Art of Writing Retreat, July 9-13, 2023

Drilling Down on Writing

All sessions are to be conducted at Palazzo San Niccolò. 

Retreat July 9-13, 2023
Full 4 Day + 2 Night Workshop
COST: 1,300 Euro

Included in price:

All tuition and Zoom lectures.

Welcome drinks and opening dinner.
Morning cappuccino break.
Final light dinner and wine at Palazzo San Niccolò.
All wine during our evening special Aperitivo Zoom hours.

Please note this retreat does not include accommodation.

The program is subject to change a little as 2023 takes shape for our literary agents, guest authors and editors

Sunday, July 9th

1830:

Aperitvo at Palazzo San Niccolò. Welcome!

1930:

Welcome Dinner to meet your fellow writers. Introduction to Lisa Clifford, you, your work and the week ahead. Opening dinner together at a nearby restaurant included.

Monday, July 10th

9:30 – 11:00

Turn the Page

THE ESSENTIALS OF STORY in-person with Lisa Clifford. Tenacity and curiosity are the keys, but technique is vital. A lively lecture, on emotional urgency in our text. Designed to bring your writing to life. Now, more than ever, writers must hook their readers in their first five pages. Even their first sentence! You’ll never leap out of the slush pile unless we nail down how to create and maintain narrative momentum with your work.

11:00 – 11:30

Morning break, cappuccino and caffe.

11:30-1300

How to make your characters sing from the page with guest tutor, Bernadette Foley from Broadcast Books.

This is the fun part! Character foundation looks at the meat and bones of your character. How and why they are who they are. Understanding your protagonist is imperative. Any tiny reaction or response that is OOC (Out of Character) undermines your entire story. Whether you are nutting out a new character, cultivating an existing one or editing your final manuscript this class is the lynchpin to a good book because character is key.

13:00-15:00

Private writing time.

Tuesday, July 11th

09:30-1100

Sense of Place in-person with Lisa Clifford: This session starts in the ‘classroom’ and then becomes a walk. Learn how to add authenticity to your settings and characters, create atmospheres and articulate descriptions that show, not just tell, your reader’s location through its sounds, touch, smells and tastes.

11:00 - 11:30

Morning cappuccino break

Sense of Place continued:

Take your character for a walk-through Florence with Lisa Clifford. What is your character thinking, feeling, and seeing? Our Sense of Place trail starts from Palazzo San Niccolò and finishes at the San Ambrogio Food Markets. Lunch at our own expense around San Ambrogio.

Private writing time

Wednesday, July 12th

09:30-1100

The Art of Memoir, in-person with Lisa Clifford.

Learn how to collect, collate and recount your own story. Using examples from Lisa’s best-selling memoir The Promise, explore how to focus on the story without digressing. What have you overcome? How has your life changed you? Every memoir has a distinct arc. What’s yours? What to leave in or cut? How to transform fragments of memories into great chapters.

11:00 – 11:30

Morning cappuccino provided.

11:30-13:00

Bernadette Foley from Broadcast Books: Plot by Zoom.

How do you construct a compelling plotline? Are you digressing or staying on track and how do you know? Sometimes it’s difficult to know whether to plot first or wing it as you write. This class helps you understand the importance of charting your story from beginning to end, while leaving room for creativity, inspiration and ideas as you write. Should I write a full-length outline before my draft? And what would that look like?

1800 (1700 UK time)

Literary aperitivo

Wine time with an agent chat.

Just waiting on confirmation but am talking to some super exciting agents who are taking submissions. A fantastic opportunity to ask a literary agent anything you’ve ever wanted to know. Also, a wonderful opportunity to bring your work to the attention of a reputable, trustworthy agent.

Private writing time.

Thursday, July 13th

9:30 - 11:00

The Art of Balancing Backstory:

Laurel Cohn shows us how to resist the temptation of using a slab of backstory rather than artfully placing our character's history throughout our story. The how, when, where and why to including past in our text.

11:00 – 11:30

Morning cappuccino provided

11:30-1300

Pace: Lee Christine shows us how to work pace into our style. By Zoom, best-selling thriller crime writer Lee gives us techniques on when and how to bring in the action. This class is about the secrets of page-turners. Also, how to create realistic twists – and sow the seeds of these twists earlier in the plot.

