January 24, 2023–Arts Etc.
A Summer Writers' Retreat: Online With Guardian Masterclasses
Louise Doughty, author photo Photograph: Max KennedyThis summer is for you: the writer. The writer you currently are, and the one you aspire to be. Whether you've written a full novel draft or you're just about to embark on your creative journey, whether your ideas are buzzing around your brain, or your work-in-progress has been locked inside a drawer, maybe, just maybe, it's time to sharpen your pencil and bring your work into the light.
Tim Lott, author photo Photograph: Tim LottOur popular online creative retreat has returned. With brand-new content, and more expert-led workshops, writing surgeries, and space to hone your craft than before, our retreat is better than ever. Join writers Diana Evans, Ross Raisin, Natasha Pulley, Tim Lott, Maame Blue, Shelley Weiner and more – including extra-special guest Louise Doughty – for three weeks of committed creative time.
Shelley Weiner, author photo Photograph: Urszula SoltysOur invigorating programme has been carefully crafted to enhance your writing, and balances masterclasses with community writing time, so you can stay on track with your projects and connect with others, while also getting words on the page, editing with confidence, and reading critically. If it's a writing community you're seeking, our regular writing room sessions and our online writing community will give you the opportunity to work on your projects in the company of others.
Crucially, you can follow this retreat at a pace that suits you. Our masterclasses, writing workouts, surgeries and salons are all recorded, which means you can watch and rewatch until the end of August. And, this year, we're giving you the opportunity to book a single week of the retreat or, if you enrol by Monday 17 July, you'll get all three weeks for the price of two.
This course is for …Writers of all levels, at any stage in their creative journey
Writers of all genres and forms (please note that this programme will focus on fiction-writing, but that the skills are transferable to all forms of writing)
A summer writers' retreat: Week one
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Week oneMonday 24 JulyWriting workout workshop with Natasha Pulley, 8am-8.45am BSTWriters' Salon: How to get the most from your retreat experience, 6pm-6.45pm BST
Tuesday 25 JulyWriting room: Drop-in online writing day, 10am-4pm BSTMasterclass: Exploring character with Diana Evans, 6.30pm-8pm BST
Wednesday 26 JulyRoss Raisin's writing surgery, 1pm-2pm BSTTim Lott's writers' workshop, 6.30pm-8pm BST
Sunday 30 JulyMaame Blue writing workshop: The driving force of desire, 11am-12pm BSTWriters' salon: An informal celebration of the week, 6pm-6.45pm BST
A summer writers' retreat: Week two
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Week twoMonday 31 JulyWriting workout workshop with Natasha Pulley, 8am-8.45am BSTShelley Weiner's writing surgery, 6pm-7pm BST
Tuesday 1 AugustWriting room, 10am-4pm BSTMasterclass: Picture perfect with Ross Raisin, 6pm-8pm BST
Wednesday 2 AugustRoss Raisin's writing surgery, 1pm-2pm BSTTim Lott writers' workshop: A supportive feedback session, 6.30pm-8pm BST
Sunday 6 AugustMaame Blue writing workshop: The driving force of desire, 11am-12pm BSTWriters' salon: An informal celebration of the week, 6pm-6.45pm BST
A summer writers' retreat: Week three
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Week threeWednesday 9 AugustWriting surgery, 1pm-2pm BSTTim Lott writers' workshop: A supportive feedback session, 6.30pm-8pm BST
Sunday 13 AugustMaame Blue writing workshop: The driving force of desire, 11am-12pm BSTWriters' Salon: Wrap party, 6pm-7pm BST
Please note that while we will endeavour to feature all elements of our masterclasses as advertised, due to the volume of classes in this event, we may be required to replace a speaker if necessary.
Catch up recordings of masterclasses and workshops available until 31 August 2023
DetailsDates:
Week one: Monday 24 July – Sunday 30 July 2023
Week two: Monday 31 July – Sunday 6 August 2023
Week three: Monday 7 August – Sunday 13 August 2023
Price: £199 (plus £7.80 booking fee) per week of the retreat; or £597 for all three weeks of the retreat (plus £7.80 booking fee)
This masterclass is available globally. See this time zone converter to check your local live streaming time.
6pm BST7pm CEST10am PDT1pm EDT
You will be sent a link to the webinar 24 hours and 30 minutes before the course start time. Please email masterclasses@theguardian.Com if you do not receive the access link 24 hours before the scheduled start time.
Guardian Masterclasses and Live newsletter
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Learnings From A Summer Of Columns
Writing has always held a sentimental space in my heart — a creative outlet through which I translated my thoughts and emotions onto paper. Whenever I sat to write, I drifted off into the worlds my words created and found a sense of solace and comfort in the familiarity of my own voice.
However, being a columnist this summer has unearthed a new level of therapy; soup for the soul, if you will. The columns I wrote reminded me to see the world as more than just something to gaze at in awe, but something worth documenting. They reminded me that my stories and opinions were not just to be confined to my Notes app or my shower podcasts (where I play the role of host and audience). There was a space for them to be heard and shared, with the hopes that they resonated with those they reached. More importantly, it has taught me there was so much I had yet to learn — in writing and in the world around me.
Being a writer has taught me the art of allowing my work to assert its independence while being open to change. It's about leaving your thoughts vulnerable on the page, letting words flow from your heart, through your fingertips and onto the canvas, open to being poked, prodded and delicately pulled apart. But the true beauty of writing does not just lie in this unfiltered expression, but also in the acceptance of suggestions and the eagerness to integrate them into your work.
