You have to care. When we drift into writing about things for which we have lack passion, it shows. We feel it. Our reader feels it. So on this retreat, I want to identify the things you care deeply about, and work on presenting them in a way that engages an audience, and makes them care, too.

If golf is that thing, great. If it’s some other sport or game or hobby, perfect. We’ll begin with what you love, and we’ll work to find the words for it.

During our time together, we’ll explore what separates good writing from great writing and practice our fundamentals: scene, detail, dialogue, character, setting. Golf isn’t too dissimilar from writing in that regard. Good fundamentals unlock a lot of possibilities.

I’ll ask you to bring writing to the workshop that we can share with the group. I’ll ask you to do some writing in our workshop. And we’ll use our activities that week to inspire new work. We’ll work in prose (nonfiction or fiction welcome) though a little verse is always welcome. It’s Ireland, after all.

No publication experience required. No genre limitations. Bring your curiosity, your passion, your honesty, your open-mindedness and willingness. Maybe your golf clubs, too. Our goal for the week is to take the thing you love and present it in language that makes a reader love it just as much. And to have fun while doing so.