13:00

Lunch break – Italian style

15:00

Afternoon writing time.

18:00

Conclusion and shared reading.

Let’s wrap up our time together with dinner –with antipasto - by reading something we’ve written over the past week. Gift your favourite piece to us, over a glass of wine.

Art of Writing Retreat, June 4-8, 2023

The Essentials of Story

All sessions are to be conducted at Palazzo San Niccolò. 

Retreat June 4 - 8, 2023
Full 4 Day + 2 Night Workshop
COST: 1,300 Euro

Included in price:

All tuition and Zoom lectures.
Welcome drinks and opening dinner.
Morning cappuccino break.
Final light dinner and wine at Palazzo San Niccolò.
All wine during our evening special Aperitivo Zoom hours.

Please note this retreat does not include accommodation.

Sunday, June 4th

1830:

Aperitvo in Palazzo San Niccolò. Welcome!

1930:

Welcome Dinner to meet your fellow writers. Introduction to Lisa Clifford, you, your work and the week ahead. Opening dinner together at a nearby restaurant included.

Monday, June 5th

9:30 – 11:00

Turn the Page

THE ESSENTIALS OF STORY in-person with Lisa Clifford. Tenacity and curiosity are the keys, but technique is vital. A lively lecture, on emotional urgency in our text. Designed to bring your writing to life. Now, more than ever, writers must hook their readers in their first five pages. Even their first sentence! You’ll never leap out of the slush pile unless we nail down how to create and maintain narrative momentum with your work.

11:00 – 11:30

Morning break, cappuccino and caffe.

11:30-1300

Guest tutor by zoom, Jane Corry, Penguin UK bestselling thriller writer.

Hints on how to develop your own characters for your own particular idea. Give your characters ‘special something’ to make them stand out; a problem or challenge to move the pace along; and a particular way of speaking so their dialogue sounds natural and yet unique. How do your characters interact with other characters? How do we think through the impact of their families / homes / work on their actions and personalities? We will also cover conflict and themes.

13:00-15:00

Private writing time.

Tuesday, June 6th

09:30-1100

Sense of Place in-person with Lisa Clifford: This session starts in the ‘classroom’ and then becomes a walk. Learn how to add authenticity to your settings and characters, create atmospheres and articulate descriptions that show, not just tell, your reader’s location through its sounds, touch, smells and tastes.

11:00 - 11:30

Morning cappuccino break

Sense of Place continued:

Take your character for a walk-through Florence with Lisa Clifford. What is your character thinking, feeling, and seeing? Our Sense of Place trail starts from Palazzo San Niccolò and finishes at the San Ambrogio Food Markets. Lunch at our own expense around San Ambrogio.

Private writing time

Wednesday, June 7th

09:30-1100

The Art of Memoir, in-person with Lisa Clifford.

A compelling memoir digs deep into themes. How do we boil your story down to concentrate on what thematically truly matters to you? And how do we say that in 80,000 words? ‘Life writing’ is about your journey and always has a distinct story arc. How has your life challenged and changed you? And how do we set up the scenes that show that?

$11:00 – 11:30

Morning cappuccino provided.

11:30-13:00

Jane Corry: Plot and how characters can help your structure.

Tips on different ways to plot – should you draw up a thorough plan beforehand; make it up as you go along; or do a mixture of both? Each method has its pros and cons. Strong characters will also suggest the way in which your plot should go. Do you want your plot to be seen through the eyes of different characters? Is there an overall narrator? Can the use of the first person or the third person give your plot an extra ‘spring?'

Private writing time.

1830

InkWell Management New York

(1230 New York time)

Catherine Drayton

InkWell is one of the world’s leading literary agencies, proudly representing major literary prize winners as well as many of the world’s bestselling and best-loved authors. In addition to its full-time agents and their assistants, the InkWell team includes a foreign rights department and contracts manager. Inkwell also joins forces with leading literary agencies in every foreign market and has agents based in Australia, Boston, and Dallas. Inkwell is actively on the lookout for original ideas, riveting stories and great writing. The Art of Writing June writers have the chance to chat with Catherine about the major problems she sees in manuscripts, what genres seem to be gaining traction, and whether it's best for Australian, US or British writers to be represented in their own territories even if they live elsewhere and their stories are set elsewhere. Time to ask questions to a fabulous agent and agency!

