Retreat,
Yourself
write.
Join a growing community of writers doing the hard work of writing alone, together.
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Writing alone is hard. Writing alone, together, is somehow easier.
Chapter One
The Idea
Writing is solitary, even lonely, work. Sometimes, the thing we need in order to focus is to get away.
Finding time—and resources—for a writing retreat isn’t always easy. That’s where Retreat, Yourself comes in.
We plan the time and place for you. All you have to do is show up and do the work.
If you’re in the Bay Area, you are invited to join us for one of our free, twice-monthly library crawls. These are no-pressure, dedicated writing hours. No teaching, no critique, no pitch. You bring your project; the room brings the momentum; the community brings the accountability.
Chapter Two
The Crawls
Library Crawls are the heart of Retreat, Yourself. Crawls are held at a different, beautiful Bay Area library twice per month, and are always free.
Each 4-hour crawl is whatever you need it to be—but we offer a light structure.
GATHER (15 min) — We open with a short read-aloud and say hello.
THE LUDDITE HOUR (60 min) — Phones away. Longhand or wifi off. One hour of honest work.
BREAK — Stretch, browse the stacks, compare notes.
OPEN WRITING — Keep going at your own pace, any format you like.
SCATTER — Stay for library extras or drift off when you’re done. Nothing is mandatory.
Chapter Three
The Luddite Hour
You know how it goes.
You sit down to write. But first, you should respond to one email… Oh, and you need to check on the order you placed… While you’re at it, you should pop onto social media to see how that last post is doing…And, oops, look—your person just texted. Better reply really quick…
Suddenly, an hour is gone and you haven’t written a word.
The Luddite Hour is a founding principle of Retreat, Yourself because we know how easy it is to lose writing time to distraction.
Each Library Crawl includes the Luddite Hour. One hour. No phone. No wifi. Just you, the page, and a room full of people keeping you honest. We put it on the calendar so you don’t have to make excuses.
Chapter Four
The Schedule
Library Crawls happen twice a month—one weekday and one weekend day. See our full crawl schedule or subscribe to our calendar below.
Chapter Five
The Future
The crawls are just the beginning. Regular write-ins, craft conversations, an online community, and in-person getaways are on the horizon. Join the newsletter and you'll be the first to know what’s coming.