This 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.
Stimulating exercises will help you keep your writing muscle flexed and writing prompts each day will show you how to develop scene, character and plot. There will be opportunity to share work in progress as well as one-to-one advice about how to develop your material.
By the end of the week you will be equipped with skills and techniques to help you take your writing further and you will have the support of fellow writers to encourage you on your writing journey.
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Tutor: Hannah Vincent – Novelist/Playwright Hannah Vincent is a novelist, short story writer and playwright. Her first novel, Alarm Girl was published in 2014 and her second, The Weaning in 2018. Her 2020 short story collection, She-Clown and Other Stories was shortlisted for the Edge Hill Prize. Her stage plays have been produced by among others, The Royal Court Theatre and The Royal National Theatre Studio and her radio play Come to Grief won a BBC Audio award. Hannah teaches Creative Writing on The Open University’s MA programme and on The Creative Writing Programme in Brighton. She holds a PhD in Creative and Critical writing from The University of Sussex and is an Advisory Fellow for the Royal Literary Fund. |
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Wednesday Evening Guest Reader: Sally O’Reilly Sally O’Reilly is an award-winning writer and novelist. Her novels have been published by Penguin, Myriad Editions and Picador US, and her short stories have been published in South Africa, Australia and the UK. Her novel Dark Aemilia was published by Myriad Editions/Picador US and her latest novel Hagtale – A Macbeth Origin Story was published by Scribe UK in November 2025. She has a PhD in English and Creative Writing from Brunel University, and has worked as a senior creative writing lecturer for the University of Portsmouth and The Open University, where she supervised three PhD novels to completion and was a lead member of the team which produced a new MA in Creative Writing. Her journalism has been published in the Guardian, Sunday Times and New Scientist and she has written about the climate crisis for Writers Rebel. |
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| PRICES |
Fee includes all day and evening tutored workshop sessions, individual tutorials, tutor and guest readings, accommodation, inc. sheets and towels and all meals (not including alcohol). Single – En-suite room £1,150 |
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| TO BOOK |
£200 deposit payable on booking by bank transfer, PayPal or cheque, to secure place. Balance due six weeks before the start of the course. Please see Terms and Conditions. |
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| STRUCTURE OF THE WEEK | See Structure of the Week (tab above) | |||||
| WHAT TO BRING |
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| START TIME |
Please arrive between 3:00pm and 4:00pm on Monday 7th September 2026 Tea, cake and housekeeping information 4.30pm Introductory Workshop 5.30 – 6.30pm |
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| END TIME |
After breakfast, 10:00am on Saturday 12th September 2026 |
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| LOCATION | The Garsdale Retreat, Clough View, Garsdale Head, Sedbergh, Cumbria LA10 5PW Nearest railway station: Garsdale, on the Leeds – Carlisle line. For directions, see Find Us section on the Contact page. |
All courses start on Monday afternoon.
3.00 – 4.00pm: Arrival time
4.30pm: Housekeeping/Course information with tea and cake
5.30 – 6.30pm: Introductory workshop
7.00pm: Dinner
All courses end after breakfast on Saturday (10.00am).
Course Structure Tuesday – Friday
8.00 – 9.00am: Breakfast
9.30 – 11.00am: First workshop – Participants explore particular aspects of novel writing and take part in writing exercises to further their understanding and expertise. All participants have opportunities to share their work with the tutor and fellow writers in a safe, supportive and nurturing environment in which individual work is respected and confidence developed.
11.00 – 11.30am: Coffee break
11.30am – 1.00pm: Second workshop
1.00pm Lunch. After lunch, participants are free to do whatever they like, such as: relax, go for walks, read or work on individual writing projects.
4.30pm: Tea and cake
5.30 – 6.30pm: Third workshop
7.00pm: Dinner
All participants on a course have one individual tutorial of 30 minutes with the tutor in the course of the week. These will take place in the afternoons.
Each evening, at 8.30pm – c.9.30pm, there is an after-dinner event:
Tuesday – the tutor will read from their work.
Wednesday – poetry/music performance from Hamish and Rebecca.
Thursday – reading from a guest writer.
Friday – a shared reading of the ‘work-in-progress’ anthology produced during the week.