Thursday, June 8th

9:30 - 11:00

The Art of Balancing Backstory:

Laurel Cohn shows us how to resist the temptation of using a slab of backstory rather than artfully placing our character's history throughout our story. The how, when, where and why to including past in our text.

11:00 - 11:30 Morning cappuccino provided

11:30 - 13:00

Villains and Antagonists and how to write them:

R.W.R. (Rob) McDonald discusses with us by zoom how to fully flesh out our ‘baddie.’ Should our antagonist be somewhat likeable, or detestable from the get-go? How should our story’s Pulse Points reveal the villain’s plan? If a villain is the hero’s opposite, how do we have the villain connect with our heroine? And make our readers believe in that connection?

13:00 Lunch break – Italian style

15:00

Afternoon writing time.

18:00

Conclusion and shared reading.

Let’s wrap up our time together with an antipasto buffet dinner and readings. Gift us your favourite piece, perhaps something you've written over the past week, over a glass of wine!

Art of Writing Retreat, May 7-11, 2023

Deep Writing

All sessions are to be conducted at Palazzo San Niccolo. 

Retreat May 7-11, 2023
Full 4 Day + 2 Night Workshop
COST: 1,300 Euro

Included in price:

All tuition and Zoom lectures.

Welcome drinks and opening dinner.
Morning cappuccino break.
Final light dinner and wine at Palazzo San Niccolò.
All wine during our evening special Aperitivo Zoom hours.

Please note this retreat does not include accommodation

Sunday, May 7th

1830:

Aperitvo at Palazzo San Niccolò. Welcome!

1930:

Welcome Dinner to meet your fellow writers. Introduction to Lisa Clifford, you, your work and the week ahead. Opening dinner together at a nearby restaurant included.

Monday, May 8th

9:30 – 11:00

Turn the Page

THE FUNDAMENTALS OF STORYTELLING in-person with Lisa Clifford. Let’s strip story back to the basics in our first class. Before we can move into Character and Plot the craft involved in engaging your reader must be understood. Drama, suspense, conflict, narrative and more - your confidence starts here, in understanding the main elements of great stories.

11:00 – 11:30

Morning break, cappuccino and caffe.

11:30-1300

How to make your characters sing from the page with guest tutor, Bernadette Foley from Broadcast Books.

This is the fun part! Character foundation looks at the meat and bones of your character. How and why they are who they are. Understanding your protagonist is imperative. Any tiny reaction or response that is OOC (Out of Character) undermines your entire story. Whether you are nutting out a new character, cultivating an existing one or editing your final manuscript this class is the lynchpin to a good book because character is key.

13:00-15:00

Private writing time.

Tuesday, May 9th

09:30-1100

Sense of Place in-person with Lisa Clifford: This session starts in the ‘classroom’ and then becomes a walk. Learn how to add authenticity to your settings and characters, create atmospheres and articulate descriptions that show, not just tell, your reader’s location through its sounds, touch, smells and tastes.

11:00 - 11:30

Morning cappuccino break

Sense of Place continued:

Take your character for a walk-through Florence with Lisa Clifford. What is your character thinking, feeling, and seeing? Our Sense of Place trail starts from Palazzo San Niccolò and finishes at the San Ambrogio Food Markets. Lunch at our own expense around San Ambrogio.

Private writing time

Wednesday, May 10th

09:30-1100

The Art of Memoir, in-person with Lisa Clifford.

Learn how to collect, collate and recount your own story. Using examples from Lisa’s best-selling memoir The Promise, explore how to focus on the story without digressing. What have you overcome? How has your life changed you? Every memoir has a distinct arc. What’s yours? What to leave in or cut? How to transform fragments of memories into great chapters.

11:00 – 11:30

Morning cappuccino provided.

11:30-13:00

Bernadette Foley from Broadcast Books: Plot by Zoom.

How do you construct a compelling plotline? Are you digressing or staying on track and how do you know? Sometimes it’s difficult to know whether to plot first or wing it as you write. This class helps you understand the importance of charting your story from beginning to end, while leaving room for creativity, inspiration and ideas as you write. Should I write a full-length outline before my draft? And what would that look like?

1800 (1700 UK time)

Zoom with London with Martha Ashby, Editorial Director of HarperCollins UK.

