A year ago, my good friend Teri Leigh 💜 started something I thought could be a disaster..
She made a 10-month “pay-what-you-want” writing program called The Creator Retreat.
As a long-time course creator, it went against everything I was taught. 😬 I mean..
No price tags?
No sales funnels?
No generic growth hacks?
For the sales strategy alone, I thought it could end badly.
Then she told me about the trainings..
The Creator Retreat featured monthly trainings focusing on spiritual inner work as much as—if not MORE—than Substack growth advice.
I mean, it made sense. Writers everywhere struggle with stuff like:
Believing their thoughts deserve to be heard.
Listening to their body instead of burning out writing 30 posts in 30 days.
Writing what sets them on fire above what will make boatloads of money.
Teri’s belief was that writing online is just as much of a spiritual battle as a tactical one, and that no Substack program focuses on that inner world of being a creator too much.
Teri’s Creator Retreat did just that. It was a retreat away from all that growth-hacky B.S. that only works for people who write about writing (yeah, I just went there).
This is a list of lessons she taught in 2025 so you can see what I’m talking about.
Ten months later, in December of 2025, she wrapped up her first year of the Creator Retreat with a Zoom call full of her students.👇
People LOVED her program. I mean, they actually stuck around for 10 months until the end. Do you know how freaking hard that is to pull off? As an online course creator, my jaw is on the floor.
That’s why I have zero problem recommending The Creator Retreat’s 2026 cohort to you right now (it starts in March).
Teri’s hosting a free Zoom call tomorrow at 12 PM ET for anyone interested in this next cohort. You can sign up for that here.
I’ll be there as well, so maybe you can come say Hi! :)
I’m saying this because I think you need to feel Teri’s energy LIVE to really understand the magic of this program. It’s unlike any writing program you’ve ever done, I guarantee that!
To me she’s the most genuine and generous writing teacher I’ve ever seen. If you come tomorrow, you’ll see what I’m talking about.
If you’re looking for a great writing program in 2026, this is the one. Stop looking. You won’t be disappointed if you join this cohort. Teri will take care of you.
Here’s some more info about the 2026 cohort if you want it.
If you want to apply (awesomesauce!), do so right here.
I hope to see you tomorrow,
Tom Kuegler
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