A Writing on the Verge x Laura Khoudari retreat

This fall, deepen your writing practice, connect with your body, share space with other creative people, and immerse yourself in peak New England leaf-season at this new retreat. Group activities, interactive writing sessions, and gentle movement prompts will re/awaken your creativity. The beautiful setting and local food provide the perfect escape from everyday life – and it’s only a weekend, so even the busier among us should be able to find the time. 

We believe that when you come home to your body, you find your voice. So often, we live our lives as if we’re brains in jars. We end up writing that way, too. How can we write fictional characters who feel like they have actual lives off the page? How can we remember more deeply and more clearly when writing memoir? And what happens to our creative work when we connect with our physical bodies, when we tend to our bodies and consider them as part of our creative practice? 

This weekend, we're going to find out. Together.

Who this retreat is for:

We welcome writers of all genres and levels, and the writing-curious. We will be doing some simple movement you can do seated at your desk to connect more deeply with our bodies, and the writing will be in the form of generative exercises that can apply to a journaling practice as well as works of fiction or nonfiction. There will also be some time to free-write together in community. If you’re interested in creative expression and you have a physical body, this is for you! 

Location:

This retreat takes place in a private home in beautiful South Hadley, Massachusetts, in the famed Pioneer Valley.  Ample street parking is available and it is walking distance to the Village Commons which boasts restaurants, shopping, and a yoga studio as well as the famously gorgeous Mount Holyoke College campus.

About your retreat leaders:

Laura Khoudari and Amy Shearn are both queer women in midlife, whose work explores hunger, desires, and life upheavals of all kinds. 

Laura’s background as a trauma-informed personal trainer and coach informs her writing—from her book Lifting Heavy Things which has been recognized by The New York Times and NPR, to her personal essays on food and sexuality.

Amy is the author of 5 novels, most recently Animal Instinct, one of NPR's Best Books of 2025. She teaches creative writing classes in Brooklyn and online, including the cult-favorite Writing for Women on the Verge, and she writes a monthly newsletter called Writing on the Verge.

Join us for a cocktail/mocktail, light snacks, and a getting-to-know-you activity!

8:00 am: Yoga at a nearby studio. (Totally optional!)

10:00 am: The first of our generative writing sessions, during which we will practice bringing the body into our writing through gentle movement and the senses along with writing prompts

12:30 pm: Communal lunch at the retreat space

2:00 pm: The second of our generative writing sessions

4:30-6:30 pm: Free-write in community

9:00 am: Meet at the retreat space for apple cider donuts, coffee, and tea

10:00 am: Journaling activity

11:00 am: A session to share our work