The Life of a Book- An opportunity to ask one of Europe’s top Acquisitions Editors anything you'd like about your story and ultimately your submission.

Private writing time.

Thursday, May 11th

9:30 - 11:00

The Art of Balancing Backstory:

Laurel Cohn shows us how to resist the temptation of using a slab of backstory rather than artfully placing our character's history throughout our story. The how, when, where and why to including past in our text.

11:00 – 11:30

Morning cappuccino provided

11:30-1300

Carrie Cox Writing Journey

Carrie is a former Art of Writing writer and the author of two published novels: Afternoons with Harry Beam and So Many Beats of the Heart. She has also penned two non-fiction books. We chat to Carrie via Zoom about her writing journey. The steps she took to land where she is today, finding an agent, publisher, her editing process. This is an informal chat into Carrie’s personal writing process. And what happens next.

13:00

Lunch break – Italian style

15:00

Afternoon writing time.

18:00

Conclusion and shared reading.

Let’s wrap up our time together with dinner –with antipasto - by reading something we’ve written over the past week. Gift your favourite piece to us, over a glass of wine.

Brisbane Art of Writing Retreat.

February 9-12, 2023.

The Essentials of Writing.

All sessions conducted at West Village.

Welcome drinks, finger food, and opening aperitivo.

Daily workshops, all tuition, zoom lectures, handouts, and folders.

Hearty morning tea and coffee, sandwiches, and cakes served daily.
3 Days + 1 Night Workshop.
COST: $1,300

Speakers and guest lecturers:

Lisa Clifford
Laurel Cohn
Literary agent Alex Adsett
Bernadette Foley (by Zoom)
Tabitha Bird, top-selling author

Please note this program does not include accommodation or travel transfers

Thursday, February 9th

1800

Welcome Aperitvo at West End Village

Meet your fellow writers over wine and aperitif yummies. Introduction to Lisa Clifford, you, your work and the days ahead.

Friday, February 10th

9:30 – 11:00

Turn the Page THE ESSENTIALS OF STORY and HOW TO MAKE YOUR READERS CARE.

Lisa Clifford.

We all adore stories. It's human nature to love a good yarn. Your story might be a novel, a memoir, or a plotline that’s stalled. Perhaps you need time to dream about the seed of an idea, or there's a blog you want to improve: this class is about refining your storytelling skills. Designed to bring your writing to life, we'll nail down the essentials of story.

11:00 – 11:30

Morning break, coffee and tea provided.

11:30-1300

(12:30 Sydney time)

How to make your characters sing from the page with guest tutor, Bernadette Foley from Broadcast Books.

This is the fun part! Character foundation looks at the meat and bones of your character. How and why they are who they are. Understanding your protagonist is imperative. Any tiny reaction or response that is OOC (Out of Character) undermines your entire story. Whether you are nutting out a new character, cultivating an existing one or editing your final manuscript this class is the lynchpin to a good book because character is key.

13:00-14:00

Lunch break

14:00-15:30

Sense of Place in-person with Lisa Clifford

Learn how to add authenticity to your settings and characters, create atmospheres and articulate descriptions that show, not just tell, your reader’s location through its sounds, touch, smells and tastes.

Saturday, February 11th

09:30-1100

The Art of Memoir Lisa Clifford.

Learn how to collect, collate and recount your own story. Using examples from Lisa’s best-selling memoir The Promise, explore how to focus on the story without digressing. What have you overcome? How has your life changed you? Every memoir has a distinct arc. What’s yours? What to leave in or cut? How to transform fragments of memories into great chapters.

11:00 – 11:30

Morning break

Coffee, tea, sandwiches and cake provided.

11:30-1300

Lisa Clifford Setting the Scene, Point of View, Dialogue, Themes, Suspense.

Group discussion and writing exercises.

What’s blocking your writing? And how do we fix that?

13:00-14:00

Lunch break

14:00-15:30

Tabitha Bird Guest writer and lecturer:

Play with Purpose.

Penguin Random House magical realism novelist Tabitha takes us through how writing is not only about creating stories, but also about using your unique sense of wonder and personal history to give your work an emotional punch. In this workshop, we’ll explore the power of our own stories to create deeply meaningful fiction that inspires others to use their imagination. Tabitha Bird will walk participants through a series of out-of-the-box exercises designed to ignite your imagination, embrace the importance of play in the practice of writing and move past any feelings of being ‘stuck’ in your work. You are invited to explore joyous, hands-on activities using all your senses to create story. In the process, we’ll unearth the emotional truth in your own lived experiences to add emotional resonance to your fictional world.

