Create your own masterpiece within a castle
Days include free time to roam the rolling acreage of Egelund, with one hour of scheduled workshop time in the evenings. Immerse yourself in a nurturing writing community led by two writing professionals, where activities are optional and three buffet-style organic meals are included in the price.
A typical day looks something like this:
- yoga in the a.m.
- breakfast
- writing/exploration on your own
- lunch
- writing/exploration on your own
- afternoon tea & snacks
- manuscript consultation with Anja & Shawna
- 1 hour group workshop/writing exercises/lessons in storytelling
- dinner
- writing/exploration on your own
Of course, all of this is optional.We stress that this is your retreat and if you prefer to write through lunch, take a day-trip, rent a kayak, skip yoga, or write late into the night, that’s all good! If you don’t want an individual manuscript consultation, that’s okay, too. We’ll send a survey to participants ahead of time to assess your needs and preferences.
Other points of interest while in the Danish capital might be Out of Africa author Karen Blixen’s estate, Hans Christian Andersen and Søren Kierkegaard’s respective gravesites, the Royal Danish Library and The Little Mermaid canal tour. These tours may be done on your own during your free time. See more information here.
For optimal attention to your work, retreat is limited to 17 participants. English is the primary language we use in our international workshops and retreats. Non-native English speakers are welcome to use this opportunity to polish magazine articles, book chapters, blog posts and other writing into perfect, publishable English. Other writing projects in Danish are more than welcome.
Shawna is American and a native English speaker. Anja is fluent in both Danish and English and able to offer feedback in either.
The content of workshops is curated to the needs of participants, but potential topics could include:
- Writing Personal Narratives
- Research & Creativity
- Finding Your Story
- Branding and Bios
- Metaphor, Simile, and Avoiding Cliches
- Scene, Summary & Dialogue
- Fiction, Creative Nonfiction & Journalism
- Playing with Structure
- Pitching for Publication
