Luang Prabang 2024
GETTING YOUR OWN BOOK UNDERWAY:
Before you come, we ask you to have written either upwards of 40,000 words- we’d like them to be just disconnected fragments– 500 words a day will get you there in less than 4 months.
Never edit them while you’re writing and creating, just write and create on. Don’t read back.
Then patch together, in the way Sue has shown you in the Beginners’ Retreat, the fragments you’ve been writing – see the “Discovering the Story” in the “What Happens in the Beginners’ Retreat” section.
In writing, remember to find what the Thing at Stake is. What you get will seem something like a story, but more a shaggy dog story. You won’t like it because you’re comparing it to published stories.
3 months before, send the patched-together pieces to your buddy. Your buddy is not your editor – never!- but a buddy to tell you what your messy creation means to them.
2 months before, listen to and muse upon your buddy’s comments. Adapt your work if you wish.
1 month before, send it to Sue. She’ll comment on it, giving you new inspiration. This cost is included.
On the retreat, we’ll talk about it with you individually, and show you a way to hone your work, so that you’ll see what to keep, what to eliminate, so your creation will work in a way you’ve never dreamed of.
See the video in the Introduction, where Anne says- “You’ll think what you’ve got to say is ordinary, but it becomes extraordinary”.
We creep up on the creation that’s inside you, constantly careful not to frighten it away. At this stage, your creativity is like a wild, timid animal. Don’t worry – bit by bit, it’ll get stronger, more tamed, less timid.
Other creating methods may frighten your creativity away.
For more assistance, you’ll be welcome to attend our monthly zoom Creativity Bars, where you’ll get more inspiration. You’ll be supported all the way through by your buddies, and by us.