In doing so, I learned not to take critiques of my work as a critique of my character. Although seeing my work as a mosaic of colors and Google Doc edits initially sent a jolt down my spine, I grew to understand that every comment of "this isn't quite working", "what's your main message here?" or even the occasional, piercing "?" was not directed towards my ability, but rather, towards the realization of my work's potential. Writing and editing taught me that my drafts were the raw clay from which my true vulnerability emerged, requiring nothing more than the patience to nurture it.
That being said, although I have found grace in the writing process, I have also learned things are rarely ever perfect and it is important to learn to recognize when they are good. For a perfectionist like myself, the path to satisfaction was incredibly difficult (if not impossible). I constantly found myself looking for another way to rephrase, or for sections to remove, undercutting the creative freedom that came with writing. Eventually, I would come to realize that despite the number of edits, reruns and suggestions it would take, chasing perfection is so unrealistic (and overrated anyways). Most times, my work will be just good — and that is enough.
Oddly though, there are times my writing feels like it does not even reach "enough." It feels like I have not captured all I needed to say or encapsulated all my feelings on the page. Writing has since taught me though, that the only way to get out of the slump of not knowing what to write, is to simply write what I know and let the words take me from there.
Writing is always punctuated by moments of frustration, where words seem just beyond reach. It's about wrestling with thoughts, struggling and turning them until the right words materialize — sometimes in the most unexpected moments, like during a steam-filled shower, amid the chatter of fellow passengers or in the silence of a pitch-black night. In these instances, it's about waiting for the right words to find you and guide you on what to say.
On occasion, writing has taught me the art of expressing myself, and at other times, knowing when to let silence speak for me. Following critiques of my columns that often dissected and overhauled what I said, I was presented with both a reminder and a choice: a reminder that my contact details at the bottom of my columns were not just a cutesy tagline, but a means for people to reach out to me, and choice on how to respond. Initially, I was eager to return the comments with witty comebacks and comic rebuttals — an ode to my debate days in high school. However, as I continued to write, I chose to retreat from this, adopting a more "I said what I said" stance and trusting the authenticity of my words. I let my writing "do the talking" — both literally and figuratively — and learned to stand right by it.
Through writing, I also relearned my love for reading and finding inspiration from other authors' works. It's late-night reading sessions, illuminated by the glow of my phone screen, scrolling through articles from my peers well past midnight, that taught me to see how truly beautiful reading and writing could be. Despite waking up to tired eyes and growing eye bags, I grew increasingly captivated by the creative genius of those around me, and only hoped to emulate that through my own work.
To write, I learned, is to see stories at every level: to see comparisons, connections and coincidences coinciding. It is noticing patterns, whether apparent or conceived, that were littered in the world around me. Doing so enables me to look beyond surface-level appearances — a couple's shared laughter on a bus, having just found their housing application has been approved (in Ann Arbor's egregious housing market, no less); a toddler chasing after a passing squirrel after just taking his first steps just weeks prior; a waitress tucking her hair back and sighing, as she trudges through her eighth hour on her current shift — each one holding a story just waiting to be unveiled.
When people often ask me what inspires me to write, the question always baffles me. It may be easier to ask "What is not an inspiration?" I write about the world around me in its entirety and about life's fleeting moments— the indescribable, the infinitesimal and everything in between. How else could I describe the feeling of freshly-dried laundry on my skin, the tenderness of a duvet on a frosty winter evening, a lilac sunset or an auburn sunrise? How else am I to relive the feeling of listening to a choir's harmonies melt into each other, curating the Pinterest board that speaks to your soul or putting on your headphones to escape into your world of your own, if not through my words?
It is my writing that allows me to capture those feelings and embalm them beneath printed words. So as long as I am alive and continue to feel, I will continue to write. Thank you MiC for helping me find my way here.
Signing out for the summer.
With love,
Ayeyi A.
MiC Columnist Ayeyi Asamoah-Manu can be reached at ayeyiyp@umich.Edu.
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Young Post Announcements: Summer Break And Our New Creative Writing Competition
As the summer holiday approaches, we wanted to give a big shout-out to all of you and say thanks for another awesome year together. We hope you've enjoyed reading our school edition every Monday and found it both informative and fun.
We know you might be bummed to hear that our 24-page school edition is taking a short break until September 4, but don't worry: you can still grab our 8-page edition every Sunday. It comes with the South China Morning Post and is sold at news-stands across the city. You'll be happy to know that our super popular Top 10 weekly questions will still be up and running, so we'll continue searching for the most interesting responses from students every week. Please write to us to show off your writing skills and creativity.
The best part is we'll still be bringing you daily updates and exciting activities throughout the summer on the Young Post website, so you can keep up with all the latest news, trends, and events while enjoying your well-deserved break.
We hope you have an amazing and safe summer holiday. We cannot wait to see you again in September – we have a few surprises ready for you!
If you want to take a peek at what the upgraded Young Post will look like in September and how to subscribe, check it out here.
Cheers,
Emily Tsang, Young Post Editor
An actual photo of the Young Post staff enjoying their break. Photo: Shutterstock
Introducing our new game page, Write to Win – join us and win big prizes!
Are you ready for a new writing challenge? We've got just the thing for you with our exciting new game page, Write to Win!
Formerly known as Brain Game, Write to Win is getting a makeover for next year. We're looking for 10 talented contestants who can answer a question creatively each week. Once you join the game, you'll be assigned an avatar to keep things anonymous until we have a winner.
And the best part? We have some incredible prizes for our winners!
We're recruiting 10 candidates each season, so sign up by filling out the form by August 18 and get ready for the first round in September. This is your chance to showcase your writing skills, have some fun, and maybe even win big.
We can't wait to see what you come up with!
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