Hello, lovelies! In June, I had the privilege of attending the Words & Wonders retreat in Belgium and WOW…Spending a whole week tucked away in a dreamy little corner of the world with a bunch of wildly talented, passionate, writers? Actual magic.
Also: the strawberries were life-changing. I’m genuinely not sure I’ll ever emotionally recover.
This was my second time doing a writing retreat, and this one hit different: it was small-scale and all about slowing down, refilling the creative well, and letting stories bubble up in unexpected ways (though I also did get some good pages in, thank you very much).
In true blog fashion, here are four things I learned at Words & Wonders:
- Inspiration Is Everywhere
Seriously. Everywhere. A weird-ass statue in the garden? Story. A half-overheard conversation at the train station? Story. A single line dropped in a writing exercise? STORY. During this retreat, I was reminded again and again that stories don’t have to come from some dramatic adventures or aha-moments. The world is quietly brimming with story ideas—we just have to take the time to notice them.
- Author vs. Writer Brain
The retreat touched on the difference between being a writer (the one who actually sits down and writes stories) and an author (the one who strategizes and builds a brand and sells the book). I learned that I must be both. Buuut to claim that space for yourself is still a bit (correction: A LOT) awkward and uncomfortable and scary.
- The Power of Freewriting
Freewriting has always been one of those “yeah, I should do that” things for me. But during the retreat, we all sat down together to do five minutes of freewriting—anddd, plot twist: it unlocked SO MANY IDEAS.
Turns out, there’s something weirdly magical about putting pen to paper (or fingers to keys) with zero pressure. Just whatever thoughts are in your head and five minutes on the clock. I was pleasantly surprised by both the number of words I produced and the ideas that were triggered. I’m officially a freewriting convert!
- The Magic of Being With Other Writers for a Week
There’s nothing quite like being in a space full of people who understand the weird, joyful, terrifying rollercoaster of creating something out of nothing. Who will talk about craft, characters, rejection, and writer brain like it’s the most normal thing in the world. The people I met this week were smart, kind, generous, and so inspiring. I can’t wait to see them again in November! London, baby!
Bonus Lesson: Belgium Has the Best Strawberries on Earth
I ate an unholy number of strawberries during this retreat, and I regret NOTHING. If writing is fueled by snacks (and let’s be honest, it is), then those strawberries deserve co-author credit on everything I wrote that week.