You wake to the sound of surf pounding the cliff mere steps away. You’re here to create, to follow your passion! How is this happening? (It’s happening because you believe in yourself. Also, you can afford this one because this is a budget trip in a hostel set in paradise, how lucky is that?)

The seagulls cry and wheel outside the window as you eat breakfast with new friends from around the country and beyond. Coffee and tea and words bond this group of women together instantly.

Together, we all head to our shared living room where I’ll lead you through three hours of joyful writing. You’ll experiment with your fiction, poetry, or creative nonfiction in an environment that fosters you to do the best work you’ve ever done. The exercises excite you and delight you. You feel prolific. You feel talented. (Because you are.)

Special Bonus for this trip: The wonderful Toby Neal will be with us! Toby is a USA Today bestselling mystery writer and mental health therapist. She has over thirty books out and is a six-figure indie author. You can check her work out at TobyNeal.net.

Toby will lead us in a daily, thirty-minute group visualization warm-up exercise designed to access and unleash your creative fire, destroying the mental and emotional blocks that keep us from believing in ourselves and our work. She’s pretty magical, I can tell you this from experience.

Each day: You are inspired by the smell of salt, the rolling in of fog. You feel alive with the words running through you.

In the afternoon, you choose whether you keep writing with me or you can:

Take a delicious nap.
Lounge in the amazing hot tub perched above the water.
Watch for whales! (Early gray whales might be heading south then, depending on weather)
Walk the miles of beach just outside our doorstep.
Build a sandcastle or a driftwood abode.
Go to Half-Moon Bay to shop for antiques or glass or wine.

I love the rugged Northern California coast so much I’ve set most of my books here. I’ve made a decades-long study of this land and the people who live here. We’ll share dinner at least one night at Duarte’s, the rancher’s restaurant that became Tillie’s in The Cypress Hollow series. If we’re very lucky, the SeaForager himself will make an appearance to talk about the legend, lore, and literature of the ocean around us.

Come write with me, and I’ll share my passion for words with you.

DETAILS

WRITERS OF ALL LEVELS WELCOME! I’m serious about teaching and about fostering an incredible, affirming experience for every single person who attends. Some of my attendees have had dozens of published books. Others have never even tried to write before. This retreat is open to all who want to write and who identify as women.

Not sure if you’re ready for this? If you’re enough of a writer? Email me (rachael@rachaelherron.com) and we can schedule a 15-minute chat on Skype about where you’re at and what you’re looking for, to see if this is right for you!

Dates: Check in Thursday, September 13, check out Monday, September 17, 2018 (4 nights). We’ll stay at the Pigeon Point Lighthouse Hostel, and we’ll have a whole house to ourselves. This includes the use of a full kitchen and common areas, as well as a back patio with chairs that face the sea.

*Please note – this is a budget trip at a hostel! This saves you money! It also means we’ll be sharing dorm rooms and bathrooms, and sleeping in bunk beds.

Think of it as the perfect sleep-away-camp for the writer you dreamed of being as a child.

Cost:

Shared dorm-room bunk: $699 each. (Only $174/day, including everything listed below.)

All prices USD include:

Three morning writing workshops, three hours each.
Scheduled time outside workshop to write together, if you’re so inclined.
Creative visualization time with Toby Neal
A close-knit group of 12 other women writers (with an ongoing Facebook group for support and carpooling swaps before and after our trip!)
Four nights’ lodging (arrive Thursday night, Sept. 13, depart Monday, Sept. 17).
Breakfast and lunch from the pre-stocked kitchen (food bought with your food allergies/preference in mind).

Prices do not include:

Transport to, from, or within Pigeon Point/Pescadero/Half-Moon Bay.
Dinners

Praise from Rachael’s previous retreatants:

Joining Rachael, spending my days with like-minded women and scribbling my heart out on the pages my beautiful, new Italian journal, was just the thing to refill my creative well. – Veronica Wolff
Rachael’s retreat was welcoming and inclusive to writers of all levels. I came home recharged and inspired to write from my core! – Jacque Gorelick
It was more than just writing. It was stretching myself, learning to think in different ways. Rachael’s leadership helped me tap into places that set my creative juices free, and I came home energized for my next project. – Jennifer Skully
Rachael finds a way to make the most novice writer feel welcomed and accomplished. Her retreats are designed in a manner that is conducive to creativity and connection. I left with a newfound confidence in my writing, refreshing perspective, and continued support from my fellow writers.- Tawnie Ashley
Truly transformative experience—I have fallen back in love with writing. – Mysti Berry

Can’t come to this one?

If you’re not able to attend this retreat, but want to be alerted of upcoming retreats (US, Mexico, New Zealand forthcoming) sign up here. My writers’ list is always the first to know.

Hold your spot now! $200 to reserve, fully refundable (less $15 service charge) until August 1, 2018, when the full amount is due. This is capped at only twelve participants, so register quickly if you’re interested.