Sunday, February 12th

09:00-10:30

Laurel Cohn, Story Structure

A story is like a creature. Whether it resembles a human with two arms, two legs and one head, or has a multitude of limbs and unusual features, it needs to be able to stand on its own and deliver its creator's intent. This session explores foundational principles of story structure and why they matter. Laurel also introduces tools and strategies for writers to check their story has the key elements required to carry a compelling story.

10:30- 11:00

Morning break

Coffee and tea, sandwiches and cake provided

11:00-12:30

The Art of Balancing Backstory:

Laurel Cohn shows us how to resist the temptation of using a slab of backstory rather than artfully placing our character's history throughout our story. The how, when, where and why to including past in our text.

12:30-13:30

Lunch break

13:30 – 15:00

Guest Literary Agent, Alex Adsett

Discussion and Q and A

As a literary agent, Alex is always seeking amazing manuscripts, with a focus on fiction and narrative non-fiction, especially SFF, crime and romance, for all ages from picture books to adults. She is proud to represent an outstanding stable of authors. Let’s chat with Alex about what she’d like to see in your manuscript and what are the major problems she sees in submissions.

Sunday July 3, to Thursday July 7, THE ESSENTIALS OF STORY. COST = 999 Euro 

Our time together begins with welcome aperitivo (drinks) at Palazzo San Niccolò in Florence, followed by an opening dinner at a nearby restaurant with your fellow writers. Included in the price of your writing retreat.  

 Each morning for four days classes start at 0930. Your writing and learning day finishes at different times, depending on the availability of our guest literary agents, publishers and writers. 

 Our classes consist of digging deeper and understanding how to handle: 

·       The Essentials of Story. 

·       Character Foundation. 

·       Tackling prose, inner reflection, and narrative. 

·       Sense of Place, followed by a guided walk around Florence as you write what you see, smell, hear, touch and taste.  

·       Memoir 

·       Plot 

·       Zoom discussions, Q and A’s with agents and/or publishers about the business of writing and what they’re looking for right now. 

 Through discussion and handouts, we will also work on food writing, pitching, editing, staying on track, feeling positive, dialogue, where can you find ideas, theme Vs plot, point of view, where to start and more. We try to cover as much as possible within our four days together.  

We round up our time together with our final dinner together, also included in your retreat.  

Monday June 6, to Friday June 10, DEEP WRITING. COST = 999 Euro 

Our time together begins with welcome aperitivo (drinks) at Palazzo San Niccolò in Florence, followed by an opening dinner at a nearby restaurant with your fellow writers. Included in the price of your writing retreat.  

 Each morning for four days classes start at 0930. Your writing and learning day finishes at different times, depending on the availability of our guest literary agents, publishers and writers. 

 Our classes consist of digging deeper and understanding how to handle: 

·       The Essentials of Story. 

·       Character Foundation. 

·       Tackling prose, inner reflection, and narrative. 

·       Sense of Place, followed by a guided walk around Florence as you write what you see, smell, hear, touch and taste.  

·       Memoir 

·       Plot 

·       Zoom discussions, Q and A’s with agents and/or publishers about the business of writing and what they’re looking for right now. 

Through discussion and handouts, we will also work on food writing, pitching, editing, staying on track, feeling positive, dialogue, where can you find ideas, theme Vs plot, point of view, where to start and more. We try to cover as much as possible within our four days together.  

We round up our time together with our final dinner together, also included in your retreat.  

 Included in cost: 

 All wine, morning teas and cappuccinos, opening and closing dinners together. 

All lectures and tuition. Most classes are in-person. Zoom lectures with international guests. 

Guaranteed full refund in case of Covid issues.   

Accommodation is not included in your retreat.

Sunday May 22, to Thursday May 26, PLOT AND CHARACTER RETREAT with the option to have a 3,000-word private manuscript reading with an individual one hour Zoom appointment to chat about what’s working and what’s not working with your text. COST = 999 Euro + optional pre-read and one hour Zoom = 300 Euro

Our time together begins with welcome aperitivo (drinks) at Palazzo San Niccolò in Florence, followed by an opening dinner at a nearby restaurant with your fellow writers. Included in the price of your writing retreat.  

