Writers’ Getaway Weekend January 2019

Begin 2019 with a dose of inspiration at the Writers’ Getaway, a weekend (11 - 13 January) in the Belgian countryside. Here you can remove yourself from your daily routine, immerse yourself in a small and supportive group and find your way back to your creative spark. 

The Writers’ Getaway offers a weekend away in a serene location with a balanced mix of teaching, guided exercises, private writing time and constructive feedback. 

During this weekend we will focus on the building blocks of a short story: structure, character, dialogue and tension. The principles we’ll be exploring are of course applicable to all forms of creative writing. 

Who is it for?

The January 2019 Writers’ Getaway is for beginning writers and beginners with experience. It’s for you if you’re curious whether you would enjoy creative writing as much as you think you might. If you’ve always wanted to write but have somehow never found the time. Or if you used to love to write, but feel like you’ve lost the connection. 

This weekend is also for you if you’ve started to write regularly, but could really use a dose of inspiration and input. If you’re tired of having no other writers in your life and would love to spend a few days with people who understand what it’s like. Or if you would like to branch out into a new form: the short story.

THE PROGRAM

The program of the January 2019 Writers’ Getaway includes: 

• ·         Four workshops on the basics of what makes a story
• ·         Private writing time to put the teaching into practice
• ·         Writing exercises and constructive feedback
• ·         Fireside chats on the writing process
• ·         An individual critique session with one of the tutors (optional)
• ·         An inspirational closing session

The Coaches

Colette Victor is originally from Pretoria, South Africa. She is a published author and trained creative writing teacher. As a community worker she has assisted people from a wide range of ethnic and social backgrounds. To date, she has published two novels: Head over Heart (young adult, Chicken House) and What to do with lobsters in a place like Klippiesfontein (general fiction, Cargo Publishing). In October 2018 she won first prize in the BBC International Radio Drama Competition 2018. 

Martine van Bijlert, originally from the Netherlands, has spent a large part of her life in Iran and Afghanistan, as a researcher, aid worker, diplomat and most recently as co-director and senior analyst of the Afghanistan Analysts Network, a Kabul-based think tank. She is an experienced non-fiction writer and editor and is currently revising her first novel.

For more information send email to info@colettevictor.be