherings taking place in the great room or the airy wraparound porch (pictured below).
It will take place (Marin County regulations permitting) August 7-9 in Inverness, one of the most magical places in Northern California, at a historic, nine-bedroom former inn above Tomales Bay, surrounded by gorgeous forest and less than an hour north of San Francisco.
It will be rustic. Think camping but with bedrooms, indoor plumbing, space to write and good cheese. Attendance is limited to 10 lucky writers who seek to develop their skills in long or short-form storytelling.
Covid-19 precautions will be in place with limited contact between attendees, and gatherings taking place in the great room or the airy wraparound porch (pictured below).
Costs
Single bedroom + meals + workshop $1050
Shared bedroom* + meals + workshop $725
(*Let us know if you have someone you want to share with;
otherwise we’ll pair you with someone. And yes, beds can be six feet apart.)
Single bedroom + meals + workshop $1050
Shared bedroom* + meals + workshop $725
(*Let us know if you have someone you want to share with;
otherwise we’ll pair you with someone. And yes, beds can be six feet apart.)
Joyce Maynard
Leading the creative escape will be the author of eighteen books of fiction and non-fiction, including the memoir At Home in the World and the novels Labor Day and To Die For. Joyce is also an essayist and writer of creative non-fiction whose work has appeared in the New York Times “Modern Love” column, as well as dozens of other publications. Since 2001, she’s been hosting the week-long Lake Atitlan Memoir Workshop, where she’s helped hundreds of writers tell their stories more powerfully and authentically. Her most recent memoir is The Best of Us, about which Joyce Carol Oates raved, "The Best of Us is so candid, so deeply moving, so powerful...a testament to human resilience. Joyce Maynard is unfathomably heroic." |
Workshop Particulars
Over the course of the weekend, the work of each writer will be individually workshopped, with a close, tough-love approach that examines issues of story structure, language, voice, dialogue, point of view, and emotional authenticity.
Beginning by examining the raw material of our experiences, Joyce will look at the difference between simply reporting what happened and creating a story arc for readers and listeners that lets us explore not simply what happened, but what it meant, as well as the core question, what is my story really about? She’ll examine a writer’s personal responsibility when telling stories from his or her own life, and look at how to establish a daily writing practice.
To participate in the workshop, each writer will be expected to submit, in advance, a work of memoir (a free-standing essay or excerpt from a longer work) of no more than 2000 words or—alternatively—a letter that lays out, briefly, the story she or he wants to tell. We’ll take it from there.
Workshop in the Woods will take place over two nights and days, from Friday at 5 until Sunday at 1 PM. Tuition includes housing (single or shared room), dinner Friday night, breakfast and lunch Saturday, breakfast Sunday, and hearty amounts of beverages - adult and otherwise. (Dinner Saturday is on your own, in Inverness town or nearby Point Reyes Station.)
All bathrooms are shared, and students are responsible for their own linens and towels. Like we said, rustic. But stunningly beautiful and quiet and ready to kick your creative process into high gear. Parking is plentiful. And there will be time for hiking, which can be done from the Inn’s front door.
Over the course of the weekend, the work of each writer will be individually workshopped, with a close, tough-love approach that examines issues of story structure, language, voice, dialogue, point of view, and emotional authenticity.
Beginning by examining the raw material of our experiences, Joyce will look at the difference between simply reporting what happened and creating a story arc for readers and listeners that lets us explore not simply what happened, but what it meant, as well as the core question, what is my story really about? She’ll examine a writer’s personal responsibility when telling stories from his or her own life, and look at how to establish a daily writing practice.
To participate in the workshop, each writer will be expected to submit, in advance, a work of memoir (a free-standing essay or excerpt from a longer work) of no more than 2000 words or—alternatively—a letter that lays out, briefly, the story she or he wants to tell. We’ll take it from there.
Workshop in the Woods will take place over two nights and days, from Friday at 5 until Sunday at 1 PM. Tuition includes housing (single or shared room), dinner Friday night, breakfast and lunch Saturday, breakfast Sunday, and hearty amounts of beverages - adult and otherwise. (Dinner Saturday is on your own, in Inverness town or nearby Point Reyes Station.)
All bathrooms are shared, and students are responsible for their own linens and towels. Like we said, rustic. But stunningly beautiful and quiet and ready to kick your creative process into high gear. Parking is plentiful. And there will be time for hiking, which can be done from the Inn’s front door.
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The Fine Print
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