The At-Home Solo Writing Retreat
Have you ever gone on a writer’s retreat?
I feel silly to say this, but I have never gone on an official writer’s retreat. I’ve attended retreats and conferences for career-related endeavors, but I have never attended one specifically devoted to writing. The closest I have ever gotten was journaling a bit on some silent retreats.
This has been on my mind a fair bit ever since I started going to coffeeshops and cafes in my area. Considering how productive I’ve been with this new habit, it’s no wonder that I’ve been thinking about extending my time away.
So, I began researching writers’ retreats.
The research turned out to be fruitless. The destination was either just a wee bit too far, too expensive or not meeting my needs. I was becoming disheartened.
Then, I discovered the concept of an at-home solo writing retreat, inspired by Charlotte Donlon of Spiritual Direction for Writers. Donlon shares a number of resources to establish and maintain a writing practice and blogs about her experiences doing various and very creative solo retreats that don’t cost much. Her idea of staying at home for a retreat sounded impossible for my particular situation – I live with several others and rarely have a moment to myself. Yet, I was intrigued and I resonated with this idea of keeping it simple.
So with this inspiration, I attempted to do the at-home solo retreat last week with much success. I decided to go into my home office aka my son’s old bedroom and write. I got three consecutive hours of writing in, which for me is a monumental achievement given the distractions I contend with daily.
How was I able to do this? It was easier than I thought it’d be. I’ll share a few simple steps to help you prep for the retreat and maybe they can inspire you to do the same.
1. Dedicate a time to write.
I am serious about this. It’s not enough to say to yourself, “Oh, I’ll get in some writing sometime today.” You actually have to mark the time on your calendar. Otherwise, it won’t get done – trust me on this. I set aside the hours of 11 to 3 to write.
2. Minimize distractions.
I am easily distracted. It doesn’t take much to get me going on the chores and the caregiving when I should be writing. To avoid this, I checked in with my family to see what they’d be doing on the day I had designated for my retreat. I found that I had much of the house to myself because they were away working or engaging in activities way on the other end of the house. I got up earlier that day and did most of my chores in the morning. I also put away my phone and put on some soft writerly music on Spotify to drown out any sounds I might hear downstairs.
3. Designate breaktimes and stick to them.
I scheduled two breaks and I made sure there was a purpose for them so I wouldn’t get distracted. The first break was a potty stop and the next one was for lunch.
4. Remind yourself it’s about progress not perfection.
I am trying hard to break the awful habit of editing as I write. I put my efforts to the test by just writing everything I had in my head and not rereading what I wrote. This was probably the hardest of all the steps I took but I managed to do it because I was determined to make it work. Just accept that first drafts are crap and keep getting those words down.
5. Celebrate your wins.
When I hit the three-hour mark, I took a picture of my workspace and posted it on social media. Sometimes external validation is needed to keep you going. It’s always good to take stock of your achievements and pat yourself on the back. Reminding yourself of what you’ve achieved will motivate you to keep striving.
My success from this first attempt motivates me to try again in the not-so-distant future. So maybe I didn’t get to the beach and watch the waves while I write but I got words on paper and that’s all that matters. Someday, my butt will be in that beach chair, but for now, I’m accepting what is and doing what I can.
If you’ve gone on a writer’s retreat, please share your experience and tips. You can send feedback to lori@loriapeterswriter.com.
Write & Rise!