Each morning for four days classes start at 0930. Your writing and learning day finishes at different times, depending on the availability of our guest literary agents, publishers and writers. 

Our classes consist of digging deeper and understanding how to handle: 

·       The Essentials of Story. 

·       Character Foundation. 

·       Tackling prose, inner reflection, and narrative. 

·       Sense of Place, followed by a guided walk around Florence as you write what you see, smell, hear, touch and taste.  

·       Memoir 

·       Plot 

·       Zoom discussions, Q and A’s with agents and/or publishers about the business of writing and what they’re looking for right now. 

Through discussion and handouts, we will also work on food writing, pitching, editing, staying on track, feeling positive, dialogue, where can you find ideas, theme Vs plot, point of view, where to start and more. We try to cover as much as possible within our four days together.  

We round up our time together with our final dinner together, also included in your retreat.  

Included in cost: 

All wine, morning teas and cappuccinos, opening and closing dinners together. 

All lectures and tuition. Most classes are in-person. Zoom lectures with international guests. 

Guaranteed full refund in case of Covid issues.   

Accommodation is not included in your retreat.

Sunday, July 4:

1830:

Aperitvo in Palazzo San Niccolò. Welcome!

1930:

Welcome Dinner. Introduction to Lisa Clifford, her work and teaching plan. Subject to COVID-19 restrictions, either in-house or out to dinner.

Monday, July 5

09:30-1100: Turn the Page.

Inspiration, impetus and overcoming resistance. Tenacity and curiosity are the keys, but technique is vital. A lively lecture, on emotional urgency in our text. Designed to bring your writing to life. Now, more than ever, writers must hook their readers in their first five pages. Even their first sentence! You’ll never leap out of the slush pile unless we nail down how to create and maintain narrative momentum with your work. We will also look at your writing time and overcoming procrastination.

11:00 – 11:30:

Morning tea, coffee and snacks provided

1130-1300 - How to make your characters sing from the page: wiht guest tutor, UK bestselling author Jane Corry.

Hints on how to develop your own characters for your own particular idea. Give your characters a ‘special something’ which makes them stand out; a problem or challenge to move the pace along; and a particular way of speaking so their dialogue sounds natural and yet unique. How do your characters interact with other characters? How do we think through the impact of their families/homes/work on their actions and personalities? We will also cover conflict and themes.

1300:

Lunch break Italian style.

1500-1630: Group discussion is a problem shared

What ails you? Why isn’t it flowing? How does this sound to you? Working together gives us the opportunity to use each other as our sounding boards. These sessions are to inspire and encourage. Let’s hear your voice. Let’s share our work and be each other’s beta readers. Creative writing exercises to prompt you into your best writing creative writing.

16:30:

Free writing or walking time.

Tuesday, July 6

0930-1100: Sense of Place

This session starts in the ‘classroom’ and then becomes a walk. Learn how to add authenticity to your settings and characters, create atmospheres and articulate descriptions that show, not just tell, your reader’s location through its sounds, touch, smells and tastes.

Sense of Place continued:

Take your character for a walk through Florence with Lisa Clifford. What is your character thinking, feeling and seeing?

Our Sense of Place trail starts from Palazzo San Niccolò and finishes at the San Lorenzo Food Markets

Lunch at our own expense around San Lorenzo with Lisa Clifford

1800:

Aperitivo with London agent Kate Hordern. (1700 UK time)

Wednesday July 7

09:30-1100: The Art of Memoir.

Learn how to collect, collate and recount your own story. Using examples from Lisa’s best-selling memoir The Promise, explore how to focus on the story without digressing. What have you overcome? How has your life changed you? Every memoir has a distinct arc. What’s yours? What to leave in or cut. How to transform fragments of memories into great chapters.

11:00 – 11:30

Morning tea, coffee and snacks provided.

1130-1300: Jane Corry Plot (and how characters can help your structure).

Tips on different ways to plot – should you draw up a thorough plan beforehand; make it up as you go along; or do a mixture of both? Each method has its pros and cons. Strong characters will also suggest the way in which your plot should go. Do you want your plot to be seen through the eyes of different characters? Is there an overall narrator? Can the use of the first person or the third person give your plot an extra ‘spring’?

