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'Writing as a Path to Awakening'

Award-winning author, Pam Houston, is offering an opportunity to explore personal identity and creativity using meditation and writing. The weekend retreat at Mount Madonna will include periods of mindfulness meditation, sitting and standing meditation, writing exercises, readings, creative visualization, sharing and discussion.

The goal is to explore our innate creativity and experience deeper levels of awareness.

June 13th-15th with best-selling author Pam Houston & Spirit Rock meditation teacher Albert Flynn DeSilver.

Registration deadline: May 30, 2014

Please visit our website for more information.

See you soon,
Mount Madonna & The Owl Press

Write At The Farm April 13 – 15, 2014

The Writers' House at Century Farm, a creative retreat in Washington's Skagit Valley is the perfect place to create--a unique farmhouse that has been in the Skagit Valley since the dawn of the 20th century. A hundred year old barn to inspire you, acres of bucolic green fields and colorful flowers to help clear away your writer's block and give you the mental space you need.

The 2014 spring retreat session at The Writers' House at Century Farm with Jennifer Basye Sander, NYT bestselling author, former Random House senior editor, and co-author of The Complete Idiot's Guide to Getting Published, will be held Sunday–Tuesday, April 13–15th. This is your chance to write surrounded by fields of flowers during the world-famous Skagit Valley Tulip Festival.

Arrive mid afternoon on Sunday to meet the other three writers and get settled in your private room. Spend the next few days in blissful creativity, working on your project, writing together with the other participants, consulting with Jennifer, enjoying home cooked meals and the free flowing wine while you discuss all manners of literary things far into the night. This is just the way you always wanted your writing life to look!

About the Write At The Farm Retreats --

After years of doing writers' retreat weekends at our house in Tahoe, I am bowing to requests to do something up at the family farm in Washington. Located in the heart of the Skagit Valley just down the road from the tulip headquarters, my great-grandfather's farm is midway between the towns of La Conner and Mt. Vernon, about an hour and a half north of Seattle. Easy to get to, and wonderful to settle into once you are there, relax and let the scenery and the history inspire you. All you have to do is be a writer for those few days, I take care of everything else. Meals, wine, and a private room with shared bathroom are included in the $395 price, and there are only four spots available. This is your chance to spend a pampered but productive and creative three days in the company of other writers and publishing folk. To reserve your spot or ask questions:

916-847-9090 or email: 

basyesanderATyahooDOTcom (Change AT to @ and DOT to .)

The 2014 Artsmith Interdisciplinary Artist Residency application period is now open!

at Kindling Words West 2011On Sunday I'll be flying to New Mexico for the Kindling Words West retreat. I can't wait.

Retreats have always been an important part of my writing. When I lived in Florida, I went on a few with writing friends--to the beach and to a cabin in the woods. My critique partner and I have had our own cabin and house retreats, too. And then there is Kindling Words, which I can't recommend highly enough. 

I like retreats for a few reasons. The first is that I typically get a ton of work done. I revised an entire draft of DROUGHT at Kindling Words West, one year. But even more important is the chance to talk about craft and life and creativity with other writers. We are so often stuck in our own little holes, without face-to-face contact with other people who are the same flavor of crazy. Social media helps, but you can't beat sitting down to dinner with four other authors. We don't always "talk shop"--we might talk about someone's chickens, or our favorite television shows, or the best places to hike. But there is always an undercurrent of understanding and belonging. At retreats, I get to hang with my tribe. That nourishes me.

Retreats also give me the chance to be entirely my creative self. I don't have to wear my work hat, or my mommy hat (thought I miss my kid tremendously), or worry about any other Grownup Necessity. I can play. I can be the same core self I've been since I was five or six. Sometimes I forget that girl is in there. 

But a retreat always brings her back. 

I'll be sure to post a retreat report upon my return.

First Novel Contest: Emerging Writers Getaway Contest of the Whidbey Writers MFA Alumni Association.

Grand prize: a seven-day retreat at a cabin in the North Carolina Smokies (valued at $2,000), plus a cash award of $300. Second and third place receive cash prizes.

Submissions (synopsis, first 25 pages) February 15 through May 24, 2013.

Final judge is Rikki Ducornet, author of eight novels and National Book Critics Circle Award finalist. Top three entries reviewed for possible agent representation. Winners announced August 5, 2013. Proceeds benefit the student creative writing scholarship fund of the Whidbey MFA Alumni Association. Details and entry here.

