Courses/Retreats

‘Late February days; and now at last, Might you have thought that Winter’s woe was past; So fair the sky was and so soft the air.’ (William Morris)   Lose that winter woe on an untutored retreat. Enjoy the space to write, free from domestic distractions and fuelled by outstanding food.

In this course, we’ll be experimenting with time, thinking of poetry as a way of reaching memories of childhood, school and loved ones and thinking about the excitement of managing different time frames within a poem, ways of generating the whoosh that can happen when a poem jumps about in time.

It is said that March ‘comes in like a lion, out a lamb.’ Whether wintry or vernal, enjoy the space to write, free from domestic distractions and fuelled by outstanding food.

Drawing on place and memory, this course will help you to find, voice and shape the story that compels you to write. Short-form or long, this could be memoir, nature, travel or another non-fiction focus awaiting illumination.

Come to Garsdale in April, ‘Of spring and summer months the queen.’ (Clare) and enjoy the space to write, free from domestic distractions and fuelled by outstanding food.

This tutored retreat is designed for writers to work intensively with a focus on individual sessions to help them develop their work. It includes one 90 minute group workshop and one 30 minute individual tutorial each day, Tuesday - Friday with a group introductory workshop on the Monday.

‘Summer’s lease has all too short a date.’ So take advantage of a June untutored retreat. Let your writing blossom now summer is here with its seasonal influx of house martins, curlews, lapwings and oyster catchers. Enjoy the space to write, free from domestic distractions and fuelled by outstanding food.

This fiction writing course is suitable for writers of all levels and will be helpful whether you arrive at Garsdale with a blank page or with a project on which you have already started work.

‘July, with its days of blue skies and time that seemingly stands still, holds a special place in my heart.’ (Daisaku Ikeda)   Spend days of blue skies at an untutored retreat in the special place of the Yorkshire dales where peace and beauty will inspire your writing. Being freed from domestic chores and enjoying delicious food will enhance this heartfelt and creative experience.

Whether you’re new to poetry or have been writing for many years, this course aims to help you develop your skills within a safe and supportive environment. We will explore the craft and mystery of poetry, its many devices: image, metre, rhyme, lineation … and how an awareness of both traditional forms and free verse can influence the choices we make as a poem evolves.