1300

Lunch break Italian style.

1500: What problems come back to haunt you?

What obstacles are stopping you from moving your writing forward? Or did your writing flow? Private time with Lisa Clifford to discuss what’s really bugging you about your writing.

16:30:

Free writing or walking time.

Thursday July 8

09:30-1100: Guest Lecturer: Philippa Donovan, Baret Magarian

11:00 – 11:30

Morning tea, coffee and snacks provided.

11:30-1300: Jane Corry: Pace.

How to make sure you’ve got it right. Tips on how to bring in action to keep the reader gripped. Also, how to create realistic twists – and how to sow the seeds of these twists earlier in the plot. Advice on reading aloud so you can test the pace. Finally, the ending!

1300: Lunch break - The Emotional Palette:

Things happen around the table! A discussion on how important food is to your story line. What does your character like to eat? Where do they like to dine – in expensive, silver service fine dining restaurants? Or in family run, cosy trattorias? Do they enjoy fast food and wear the evidence of that quick food fix hunger on their clothes? Does your character appreciate food? Is it important to them? Or are they dismissive of food and the trouble taken in its preparation?

1500:

Afternoon writing time.

1800: Conclusion and shared reading.

Let’s wrap up our time together with dinner – un primo and an antipasto - by reading something we’ve written over the past week. Gift your favourite piece to us, over a glass of wine.

Sunday, June 6th:

1830:

Aperitvo in Palazzo San Niccolò. Welcome!

1930:

Welcome Dinner. Introduction to Lisa Clifford, her work and teaching plan. Opening dinner together at a nearby restaurant included.

Monday, June 7th

9:30 – 11:00 - Turn the Page. Inspiration, impetus and overcoming resistance.

Tenacity and curiosity are the keys, but technique is vital. A lively lecture, on emotional urgency in our text. Designed to bring your writing to life. Now, more than ever, writers must hook their readers in their first five pages. Even their first sentence! You’ll never leap out of the slush pile unless we nail down how to create and maintain narrative momentum with your work. We will also look at your writing time and overcoming procrastination.

11:00 – 11:30:

Morning tea, coffee and snacks provided.

11:30-1300 - How to make your characters sing from the page with guest tutor, UK bestselling author Jane Corry.

Hints on how to develop your own characters for your own particular idea. Give your characters ‘special something’ to make them stand out; a problem or challenge to move the pace along; and a particular way of speaking so their dialogue sounds natural and yet unique. How do your characters interact with other characters? How do we think through the impact of their families/homes/work on their actions and personalities? We will also cover conflict and themes.

1300:

Lunch break Italian style.

1500-1630 - Group discussion is a problem shared:

What ails you? Why isn’t it flowing? How does this sound to you? Working together gives us the opportunity to use each other as our sounding boards. These sessions are to inspire and encourage. Let’s hear your voice. Let’s share our work and be each other’s beta readers. Creative writing exercises to prompt your best writing ever.

16:30:

Free writing or walking time.

Or scheduled private manuscript time with Lisa Clifford.

Tuesday, June 8th

09:30-1100 - Sense of Place:

This session starts in the ‘classroom’ and then becomes a walk. Learn how to add authenticity to your settings and characters, create atmospheres and articulate descriptions that show, not just tell, your reader’s location through its sounds, touch, smells and tastes.

Sense of Place continued:

Take your character for a walk through Florence with Lisa Clifford. What is your character thinking, feeling and seeing?

Our Sense of Place trail starts from Palazzo San Niccolò and finishes at the San Lorenzo Food Markets.

Lunch at our own expense around San Lorenzo with Lisa Clifford.

15:30

Private writing time.

Or scheduled manuscript consultation with Lisa Clifford.

1800: Aperitivo with Philippa Donovan Via Zoom Link from London.

Philippa Donovan shares her thoughts on What’s Hot and What’s Not. And does it even matter? Book Scout for Dynamic Television, Vertigo Films, Jungle Entertainment, and previously for Mad Rabbit/Red Arrow, Circle of Confusion/ITV America, Fremantle Australia, Philippa will answer all the questions you’ve ever wanted to ask about pitching to a literary agent or TV book scout. Actually, you can ask Philippa anything because this girl’s industry knowledge is extraordinary!

