I’ve got some exciting new developments in the pipeline for those amongst you who are already writers and for those who are thinking about having a go at doing some writing about feminist subjects, perhaps for the first time. I’ve been running feminist writing retreats for around a year now, and I’m absolutely delighted to be offering my first overseas Feminist Writing Adventure, which will take place in gorgeous Umbria, in Italy, in July 2027. More on that below.
If you’d like a taster - and a more local alternative - then I can take a few last-minute bookings onto my ‘Making Herstory: Three-Day Residential Writing Retreat on Women’s History’, which will take place in Harrogate from Weds 30 Sept to Fri 2 October. But you need to book by the end of FRIDAY 28 AUGUST (ie. tomorrow!). It’ll be stonking, and you definitely should. Whether you’re already engaged in researching and writing about women’s history, or whether you’re simply interested in the subject, it’ll be a fascinating few days.
Tell me more about Making Herstory
I also offer a free monthly online feminist writing group, and the next meeting is Monday 31 August, 8pm-9.30pm (London UK time). This is free to attend, but you must book in advance, and I’ll email out the Zoom link shortly before the group begins.
Please do share information about these opportunities - and about the Feminist Writing Adventure - far and wide, on your social media networks, and to any individuals who may be interested. (Please bear in mind that all my retreats and the writing group are female-only.)
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Over the next month or so, I’ll be unveiling some new feminist writing plans. And today I’m delighted to be launching something VERY exciting: a Feminist Writing Adventure!
In July 2027, I’m going to be running a week-long feminist writing retreat in gorgeous Umbria, in Italy. Whatever your preferred genre, and whether you’re a published author or complete beginner, this extended retreat will be transformative. Over the course of the week, and with a group of like-minded women - the retreat is female-only - there’ll be ten group writing workshops, guided readings of a range of chosen feminist texts, energising structured discussions, one-to-one tutorials with me, and independent writing time and space – as well as delicious organic Italian food prepared by a private chef, a swimming pool, yoga classes, single occupancy bedrooms (all equipped with writing desks), lush surroundings with a nearby river and wildlife including badgers and deer, and a range of shady writing spots amid olive and fruit trees. If my previous retreats are anything to go by, then you’ll meet some fabulous women, you’ll engage in deep, intelligent and often moving conversations, you’ll experiment with fresh creative approaches, and you’ll come away fired up with righteous feminist energy and a renewed commitment to writing about women and women’s lives.
Tell me more about the Adventure!
Doesn’t it sound completely wonderful? Have I mentioned how excited I am?
The Feminist Writing Adventure is taking place at the Tara Nature Retreat, outside the town of Todi in Umbria, and I’m laying on a free minivan transfer from Rome’s two main airports - so travel will be a doddle. The hosts at Tara Nature Retreat work closely with the Another Way Women’s Foundation in the UK, and they’re committed to the ethos of women’s retreats, so it feels like the perfect venue. There’s a choice of single occupancy bedrooms, or glamping in large canvas tents, and it’s possible to pay all in one go, or to spread the payments over many months. There’s also an Early Bird rate (if you book before 31 October) AND, for my lovely annual and founding subscribers, there’s even a further 5% discount off the booking price. I’ll be sending out an email shortly after this post with the discount code. You can subscribe now to receive the discount and code.
I reckon this is going to sell out FAST, and there are only limited spaces - 6 main bedrooms and 3 glamping tents - so please do book in quickly so as not to miss out.
Check out the Feminist Writing Adventure website by clicking on the buttons, or on this link here. You’ll find detailed information about every aspect of the retreat, and links to booking. I’d love to meet you in person in Italy, and for now, here are some pics to whet your appetite. Doesn’t it look BEAUTIFUL?
Learn more about the Feminist Adventure
I am convinced that it’s beneficial for all women to write - about our lives, our psyches, our relationships, about other women (living or dead; known to us or strangers), and about our observations of the world and its driving forces - whether we’re already experienced writers or not. Many of the details and achievements of women’s day-to-day lives have historically gone unrecorded, because the male gatekeepers of history have tended to consider women’s lives to be lacking ‘notability’ and ‘national importance’. So when women write about our or other women’s lives, it redresses the balance. More than this: it shows other women that they’re not alone, and are seen.
Women’s perspectives on the world are also utterly necessary for accuracy and completeness, as Sandi Toksvig noted when she remembered, from her undergraduate days, a female anthropology professor holding up a picture of a bone carved with 28 incisions - reputed to be ‘man’s first attempt at a calendar’ - and questioning: ‘what man needs to mark 28 days? I would suggest to you that this is woman’s first attempt at a calendar.’
On a personal level too, writing about our lives and experiences, and how they’ve been shaped by patriarchy, can be transformative. The simple act of putting an event into some sort of order by writing about it, and by situating it in time and space, among other events and among other people, can encourage us to see continuity and connection and likeness and patterns, where previously we may have felt mainly discontinuity, disconnection, chaos and loneliness. Through writing, personal experiences are externalised and made real, which can embolden the writer to believe in the validity of those thoughts, stories, experiences and knowledge, even in the face of egregious gaslighting. Writing about events and people can also help us to understand why they existed in the way they did and how they shaped us. For women, it can be life-changing to comprehend how many of the things that have happened to us and to other women – including ways in which men have acted towards us – are not just one-off events, or random coincidences, but are part of a global patriarchal pattern of behaviour.
However, there are so many obstacles to women writing. We tell ourselves that we’re no good, or that carving out time to write is selfish or pointless. We feel like imposters. We’re exhausted amid the physical and mental load of domesticity, childcare, ‘man care’, and caring for relatives, and we push the activities that are just for us, right down to the bottom of our ‘to do’ lists. Even for published or professional writers, it can be hard to write - or to feel enthusiastic about writing - about feminist subjects in a world in which we have the critical, divisive voices of social media sitting on our shoulders, picking holes in everything we do; and in which the publishing world can feel like a difficult, or even hostile, environment.
So I am committed to supporting women’s writing - whether that’s by mentoring women who are already engaged in writing projects, or by encouraging women who’ve never before written about female lives or feminist subjects to begin a regular writing practice. And I’m particularly committed to supporting women to get together in person, and to remind ourselves of the joys of IRL solidarity and support. If this resonates with you, please do take a look at my feminist writing retreats.
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