Writeaways
What is a Writeaway?
Writeaways are weeklong writing workshop retreats designed to free you from your daily cares so you can devote your full attention to your writing.
For over a decade our workshops have provided rigorous attention to craft for all genres and writing levels, individual consultations, and a lively community to help writers thrive and inspire them to create their best work.
In France, Italy, Ireland and New Mexico, we indulge you with stunning locations, fabulous food and drink, and the company of thoughtful writers devoted to each other’s success.
“Whatever your reason for writing, whatever your goals, this is the place. These are the people.”
Who Comes to a Writeaway?
Writeaways workshops are project-based, which is why they work for writers of all genres and ability levels, from beginners to published authors.
Many people have come to Writeaways not thinking of themselves as writers, but they invariably leave with a project to continue and the confidence to pursue it. Others have arrived with a deep well of experience and left with a renewed passion for their writing.
Our workshop model works equally for those still figuring out the kind of writer they want to be, and those who have been writing for years. In a Writeaways workshop, because we each have much to contribute to the discussion and we’re all committed to helping one another, everyone’s voice carries equal weight.
“Writeaways helped me get out of my own creative way, by showing me that I am a writer and not merely a woman who has a private drawer of papers written to make sense of her world. Mimi and John (and the talented writers who attended) gave me the encouragement, critical input and tools that will allow me to build my skills and my confidence.”
How the Workshop Works
At the beginning of the week, John and Mimi help you figure out the project of your dreams. You do not have to come with a project in mind, although some do—and some change after they arrive.
Mornings are available for your writing. Workshops take place after lunch, and everyone attends. Each writer reads aloud one to two pages written since the previous day’s workshop, which are then discussed by the group. We do not ask that work be printed and critiqued by each writer in advance. We want you to be free to spend your time writing.
Unlike the standard workshop model, in which the writer is silent, we encourage you to take part in the discussion of your work.
The Two-hat Deal
Hat #1: When you wear your writer hat, we ask you to be open to suggestions and “what-ifs” offered in the workshop. We do everything in a spirit of searching for answers: What has the writer gotten right? What has the writer overlooked? How can the writing be improved?
Hat #2: When you wear your listener hat, we ask you to be constructive without assuming you have all the answers. The best service each of us can provide is to help each other see blind spots. We ask you to be rigorous in your attention to craft, with the intention of understanding what the writer is trying to do and improving the work. Our goal is to help each person’s writing be what it wants to be when it grows up.
“Mimi and John were fabulous with their feedback. Coming from an MFA background and environment, the way they run their workshops was so supportive and encouraging. It really got me excited about getting my project where I want it to be. This was definitely the experience I had hoped for.”
Your Writeaways Day
All Writeaways include three meals a day. Lacto-ovo vegetarian meals are available, but unfortunately, we are limited in our ability to further accommodate special diets. We offer optional outings (see below), cooking classes, and consultations with Mimi and John. Otherwise, your time is your own: to write, wander, read, think, and talk with interesting people in our writing community.
Mornings
Buffet breakfast
Writing time
Afternoons
Buffet lunch
Workshop
Spend your free time writing, consulting with Mimi and John, chatting with friends new and old, taking a walk or excursion in the countryside. Possible group options include wine tastings, cooking classes, and trips to local markets.
Evenings
Cocktail hour: we are nothing if not civilized.
Out of this world gourmet dinners
Socializing or writing time
“The wine is plentiful, the food delicious, the company divine. This is a magical time of the year, the chance not only to practice craft, but to grow with others also.”
Mimi Herman
writes fiction and poetry and is the author of The Kudzu Queen, selected by NC Humanities for the 2023 Library of Congress “Great Reads from Great Places” program and longlisted for the Center for Fiction First Novel Prize. Mimi is a member of the Board of Directors for the Association of Writers & Writing Programs, a Kennedy Center Teaching Artist, a Warren Wilson MFA alumna, and a Hermitage Artist Retreat Fellow.
John Yewell
is a writer and editor with an MFA in fiction from San Francisco State University and twenty years of experience in journalism. Through his brilliant eye for plot and ear for dialogue, John has mastered the art of engaging readers and helping other writers discover their own stories.
Mimi and John
have been collaborating as writers, teachers and editors for over a decade. As teachers, they'll help you shape your writing project and improve your technique. As editors, they’ll help you make your writing as compelling on the page as it is in your imagination.
“John is a master of story, who sees possibility in story arc and character relationships as well as identifying plot holes, red herrings and pitfalls you might not have seen yet. He also is a finesser of word choice. It’s been a joy to live for a week in the presence of Mimi’s artistic spirit, which expresses itself in teaching, mentoring, writing, cooking, baking and the most gracious happy hours and dinners. She models a life of gracious, simple, grounded creativity in everything.”
Accommodations
Rooms—All accommodations are either single-occupancy or, by your choice, shared with someone you know. Beds are roomy and comfy. Some rooms may share bathrooms. Our policy is not to ask strangers to share a room. There is no maid service.
Wifi—Available in all our locations. In France and Italy it can be spotty, thanks to the thickness of the old walls.
Laundry—All our locations have washing machines. In New Mexico and Ireland we have driers, with in-room drying racks in France and fresh-air clotheslines in Italy.
Hear what people say about Writeaways
“Getting away from ordinary life and writing under the guidance of John and Mimi is a gift for any writer at any stage of experience.”
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