As I hurtle towards a submission date of 16 December 2024, I took the opportunity to join an academic writing retreat last week. I knew I would need some extra concentration time to write my literature review chapter, and had experience of the brilliant Writers’ Retreat having spent some time at a creative writing weekend in the Lake District a few years ago.
Now they have leased a beautiful pub in Beal, Yorkshire to host all manner of writing and creative retreats, including a focused academic version. With a helpful discount for PhD students the all-inclusive price was worth every penny. There are seven rooms, all very comfortable with a desk and either ensuite or a private bathroom. Downstairs there are bright areas and tables at which to write, comfy old sofas, an open fire and a big dining room. All meals were included – cooked breakfast, lunch, afternoon tea and a two course dinner with wine. The location is ideal for writing; a small village close to the motorway so easy to get to, but with riverside and farmland walks on the doorstep. The Wi-Fi was good, I felt safe (there are locks on bedrooms, the front door and the car park were secured with gates at night) and we could turn our brains off from everything except writing. Coming together with peers at meal times and for breaks was wonderful, with a shared understanding of the pressures and joys of doing a doctoral degree.
I met my target and submitted my Literature Review to my supervisors the evening of last day, but after writing from 9am to 7pm five days straight I was exhausted. Thankfully a colleague was running a Zine-ing workshop the following day, and the headache I’d been nursing since I woke up disappeared with some creative cutting and sticking. Still not ready to write today, instead of a detailed account of my 6 days at the retreat and some website images I’ve used Canva to create a zine of memories; a different kind cutting and pasting. Take a look:
Sarah Alcock 