Your retreat is about you and your writing. It takes you away from all those “should be doings” in your life and leaves you in the “could be doing” space that’s so often neglected. Writing takes time. It takes patience. Sometimes writing takes uninterrupted days or weeks in order to get deep down into another time and place and characters. Writing takes self-reflection, openness and honesty, whether you’re writing fiction, poetry, memoir, or anything else. 

Writers’ residence or writing retreat?

It might sound more like a writers’ residence or a writers’ colony than a writing retreat. Casa Mismac blurs the lines between a writing retreat, a writers’ residence and a writers’ colony. Writers’ residences and writers’ colonies are generally funded or subsidized by and affiliated with an established (usually prestigious) writing or arts program. These programs are often very difficult to be accepted into. Writers’ retreats, on the other end of the spectrum, usually provide a great deal of structured time and teaching. Casa Mismac lies in the middle of the spectrum. We provide space for up to four writers at a time, in single accommodations with a small amount of mentorship, in which they can devote themselves to their writing. As we are still in our infancy, we cannot provide free or subsidized accommodations, though we have endeavoured to keep prices as low as possible while still managing to pay our monthly bills. For now, the term we’ve chosen is “self-directed writing retreat” or “self-guided writing retreat.”

From time to time we also offer guided writing retreats using the AWA (Amherst Writers and Artists) method.

The daily schedule

There are few specifics at Casa Mismac. We provide a safe, inclusive, relaxing space for you to immerse yourself in your writing. If you need inspiration, a place to start, someone to bounce ideas off of, talk to Cheryl, your host. Cheryl is a writer, an Amherst Writers and Artists (AWA) writing group facilitator and a writing coach. Your retreat already includes a one-hour session with her, but she’s always around and happy to help. In fact, her preferred writing time is in the morning. If you want a jumping-off point to start your day, 9 am is the perfect time to meet in the great room for a couple of freefall writing prompts and optional reading to get your writing started. In addition, the library at Casa Mismac contains books on craft and a ton of prompts to ignite your writing.

Breakfast and lunch are self-serve at your own time so you can set your own schedule.

Dinnertime, from about 6 to 8 every evening, is the only structured time. We’ll get together to share a home-cooked meal (and one dinner out per week) and talk about our day and our writing.

Afterwards, you can return to the solitude of your writing or hang out with other writers. If there’s sufficient interest, we can talk about writing craft, share work in progress, or even watch a movie. Again, your retreat your preferences.