Studio Dreams
A free open writing studio, a last-chance island, a perky pumpkin, and a very happy day!
Dear fellow writer,
Are you dreaming of a live writing studio where you can receive encouraging feedback from fellow writers and an expert coach? Where you can keep each other productive, inspired, and accountable? Where you are encouraged to be creative and playful as well as craft-focused and sentence-smart?
Please join me for my free Open Writing Studio on December 11 or December 13!
I’ll start each 2-hour session by offering a guided tour of our newly expanded WriteSPACE membership area, where treasure trove of writing resources awaits you. Following the tour, you can immerse yourself in a 25-minute timed writing sprint (aka pomodoro) followed by a hands-on feedback session—an opportunity to personally witness the magic of the Live Writing Studio.
No matter where you are in the world, you’ll find a session to suit your timezone. You're invited to participate in one or both of these complimentary Open Writing Studio sessions:
Session 1: 3-5 pm Eastern Standard Time (UTC-5) on Monday 11 December.
(That’s early Tuesday morning in Australia/New Zealand)Session 2: 8-10 am British Standard Time (GMT) on Wednesday 13 December.
(That’s Wednesday afternoon/evening in Asia and Oceania).
You can find the best time for your location by using this time zone converter or by checking our guest calendar.
Both sessions are FREE to all registered participants, and a video recording of the WriteSPACE tour will be made available after the event. Register below, and we’ll send you a Zoom link a few hours before the first event.
If you’re already a WS Studio member, there’s no need to register; just follow the Zoom link from the Calendar in your membership area.
I’d love to see you there!
On the website
Last chance for Island Time (February 11-17)
We have just one space left at my Island Time Writing Retreat, which takes place in Aotearoa New Zealand in mid-February, at the height of the Southern Hemisphere summer. Come join me on gorgeous Waiheke Island — named by Travel & Leisure as one of the world’s most beautiful islands — for seven unforgettable days of talking about writing, thinking about writing, and making time for writing. I’ll work with you one-on-one to help you hone your wordcraft, fine-tune your writing habits, refuel your creative energy, and uncover new ideas. Your Island Time schedule will also include plenty of time out for restorative walks, swims, and vineyard lunches as well as productive writing time.
Bookings close on December 10, so this really is your last chance to join us for 7 amazing days in paradise! Residents of Australia/NZ are eligible for a regional discount, while retreat alumni and WriteSPACE Studio annual members save an extra 10%. Please contact us to check which discount(s) you might be eligible for.
Island Time runs from February 11–17, 2024. Click below to learn more and submit your expression of interest. I’d love to show you my island!
In the WriteSPACE
Weekly Wayfinder for December 4 - 7
WriteSPACE and WS Studio members: Every week in the WriteSPACE Maproom, you’ll find a playful pomodoro timer to help you keep your writing on track, a featured writing resource to expand your horizons, and a writing-related challenge to sharpen your skills.
This week’s timer: Orange Pumpkin - NEW!
This week’s resource: “The First Person”
This week’s challenge: Ponder your pronouns
Not a member? Sign up for a free 30-day trial and check out all our great writing resources for yourself.
Other writing news
If you’ve been following the remarkable story of Afghan writer Hussain Shah Rezaie, who escaped from Taliban imprisonment at age 16 only to spend the next decade in refugee detention on a remote island in Indonesia, you’ll know that November 29, 2023 was a very special day for both of us — and for all the many other friends, family members, colleagues, and WriteSPACErs who have helped Hussain on his long journey to permanent residency in his new home, Aotearoa New Zealand. Since his arrival in Auckland last Wednesday, Hussain has already chalked up an impressive series of firsts: first steak dinner, first museum visit, first book launch, first supermarket trip, first yoga class, first flat white coffee, first neighborhood Santa parade. . . .
And now the next stage of Hussain’s journey begins. You can become a part of his story by subscribing to Walk With Me, his free Substack newsletter, and by donating to his scholarship fund, which will help set up this brave young writer to thrive in his new life.
Thank you for walking with Hussain!
Do you have writing-related news, events, or resources to share? Contact me with a brief description (50 words max), a hyperlink, and a high-quality image.
Spread the joy! Please encourage your friends, colleagues, and students to join me in the WriteSPACE, a vibrant, low-cost writing community with members in 30+ countries. As a WriteSPACE member, you’ll get premium access to resources, workshops, and tools designed to help you hone your wordcraft, sharpen your style, and coax your writing gently out the door.
Kia pai tō koutou rā (have a great day) – and keep on writing!
Helen