Wednesday, June 9th

09:30-1100: The Art of Memoir.

Learn how to collect, collate and recount your own story. Using examples from Lisa’s best-selling memoir The Promise, explore how to focus on the story without digressing. What have you overcome? How has your life changed you? Every memoir has a distinct arc. What’s yours? What to leave in or cut. How to transform fragments of memories into great chapters.

11:00 – 11:30

Morning tea, coffee and snacks provided.

1130-1300: Jane Corry: Plot (and how characters can help your structure).

Tips on different ways to plot – should you draw up a thorough plan beforehand; make it up as you go along; or do a mixture of both? Each method has its pros and cons. Strong characters will also suggest the way in which your plot should go. Do you want your plot to be seen through the eyes of different characters? Is there an overall narrator? Can the use of the first person or the third person give your plot an extra ‘spring?'

1300: Lunch break Italian style.

1500:

What problems come back to haunt you? What obstacles are stopping you from moving your writing forward? Or did your writing flow? Private time with Lisa Clifford.

16:00:

Literary agent Greg Messina, from Linwood Messina talks to us about representation for expatriate writers. As a Paris-based agent, Greg works with many writers in Europe, outside their 'home territories.' How does writing and representation change for us, living overseas?

17:30

Free writing or walking time.

Thursday, June 10th

0930-1030: Guest lecturer: Suzanne Daniel (5:30pm Australia)

Suzie joined the Art of Writing in 2013. Since then, she has signed a two-book deal with Pan Macmillan. Her debut novel, the one she started while writing with us, won the Indie Book Award for Debut Fiction in 2020. Suzie is signed with Knopf in the US and Pan in Australia. Suzie will talk to us about her journey writing Allegra in Three Parts and how her life has changed since major publication.

Discussion

11:00 – 11:30

Morning tea, coffee and snacks provided.

11:30-0100: (10;30-12noon UK time) Jane Corry on Pace: how to make sure you’ve got it right.

Tips on how to bring in action to keep the reader gripped. Also, how to create realistic twists – and how to sow the seeds of these twists earlier in the plot. Advice on reading aloud so you can test the pace. Finally, the ending!

1300 Lunch break - The Emotional Palette: The Emotional Palette.

Things happen around the table! A discussion on how important food is to your story line. What does your character like to eat? Where do they like to dine – in expensive, silver service fine dining restaurants? Or in family run, cosy trattorias? Do they enjoy fast food and wear the evidence of that quick food fix hunger on their clothes? Does your character appreciate food? Is it important to them? Or are they dismissive of food and the trouble taken in its preparation?

1500:

Afternoon writing time.

Or scheduled private manuscript discussion with Lisa Clifford.

1800: Conclusion and shared reading.

Let’s wrap up our time together with dinner –with antipasto - by reading something we’ve written over the past week. Gift your favourite piece to us, over a glass of wine.

with Jane Corry, Sunday Times best-seller, published by Penguin.

Whether you simply need time away from home to work out an idea, are an emerging or established writer, our one week retreats are tailor made for you. All we ask is that you love writing. The Art of Writing offers morning lectures on writing and afternoon individual coaching sessions. Our aim is to nurture you, your writing skills and your project. We want to inspire you to write more and teach you how to improve, without feeling intimidated. 

We feel more than ever that creatives need time away from their day to day environments to kick-start wonderful writing. Sometimes our routines, together with the demands of our families and the distractions of technology can entirely disconnect us from our writing goals, dreams and deadlines. Completely immersing yourself in a community and environment that nurtures your writing skills always stimulates some of your best work. Learning, practising, sharing, and listening to new ideas inspires your finest writing. That’s our aim for you in the second week of September – to nurture and replenish you and your written work so that you produce your best work ever. 

Interviews and discussions with global agents and publishers confirms beyond doubt that their most frequent request is for gripping text. Strong story lines that hook readers from the first chapter are more essential than ever. Every commissioning agent and associate editor that we meet with requires engaging stories, with deeper characters, more compelling dialogue and thrilling plot lines. It is with this demand in mind that we’ve decided to run a retreat focusing on pace, build-up and how to write unputtowndable text — in all genres. Whether you’re writing historical non-fiction, your own family history, romance, a memoir or literary fiction our 2017 Tuscan workshop aims to tighten your words and sharpen your story-telling.