Write2Ignite! has become a huge part of my life. I'm a business owner (I said I would NEVER do that!). I'm an entrepreneur! (Whatever that is.) And I'm responding to God's call on my life to be a writer, a teacher, a leader and an encourager. I can't think of a better way to "be" all of those things than Write2Ignite! With that in mind I'm happy to announce a new one-day Write2Ignite!event

I just came back from another wonderful year at Kindling Words West. Along with 31 other childrens' book writers and illustrators, I spent a week at the Mabel Dodge Luhan House in Taos, New Mexico. It's a home that was built by arts patron and author Mabel Dodge Luhan, and even though Mabel and her storied friends (D.H. Lawrence, Ansel Adams, Willa Cather...) are long gone from the place, it still practically glows with an artistic energy. They cook us breakfast, lunch and dinner and all we need to worry about is our writing. It's a gift that renews me every year.

I decided to take the week to play with transforming the start of a first-person narrative to a limited third-person narration. 100 pages later, I'm very happy with it and I'm planning on continuing the new narration for the rest of this draft. 

Did I mention they cooked for us? And I mean COOKED. Here is a shot of a typical breakfast, at right. 

This year a group of us decided that we were finally going to go river rafting. I'd eyed those brave souls in rafts, in previous years, as we drove down Route 68 and along the Rio Grande. THIS year we went for it... and the experience was nothing short of awesome. If you're ever looking for a great river rafting outfit in the Taos area, definitely go for Los Rios River Runners.

Here are a few pictures from our expedition:

Before the 5-mile trip down the river (above). Don't we look so capable? I am in the one in the white helmet, bottom row.

Here's the boat I was on--I love that even our guide Lindy is yelling. These rapids were named Sleeping Beauty, after a rock that fell into the river from the tip-top of the mountain on the OTHER side of Route 68.

And the after shot. I love how joyful we all look. And that's exactly how we all felt.

The Society of Children’s Book Writers and Illustrators (SCBWI) (Gauteng Branch) will be holding a Retreat at a secluded venue in Gauteng on the theme: CREATE, DEVELOP, REVIEW ... The Retreat will be led by two established practitioners: Joan Rankin (illustrator) and Donna-Wyckhoff Wheeler (writing specialist) The workshops and discussions will cover topics such as plotting, characterisation

I loved this piece, "I'm Only Really Happy When I'm Writing, Or When I'm Having Lots Of Fun With My Friends And Family." As usual, The Onion nails it:

"...It always comes back to the writing: the discipline, the stamina required, the unrelenting determination to give voice to my innermost thoughts, thoughts that illuminate the cracks and crevices of the human condition. That is my only satisfaction. That and watching a really good movie on late-night TV...."

I find writing so satisfying and really do get unhappy when I'm out of my routine... and wish my routine were more routine than it is... but I need frequent breaks and human contact, too. Last year I went on a solo writing retreat, and let me tell you: after six days in a cabin in middle-of-nowhere Ohio, with no phone or Internet service (and only Season One of Buffy on DVD), I was going nuts.

This past week, in contrast, I spent several days hanging out with old friends in a house on the Pacific Coast, and I did not a lick of writing. By the end, I was definitely raring to get back to it, but taking a break from writing actually felt great! Balance in all things...

Besides, if I'm not out in the world gathering experiences, what am I going to write about next?

Exploring a sea cave at Pescadero Beach on New Year's Day, 2011; photo by my friend Dave

May is looking better for me than April. April about did me in. This gives a whole new meaning to April showers bring May flowers. My April was more like a down pour, but I do have some pretty awesome May flowers coming up!

First, is that my 16 year Anniversary is on the 8th. 16 years! Wow!

Then, my critique group is hosting an SCBWI Schmooze at Quail Ridge Books on May 17th. You're welcome to come if you're in the area.

And then today . . . I finished making travel plans to attend a writing retreat for a Highlights Founders Workshop called Mining Your Memories led by author, Rich Wallace. I read one of his books, "Restless" a coupe of weeks ago. It was very clever and entertaining.


I learned so much from the Chapel Hill retreat that I attended last year. It was a great experience for me in so many ways.

ahhhhhh . . . having things to look forward to feels really, really good!

I just finished reading Savvy by Ingrid Law. It's such a cute and clever book with a strong voice. It's a fun read!

The hubby and I have also been talking about being able to work into our budget either a trip to the SCBWI LA conference or a Chautauqua writing retreat. The problem is that I can't decide which one. Part of me thinks the retreat would be more beneficial for me at this stage in the game, but then again, there are so many potential contacts at the LA retreat, not to mention I'd be able to see so many of my blogging and writing friends face to face. So, what do you think? If you could only pick one, which do you think would be more beneficial for an author wanna-be?