With one week to go before the launch of a new writers’ retreat programme for Portsmouth writers, freelance writer and organiser Poppy O’Neill gives us a whistlestop tour of the Writers’ HQ Writing Retreat.
On 29th July, Writers’ HQ will be bringing a day-long, procrastination-busting monthly retreat to Southsea, run by yours truly, Poppy O’Neill.
So, what exactly happens at a Writers’ HQ writing retreat?
Writing, and lots of it. New and experienced writers alike bring their projects, set a target word-count, then spend the day writing. Lunch, snacks and limitless caffeine are included and there are even gold stars for hitting your targets.
Co-founder of Writers HQ, Sarah Lewis told me, ‘We’ve been running writing retreats in Brighton for over five years and people have travelled from 200 miles away to attend.’
‘We launched Worthing Writers’ Retreat last year as a trial and it’s been hugely successful, so we started looking around for more places full of writers that needed an anti-procrastination butt-kick. Portsmouth very quickly showed up on our radar. There’s the highly active and excellent Portsmouth Writers’ Hub and more writing groups than most places.
‘We also really wanted to nab the fab Poppy O’Neill to run retreats for us and she happened to be close by, so it’s win win for all.”
I, the fab Poppy O’Neill referred to here, will be running the retreat at Friendship House on Elm Grove on Saturday 29th July, 10am-4pm. I’m a freelance author currently studying for an MA in creative writing at the University of Chichester.
I’ve been going to retreats for a while now and I find them useful for getting big chunks of writing or editing done. When the opportunity came up to run a retreat in Portsmouth I grabbed it with both hands. I’m really looking forward to bringing these unique events to a new venue and doing my bit to help local writers create some brilliant new writing.
If you’re interested in the Writers’ HQ, find out more and book your ticket over at their website.
Image by Philip Hugo Wurlitzer.
