Session Registration for 2025 Retreat

The Element of Surprise: Experimenting with Structure and Point of View with Marian Calabro By playing with the structure and/or viewpoint of a piece, we can discover new and different things within it. This approach can also help with revision. I invite you to come to the session with a spirit of inventiveness and a chunk of your work that you’re willing to resculpt like a piece of clay. It may be a poem, a few paragraphs of prose, or a scene—no more than two typed pages in length. Using a series of prompts, we’ll add new dimensions to the material and, ideally, surprise ourselves and our readers

Generative AI: Friend or Foe to Writers? with Panel Panelists: Karen Rosenberg, Matthew Curlewis, Meadow Jones
This panel discussion will delve into the topic of Generative Artificial Intelligence and explore various views on how and when it can be leveraged as a tool for writers, and whether – and when – it may be a threat to our very existence.

How to Win the Submissions Game with Barbara Krasner From this workshop, participants can expect to recognize the importance of strategy to the submissions process, identify platforms and services that aid with submissions, determine whether their work is a fit in literary magazines alongside published pieces, and engage in literary community.

Designing a Workshop: How to Choose a Direction, Topic, and Audience with Joyce Cohen
(For AWA-certified Facilitators Only)Workshop participants will learn how to design a workshop: Get a clear idea about your workshop’s purpose and goals; Choose an engaging topic for your workshop; Determine your target audience; Develop your ideas in a supportive environment; Draft your workshop title and description; Leave with a formula for creating future workshops

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Spontaneous Poetry: An Intimate Way to Turn a Bit of Someone’s Story into a Poem with Kate Marshall FlahertyIn this interactive workshop, we will interview another person using AWA’s “deep listening”, scribble a few notes, and turn their own words into a meaningful poem. What a beautiful way to hear another person’s story and mirror it back to them in poetry. What a meaningful way to connect for a moment, value another’s voice, and value our own poetic voice. Absolutely no poetic experience necessary! Past participants have said, “It is empowering to listen to another person’s story and turn their words into a poem”— and “it’s moving to share a bit of our story and to hear our own words turned into a poem” and “This totally demystified poetry for me—totally fun!” There’s no way to do this wrong! Come and connect with another person’s story—and with your own poetic voice.

The Writing We Keep: Working with Old Notebooks and Generative Writing with Karen Rosenberg, Ph.D.This session offers a gentle, practical framework for engaging with our own archive of writing. We’ll explore approaches to reviewing old notebooks with discernment and compassion, identifying pieces with creative or personal potential, and deciding when to let go. Whether you’ve been journaling for decades or you’re simply wondering how to work with your freshly written words, this session will help you reconnect with the power in your own pages.

A Craft Book Treasury: Curated Selections from AWA Facilitators with Panel Panelists: Kelsey Andrews, Sarah Williams-Devereux, Carla Hanson, Susan Josephs, Hannah Kuhn, Kimberly Lee, and Susan Wingert
As writers and AWA facilitators, we want to add to our toolbox and find answers to our writing questions and quandaries. Craft books are an amazing resource for self-guided learning, discovering new writing prompts, and lively discussions at writing group book clubs. But with so many available, which ones are worth the investment? In this session, AWA facilitators share craft books that enhanced and transformed their writing practice. Selections explore fiction, creative non-fiction, and poetry. In smaller breakout rooms, we’ll try out a writing prompt inspired by one of the recommended books. This session will have you heading to your library or local bookstore for your next great read.

The Power of Story: Creating Workshops for Affinity Groups with Panel
(For AWA-Certified Facilitators Only)Panelists: Mary Simmerling, Meadow Jones, Sue Reynolds
Have you heard about AWA’s Power of Story Program? Conceived by AWA facilitator Sue Reynolds and launched in 2022, this innovative initiative leverages the transformational powers of writing and sharing stories in facilitated affinity gruops using the AWA method. Power of Story workshops are designed for specific groups of people who share similar life experiences and challenges. Some of our current groups include caregivers, teachers, survivors of gender-based and sexual violence, BIPOC writers, bereaved family members, and those living with chronic illness and invisible disabilities. The Power of Story program continues to grow, offering a variety of workshops and expanding opportunities. Join us to learn more about creating workshops for affinity groups, the latest updates on AWA’s Power of Story programming, and how you can get involved.

I won’t be able to attend this block, thanks for sharing the recordingsI won’t be able to attend this block, thanks for sharing the recordings

Writing as a Spiritual Practice: The Body with Aaron Zimmerman In this workshop, we will use chapter 12, The Body, from Pat Schneider’s book How The Light Gets In as a jumping off point. We will look at and discuss some of Pat’s thoughts on writing about the body, and write in response to a prompt based on this chapter. Reading the chapter in advance is recommended but not necessary.

An Honest Look at Starting a Substack with Leanne Shirtliffe
(For AWA-Certified Facilitators Only) Maybe you’ve thought about sharing your writing regularly, building a community, or offering paid subscriptions through your newsletter—all things the all-in-one platform Substack can do. But where do you begin? This session offers AWA facilitators a beginner-friendly look at launching and sustaining a Substack, an all-in-one blog, newsletter, and maybe even website. Drawing on three months of writing my Substack called Chasing Wonder (a short, humorous, personal-essay-style newsletter), I’ll share insights on choosing your focus or niche, what works, as well as setbacks and pitfalls. Through this, we’ll explore how (or if) this platform can support your creative and facilitation work. Whether you’re a curious observer, a one-day-soon planner, or already have a dusty Substack page begging for attention, you’ll leave with a clearer sense of whether or not Substack is right for you, what’s involved in shaping your newsletter’s identity, and some possible ideas for growing an audience in ways that feel authentic and manageable. We’ll also look at how some AWA facilitators use Substack creatively and explore a sample of their newsletters to showcase the platform’s range of styles and purposes.

Best Practices & Lessons Learned from Working with Trauma Survivors with Panel
(For AWA-Certified Facilitators Only)Panelists: Mary Simmerling, Ph.D., Meadow Jones, Ph.D., Karen Rosenberg, Ph.D.
Join AWA facilitators to explore best practices and lessons learned in leading workshops with survivors of trauma. Drawing on group therapy practices adapted for non-clinical use and combined with the AWA methodology, this session will share actionable strategies for creating safe, supportive spaces, as well as key cautions that may compromise individual or group safety.

I won’t be able to attend this block, thanks for sharing the recordings